Admissions representatives from several universities shared highlights of what’s new at their institutions at the NJACAC fall kickoff.
The Rider representative talked about:
- Special activities to commemorate the college’s 150th anniversary, including a gala, special performances, the breaking of a Guinness world record for the longest string of cranberries.
- The Westminster Choir College getting a new building.
- Sports management being offered as a new co-major.
- The Musical Theater degree becoming a Bachelors in Fine Arts, requiring an application by January 1.
- The current college president retiring on June 30th and the search for a replacement.
The Rutgers representative spoke of:
- The opening of the Residential Honors College housing for 500 students and faculty in September 2015.
- Mason Gross having a new digital film making major starting in 2015.
- Rutgers planning for a 2016 celebration of their 250th anniversary.
Lehigh:
- Will be celebrating their 150thanniversary in 2015 with a Lehigh vs. Lafayette football game in Yankee Stadium.
- Has purchased two Bethlehem Steel buildings and turned them into research space.
- Has a new college president who came from the University of Virginia.
- Is in the midst of a one billion dollar capital campaign.
NYU:
· Has fully integrated the engineering school into the university. Has new majors including Design and Performance Study, and an interdisciplinary Business and Film/TV.
· Is looking for a new president.
TCNJ:
· Is building a Campus Town Center which will open in August. It will have a first floor with Panera,Starbucks, Barnes & Noble, and a pizza place, and a second floor housing 430 TCNJ students.
· Has a new STEM facility housing natural sciences, engineering and mathematics.
· Will be switching to a 4-1-4 schedule to encourage a higher 4-year graduation rate and to give more students the opportunity to study abroad.
· Will require students to complete the CSS PROFILE in order to get financial aid. They expect this will enable them to give more aid to students whose families make between $75K and $150K per year.
The Rowan representative spoke of:
- Bringing in five companies, including Lockheed Martin, on property Rowan owns next to the college campus so students can do research and work with those companies.
- Two new med schools and the integration of medical studies with arts, business, and STEM. Students can get accepted into medical school right after high school; the med schools are focusing on community/family medicine.
- The freshman class being 40% bigger than last year.
- Rowan focusing on improving their graduation rate and having a goal to reach a 90% graduation rate.