Bard College Catalogue 2012-13
Professional Education
The following programs provide preprofessional advising and curricula for undergraduates preparing for postgraduate study or employment. Additionally, Bard offers several early admission plans, combined study plans, and joint-degree options to qualified students who wish to pursue particular professional careers.
Professional PreparationPrelaw Undergraduate Program Admission to law school is governed by the student’s college record, including the grade point average and letters of recommendation. The most important factor, however, is the Law School Admission Test (LSAT). No standard prescribed curriculum of undergraduate study specifically prepares students for a law career or is required by law schools, although most consider a broad liberal arts program desirable. For further information, contact the Career Development Office or the prelaw adviser, Roger Berkowitz. Interested students can subscribe to the PreLaw Listserv by composing an e-mail message addressed to majordomo@bard.edu. The body of the message is the following two lines: “subscribe bard prelaw” and “end.”
Premedical Undergraduate Program Admission to medical school is governed by several factors: the college record, results of the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), recommendations, and an interview. Most important, however, is the grade point average. Students accepted to medical schools in recent years had a nationwide average GPA of 3.5 to 3.6. Early preparation and planning are important in order to do well on the MCAT and to fulfill health professional school requirements. Minimum requirements are introductory chemistry, organic chemistry, and one year each of physics, mathematics, biology, and English. Early in their academic careers, interested students should discuss their plans with the health professions adviser, John Ferguson.
Professional Options: Joint-Degree ProgramsThe professional option allows exceptionally qualified students to combine undergraduate study at Bard with graduate or professional work in an approved participating program and, through the option, to qualify for a Bard B.A. degree and a degree from the other program. Students wishing to apply for admission to a joint professional degree program must first obtain a faculty recommendation from the division in which they are majoring. Those accepted into a participating program complete three or four years of study at Bard (according to the terms of the program) and then do further work at the other institution. To qualify for the Bard B.A., students must successfully complete their distribution requirements at Bard and the degree requirements of the other institution; students who are not at Bard for their senior year are exempt from the Senior Project.
Engineering In affiliation with the schools of engineering at Columbia University and Dartmouth College, Bard offers several programs of study leading to a degree in engineering. Under the 3-2 program, a student transfers to the school of engineering at the end of the junior year at Bard and, upon completing that two-year program, qualifies for both a B.A. from Bard and a B.S. or B.E. from the other school. A Senior Project is not required for the 3-2 program. Dartmouth also offers a 2-1-1-1 program (two years at Bard, one at Dartmouth, one at Bard, and one at Dartmouth), in which the student spends the senior year at Bard, and therefore does a Senior Project. There are two 4-2 programs with Columbia: the student completes the entire four-year program at Bard and after two years at Columbia qualifies for the Bard B.A. and either a B.S. or M.S. degree from Columbia.
Admission to the Dartmouth program is competitive and contingent on fulfillment of Bard major and distribution requirements and certain preparatory courses. Admission to the Columbia B.A./B.S. programs is guaranteed, contingent on fulfillment of Bard major and distribution requirements; completion of required foundational courses with grades of B or higher in each course; achievement of an overall grade point average of 3.3 or higher; and faculty recommendations. Interested students should consult the pre-engineering adviser, Simeen Sattar, early in their Bard careers.
Environmental Policy / Climate Science and Policy The Bard Center for Environmental Policy (CEP) offers master of science degree programs for the aspiring environmental leader. The Center offers qualified Bard undergraduates a 3-2 option that allows them to proceed directly from three years of undergraduate study at Bard to a two-year master’s degree in either environmental policy or climate science and policy. The graduate program includes a full-time professional internship designed to facilitate entry into the job market. Graduates of the 3-2 program receive both a B.A. and an M.S. from Bard in five years. Interested students should consult with the dean of studies and the Bard CEP Admission Office. For more information, visit the 3-2 program website at www.bard.edu/cep/academic_programs/bard-3-plus-2.php.
Forestry and Environmental Studies Bard offers a 3-2 program with the master’s degree programs in forestry and environmental management at Duke University. To plan appropriate course work for the program, interested students should consult with Professor William Maple of the Biology Program early in their Bard careers.
Teaching The Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) Program at Bard offers undergraduates a five-year combined program leading to the bachelor of arts and master of arts in teaching degrees. Bard students who wish to enter the program upon completion of the bachelor’s degree, through a preferred admission process, should notify their advisers by November 1 of the sophomore year. To plan appropriate course work, students should contact Cecilia Maple, MAT director of admission.
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