Table of Contents

Class of 2024 Profile

Profile of the Class of 2024, Registered and Settled Through Fall 2020 Final (Official Mid-Semester)

Total Number of Entering Students, Fall 2020: 1,695

Male 37.1% (628)
Female 62.9% (1,067)

Top 10 Programs/Majors

Undeclared 304
Biology 178
Psychology 159
Economics 108
Computer Science 108
Biology-Cell/Molecular/Genetics 77
Political Science 75
Pardee – International Relations 74
Neuroscience 52
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology 50

Academic Accomplishment

CREDENTIALS AVERAGE MIDDLE 50%
SAT RW 681 670–780
SAT Math 720 640–720
SAT Composite (1600) 1401 1340–1460
ACT Composite 31 30–34
High School Rank in Class 90.7
High School GPA 3.76
RANK IN CLASS
Top 5% 45.9%
Top 10% 66.3%
Top 20% 86.7%
Top 30% 95.6%
Top 50% 100%

The Class of 2024 demonstrates a wide range of diversity; a quarter of the class identifies as international.

ETHNICITY NUMBER % OF CLASS
Black or African American 72 4.2%
Hispanic or Latino 193 11.4%
American Indian or Alaska Native 0 0.0%
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander 0 0.0%
Asian 344 20.3%
White 581 34.3%
Two or More Races 96 5.7%
Race/Ethnicity Unknown 55 3.2%
Nonresident Alien 354 20.9%
TOTAL 1,695 100.0%

Geography

Most domestic students who entered in Fall 2020 are from the Northeast and the Mid-Atlantic area, with Massachusetts, New York, and California making up the top three. The largest contingent of international students is from the People’s Republic of China (including Hong Kong), with 256 freshmen.

GEOGRAPHY
# of states 44
% from out of state 84.4%
TOP STATES
Massachusetts 264
New York 225
New Jersey 140
California 128
Pennsylvania 64
Connecticut 59
Florida 58
Texas 46
Maryland 40
Illinois 34
Other states, D.C. 257
Territories, APO 3
Foreign address 377
Territories represented PR, VI
State(s) not represented DE, KY, MS, ND, NE, SD
REGION
New England 21.7%
Mid-Atlantic 27.8%
Midwest 6.0%
South 8.2%
Southwest 3.3%
West 1.2%
Pacific 9.4%
Other 22.4%

The majority of entering international students in Fall 2020 came from Asia, with the greatest number coming from China.

GEOGRAPHY
51 countries
TOP COUNTRIES BY CITIZENSHIP
China (incl. Hong Kong) 198
India 30
Republic of Korea 19
Canada 12
Saudi Arabia 10
Taiwan, R.O.C. 8
Indonesia 7
Turkey 6

First-Year Student Enrollment

The table below shows the intended majors of first-year students who matriculated at CAS in fall 2019 and fall 2020.

Intended Majors

Program/Major 2019 2020
Accelerated Medical 20 24
American Studies 2 1
Ancient Greek & Latin 0 1
Anthropology & Religion 1 0
Anthropology 12 12
Archaeology 1 0
Architecture 5 5
Asian Studies 6 3
Astronomy 2 7
Astronomy & Physics 26 14
Biology–Cell Biology, Molecular Biology & Genetics 77 77
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology 50 52
Biochemistry 1 0
Biology 177 178
Biology–Behavioral Biology 12 16
Biology–Conservation Biology 9 10
Biology–Neurobiology 31 35
Chemistry 34 24
Chemistry: Biochemistry 24 19
Chinese Language & Literature 0 3
Cinema & Media Studies 4 0
Classics & Philosophy 2 3
Classics & Religion 1 1
Classics/Archaeology 0 3
Comparative Literature 0 3
Computer Science 128 108
Earth & Environmental Sciences 20 15
Economics 111 108
Economics & Mathematics 28 22
English 23 22
Environmental Analysis & Policy 9 15
European Studies 2 1
French Studies 0 2
Geophysics & Planetary Sciences 0 1
Hispanic Language & Literatures 1 0
History of Art & Architecture 8 6
History 23 11
International Relations 80 74
Japanese Language & Literature 1 0
Japanese & Linguistics 0 1
Latin 2 1
Latin American Studies 2 1
Latin Language & Literature 0 1
Linguistics and Speech, Language & Hearing Sciences 0 1
Linguistics 8 6
Linguistics & Philosophy 0 1
Linguistics/Computer Science 0 1
Marine Science 17 31
Mathematics & Computer Science 13 15
Mathematics & Mathematics Education 1 5
Mathematics & Philosophy 1 3
Mathematics 59 34
Middle East & North Africa Studies 4 0
Neuroscience 66 52
Philosophy 6 3
Philosophy & Physics 1 2
Philosophy & Political Science 8 20
Philosophy & Psychology 8 10
Philosophy & Neuroscience 6 14
Physics 30 31
Political Science 64 75
Premedical 3 0
Psychology 125 159
Russian Language & Literature 1 0
Sociology 25 28
Spanish & Linguistics 0 3
Statistics/Computer Science 0 17
Undecided 360 304
Total 1,741 1,695

