Boston University Arts & Sciences

The success and reputation of great research universities depend in large part on the strength and quality of their graduate programs. During 2012/2013 BU laid the groundwork for a tremendous strengthening of the quality of doctoral programs by developing a new budget model. It guarantees five years of funding for all entering graduate students, beginning with those accepted for fall 2013. The funding will depend on a mix of teaching fellowships, research grants brought in by faculty, and gifts from the philanthropic activity of alumni and friends, among other sources. This approach, already common at the best doctoral institutions, will allow Boston University to compete for the best students; and this new promise of funds has already helped many programs attract a better class of entering doctoral students. The impact will be especially great in the humanities and social sciences, where there is less extramural grant funding available to support graduate students as research assistants.

Tazeen Ali (GRS’18), a student in Theories and Methods in Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies seminar, a new course offered Fall 2013.

An indicator of the rising quality of PhD students in the natural and social sciences in the Graduate School is the growing number of National Science Foundation (NSF) research fellowships our students are winning. The NSF’s Graduate Research Fellowship Program supports outstanding graduate students in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines covered by NSF. Six GRS students received fellowships in 2012/2013, including two in biology and one each in anthropology, chemistry, earth sciences, and psychology, bringing the total number of current NSF graduate fellowships at BU to 18.

One group in particular made a difference in helping to win NSF and other fellowships: Graduate Women in Science & Engineering (GWISE). Conceived and organized by a group of women graduate students, GWISE had its most effective year to date. The group helps its members prepare for science and engineering careers by providing year-round advice, networking, and social opportunities for female graduate students in the STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) fields. Last fall, GWISE organized panel presentations and writing workshops for graduate students applying for external fellowships, expressly timed to coincide with the NSF fellowship application deadline. (Four out of six of the NSF Research Fellowships went to women.)

Two new graduate programs instituted in the last year suggest the vast range of areas of advanced study available in the Graduate School. One is the Master of Science (MS) in Computer Science, which added a much-in-demand specialty in cyber security. The other is a graduate certificate in Women’s, Gender & Sexuality Studies, which can be used to complement and amplify a graduate degree program in which a student is enrolled. The certificate requires students to take four courses from a menu of options already available in the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences and the College of Communication, School of Law, and School of Public Health. (See Appendix, Table 4. GRS Registered MA/MFA/MS Students (by Department); Table 5. GRS Registered PhD Students (by Department).)

Annual Report 2012/2013

• From the Dean
  From recruiting ever-better faculty and students to engaging in path-breaking research, academic year 2012/2013 was a year of great accomplishments.
• Recruiting Excellent Undergraduates
  CAS again attracted excellent students who bring with them a wealth of interesting experiences and who are eager to pursue their education in a large and exciting university in one of the major cities of the world.
• Strengthening Graduate Education
  BU and the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences laid the groundwork for a tremendous strengthening of the quality of doctoral programs by developing a new budget model.
• Strengthening the Quality of the Faculty
  In 2012/2013, CAS recruited an exemplary cohort of 16 new assistant professors in fields across the humanities and social and natural sciences.
• Enhancing the Research Mission
  This year, Boston University was welcomed into the Association of American Universities (AAU), an organization of leading North American research universities—an accomplishment to which CAS, with its portfolio of research in the natural and social sciences and the humanities, was a key contributor.
• Strengthening Connections to the Community and the World
  The College’s commitment to make the world a better—and better-understood—place contributes to BU’s growing reputation as a leading, global university.
• Managing Our Financial Resources
  Despite the challenges facing all of higher education in recent years, careful fiscal management has allowed the College to again make progress toward achieving its long-term goals.
• Nurturing Connections with Alumni and Friends
  The College continues to develop new opportunities for continuing education, networking, and socializing to help alumni and friends stay connected.
• A Community in Mourning
  The BU community and CAS came together in many ways in the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombings.
• Our Impact, Your Impact: The Campaign for CAS
  In 2012/2013, BU entered the public phase of its first capital campaign, inspiring many alumni, parents and other friends of CAS to step up support for our annual fund and critical projects.
• Appendix