 "Photo: Jack Jeffries")
It is apparent across all majors that mastering effective communication skills is crucial in order to gain a competitive edge and succeed at a job.
The significance of being proficient in language, both written and spoken, is emphasized throughout a student's academic career at Baruch. From Freshmen Seminar to Business Policy 5100, students are exposed to the various forms of communication and the countless reasons pertaining to why proficiency is relevant. Courses designated as Communication Intensive Courses or CICs are designed and implemented by faculty members, with the help from the Bernard L. Schwartz Communication Institute to help students become more effective writers and speakers.
The Schwartz Institute was founded after individuals across the college expressed the concern that Baruch graduates were not capable of communicating effectively and thus not performing up to par with competing graduates from other schools. It was established in 1997 and named after wealthy Baruch alumni, Bernard L. Schwartz, who donated a generous contribution to kick-start the program.
Regardless of major or industry, employers of Baruch students complain about their lack of effective communication skills. "Employers continue to tell us about the importance of good communication skills for job candidates and about the lack of such skills in many of the candidates they interview. In fairness, most acknowledge that communication skills among entry level candidates in general have deteriorated and students from both public and private institutions are lacking in both excellent speaking and writing skills," explains Patricia Imbimbo, director of Starr Career Development Center.
In each CIC, trained business and communication professionals work in close proximity to professors within each discipline to assist students in developing their communication skills. Each CIC is specialized so that it is similar to the courses offered in each discipline. A CIC professional working in an Anthropology course will be assisting and developing different communication skills than those taught in an upper level accountancy CIC class. The accountancy CICs will cater to specific skill sets for each discipline. "We can't expect our students to fully develop as effective writers and speakers by only taking required introductory writing and speech courses. They need to keep writing and speaking publicly throughout their time here at Baruch. So our goal is to create as many opportunities as possible within the curriculum for Baruch students to practice writing and speaking," says Mikhail Gershovich, director at the Schwartz Institute.
In upper level courses, students are advised if not required, to make appointments to meet with fellows from the Communications Institute for consultations. The students then rehearse their presentations in front of video cameras that are followed by constructive feedback sessions with professionals from the Schwartz Institute. "The videotaping and critiquing of team presentations provides students with an objective assessment of their presentation skills and the opportunity for self-awareness. In the short-run, this feedback enhances students' grades, and in the long-run, it helps them in the workplace," explains BPL professor Naomi Gardberg.
Currently, there isn't a set number of CIC designated courses that each student is required to take, but the Zicklin School of Business requires students to complete at least four CIC courses prior to graduation.
The capstone for all Zicklin graduates is Business Policy 5100, which is an interactive course that involves the participation of all students in teams and exposes them to all areas of communication.
BPL was the first CIC in the original program and approximately 30 percent of the Schwartz Institute's resources are geared towards this course. Accountancy major Amandeep Bains explained, "Team interaction and constant communication with team members to achieve a goal can be carried forward to the real world where every project or engagement revolves around that one goal, which makes this course highly relevant to any major."
A specific measure to gauge student success is done by capturing writing samples from students who write in CICs both at the beginning and at the end of each the semester in the CIC course. Approximately 60,000 writing samples were taken over a 10-year span.
Evaluations indicated improvements in the quality of writing, as assessed through various elements such idea development, grammar, syntax, coherence and diction. This rubric was developed ten years prior and will be replaced by a different evaluation that will measure improvement more directly as it relates to the course and the content in the course.
The dedication and time expressed by Schwartz Institute members and faculty has earned Baruch the 2008 TIAA-CREF Hesburgh award for faculty development. This is administered by the TIAA-CREF Institute and the faculty development program is evaluated based on several main criteria: significance of the program to higher education, effectiveness of the program's development, the implementation of the plan, success of the results, the impact on the undergraduate students and student learning.
"This award is very well respected and prestigious, which is great for us and for Baruch and it really recognizes specifically what we do," says Suzanne Epstein, deputy director of the Schwartz Institute.
In continuation to it's commitment and constant incorporation of communication intensive elements, future goals and developments include an increase in the number of courses designated to be CICs, the creation of blogs for students and a personal publisher platform. "Any opportunity that allows students to write more often will improve their writing," said Gershovich.
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