Baruch College (officially the Bernard M. Baruch College) is a public college in Manhattan, New York, United States. It is a constituent college of the City University of New York system. Named for financier and statesman Bernard M. Baruch, the college operates undergraduate and postgraduate programs through the Zicklin School of Business, the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences, and the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs.
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History
Baruch College is one of the senior colleges in the CUNY system. Its roots go back to the 1847 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 enrolled in 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. In 1953, it was renamed the Baruch School of Business in honor of Bernard Baruch, an 1889 graduate of CCNY who went on to become a prominent financier and adviser to two presidents. In 1961, the New York State Education Law established the City University of New York (CUNY) system. In 1968, the Baruch School of Business was spun off as Baruch College, an independent senior college in the CUNY system.
In 1967, Percy Sutton, civil rights activist and Manhattan Borough President, proposed the relocation of Baruch College to a site in Harlem. This relocation would not only attract students of color but to create a space that would foster close interaction and socialization between students of color and their white peers. In a letter to the New York Times, Sutton addresses institutional segregation:
“The absence of opportunity for students of the ghetto to relate to the outside world in which they must one day work and live is a by-product of the nonspecialized and eventually segregated education institution”
Academics
Baruch College is composed of three academic schools, the Zicklin School of Business, the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences, and the Marxe School of Public and International 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 27 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 Austin W. Marxe School of Public and International Affairs grants an in-person and online Bachelor of Science (BS) degree in Public Affairs, a Masters of Public Administration (MPA) in 5 different public affairs-related areas, an online MPA, a Masters of International Affairs (MIA), a Masters of Science in City Planning (MSCP), a Masters in Public Policy (MPP), and both a Masters of Science in Education (MSEd) and an online Doctorate in Education (EdD) 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, Organizational Behavior, or Operations and Decision Analytics) 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.
Campus
Lawrence and Eris Field Building
The Lawrence and Eris Field Building, also known as the 23rd Street Building, is still in use by the college today. The 23rd Street Building began renovation in 2013. The ten-year renovation project will finally bring the 23rd Street Building to twenty-first-century standards. The building is home to the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs and several administrative offices.
Information and Technology Building
The Information and Technology Building is located across East 25th Street from the Newman Vertical Campus. The structure, which was once a substation for New York City streetcars, it is home to the William and Anita Newman Library. A 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
After decades of renting space for classrooms, the college began constructing what is now the Newman Vertical Campus in 1998; the 17-story building was designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox. Named after businessman William Newman and inaugurated on August 27, 2001, the building is a 786,000-square-foot (73,000 m2), 17-floor building, which cost $327 million to erect. It is now home to the Zicklin School of Business and the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences (the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs is housed in the Field 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 Newman Vertical Campus received the American Institute of Architects' highest award for an individual building in 2003. East 25th Street between Lexington and Third Avenue was renamed "Bernard Baruch Way", and the college now uses the Vertical Campus as its official address.
Campus location
The college is located between East 22nd and 25th Streets in Manhattan, along Lexington Avenue, near Madison Square Park. The campus is served by the following transportation:
New York City Subway: the 23rd Street–Baruch College and 28th Street subway stations at Park Avenue, served by the 6 and <6> trains.
New York City Bus: M1, M2, M3, M9, M15, M15 SBS, M23 SBS, M34A SBS, M101, M102 and M103 routes.
Academic centers and institutes
Baruch College Survey Research
CCI – Corporate Communication International
CUNY Institute for Demographic Research
Center for Educational Leadership
Center on Equality, Pluralism and Policy
Lawrence N. Field Center for Entrepreneurship
Jewish Studies Center
Steven L. Newman Real Estate Institute
New York Census Research Data Center
Center for Nonprofit Strategy and Management
Center for the Study of Business and Government (CSBG)
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.
The Starr Career Development Center, named after the Starr Foundation, provides career services to all Baruch College undergraduates and alumni with bachelor's degrees from Baruch.
The Subotnick Financial Services Center, which opened in 2000, provides a simulation of practical trading experience. Its centerpiece is the Bert W. and Sandra Wasserman Trading Floor.
Center for Teaching and Learning
Computer Center for Visually Impaired People
Partnerships
The Zicklin School of Business:
has established a corporate-university partnership with JPMorgan Chase.
maintains a joint JD/MBA program with Brooklyn Law School and New York Law School.
