This year the NACAC annual conference took place in Boston. As is the tradition, prior to the start of the conference many of us arrive a few days early to visit some of the local colleges and universities. This year was no exception.
I started out very early on the first morning and boarded a bus which was headed to Brandeis University and then later on in the morning to Bentley University. During both visits I learned about the academic programs and activities during information sessions and tours. At Brandeis we were told about the history of the university which includes being established in 1948 as a non-sectarian and co-educational institution founded by the Jewish community. It is named after Louis Brandeis who was the first Jewish justice of the Supreme Court. As one might imagine, given the roots of the school, social justice is at the forefront of the values espoused at Brandeis. The campus is beautiful and I was very impressed with the programs and people with whom I interacted.
After our visit which began with a delicious breakfast, we boarded the bus and headed to Bentley University. Once again we immersed ourselves in our visit by first participating in an information session and campus tour. Bentley is known as being a school where students receive specialized instruction in the field of business education. While on our campus tour I was extremely impressed by the facilities and the up to date technology. Students are given laptop computers twice during their four years there, once when they enter as freshmen and then again at the start of their junior year and this is done in order for them to have access to the most current technology. As is always the custom we were provided with another delicious meal as we ended the program. During lunch I was fortunate to sit with Mario Silva-Rosa who is the Director of Undergraduate Admission and, along with the others sitting at the table, we were able to continue the discussion about Bentley.
The next day I hopped in an Uber and traveled across town to Northeastern University. While Brandeis and Bentley are traditional campus type schools, Northeastern is an urban campus immersed in the city. While Boston is the location and it is very much a city school, as one explores the campus there are many areas which feel like a typical college campus. For the student seeking a cosmopolitan city experience and campus setting NU is the perfect school. While students can study any one of a number of fields ranging from traditional liberal arts to engineering and business (just to name a few) the NU education is known for experiential learning. Students participate in co-op work experiences at least once but more typically twice during their years at NU. For students seeking hands-on learning experiences outside of the classroom in “real world” settings, NU offers terrific opportunities. I ended my visit by hopping back into an Uber and heading back to the convention center to jump right into the conference activities.
