Baruch College

Baruch College, officially Bernard M. Baruch College, is a constituent university located in the Gramercy Park section of Manhattan, New York City. It is a highly selective senior college of the City University of New York system, the third largest university system in the United States in terms of enrollment. Baruch offers undergraduate, masters, and Ph.D. degrees through its Zicklin School of Business, as well as the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences and School of Public Affairs. CUNY graduates include 12 Nobel laureates, a U.S. Secretary of State, a Supreme Court Justice, several mayors, members of Congress, state legislators, scientists and artists. The Zicklin School of Business has grown to become the largest collegiate school of business in the nation.

History

Baruch is one of CUNY's senior colleges, and traces its roots back to the founding of the Free Academy, the first institution of free public higher education in the United States. The New York State Literature Fund was created to serve students who could not afford to enroll in New York City’s private colleges. The Fund led to the creation of the Committee of the Board of Education of the City of New York, led by Townsend Harris, J.S. Bosworth, and John L. Mason, which brought about the establishment of what would become the Free Academy, on Lexington Avenue in Manhattan.

The Free Academy became the College of the City of New York, now The City College of New York (CCNY). In 1919, what would become Baruch College was established as City College School of Business and Civic Administration. On December 15, 1928, the cornerstone was laid on the new building which would house the newly founded school. At this point, the school did not admit women. At the time it opened it was considered the biggest such school for the teaching of business education in the United States.

By the 1930s, women were allowed into the School of Business. The total enrollment at CCNY reached an all-time high of 40,000 students in 1935, and the School of Business had an enrollment of more than 1,700 students in the day session alone. Most were Jewish and Italian immigrants, who could not afford to attend private universities. The School of Business was renamed the Baruch School in 1958 in honor of alumnus Bernard Baruch, a statesman and financier. In 1961, the New York State Education Law established the City University of New York (CUNY) system and, in 1968, Baruch College became a senior college in the City University system.

In the CUNY years, Baruch grew dramatically and for a time, CUNY considered relocating the college to Harlem to allow for expansion. The idea was later dropped, and the college acquired property on East 24th Street in Manhattan to expand its campus. The first president of the new college (1969â€"1970) was the previous Federal Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Robert C. Weaver. In 1971, the college appointed Clyde Wingfield, a noted educator, as its president. He was succeeded by economist Joel Edwin Segall in 1977. Segall recruited several well-known faculty members to the School of Business and established the college's permanent home on Lower Lexington Avenue. Matthew Goldstein was president of the school from 1991 to 1998 (he later went on to serve as the Chancellor of CUNY from 1999-2013). He was responsible for raising admissions requirements and creating the School of Public Affairs in 1994. Edward Regan, former comptroller of New York state, served as president from 2000 to 2004. During his tenure, test scores rose, student retention rates increased, and many new faculty members were hired. In 2001, the Vertical Campus opened and Baruch accepted its first students from the CUNY Honors College, now known as the Macaulay Honors College. The college also implemented a common core curriculum for all undergraduates.

Kathleen Waldron was appointed president in 2004. Under her leadership, the quality of students continued to rise and faculty hiring accelerated. Baruch also received an unprecedented number of donations from alumni, with the Vertical Campus, 23rd Street building, and Performing Arts complex renamed in honor of the three largest donors, respectively. Alumni giving has increased under "Baruch Means Business," a $150 million capital campaign. In August 2009, Waldron resigned from her position to become a University Professor at the Graduate Center. Stan Altman, former dean of the School of Public Affairs from 1999 to 2005, was named interim president.

On February 22, 2010, Dr. Mitchel Wallerstein, Dean of the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University, was appointed as the next President of Baruch College. He took office on August 2, 2010.

Baruch was the scene of student protests in 2011 as a result of tuition hikes. This resulted in arrests.

Larry Zicklin, who endowed the Zicklin School of Business with an $18 million gift in 1997, is currently a Clinical Professor at Stern School of Business at New York University and teaches courses in Corporate Governance and the Management of a Financial Business at Stern. Zicklin is also a Senior Fellow at the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

Presidents of Baruch College

Academics

The college is composed of three academic schools, the Zicklin School of Business, the Weissman School of Arts & Science, and the School of Public Affairs.

