Midd West: VT's Middlebury College Adds CA Grad School

Colleges and Universities A-Z Middlebury College
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<p>Middlebury College is often a favorite for students interested in foreign languages and cultures. And now the rural Vermont school is ratcheting up that reputation.</p>

<p>From today's Chronicle of Higher Education</p>

<p>Middlebury College to Annex Monterey Institute of International Studies</p>

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The Monterey Institute of International Studies, a graduate-level institution in California, will officially become the graduate school of Middlebury College, a liberal-arts college in Vermont, on July 1. The two institutions have been affiliated since 2005. By joining forces, they intend to expand their programs in language learning and international studies, including the creation of integrated degree programs.

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<p>Would Middlebury still remain a LAC after adding in the grad school?</p>

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<p>Middlebury has had another graduate school since the 1920s – the Bread Loaf School of English, which has 500 graduate students and awards about 90 M.A. degrees/year. And Middlebury’s Language Schools award about 200 M.As a year and have been around since 1915.</p>

<p>Other liberal arts colleges have graduate programs: Bryn Mawr has a number of Ph.Ds programs, for example. </p>

<p>Middlebury’s graduate degree programs (Bread Loaf and the Language Schools) do not operate on the Vermont campus during the academic year, and Monterey operates 3000 miles away ---- that is, none of these programs compete with the College’s core liberal arts undergraduate program or the undergraduate experience. Undergraduates may study in one of these programs if they choose, but graduate students will not be on the Vermont campus taking the time and attention of Middlebury faculty from the undergraduates.</p>

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<p>From what I understand, Middlebury will continue to be classified as a liberal arts college whose primary mission is the instruction of undergraduate students.</p>

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<p>The whole “University” vs. “College” labeling is confusing. Dartmouth, for instance, is a “college” but has more grad offerings than Wesleyan, a “University,” which functions more like a liberal arts college. Many LAC’s, in fact, do offer some graduate programs (e.g., Smith, where I used to work, awards advanced degrees (or has in the past) in social work, education, music, biology and a handful of other fields, but the primary emphasis is on undergrad education.)</p>

<p>Likewise, as arcadia points out, Middlebury’s mission is still focused on the education of undergrads, and this change will not affect its status as a liberal arts college.</p>

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<p>

This is certainly true, but I don’t think that any other LAC will have as many graduate students as Middlebury will. </p>

<p>Wesleyan, Smith, and Bryn Mawr are good examples of LACs with significant graduate programs (as mentioned in posts above). The numbers below represent (1) the number of undergraduate (bachelor’s) awarded in 2008-09, (2) the number of graduate (master’s plus doctoral) degrees awarded in 2008-09, and (3) the percentage of graduate degrees in the total. Data from the US Dept. of Education “College Navigator” website. </p>

<p>Wesleyan: 735, 108, 12.8%
Smith: 679, 143, 17.4%
Bryn Mawr: 331, 127, 27.7%</p>

<p>For Middlebury and Monterey, the numbers were as follows:</p>

<p>Middlebury: 639, 226, 26.1%
Monterey: 6, 368, 1.6%</p>

<p>So if the numbers for Monterey were folded into Middlebury’s numbers, it would have looked like this:</p>

<p>Middlebury: 645, 594, 47.9%</p>

<p>It appears that in the future, Middlebury could be issuing nearly 600 graduate degrees per year. To put that number in perspective, UVM issued 502 graduate degrees in 2008-09, and Dartmouth awarded 648. </p>

<p>I expect that Middlebury will continue to be regarded as a liberal arts college. But it’s going to be unique among top LACs, especially if the planned 5-year BA/MA programs become popular.</p>

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<p>Wesleyan and Bryn Mawr would still be unique in the number/percent of degrees awarded at the doctoral level.</p>

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<p>

Technically, that may be true. But even in these cases, the numbers/percents are relatively small (Bryn Mawr: 21 doctorates, or 4.6%; Wesleyan: 16 doctorates, or 1.9%). Furthermore, the doctoral degrees issued by these schools are in the same traditional liberal arts disciplines that are offered at the undergraduate level. So the doctoral degrees don’t really redefine the way that these schools are perceived.</p>

<p>In contrast, I think the perception of Middlebury may be subject to change in the future, as the MIIS graduate and professional programs are taken over and rebranded. The AACSB-accredited MBA program at MIIS, for example, unambiguously represents a professional degree program – not the liberal arts. The impending appearance of the “Middlebury MBA” may startle those who have always regarded Midd as a traditional LAC.</p>

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<p>^^sorry, to be a nag, but, that’s 16 doctorates awarded <em>per year</em> at Wesleyan, not overall doctoral candidates (can’t speak for Bryn Mawr.)</p>

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<p>Another big difference is the fact that MIIS is on the other side of the continent. There will be no drain on resources offered to undergrads in Vermont.</p>

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<p>Is this going to be one of those situations where the Monterey faculty count toward the student:faculty ratio, but the students don’t? :/</p>

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<p>

I don’t think that’s entirely correct. It’s certainly true that MIIS has its own facilities and its own faculty, and will not be drawing resources from Vermont in those regards. The issue is finances. </p>

<p>MIIS was losing money, was heavily in debt, and was facing closure when Middlebury stepped in and took it over. I understand that the change of management has worked out positively, and that MIIS now operates in the black. </p>

<p>But the existing MIIS debt – reportedly some tens of millions of dollars – went to Vermont. Midd is now responsible for servicing the MIIS debt, as well as its own. I can’t say what the drain to Middlebury’s financial resources is, or how significant it might be relative to Midd’s overall expenses, but it does exist.</p>

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<p>I think Arcadia means that faculty attention and focus on students at Middlebury will not change at all, and in fact the students at Middlebury will now have access to programs, internships, on-site (around the world) practicums during Winter Term and summer, and the Monterey “network,” which complements the Middlebury network, for employment, mentoring, contacts.</p>

<p>At an open meeting the Middlebury treasurer noted that the additional “cost” to the College annually attributed to debt that Corbett mentions has been more than covered by the additional annual and long-term gifts given to Middlebury specifically for the Monterey initiative by Middlebury alumni and “friends”, and is restricted to cover Monterey. Those gifts would not otherwise have come to Middlebury. Then there is the issue of physical “assets” (real estate in downtown Monterey, Ca), which, according to financial statements, exceed $45 million, which is now Middlebury’s. Debt is also reported as less than $20 million. [Middlebury and Williams have long-term debt in excess of $250 milion; Amherst in excess of $320 million].</p>

<p>But according to the College’s releases, MIIS, as Arcadia said, is 3000 miles away, and the goal and plan is NOT to mingle the curricula so that things on the ground AT Middlebury change for the undergraduate experience. Instead, much like its other programs (e.g., the summer Language Schools, which have about 230 faculty from around the world and not the Middlebury regular academic year undergraduate faculty teaching the 1500 students, and only 150 are Middlebury undergraduates), Monterey is supposed to add to the Middlebury undergraduate experience by providing new, not competing, opportunities, with all those happening outside the Vermont campus. The “joint” degree programs all happen by adding a year at Monterey after 4 years at Middlebury.</p>

<p>Middlebury’s experience with its summer Language Schools (for 95 years) and the Bread Loaf School of English (90 years) give it good experience in expanding academic opportunities while retaining its strong undergraduate commitment to a liberal arts education. And keeping within its long-time strength of languages and international studies will make this initiative more likely to succeed.</p>