On Sunday, May 20, 2012, CAS seniors, graduate students, and their families joined faculty members at Nickerson Field for the 139th Commencement of Boston University—the symbolic culmination of all the hard work invested by our students in pursuit of their degrees.
On that day, the College conferred 1,767 bachelor’s degrees, 432 master’s degrees (406 MA, 20 MFA, 8 MS), and 195 doctoral degrees.
Eric Schmidt, executive chairman of Google, delivered the commencement address. Most of the year’s graduates entered elementary school in 1998, the year Google was founded. Since then, the pioneering search engine has become a standard source of answers to many of life’s questions. In his address, Schmidt offered an answer to a question likely on the minds of many of the 20,000 in attendance: What to do after leaving BU?
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Eric E. Schmidt: 2012 Boston University Commencement Speaker
Eric E. Schmidt (Hon.'12), executive chairman of Google, delivers the commencement address to the Class of 2012 at Boston University's 139th Commencement.
“Every class enters a history that, up to that point, is being written for it,” Schmidt said. “This is no different. What is different, though, is the chance that each generation has to make history, and to make it larger.” On that score, he told the graduating class, “Your generation’s opportunities are greater than any generation’s in modern history.”
The Class of 2012 has entered the world with a tremendous advantage: A Boston University degree. The outstanding education these students received here is the result not only of their own hard work, but the dedication and support of their teachers and the continuing contribution of our alumni who, not so long ago, celebrated their own graduation.
Your impact on classes to come can be enormous, and opportunities to support our students and faculty are substantial. You can help with the further development of the CAS First-Year Experience, supporting more students in the program. Or, you can help ensure that BU graduates top their national peers in writing and computation excellence by investing in the expansion of the Writing Program. You can support opportunities for faculty to develop new courses and teaching methods, or make it possible for our graduate students to shape the future of science, technology, and the arts. When you support our ability to attract, retain, and nurture the careers of our faculty, you support the heart of BU—the people who make it all happen.
You can do all this and more through the CAS Annual Fund, gifts to targeted areas, or support for students through scholarships. You can also participate in the Century Challenge and watch as your gift doubles through a one-to-one match by BU. However you choose to contribute, your help and support ensures that the difference each year brings is a stronger, smarter, more competitive College of Arts & Sciences.
Annual Report 2011/12
From the Dean
Thanks to the commitment of CAS faculty and staff, great strides were made during academic year 2011/12 toward achieving the College’s fundamental strategic goals.
New Structures for Organizing Discovery and Education
Three new programmatic developments have been introduced to leverage the special strengths of the research and educational expertise of the CAS faculty.
Strengthening the Quality of the Faculty
The College reaches the halfway point in its goal to increase the faculty by 100 new positions, while the latest cohort of faculty members continues to demonstrate superb research and teaching skills.
Strengthening the Quality of Undergraduate Education
This year, the College focused on making sure CAS undergraduates had the best possible start to their academic careers through the First-Year Experience (FYE).
Strengthening the Quality of Graduate Education
Work conducted this year to change the structure of funding for PhD programs will have a major impact on the future of the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences.
Strengthening Our Research and Scholarship
Thanks to strong support from the University and public and private sponsors, BU researchers continue to break new ground—literally and figuratively—at the frontiers of knowledge.
Finances and Development
In academic year 2011/12, the College of Arts & Sciences effectively managed its fiscal resources to attract and retain the best undergraduate and graduate students, recruit outstanding academics, and support its research initiatives.
The Class of 2012
After encouraging words from Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt, the College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences confers more than 2,000 hard-earned diplomas to this year’s graduates.
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