Enrollments & Bachelor’s Degrees Awarded AY 2020/2021

The table below lists the number of enrolled students in each CAS major and the total number of degrees awarded in each major during academic year 2020/21.

Major Fall 2020 Enrolled Students Degrees Awarded (AY 2021)
American Studies 8 3
Ancient Greek & Latin 2 1
Anthropology 57 21
Anthropology & Religion 3 1
Approved Deferral 498 0
Archaeology 24 7
Architectural Studies 39 12
Asian Studies 8 6
Astronomy 8 1
Astronomy & Physics 48 10
Biology–Cell Biology, Molecular Biology & Genetics 320 66
Biology with Specialization in Behavioral Biology 54 15
Biology–Ecology & Conservation Biology 54 14
Biology–Neurobiology 100 29
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology 259 59
Biology 521 95
Chemistry 92 22
Chemistry–Biochemistry 42 8
Chinese Language & Literature 9 1
Cinema & Media Studies 11 4
Classical Civilization 6 1
Classics & Philosophy 4 0
Classics & Archaeology 4 1
Comparative Literature 8 3
Computer Science 796 176
Earth & Environmental Science 73 18
Economics 790 251
Economics & Math 199 45
English 158 62
Environmental Analysis & Policy 90 18
European Studies 5 3
French & Linguistics 1 1
French Studies 5 3
Geophysics & Planetary Sciences 1 0
History 109 33
History of Art & Architecture 41 11
Independent Concentration 4 2
International Relations 611 213
Italian Language & Literature 1 0
Italian Studies 1 1
Italian & Linguistics 1 0
Japanese Language & Literature 11 6
Japanese & Linguistics 3 0
Latin 2 0
Latin American Studies 5 1
Latin Language & Literature 1 0
Linguistics & Philosophy 2 1
Linguistics 42 14
Linguistics & Computer Science 17 2
Linguistics and Speech, Language & Hearing Sciences 4 2
Marine Science 87 19
Mathematics & Philosophy 6 2
Mathematics & Mathematics Education 4 1
Mathematics & Computer Science 104 10
Mathematics 309 93
Medical Science 74 19
Middle East & North Africa Studies 4 1
Music 1
Neuroscience 377 95
No Major 3
Philosophy & Political Science 50 13
Philosophy & Psychology 27 4
Philosophy 46 17
Philosophy & Physics 6 1
Philosophy & Religion 1 0
Philosophy & Neuroscience 28 6
Physics 102 17
Political Science 427 124
Predental Science 1 0
Psychology 812 220
Religion 2 1
Russian Language & Literature 1 0
Sociology 121 40
Spanish 3 2
Spanish & Linguistics 5 0
Statistics & Computer Science 67 5
Total 7,819 1,934

Postgraduation Destination Profile CAS Class of 2020

BU surveys its undergraduate degree recipients each year to learn about paths taken following graduation, including employment, graduate school, military service, and volunteer or service activities. View the PDF.

Strengthening Graduate Education

Fall 2020 GRS Master’s (MA/MFA/MS) – Admissions

The following table lists fall 2020 admissions statistics for MA/MFA/MS programs.