The Zicklin School of Business grants a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree in 19 different business related areas, a Masters of Business Administration (MBA) in 14 business related areas, and a Masters of Science (MS) in 8 business related programs.

The Weissman School of Arts and Sciences grants a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in over 26 different arts and science related areas, a Masters of Arts (MA)in Corporate Communications and Mental Health Counseling, and a Masters of Science (MS) in Financial Engineering and Industrial Organizational Psychology.

The School of Public Affairs grants a Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in Public Affairs, a Masters of Public Administration (MPA) in 5 different public affairs related areas and a Masters of Science in Education (MSEd) in Higher Education Administration.

The college also houses several doctoral (PhD) programs offered through the CUNY Graduate Center. They include Business (with specializations in Accounting, Finance, Information Systems, Marketing or Organizational Behavior) as well as Industrial and Organizational Psychology. As of June 2013, the CUNY PhD in Business degree is offered jointly by the Graduate Center and Baruch College.

Though the college is often recognized because of its business programs, they have various programs which have highlights. One such program is the Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) sponsored by the National Science Foundation. This program allows selected students from the Metropolitan area to complete an independent psychological research study with the guidance of a faculty member from Baruch's Department of Psychology.

Facilities

17 Lexington Building

The building at 17 Lexington Avenue, or the 23rd Street Building as it is commonly referred to is still in use by the college today. The building was also called "UCLA East or The University of the Corner of Lexington Avenue", and was named by one of the elevator operators who had entertained the students and faculty in the vertical campus. The building is now named the Lawrence and Eris Field Building. The building is most recognized for its notoriously slow elevators. According to Mr. Jim Lloyd, the assistant vice president of Campus Operations at Baruch College, the 23rd St Building is scheduled to begin renovation in 2013. The ten-year renovation project will finally bring the 23rd Street Building to 21st-century standards. In 1998, after decades of renting space for classrooms, the college began construction of what would later be called the Newman Vertical Campus, named after businessman William Newman. Inaugurated on August 27, 2001, the 17-story building is now home to the Zicklin School of Business and the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences (the School of Public Affairs is housed in a separate building at 135 East 22nd Street). East 25th Street between Lexington and Third Avenues was renamed "Bernard Baruch Way," and the college now uses the Vertical Campus as its official address.

Information and Technology / Library Building

The Information and Technology Building, opened in 1994, is located across East 25th Street from the Newman Vertical Campus. It is home to the William and Anita Newman Library, featuring multiple floors with Wi-Fi access and designated "study-pod" areas. A 320-seat computer lab, the Baruch Computing and Technology Center, is on the sixth floor. The building also contains the offices of the Registrar, Undergraduate Admissions, Financial Aid and the International Student Center. It is colloquially known as the "Library Building" by students and staff.

Newman Vertical Campus

The Newman Vertical Campus is 786,000 square feet, 17-floor building, which cost a total of $327 million to erect. It was honored in 2003 by the American Institute of Architects with the highest award it offers to an individual building. It houses classrooms, faculty offices, additional computer labs for student use, along with the Athletic and Recreation Complex (ARC), Cafeteria, and Baruch Bookstore. The Administration Building, located on East 22nd Street, is home to the School of Public Affairs and several administrative offices.

Academic Centers

• Subotnick Financial Center: The Subotnick Financial Services Center, opened in 2000, provides a simulation of practical trading experience. Its centerpiece is the Bert W. and Sandra Wasserman Trading Floor The Center is featured frequently in popular magazines and newspapers such as Fortune Magazine, BusinessWeek, New York Times, Crain's New York Business, Traders Magazine, New York Post, Securities Industry News, and Associated Press. Baruch's own trading floor is often quoted in magazines as a competitive edge over NYC leading business schools: Columbia University and NYU Stern. One of the issues that Financial Times stated: "Students are turning down colleges that do not have trading floors. The text books are out there. Whether you are at New York University or Columbia the theory is all the same. What do you need? You need the edge to put this theory into practice."
• The STARR Career Development Center, named after the Starr Foundation, provides career services to all Baruch College undergraduates and alumni with bachelor degrees from Baruch.
• The Bernard L. Schwartz Communication Institute at Baruch College is an academic service unit and faculty development program. It supports educational technology and communications instructional projects in the college.
• Center for Educational Leadership
• Center for Equality, Pluralism and Policy
• Center for Innovation and Leadership in Government
• Center for Nonprofit Strategy and Management
• Center for the Study of Business and Government (CSBG)
• Lawrence N. Field Center for Entrepreneurship
• Weissman Center for International Business
• Robert Zicklin Center for Corporate Integrity