Baruch College Campus High School is a public high school operated by the New York City Department of Education that is affiliated with the college.
The Executive Master of Science in finance, and Executive Master of Science in marketing programs at the American Graduate School in Paris are affiliated with Baruch College.
Student life
WBMB Baruch College Radio currently provides around the clock radio broadcasts via their website stream and local FM frequency 94.3. The Ticker has been the student newspaper since 1932. The school is home to over 130 clubs and student organizations, including large chapters of such national and international organizations as Finance and Economics Society, ISACA Cybersecurity Club, ALPFA, AIESEC, Toastmasters, Alpha Kappa Psi, Sigma Alpha Delta, Muslim Student Association, Bangladesh Student Association, United Chinese Language Association, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, and Golden Key. Most undergraduate clubs meet on Thursdays between 12:40 p.m. to 2:20 p.m., which is known as "Club Hours." Baruch college also has an art gallery on campus (Mishkin Gallery) that showcases various exhibitions that engage and educate the students.
Athletics
Baruch College competes in Division III of the National Collegiate Athletic Association. The sports teams, referred to as the Bearcats (with Binturong being the actual name of these animals from many parts of Asia) 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. Women's sports include basketball, cross country, softball, swimming & diving, tennis and volleyball.
Admissions
The undergraduate admissions for Baruch College are considered to be "Selective" by the College Board with a 43% acceptance rate. Baruch College follows a holistic admissions process by considering teacher recommendations, application essay, and extracurricular activities, in addition to standardized test scores and GPA. For 2022, the average admitted student's GPA was 3.7, with an SAT score range of 1170–1350 and average ACT score of 27. The college has a 70% graduation rate within six years.
Rankings
Baruch College has been ranked by multiple sources, including:
In its annual "Social Mobility Index" for 2015, CollegeNet ranked Baruch #1 in the country, among more than 900 schools considered, in providing social mobility for students.
Washington Monthly ranked Baruch #1 in the Northeast in 2015 in providing "Best Bang for the Buck."
CNBC Says Baruch College is #2 Best Public Institution Nationwide for Return on Investment in 2020.
Entrepreneur magazine and The Princeton Review ranked Baruch #5 in 2018 among colleges for its undergraduate entrepreneurship program, and #10 for the graduate school.
Forbes ranked Baruch #9 in the country among "Best Value Schools" for 2019. The magazine also ranked Baruch #55 nationally among "Best Business Schools."
In 2015, Business Insider recognized Baruch as #19 in its ranking of the 25 business schools that offer the best value.
U.S. News & World Report ranked Baruch 20th in 2017 among Regional Universities in the North. The magazine also ranked Baruch #4, Most Ethnically Diverse (in the North Region); #5, Top Public Schools (in the North Region); #1, Least Debt (in the North Region); #15, City Management and Urban Policy; #29, Health Care Management; #35, Accounting; #45, Top Public Affairs Schools; #61, Best Undergraduate Business programs; #66, Best Part-time MBA.
U.S. News & World Report, in its 2023 ranking of "Best Business Schools," listed Zicklin as #49 nationally.
Notable alumni
Before 1968, alumni of Baruch College were officially alumni of the City College of New York.
Notable faculty
Ervand Abrahamian, Professor of history, Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Abraham J. Briloff, Professor of accounting, Inductee of The Accounting Hall of Fame in 2014
Joel Brind, Professor of biology, Scientific advocate of the abortion–breast cancer hypothesis
Mario Cuomo, former 3-term governor of New York State, Taught a public affairs seminar in the fall of 2008
Matthew Goldstein, former chancellor of The City University of New York, Taught mathematics and statistics
David Gruber, Marine biologist and National Geographic Explorer, Presidential Professor of Biology and Environmental Sciences at the City University of New York
Ted Joyce, professor of economics, research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research
Douglas P. Lackey, professor of philosophy, playwright
John Liu, former New York City Comptroller, mayoral candidate, and former member of the New York City Council, Taught municipal finance and policy in the School of Public Affairs
Kenneth L. Marcus, former Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at the United States Department of Education, Taught courses on Diversity Management and Civil Rights Law
Harry Markowitz, Professor of Finance, recipient of Nobel Prize in Economics (1990)
Wendell Pritchett, Chancellor of Rutgers University–Camden, Interim Dean and Presidential Professor at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, and Provost of the University of Pennsylvania