Centenary University is collaborating with Google and a host of private colleges on a new computer science major, which it will roll out in fall 2021.
Google agreed to support the new major with members of the Lower Cost Models for Independent Colleges Consortium, comprised of more than 90 private colleges and universities that focus on offering affordable educational programs to a diverse student body.
“This computer science major is an extraordinary opportunity for Centenary University faculty to collaborate with the world’s leading technology firm to bring our students an academic program that is highly relevant in today’s job market,” said Amy D’Olivo, vice president for academic affairs, in a prepared statement. “The collaboration with Google signals to potential employers that our alumni are graduating with practical skills that can make an immediate impact on the job.”
The curriculum integrates coursework from Centenary’s business and data analytics programs.
Murphy
“This curriculum is designed to not only prepare students to work in the technology sector, but to teach students from a more diverse set of backgrounds key technical concepts that are critical to professional success, regardless of one’s chosen field,” said University of Michigan Professor Charles Severance, who helped establish the curriculum.
Centenary University President Bruce Murphy noted in a statement on the new program that collaborations with industry partners represent the wave of the future for higher education.
“Increasingly, universities aren’t limited to the intellectual capital on their own campuses,” Murphy said. “Technology allows us to tap the resources of top minds from around the world. Smaller private universities, like Centenary, can take this knowledge and move quickly to adapt our courses, producing graduates with marketable skills that are in great demand by employers.”