Partnerships

Zicklin-JP Morgan Chase Partnership 

Zicklin School of Business and JP Morgan Chase have established a corporate-university partnership.

CFA Program Partner 

Baruch is one of the 34 CFA Program Partners in United States. This allows Baruch students to gain access to CFA Institute's exclusive textbooks, journals, and sample papers, and to pay a discounted CFA Exam Fee

Baruch College Campus High School 

Baruch College Campus High School is a New York City public high school affiliated to the college

Baruch College's Zicklin Business School and AGS 

American Graduate School in Paris is a graduate school in Paris, France. Its Executive Master of Science in Finance and the Executive Master of Science in Marketing at the American Graduate School of Business and Economics are affiliated program with Baruch .

Student life

101 Ludlow

101 Ludlow Street is a high-rise building in Manhattan. Instead of the student body being primarily from one school, Ludlow houses students from three colleges: Baruch College, King's College, and originally the School of Visual Arts. Baruch students occupy 6 floors of the residency building.

1760 Third Avenue

Baruch students have the option to dorm at 1760 Third Avenue, a 17 - story high rise building with double, single with a kitchen, double as a single and triple dorm rooms conveniently located 2 blocks from the 96th Street 6 Train subway station and close to Central Park and NYC's famed Museum Mile. 1760 also houses students from 2 other CUNY schools - LIM College (formerly known as the Laboratory Institute of Merchandising)and Marymount Manhattan College.

Student body diversity

Baruch had been ranked #1 for seven consecutive years as the 'Most Ethnically Diverse College' in United States by US News. As of 2014, according to

According to BaruchConnect.com, around 12 percent students identify as black, 15 percent as Latino, 35 percent as Asian and 38 percent as white.

According to BaruchConnect.com, around 12 percent students identify as black, 15 percent as Latino, 35 percent as Asian and 38 percent as white.

Student organizations

The Ticker has been the student newspaper since 1932. The school is home to several diverse business organizations, including large chapters of such national and international organizations such as ALPFA (The Association of Latino Professionals in Finance & Accounting), AIESEC, Toastmasters, Alpha Kappa Psi, American Humanics, and Golden Key).

Student center

In December 2011, undergraduate students passed a referendum to raise student activity fees for the purpose of acquiring a dedicated student center building. The fee has been collected since the Fall 2011 semester, and current plans call for the purchase of the new student center within five years.

Athletics

Baruch College teams participate as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division III. The Bearcats are a member of the City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC). Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, soccer, swimming & diving, tennis and volleyball; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, dance team, softball, swimming & diving, tennis and volleyball.

The men’s volleyball team has finished the 2013 season as the #3-ranked team in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (A.V.C.A.) Top 15 Div. III Coaches Poll. The #3-ranking is the highest national ranking ever attained by the men’s volleyball team. The Bearcats have been ranked every week since the end of the 2009 season.

For the fourth straight summer, the Nike Pro City Basketball League hosted their eight team league at Baruch College's ARC Arena on Tuesday and Thursday nights (except July 4).The summer basketball league features various current and former NBA players, along with former NCAA and European professionals competing in front of large crowds.

Admissions

Undergraduate

Baruch's Undergraduate Admissions is considered to be "Very Selective" by College Board. In the Fall of 2013, over 19,400 students applied for admissions and only 5,000 were admitted with an acceptance rate of 27%. Baruch follows a holistic admissions process by considering teacher recommendations, application essay, and extra curricular activities, in addition to standardized test scores and GPA. According to 2013 statistics, the average GPA for incoming freshmen was between an 86-92, with Macaulay Honors Students at a 92-95 range. The average SAT score was 1130-1330 (Critical Reading and Math).

