The Unexpected Schools Championing the Liberal Arts
November 9th, 2015Last week we spoke about business schools bringing liberal arts into their education programs in significant ways. This week we share an article authored by Jon Marcus, which calls attention to another group of unexpected programs that are adding the importance of humanities into their education model. Marcus explores how teaching students to think critically, reason analytically, and express thoughts coherently, mixed with career training, provides a potent recipe for success. Whether heading to a military command post, a responsible position in business, or management of a kitchen, all of these abilities come to bear.
Article Published October 15, 2015
Written by: Jon Marcus
WEST POINT, N.Y.—Christian Nattiel rattles off the way his course of studies has prepared him for his prestigious role as a company commander in charge of 120 fellow cadets at the U.S. Military Academy.
Nattiel, of Dade City, Florida, isn’t focusing at West Point on military science, or strategy, or leadership. He’s majoring in philosophy.
Read more at The Atlantic >>Tagged: Choices, College, Liberal arts, Opportunity, Personal characteristics
Business Schools Give Undergraduate Programs a Liberal Arts Twist
November 2nd, 2015Many business schools are taking a new approach in preparing their students for the future, and this idea is gaining traction across the country. Not only do these colleges want to prepare students for their future in the world of business, but the goal is to broaden their learning and deepen their understanding of the larger world around them. These schools believe that improving social skills and critical thinking along with the basics of business school will help students set themselves apart when seeking employment at the end of their college education.
Many corporate CEOs have undergraduate degrees from liberal arts colleges, validating this movement among business schools today. Writer Cathy Gandel does a thorough job in this article, identifying what specific schools are doing to improve their business school model for maximum impact in today’s society.
Article Published September 9, 2015
Written by: Cathy Gandel
It used to be that the typical undergraduate business school program stuck pretty closely to a narrow curriculum heavily weighted in management, sales and finance, or “learning how to do business,” says Jim Otteson, executive director of the BB&T Center for the Study of Capitalism at Wake Forest University in North Carolina.
Many schools still do stick to that script. But beyond making sure future moguls leave with all the necessary nuts and bolts, there’s a movement gaining ground to equip them with a much broader skill set and the bigger picture.
Read more at US News >>Tagged: Career, College, Liberal arts, Opportunity, Personal characteristics
To Save or Not to Save, That is the Question
October 26th, 2015Will saving for college affect a family’s ability to receive financial aid for their child’s college education?
According to Ron Lieber, a writer for the New York Times, the greater benefit comes with saving. Consciously diverting money away from college savings plans out of fear it will limit your ability to collect financial aid is not a sound investment strategy. In this article, Lieber breaks down the process for applying and receiving financial assistance and explains how the government looks at household income/savings in relation to aid distribution.
Article Published October 23, 2015
Written by: Ron Lieber
You should save money for college expenses if you possibly can. And if you’re worried about how that savings might hurt your child’s financial aid eligibility, then you’re thinking about it wrong.
That ought to go without saying, but there is a persistent and mostly mistaken belief that goes something like this: If we save, the colleges will just take it. And if we don’t, we will qualify for more help.
Read more at NY Times >>Tagged: College, Debt, Financial aid
Is Need-blind Admission Honorable?
October 20th, 2015The need-blind admission policy has long been considered the gold standard for selective universities, as this approach means that a college or university will look solely at a student’s talents without regard for their ability to pay for college tuition. But is this sufficient to diversify student populations socioeconomically?
Adam Falk, president of Williams College in Massachusetts, offers a different viewpoint on what need-blind means to the Williams community: he feels it’s the wrong ideal to target, as it may leave many outstanding students unidentified.
At Shrop Ed, we continue to believe that a need-blind approach is both equitable and desirable. We also believe, as President Falk suggests, that colleges should reach intentionally across the socioeconomic spectrum to identify talent, and fund appropriate students according to their need.
Click on the article link below to find out why President Falk believes that need-blind admission is a “narrow and misleading construct.” Then let us know what you think.
Article Published October 12, 2015
Written by: Nick Anderson
Prominent colleges are debating how to recruit and enroll more students from low-income families. That led recently to the emergence of a coalition of more than 80 big-name schools that wants to create a new application process with a stated goal of finding disadvantaged students with academic talent.
Read more at The Washington Post >>Tagged: College, Financial aid
