Georgetown College Makes U.S. News List Of Top 10 Colleges That Lead to Grad School
Georgetown, KY – Georgetown College takes the stand that a great liberal arts education is critical to becoming successful and/or socially responsible in today’s changing world. That makes preparing its students for graduate school now more vital than ever.
So, when U.S. News and World Report released a report earlier this month that percentage-wise Georgetown College was among the top 10 institutions that sent its students to graduate school within a year of graduation, GC Provost Rosemary Allen was gratified by what the recognition signifies.
“The capacity to get into grad school is one of the more important things an institution can give its students,” Dr. Allen said. “Our high level of acceptance rate is testimony not only to the quality of education our students receive, but also the personal investment our faculty make in writing quality letters of recommendation.”
She added, “Our faculty really know our students and they can write letters that reflect that knowledge.”
Dr. Allen knows that will matter to young people and the parents who are helping their student choose a college. So will this line from the U.S. News story: “For high schoolers interested in one day pursuing a graduate degree, it’s important to take note of the schools that are well versed in preparing students for the next level.”
Georgetown College – at 65 percent – was tenth among ranked colleges with the highest percentages of 2009 graduates that went on to pursue graduate degrees within a year. This is according to data provided by colleges to U.S News in a 2010 survey of undergraduate programs. Georgetown’s figure came from a survey of recent young alumni, said GC institutional research associate Jason Terwilliger.
Topping the list was Yeshiva University (NY) at 89 percent. Three of the next four were also New York institutions – SUNY College-Old Westbury, Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology, Hawaii Pacific University, and SUNY College of Technology-Delhi.
It would be interesting for GC to do a survey of its own. I finished in Dec. 1969, graduated May 1970. In the fall of 1971, I began the two year graduate program at Gallaudet College. So, I guess I could almost fit the profile of the folks in your article. However, I know of many students from the 1960s and 70s who waited for various reasons before going to grad school. I wonder what percentage of each of the classes, say from 1960 on, went on to grad school and/or completed advanced degrees. When I started teaching at the Illinois School for the Deaf in 1973, I had my MA from Gallaudet. (By the way, in the deaf world, Gallaudet was THE place to be. Carolyn Jones, Georgetown grad a bit before my time, was already employed there. I had heard about her since I first started to learn sign language at Faith!) Since I wasn’t working toward another degree, I could take more grad level classes to make “lane changes” on the pay scale. When I retired, I had my MA plus thirty-two hours of grad credit. I really had more hours than that but the limit was 32 on the pay scale, unless you earned a doctorate. I suspect that there are many more grads like me. Georgetown prepared us for lifelong learning. Having GC employees taking classes with us “kids” set a great example for us. I hope that GC still offers the opportunity for those who are employees to work towards degrees, including making hours more flexible, plus earning degrees in areas not directly related to their jobs on campus. Thanks for continuing the tradition of excellence at GC.