Master in Financial Engineering (MFE)

The acceptance rate for Fall 2011 admission was 6%. The number of applicants to the MFE program for Fall 2011 admission increased by 18%. Moreover, the average GRE Quantitative score of all the applicants increased from 781 to 794, an all-time high. The MFE Program was ranked #5, surpassing Columbia, Cornell, and UC Berkeley, Stanford, MIT, UCLA and University of Michigan in 2011 Quant Network Ranking.

Zicklin School of Business

The Zicklin School of Business (commonly known as Zicklin) is Baruch College's business school. It was established in 1919 and is one of the oldest business schools in the world. The Zicklin School of Business is consistently ranked as one of the best business schools in the country.

Admitted Applicant Averages are as follows:

Full-Time MBA: 

GMAT Average 635 (GMAT 80% Range 560-710); GPA Average 3.3; Years Work Exp: 5.6

Part-Time MBA (Flexible Format): 

GMAT Average 590 (GMAT 80% Range 510-690); GPA Average 3.2; Years Work Exp 4.8

MS Degree Programs: 

GMAT Average 613 (GMAT 80% 540-700); GPA Average 3.4; Years Work Exp 4

Rankings

• For the fourth year in a row, U.S. News & World Report ranked Baruch College among the top 25 Regional Universities in the North at #22 on its "Top Regional Universities" annual rankings list. In addition, Baruch is ranked in the top five, for the third year in a row, on the magazine’s list of "Top Public Schools/Regional Universities (North)," ranking at #4. The undergraduate business program at the Zicklin School of Business is ranked among the top 100 in the nation, at #58 (up from last year’s #72). Confirming its reputation for having a student body as diverse as the city of New York and its residents, Baruch College ranked, for the 12th year in a row, in the top ten for "Campus Ethnic Diversity," ranking at #5 (up from last year’s #9).
• Zicklin MBA #1 in Financial Value at Graduation. In 2010, U.S. News & World Report surveyed business schools regarding the average starting salary, as well as the average debt load data for their 2010 graduates. Of the nearly 100 fully responding business schools, the Zicklin School of Business tops the U.S. News & World Report survey of highest first-year salaries relative to debt load.
• Zicklin has zoomed like a rocket in the rankings. Baruch College’s Zicklin School of Business is ranked among the Top 100 "Best Graduate Schools of Business" by U.S. News & World Report. Baruch’s Part-time MBA Program ranked in the Top 100 at #57 (making it #2 in New York City), up from last year’s #73, while the Full-time MBA Program ranked #82 (making it one of the Top 3 MBA programs in New York City). Both were the only ranked public programs in New York State.
• Baruch's Graduate Programs are highly ranked by U.S. News & World Report: #82 Best Business Schools, #57 part-time MBA, #82 full-time MBA, #41 Health Care Management, #158 Psychology, #46 Public Affairs and #21 Nonprofit Management.
• Baruch was ranked #25 on the Top 25 Entrepreneurial Colleges by Entrepreneur and The Princeton Review.
• Baruch College ranked #3 among the list of 349 U.S. colleges in Washington Monthly’s (WM)"Best Bang for the Buck."
• Baruch College is ranked #21 among the "Top 100 Obama Scorecard Colleges," a list created by Affordable Colleges (AC) Online.
• Baruch is among the Top 10% of U.S. colleges according to The Princeton Review, which selected the College for inclusion in "The Best 368 Colleges: 2009 Edition." It is also labeled as one of the nation's best value undergraduate institutions in 2008, and in 2009 "Best Graduate Schools" and "Best Business Schools" listings.

Notable people

Alumni

Before 1968, alumni were officially alumni of the City College of New York.

The number of Baruch College's Living Alumni is 107,277 as of 2007â€"08. It is represented by alumni in all 50 US states and 85 countries abroad.

Faculty

See also

• City University of New York

References

External links

• Official website
• Baruch College on Facebook
• Official athletics website
• The Ticker newspaper web site