Every university graduate must take core studies

An entire academic center is currently screening for the second cohort (the first cohort is currently completing its first year), and will accept only 50 outstanding students each year for a unique bachelor's degree program with structured core studies in the humanities and social sciences from history and philosophy, the ideas that shaped the West and Judaism to the basics of music, Statistics, research and science

A test conducted in England shows that the employment rate of graduates of the faculties of humanities (in English: "Humanities and Liberal Arts") does not fall, and even slightly exceeds that of graduates of "professional" faculties such as natural sciences, technology, engineering and mathematics.
A report published by the Authority for Higher Education Statistics in Great Britain indicates that three years after graduating, 78.7% of humanities graduates have a job, compared to 77.8% of their counterparts who graduated from the exact sciences.

In addition, three and a half years since the completion of their bachelor's degree, 6.2% of the humanities graduates held managerial positions, as heads of departments and senior positions in the companies they joined, compared to only 3.6% among the exact sciences graduates.

This report reinforces the conclusions of another survey conducted by Georgetown University in Washington, USA, according to which 93% of its humanities graduates participate in the workforce, and 80% of them are employed full-time. The fields of employment of the graduates ranged from management positions (in which one out of five graduates had a business) to education (one out of seven) and finance (one out of ten).

The changing world, globalization, the high level of uncertainty and the abundance of cultures meeting, one with the other in communication, commerce, politics and tourism are also changing the face of the labor market, and therefore necessarily also the academy - in the sense of training students. The above data, which "break" the stereotype of the need for a "practical" profession, become even more acute in the face of a particularly fascinating phenomenon in global academia, which is the rise of the liberal arts method. No less than two hundred academic institutions using this method have been opened in recent years in the world, especially in countries often defined as "growing countries" or as "the economies of the future" and among them: Hong Kong, China, in the West - England, the Netherlands, Germany, Slovakia and of course the United States where they live Also the old institutions of this study method and last year - the first such institution, an Israeli one that grants a bachelor's degree (B.A.).

The "new" method is actually a more than two hundred year old method belonging to elite academies and universities in England and the United States such as Oxford, Cambridge and the American St. John's. At the center of the method is the idea of ​​the core studies, and a small and intimate study framework for a selected population of curious young people who receive a broad training (all mandatory, no choice) in a variety of basic subjects intertwined and long as building blocks. Originally, this method was intended for nobles, priests, capitalists and kings with the assumption that those who lead society must develop familiarity with the ideas that drive the world, basic knowledge and knowledge of culture in the broadest sense.

Back to the last few years - Ashesi College was opened in Ghana. The entrepreneurs declare that it is designed to "train the next leadership of Africa". 602 outstanding students from Benin, Cameroon, Liberia, Cote d'Ivoire, Togo and other countries study with senior lecturers, while the management of the institution includes graduates of Berkeley, Dartmouth and other prestigious American colleges. A similar institution is being established in Singapore, whose entrepreneurs define it as a "game changer" that will provide appropriate education to those who want to lead society.

It is not just about local entrepreneurship. The prestigious institutions in the world are senior partners in the accelerated development of this study method. Bard College - one of the leading and most prestigious in the United States is a senior partner in a liberal arts college under the name Smolny that opened in St. Petersburg. Bard is also a partner in nothing less than a college in the Palestinian Authority in the city of Ramallah together with Al-Quds University.

Columbia recently announced that it will invest 50 million dollars in a core studies program along the lines of the "liberal arts" and put at the head of the program its "young star" - Prof. Roosevelt Montes, less than forty years old, the son of poor immigrants from Puerto Rico who became a soldier at one of the best universities in the world.

Georgetown, another prestigious university, also partners with branches in this format, including an unusual branch in Iraq.

Apparently, the return of the core studies method to the world seems to contradict the reality where everyone "flocks" to "practical" studies of economics, business administration, law and engineering, high-tech and communication.

"I talk a lot with businessmen, CEOs and owners of companies, employers in banks, finance and law firms" explains the dissonance Prof. Roosevelt Montes, head of Columbia's core department "They always ask me to send them my students who write well and read well, who have They have critical thinking. They tell me: we will already teach them everything they need to do the job we want them to do. We will do a better job than you in teaching them the job: we need you to teach them other skills"

Montes recently visited Israel at the Shalem Academic Center - the pioneer and only academic institution so far in this method of study. An entire academic center is currently screening for the second cohort (the first cohort is currently completing its first year), and will accept only 50 outstanding students each year for a unique bachelor's degree program with structured core studies in the humanities and social sciences from history and philosophy, the ideas that shaped the West and Judaism to the basics of music, Statistics, research and science. During the degree, the students will specialize beyond the core studies in one of two tracks - Middle East or combined studies in philosophy, Western ideas and Jewish thought.