Program/Major # Applications # Admits % Admitted # Accepted Offers # Enrolled
African American Studies 3 1 33% 0 0
Applied Anthropology 3 3 100% 0 0
Archaeology 18 9 50% 1 1
Artificial Intelligence 335 157 47% 31 31
Biology 227 59 26% 15 15
Biostatistics 146 99 68% 12 12
Chemistry 1 1 100% 0 0
Classical Studies 5 3 60% 1 1
Computer Science–Cyber Security 89 23 26% 0 0
Computer Science–Data-Centric Computing 197 53 27% 6 5
Computer Science 1,495 448 30% 47 47
Creative Writing 719 19 3% 18 18
Earth & Environment 1 1 100% 1 0
Economic Policy 126 94 75% 5 5
Economics 920 741 81% 54 53
Energy & Environment 46 41 89% 12 12
English 55 25 45% 1 1
French Language & Literature 4 0 0% 0 0
Global Development Economics 93 57 61% 4 4
Hispanic Language & Literature 2 0 0% 0 0
History 27 1 4% 0 0
History of Art & Architecture 61 43 70% 8 8
Linguistics 47 26 55% 6 6
Literary Translation 11 9 82% 6 6
Mathematics 38 10 26% 1 1
Molecular Biology, Cell Biology & Biochemistry 84 5 6% 0 0
Philosophy 29 0 0% 0 0
Playwriting 56 6 11% 5 5
Preservation Studies 19 17 89% 4 4
Psychology 316 161 51% 27 27
Remote Sensing & Geospatial Sciences 34 29 85% 8 8
Sociology 31 15 48% 1 1
Statistical Practice 471 327 69% 53 51
Statistics 351 119 34% 8 8
Pardee – Global Policy 57 43 75% 5 5
Pardee – International Relations 37 26 70% 1 1
Pardee – International Affairs 204 167 82% 26 24
Pardee – Latin American Studies 20 16 80% 1 1
Total 6,378 2,854 368 361

2020/21 Master’s (including Bioinformatics): Enrollment and Graduates

Primary Major Total Enrollment Fall 2020 AY 2020/21 Graduates
African American Studies 1 0
American & New England Studies 0 3
Anthropology 0 1
Applied Anthropology 1 1
Applied Linguistics 1 1
Archaeology 5 5
Artificial Intelligence 59 24
Astronomy 0 1
Bioinformatics 62 34
Biology 26 26
Biostatistics 20 10
Biotechnology 0 14
Chemistry 0 9
Classical Studies 1 1
Computer Science–Cyber Security 2 2
Computer Science–Data-Centric Computing 13 6
Computer Science 99 84
Creative Writing 27 18
Earth & Environment 1 1
Economic Policy 13 10
Economics 87 128
Energy & Environment 16 11
English 2 12
Global Development Economics 10 6
Hispanic Language & Literatures 0 2
History 0 3
History of Art & Architecture 11 2
International Relations & International Communication 1 1
Linguistics 11 11
Literary Translation 6 0
Mathematics 3 13
Molecular Biology, Cell Biology & Biochemistry 1 1
Neuroscience 0 1
Philosophy 0 3
Physics 0 10
Playwriting 10 5
Political Economy 0 5
Political Science 0 12
Preservation Studies 10 6
Psychology 30 35
Remote Sensing & Geospatial Sciences 16 13
Sociology 1 0
Statistical Practice 69 30
Statistics 16 15
Pardee – Global Policy 12 7
Pardee – International Relations 2 2
Pardee – International Affairs 59 31
Pardee – Latin American Studies 1 3
Total (MA/MS/MFA)* 705 619

* MA/PhD enrollments are counted with PhD enrollments.

Fall 2020 GRS PhD – Admissions

The following table lists fall 2020 admissions statistics for PhD programs.

Program/Major # Applications # Admits % Admitted # Accepted Offer # Enrolled
American & New England Studies 41 11 27% 8 8
Anthropology 132 16 12% 10 10
Astronomy 104 15 14% 4 4
Biology 239 34 14% 19 18
Biostatistics 227 18 8% 13 13
Chemistry 284 69 24% 26 26
Classical Studies 22 10 45% 6 6
Computer Science 402 45 11% 12 12
Earth & Environment 98 21 21% 6 6
Economics 674 88 13% 20 19
English 262 14 5% 4 4
French Language & Literature 14 7 50% 2 1
Hispanic Language & Literatures 15 10 67% 3 3
History 77 11 14% 6 6
History of Art & Architecture 56 16 29% 8 8
Linguistics 85 13 15% 5 5
Mathematics 198 17 9% 7 7
Molecular Biology, Cell Biology & Biochemistry 266 11 4% 6 6
Philosophy 182 22 12% 7 6
Physics 381 64 17% 12 12
Political Science 132 19 14% 4 4
Psychology 628 24 4% 14 14
Religious Studies 58 10 17% 5 5
Sociology 114 14 12% 5 5
Statistics 179 12 7% 5 5
Total 4,870 591 217 213

