Doctoral students at the top research universities do not pay tuition; they are supported by graduate fellowships through much of their post-graduate careers. The best students will rarely choose to attend a doctoral program without strong fellowship support, no matter how famous are the professors or excellent are the facilities. Until last year, the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences (GRS) could not support most doctoral students, especially outside of the grants-enriched natural sciences. Thus, the new Boston University policy to fund doctoral students for a full five years—and not to admit doctoral students beyond the level of funding available—allows us to compete with the best research institutions for students. Just in the first year of implementation, this policy has already enhanced the quality of doctoral candidates GRS has attracted. We saw a dramatic rise in the percentage of PhD candidates accepting our offers of admission: from 30% last year to 43% this year. Success will breed success; as the doctoral programs become stronger, they will attract stronger students.
Like CAS more generally, GRS participated in the new assessment initiative, with all programs hard at work defining expectations and measures of success. In addition, we are seeking to develop new master’s programs that will respond to the evolving needs of the labor market. In 2013/14, we launched a new MS in Statistical Practice designed to train practitioners, in a wide range of fields in cutting-edge techniques and technology, who want to acquire fundamental training in statistics and its applications in fields like economics, education, law, management, science, and social science, focusing on problems in the world around us that require solutions. (See Appendix, GRS Registered MA/MFA/MS Students (by Department); GRS Registered PhD Students (by Department).)
Milestones of Success in Graduate Education
Stephanie Brownell (GRS’15) won an award for her 10-minute play Eskimo Pie at the annual National Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival. Photo by Lauryn DiCristina
The remarkable successes of some of the graduate students in our diverse programs are exemplified by these highlights:
Of the hundreds of playwrights who competed in this year’s Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival, two graduate students and two alumni were honored. Stephanie Brownell (GRS’15) received the National Ten-Minute Play Award for Eskimo Pie, her moving glimpse of mental illness and how it colors the world of those touched by it. Abbey Fenbert (GRS’15) was awarded the Mark Twain Comedy Writing Award for her play Intentions, a story about a fictional community/urban farm on the outskirts of Chicago. Alumni Michael Parsons (GRS’12) and Steven Barkhimer (GRS’08) also won awards for their plays Sumner Falls and Windowmen, respectively. Read more
Two GRS PhD students were awarded Fulbright-Hayes dissertation fellowships to pursue the research for their dissertations overseas. They are Karl Hass, a PhD candidate in musicology, who is traveling to Ghana for his project “Time and Space, Music and Matter: A Musical Ethnography of the Kambonsi of Northern Ghana”; and Benjamin Twagira, a PhD candidate in history, who is traveling to London and Kampala, Uganda, for his project “Religious Hills: Urbanization and Religious Traditions in Kampala, ca. 1950–1979.” Read more
Anthropology graduate student Mimi Stith won a Fulbright grant for 2014–15 field research in sub-Saharan Africa, and a Long-Term Graduate Research Abroad Fellowship (GRAF) from the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences.
American & New England Studies PhD student Katheryn Viens won the Mary Kelley Prize for best graduate student paper at this year’s gathering of the New England American Studies Association.
Ariel Hyre, a first-year Chemistry graduate student in Professor Linda Doerrer’s laboratory, has received a 2014 NSF Graduate Research Program Fellowship on her initial attempt. NSF stated that she was awarded the three-year fellowship based on her “outstanding abilities and accomplishments, as well as [her] potential to contribute to strengthening the vitality of the US science and engineering enterprise.” Ariel, who came to BU after receiving her BS from Brandeis University in 2013 (cum laude, high honors in Chemistry), is deeply committed to materials research that will contribute to environmentally sustainable energy.
Political Science graduate student Anshul Jain co-authored a book with James E. Katz, Director of the BU College of Communication’s Division of Emerging Media Studies, and Michael Barris, a New York-based journalist, titled, The Social Media President: Barack Obama and the Politics of Digital Engagement (Palgrave Macmillan, December 2013). It details how social media affects, for better and worse, citizen engagement and presidential politics in the United States. While many works consider social media dynamics and engagement in political campaigns, The Social Media President is the first book to examine the actual practices of social media in presidential administration and in governing a nation systematically.
Annual Report 2013/2014
From the Dean
From recruiting ever-better faculty and students to surging ahead in our capital campaign, academic year 2013/2014 was a year of great accomplishments.
Improving Undergraduate Education
CAS once again attracted our most talented class of undergraduates ever. And we laid the groundwork to serve them even better, offering expanded academic opportunities and a comprehensive first-year experience program with over 500 first-year student participants.
Strengthening Graduate Education
BU and the Graduate School of Arts & Sciences saw immediate, strong results from our new five-year PhD funding model that has increased the attractiveness of doctoral programs.
Enhancing a World-Class Faculty
The quality of a university depends on the quality of its faculty, and hiring the best and giving them a strong start is crucial. In 2013/14, CAS hired 17 new assistant professors and 3 senior professors across the humanities and social, natural, and computational sciences.
Conducting Path-Breaking Research
As the academic heart of BU and its biggest school, CAS’s dynamism is helping propel BU’s recognition as one of the finest research universities in the country. New initiatives including the Center for Systems Neuroscience, BU Initiative on Cities, and Center for Autism Research Excellence are taking our research to new heights.
Deepening Our Global Mission
This year, thanks to a generous gift from Frederick S. Pardee (SMG’54, GSM’54, Hon.’06), we laid the groundwork for the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies, launched in September 2014 and reporting to CAS. The Pardee School builds on the substantial success CAS has had in creating strong global and international studies programs.
Stewarding Our Resources
Boston University is financially healthy, although it faces the challenges of a continuing weak economy and many other issues that require skilled and careful management in higher education today. CAS is fortunate to benefit from BU’s wise management and our own diligent stewardship of our resources.
Nurturing Connections with Alumni and Friends
Boston University and the College of Arts & Sciences have made significant steps in building a framework for alumni to engage with faculty, other alumni, and current students in ongoing learning, discussion, and inquiry. Over 6,000 of the alumni attending BU Alumni Association events around the world were CAS alumni (up 11% over the previous year).
Growing Our Capacity: The Campaign for CAS
BU is in the midst of our first-ever capital campaign, and CAS is well ahead in its progress toward our original goal of raising $100 million. More than 4,300 alumni and many other friends of CAS contributed during the past fiscal year. By the end of the 2014 fiscal year, CAS had received $83.2 million in gift funds through the campaign.
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