As an integral part of their studies, the students study about a hundred masterpiece texts, from Plato, through Marx and Cervantes, the Bible and the Koran to John Lennon and also carry out a wide social activity. A brief look at the students who were accepted for the bachelor's degree and are already studying at the center echoes the initial goal for which the method was developed - the training of leaders and leading citizens, since many of the students are social activists, graduates of the "preparatory schools", years of service - places where young people can express the need for involvement in social change.
The educational director of the Shalem Academic Center, Dr. Ido Hebroni, explains regarding the data that: "The humanities develop critical skills for today's life and work: the ability to analyze, to contain a lot of material, to formulate a position and defend it, and to engage in dialogue and learning. These are more useful skills than technical and professional training of one kind or another."

Hevroni further adds that in the tests conducted in the United States, it turns out that graduates of humanitarian degrees in the United States earn much more than the median salary, and many of them express the same or greater level of satisfaction than their friends who chose to study other fields. Also, employers and schools in all fields prefer students who have acquired a liberal education: according to the data of the Association of Medical Schools in the USA (AAMC), in 2011, medical schools accepted 43% of applicants who chose biology as a major and 51% of applicants who chose subjects Humanities as main subjects.

"Broad, diverse and open-minded thinking is an important "weapon" to do something significant in your life and actually be influential in any field," says Hevroni, "from education and teaching, through social action, journalism, in government and even in business." One of the examples of this is Steve Jobs, the founder of the giant company 'Apple'. "The man who changed the technological world more than anyone else," says Dr. Hevroni, "is a man who had almost no technological training but training in the humanities," says Hevroni and adds that in his opinion, what is required today in management positions is not only concrete knowledge, but an understanding of the meaning Expansion, which includes a balance between conflicting opinions, the adoption of new ideas and the ability to lead."

Unlike the nobles of two hundred years ago, there is a need today to make a living. The economic pressure spurs us to make "survival" choices. If so, is there a place for an institution according to the core studies method also in Israel, which is economically "stressed"?

A study carried out by the Shalem Academic Center in order to deepen the knowledge of the population of young people who wish to lead Israeli society revealed that indeed, this feeling exists for some of them. Another part seeks to realize excellence and curiosity in the humanities and social sciences. Some intend to lead as journalists, as social activists, perhaps even as teachers or administrators in educational institutions and some may even intend to pursue another career - one way or another, most of them estimate that they will find work and succeed in their actions in the end.

The feeling of difficulty is precisely in the intermediate period - the study period when it is difficult or impossible to work to meet the study requirements and shortly after - the integration into the labor market.

The research data show that 75% of young people are forced to choose their future profession based on income considerations alone. Only 5% of men and 14% of women state that money was not a consideration for them. Surprisingly, it is precisely students who come from established populations who think more about money, and about 53% of them stated that future income was the sole consideration compared to 14% among poor strata.

According to Dr. Ido Hebroni, the Educational Director of the Shalem Academic Center, "The State of Israel needs in-depth citizens, with a cohesive worldview. We need them in the humanities, but in order to convince them to go, we also need to provide them with an income horizon."

According to him, "We recognized that one of the main problems is that in the economic and social reality, there are students who do not choose to study a field that interests them and in which they believe they will use their skills, but a field they believe will support them. We need to show them that we not only take care of giving them the best education, but also help them realize their dream of becoming, studying the humanities and making a decent living."

When the students were asked what they would study in reality where they had no financial worries, four out of five respondents (79.6%) chose completely different fields of study. The department that benefited from the significant jump is, as mentioned, the department of philosophy, when in practice the number of students enrolled in it stands at 5% of all students, the number of students enrolled in art studies has also jumped, and the tendency to choose geography has increased sixfold. The math is also surprising, with a fivefold jump in enrollment; The literature jumps fourfold, and the field of Middle Eastern studies grows by nearly 200% - tripling its size.

The classes that are shrinking are the ones that guarantee a high income but it turns out that they don't stir the blood of the students. In a world without financial concerns, the engineering faculties would be cut by 66%, the business administration department would be cut in half, computer science by a little more than a third, accounting by 25% and law by 17%.

And what would make them change their minds? Only 27% of all respondents stated that if they had not had financial concerns they would have chosen the same field of study; Another 27% claimed that scholarships during the degree would have encouraged them to choose a field that suits them better, even if it would have paid less; 6% cited career preparation workshops as a major factor; And 21% indicated that providing internships as part of the curriculum might have helped; Also, about a fifth, 18%, claimed that the parameter of income after the degree is too important to them, and that they do not see themselves choosing another field in any case.

The solution offered by the center to the practical tendency of the current generation is generous subsistence scholarships that will help students focus on their studies, an internship program in the private and public sector during the degree, personal training and employment preparation workshops. "Young people who come to the academy today are interested in knowledge, but just as much and maybe more than that they are looking for a springboard for life. Institutions that want to succeed must provide it to them."

To the entire academic center website

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