PhD Enrollment and Graduates

2020/2021 PhDs (including Bioinformatics) – Enrollment and Graduates

Program/Major Total Enrolled Fall 2020 AY 2020/2021 Graduates
American & New England Studies 42 4
Anthropology 52 6
Archaeology 4 1
Astronomy 29 5
Bioinformatics 50 11
Biology 76 6
Biostatistics 54 8
Chemistry 122 14
Classical Studies 23 0
Computer Science 112 8
Earth & Environment 44 1
Earth Sciences 5 1
Economics 157 22
Editorial Studies 8 1
English 33 2
French Language & Literature 10 1
Geography 3 0
Hispanic Language & Literatures 25 5
History 37 3
History of Art & Architecture 48 4
Linguistics 15 0
Mathematics 44 11
Molecular Biology, Cell Biology & Biochemistry 31 6
Musicology 11 0
Neuroscience 1 0
Philosophy 33 4
Physics 77 9
Political Science 32 5
Psychology 78 12
Religious Studies 39 6
Sociology 35 3
Statistics 43 4
Total 1,373 163

Enhancing a World-Class Faculty

Promoted, Tenured, and Retired & Emeritus Faculty, AY 2020/21

Promoted to Full Professor AY 2020/21

In AY 2020/21, 10 CAS faculty were promoted to the rank of professor: Margaret Beck (Mathematics), David Carballo (Anthropology and Archaeology), Michael Dietze (Earth & Environment), Robinson (Wally) Fulweiler (Earth & Environment and Biology), Shahla Haeri (Anthropology), Lucy Hutyra (Earth & Environment), Samuel Isaacson (Mathematics & Statistics), Paul Katsafanas (Philosophy), Pankaj Mehta (Physics), Donna Pincus (Psychological & Brain Sciences).

Promoted to Associate Professor with Tenure

In AY 2020/21, 15 CAS faculty were promoted to the rank of associate professor with tenure: Jennifer Balakrishnan (Mathematics & Statistics), Andrew Liam Fitzpatrick (Physics), Marco Gaboardi (Computer Science), Adam Guren (Economics), Joseph Harris (Sociology), Sam Ling (Psychological & Brain Sciences), Philip Muirhead (Astronomy), Neil Myler (Linguistics), Maxwell Palmer (Political Science), Ayşe Parla (Anthropology), Spencer Piston (Political Science), Joshua Shifrinson (International Relations, Pardee), Benjamin Siegel (History), Emily Whiting (Computer Science), Rosella Cappella Zielinski (Political Science).

Retired and Emeritus Faculty

This past year, 15 CAS faculty members retired from active service as professors: Charles Capper (History), Larry Epstein (Economics), Peter Gacs (Computer Science), Mariko Henstock (World Languages & Literatures), Fred Kleiner (History of Art & Architecture), Laura Korobkin (English), Kenneth Lane (Physics), Jeffrey Mehlman (Romance Studies), So-Young Pi (Physics), Virginia Sapiro (Political Science), H. Eugene Stanley (Physics), Murad Taqqu (Mathematics & Statistics), Claretta Tonetti (Romance Studies), Judson Webb (Philosophy), Maria Zlateva (English and the Writing Program).

New CAS Faculty, AY 2020/21

Each year, the College of Arts & Sciences recruits leading scholars and researchers from around the world to grow the ranks of its faculty. The faculty members listed below, including researchers, lecturers, instructors, and visiting professors, arrived on campus for the 2021/22 academic year.

Anthropology

Luke Glowacki

Astronomy

Jane Luu

Biology

Michaelyn Hartmann

Tuan Leng Tay

Zeba Wunderlich

Meg Younger

Chemistry

Jordan Nelson

Nolan Shepherd

Cinema & Media Studies

Danyelle Greene

Classical Studies

Brandon Jones

Computer Science

Ahmed Ibrahim

Core Curriculum

Devon Colcord

Earth & Environment

Andrew Bell

Economics

Steven White

English

Jennifer Cho

History of Art & Architecture

John Ott, Ray and Margaret Horowitz Visiting Professor in American Art

Linguistics

Myriam Dali, Visiting Assistant Professor of Linguistics

Mathematics & Statistics

Matthew Moore

Emily Stephen

Pardee School of Global Studies

Jonathan Greenacre

Psychological & Brain Sciences

Heidi Meyer

Romance Studies

Maria Bobroff

Jim Carter

Amanda Lee

Sociology

Jonathan Mijs

World Languages & Literatures

Jinsu Kim

Dennis Wuerthner

Booking It

CAS faculty produce an impressive selection of books. Here are a few favorites from the past year:

