Becker College is a small liberal arts college with 2 campuses just a few miles away from each other. I was fortunate to meet recently with the Vice President for Enrollment Management, who shared information about what students can excel in at Becker.
Founded by Samuel Adams and John Hancock in 1784, Becker’s dorms are beautiful – a set of 35 Victorian houses on the Worcester, Mass. campus. Becker has a nationally-ranked game design program, and about 60% of their students are involved in science, math and technology in some way. The campus is immediately next to Worcester Polytechnic Institute, which I visited several years ago. And with UMass Medical School and several other hospitals nearby, the pre-health track majors are very strong. Nursing is a four-year, direct-entry program and it is strong here.
Also available on the Worcester campus are strong programs in nursing, criminal justice, forensic psychology and domestic counter-terrorism policy.
The business program is developing a Center for Entrepreneurship and Global Innovation, so expect this to become a popular major at Becker.
Becker’s second campus is in Leicester, just three miles away, and there are shuttles that bring students from one to the other. Specialties on this campus include animal science – Becker is the #1 provider of veterinary technicians in New England – and the campus has its own veterinary hospital. Students can also study equine science here, and those who have their own horses may board them.
The Leicester campus also has strong programs in exercise science, sport management and coaching.
Becker has just over 2,000 students and has Division III sports. The college has been ranked as the #3 most sober school in the U.S. – don’t expect a party school! But you can expect a place where students collaborate in classes with an average size of about 18, and where many students dedicate some time to community service. Becker is in a consortium with a handful of other colleges in the immediate area, so students may take courses at other schools. About 70% of the students are from outside of Massachusetts.