Hartford Business Journal

29 HARTFORDBUSINESS.COM | May 9, 2022 Focus USJ's 'upside-down' curriculum gives computer science majors early access to core courses, marketable skills By Norman Bell Hartford Business Journal Contributor W hen the fall term begins at the University of St. Joseph, a grand experiment will be kick-started on the school's West Hartford campus. An expected crop of 23 freshmen will begin a computer science program like no other. It will be built upside down, with a focus on developing marketable skills in the student's major first, followed by the soft skills and general courses that long have been the hallmarks of a university-level arts and science education. Provost Michelle Kalis is clear that the program is not business as usual. It reflects the confluence of trends and pressures, both within academia and in the community beyond the well-treed campus. Employers are putting more emphasis on "what can you do" rather than "what do you know." A new study highlights the trend using data from Emsi Burning Glass, a labor-market data firm. Among the examples cited is global business consulting giant Accenture, where about 20% of its new hires will not have a four-year degree. Accenture has ramped up its own one-year apprenticeship program as a reliable way to develop talent for a host of roles that include information technology and cybersecurity. Other name-brand companies reducing the share of jobs requiring four-year degrees are AT&T, Dell, Google, Hilton Hotels, Ernst & Young, Oracle, IBM and Intel, the report finds. In Hartford, IT firm GalaxE.Solutions recently announced it will hire 60 graduates from the Hartford-based nonprofit Girls for Technology's service desk training program, which will train young people — particularly Hartford residents between the ages of 18 and 29 who have a high school diploma or GED equivalent — for technology roles. The change in the hiring market comes against the backdrop of a growing debate about student debt and the value proposition underlying undergraduate education. The conversation is not lost on university officials, Kalis said. University of St. Joseph (USJ) is already ranked No. 2 in Connecticut on U.S. News & World Report's list of "best value" national universities. But by accelerating skills development among computer science majors, Kalis said, students will be ready for part-time jobs — or apprenticeships — earlier. That plays to the hiring trend noted in the Emsi Burning Glass data, but it also could change the underlying economics of being a USJ student. Tuition is listed at more than $42,000 a year, but the university's website points out students receive an average financial aid package of $26,670. Kalis adds that the majority of students work part time. Tapping into the Hartford area's hot market for IT talent would give students higher pay than delivering pizzas as a part-time job. It will also give students a chance to start building the skills and relationships that will lead to better full-time employment after graduation. Kalis said university officials also looked at the on-campus needs and identified a variety of 19-hour-per- week jobs, mostly help-desk positions that could expand to 29 weekly hours during semester breaks. The university sees similar on- campus opportunities for digital media and marketing majors, the likely next candidates for the upside- down curriculum. Building strong relationships Kalis points to two New England trendsetters in the upside- down curriculum movement as models — Champlain College in Burlington, Vermont, and Johnson & Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island. Champlain is widely acknowledged as a pioneer in upside-down and has been a regular on U.S. News & World Report's list of most innovative colleges and universities. Champlain's provost, Monique Taylor, said the focus on marketable skills has been part of Champlain's curriculum philosophy since it opened in 1878 as a business school. For much of its existence, the associate degree was the highest offered by Champlain. But with the move to adding bachelor's-level degrees after the start of the 21st century, the upside-down model seemed a natural fit, she said. The school's 1,800 students have the option of taking six credits in their major during freshman year with a focus on being ready to handle an internship in year two. Students in the film, gaming and cybersecurity programs usually are in classes of 10 to 15 with a heavy emphasis on hands-on, team-focused projects. Campuswide, few classes have more than 25 students, Taylor said. She discounted any concerns that students would leave with their job skills before earning a degree. The upside-down curriculum is built like "a three-legged stool," she explained, with a blend of professional skills courses, core curriculum and life- skills training. The result is "students develop a sense of ownership" of their education and their future, Taylor said. At Johnson & Wales, Provost Rich Wiscott paints a similar picture. The university has built its reputation on its strong hospitality and culinary arts programs. And with a faculty deep in real-world credentials, experiential learning has been a key ingredient in that success. But as the university has raised the level of its other programs — particularly a range of health skills and administration programs, criminal justice and forensic psychology — the upside-down curriculum was the right fit, he said. Students can take courses in their majors from day one, he said, and the approach works. "Our graduates earn a little more money to start and move up faster," Wiscott said. His counsel for the University of St. Joseph is to invest the time to build strong relationships with employers in the community. Success breeds success. Students who are ready to work encourage employers to expand workplace opportunities and hire graduates. And successful alumni raise the profile of the program. Kalis said USJ has identified a range of potential sources of part- time work for computer science students spanning companies like Infosys, area hospitals and government agencies. Kalis acknowledges the new program may face some growing pains, but that in the long run, the students, community and university will all benefit from the upside-down approach. Michelle Kalis is the provost at the University of St. Joseph. PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED

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