  • English Professor Leslie Epstein, who ran the BU Creative Writing Program for more than 30 years, published Hill of Beans: A Novel of War and Celluloid (University of New Mexico Press, 2021). It is his 12th novel.
  • José Luis Nogales Baena, a graduate student in Hispanic Language & Literatures, has published two books, both critical editions of short story collections by Mexican writers: Cuentos by Sergio Pitol and Obras Completas de Juan Manuel Torres, Tomo I: Cuentos y Relatos.
  • Professor of English Karl Kirchwey, who also serves as associate dean of the faculty, humanities, edited the anthology Poems of Healing.
  • Associate Professor of Sociology Ashley Mears published Very Important People: Status and Beauty in the Global Party Circuit (Princeton University Press, 2020).
  • African American Studies Program Director Louis Chude-Sokei published a coming-of-age memoir, Floating in a Most Peculiar Way (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2021).
  • Writer in Residence and National Book Award Winner Sigrid Nunez published her new novel, What Are You Going Through (Riverhead Books, 2020).

Supporting Our Educational and Research Mission

At Arts & Sciences, we rely on the generosity, engagement, and passion of our alumni, parents, and friends across the globe to accomplish our two main goals: educating the next generation of informed leaders and expanding the boundaries of human knowledge in ways that benefit society.

Alumni, parent, and foundation support furthers our mission in many ways, and several areas stand out:

  • The CAS Annual Fund and Dean’s Funds allow us the flexibility to channel resources where they are most needed and to react agilely to new funding needs that come up. This past year, these gifts allowed us to give our students opportunities that enabled them to take their classroom studies into the field both in person and virtually, provided funding to launch new initiatives such as the Center for Innovation in Social Science, and provided professional development opportunities for graduate students in areas from product management to digital learning methods.
  • Need-based scholarships and aid enable us to compete for talented students from many backgrounds who enrich our CAS community in the classroom and beyond. Of particular note this year, the Laura and Arch Brown (CAS’65) Scholarship has supported two students in the newly expanded African American Studies Program; funding from Michael Rees (CAS’90) provided support for QuestBridge Scholarship Fund, and funding from Don Vieira (CAS’95) supported the Vieira-Howell Scholarship Fund.
  • Out-of-the-classroom, or experiential learning—such as intensive research projects and internships—is extremely valuable real-world experience for our undergraduates, including, for example, within our Department of History of Art & Architecture, three students were able to take advantage of stipends to support off-campus internships from the Brown/Weiss Student Research and Opportunity Endowment Fund. Undergraduates completed their work at the deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum in Lincoln, Mass., Museum of Science & History in Jacksonville, Fla., and Gibson House Museum in Boston.
  • The CAS Parents and Families Fund allows parents and family members of CAS students to support research and teaching mission. On such parent, Larry Reid (Parent CAS’20, CAS’22) provided funding to support the CAS Parents Fund and the Reid Family Scholarship Fund.
  • Foundation and grant support enables our faculty members to pursue important research across all fields in the liberal arts and sciences. For example,
    • Professor of Philosophy Victor Kumar received a subgrant from the John Templeton Foundation for a project titled Reasoning in Moral Thought and Action.
    • NEH Distinguished Teaching Professor of Religion Anthony Petro, who also runs the Health Humanities Project, received a grant from the Institute for Advanced Study for a fellowship.
    • Professor of English Anna Henchman received a fellowship grant from the American Council of Learned Societies.
    • Professor of English Takeo Rivera received a grant from the Harvard University Charles Warren Center for Studies in American History for a fellowship.

Stewarding our Resources

In order to achieve our many goals, we must remain careful stewards of our resources. This means monitoring closely and modifying, as needed, our long- and short-term goals, ensuring our resources at the college level are aligned according to these priorities. Our FY2021 base budget was reduced by 4.95%, by making $4,367,000 in recurring cuts and $2,183,000 in nonrecurring (one-time) cuts, reflecting cautious planning during the pandemic. Total final expenses of $149,077,560 covered salaries, operating expenses, and fringe benefits and was slightly lower than anticipated, even after the budget cuts, due to a hiring freeze and lower in-person operating expenses for events and travel.