Academics
Students choose to attend Rowan because of the academic rigor and the knowledge that their college experience will lead to a promising future. Over 70 percent of freshman report that Rowan was their first choice. Our students present impressive qualifications, graduating at the top of their classes with outstanding academic and extra-curricular credentials. Rowan is appealing to competitive students because of all it offers. The student to faculty ratio is 14:1, providing individualized attention. The educational facilities provide a superior environment for learning, collaborative student and research.
College of Professional and Continuing Education
The College of Professional and Continuing Education (CPCE) was established to facilitate access to Rowan University’s high quality academic programs for individuals seeking education, training, and enrichment in a convenient and affordable setting. CPCE offers non-traditional students a selection of programs (courses, concentrations, specializations, certificates and terminal degrees) currently available on campus to traditional students, but in a different format. Programs are available online, accelerated during evenings/weekends, as degree completions at partner community colleges and combinations of the above.
William G. Rohrer College of Business
The College of Business received a $10 million pledge in March 2005 from the William G. Rohrer Charitable Foundation to establish the William G. Rohrer Fund for Excellence in Business. The business programs are accredited by The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International). To achieve this prestigious accreditation, Rowan’s business programs successfully demonstrated a wide range of quality standards relating to curriculum, faculty resources, admissions, degree requirements, facilities, financial resources and intellectual climate.
The Princeton Review once again has recognized the Rohrer College of Business in its 2009 edition of its "Best 296 Business Schools." The rankings are based upon what students report about their schools and their educational experiences. Participants complete an 80-question survey with questions about their school’s academics, student body and campus life and their career plans. The undergraduate entrepreneurship program was recently recognized by The Princeton Review and Entrepreneur magazines as among the top 25 "most exceptional" entrepreneurship programs in the nation.
College of Communication
Rowan’s College of Communication has been a regional leader in preparing communication professionals for more than 30 years. Long respected for its outstanding preparation of journalists, broadcasters, writers and public relations and advertising practitioners, the College enables students to combine the theories and methods they learn in the classroom with hands-on applications in co-curricular organizations, internships and community-based projects.
The College of Communication is a center for achievement. In the past three years:
- Its writing arts program was recognized by the Council of Writing Program Administrators as one of the top ten writing programs in the world.
- Its public relations program became one of only 16 in the nation to be accredited by the Public Relations Society of America.
- Rowan’s chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America was recognized for a record eighth time as the "Most Outstanding Chapter in the Nation."
Since 1993, Rowan Radio 89.7 WGLS-FM has won 129 national and regional awards and in November 2007, WGLS picked up four first-place awards in the Philadelphia Achievement in Radio (AIR) College Awards. Sponsored by the March of Dimes, the AIR awards ceremony is Philadelphia’s premier event that honors outstanding achievements in radio. The event also helps raise money to support the March of Dimes.
College of Education
The College of Education is the cornerstone of the University’s history. Created as Glassboro Normal School in 1923, its mission has remained to prepare the future teachers and educational leaders of southern New Jersey, the State and the nation. Nearly 3,000 students are enrolled in College of Education courses and degree programs, making Rowan University’s teacher-education program one of the largest in the nation.
The College of Education is accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education and the National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification. The University was awarded the first Program of Distinction in Teacher Education by the New Jersey State Department of Higher Education.
College of Engineering
Founded in 1995, the College of Engineering opened its doors in 1996 and graduated its first class in May 2000. All BS degree programs are nationally accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). The overall placement rate—employment or graduate school placement—for graduating students is 97 percent.
In the latest rankings by U.S. News & World Report, the College has risen to 12th (tied) in the nation among peer institutions whose highest degree is a bachelor’s or master’s degree. In its "America’s Best Colleges" annual compilation of the country’s best institutions, U.S. News & World Report also ranked Rowan Engineering’s programs as follows: Chemical Engineering—3rd; Electrical & Computer Engineering—10th (tied); and Mechanical Engineering—10th (tied).
In February 2008, Dr. Dianne Dorland, Dean of the College of Engineering, was honored as the Delaware Valley Engineers Week Council 2008 Engineer of the Year. The Council, comprised of members from over 30 different engineering entities throughout the Delaware Valley region, presented her with the prestigious award to recognize her contributions to engineering education and her work in helping prepare the engineers of tomorrow.
College of Fine & Performing Arts
The College of Fine and Performing Arts serves over 500 arts majors, 45 full-time faculty, 44 adjunct faculty and 19 staff members who collectively shape the vibrant arts community at Rowan University. In addition to performances and exhibitions on campus, faculty, staff and students collaborate on artistic activities at the international, national and regional levels.
Under the leadership of Dr. Jon Robert Cart, the College of Fine & Performing Arts is revitalizing the arts in the region. The College’s commitment to that desire is evident in the more than 200 faculty, staff and student exhibitions and productions scheduled for this year. Recent events of note include:
- A distinguished performer, Dr. Cart has sung leading tenor roles with the Baltimore Opera, Harrisburg Opera, Opera Roanoke, Wolf Trap Opera and the Amalfi Coast Festival. On March 30, 2008 he appeared as a soloist at Carnegie Hall in a special performance in which he was accompanied by the Rowan University String Quartet. The concert featured the works of Vincenzo Bellini, Richard Wagner, Franz Liszt and Ralph Vaughan Williams.
- As part of an historic visit by one of the world’s most renowned choral conductors, Rowan University’s Department of Music presented An English Holiday: An Evening with Sir David Willcocks on December 8, 2007. The concert was a collaboration between Sir David, the Rowan University Concert Choir, under the direction of Dr. Z. Randall Stroope, and the Rowan University Orchestra, under the direction of Salvatore Scarpa.
College of Liberal Arts & Sciences
With more than 3,000 undergraduate majors, the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences is the largest of Rowan University’s six colleges. Students can choose from more than 20 undergraduate majors in 15 departments—from biology and chemistry to English, history, sociology, mathematics, physics and astronomy.
Rowan science students benefit from Science Hall. Opened in 2003, the building features eight distinct research facilities, allowing for student-faculty collaborative research. Facilities include a magnetics lab, a physical properties lab, a thin film fabrication lab, a microscopy lab, an ultrafast spectroscopy lab, a laser cooling lab, a computational physics lab and an astronomy and astrophysics research lab. The interdisciplinary background offered by a Rowan science education makes students more flexible as job seekers and scientists. With greater flexibility comes greater opportunities and that’s what a Rowan education is all about. Lab classes are capped at 24 students and lecture-only courses at 35.
Rowan University is proud to be the home of The Ric and Jean Edelman Planetarium. The Planetarium advances the understanding of the universe and serves as a public resource for astronomical information. Programs include elements of other natural sciences, education, communications and the fine and performing arts. The planetarium provides a classroom for multimedia learning, an outlet for creative expression and a versatile domed theater.
