Bryant University – Smithfield, Rhode Island

Upon arriving at Bryant, I was directed to Admissions in the Unistructure, and immediately thought I had entered the campus of the future in Smithfield, Rhode Island. The Unistructure houses all the academic classes, a few lecture halls, the cafeteria, the Academic Center for Excellence (ACE) as well as the Amica Career Center.

Even though Bryant has a reputation for being a school focused on business, they have an unusual and timely academic requirement. You must have a major and a minor. If the Major is in the College of Business, the Minor must be in the College of Arts and Sciences, and vice versa. This ensures a totally well-rounded graduate.

Bryant is part of the Rhode Island Consortium so students can cross-register with a number of neighboring institutions for other courses, a real highlight.

Bryant is a Division 1 athletic school, but has some unusual and favorite non-varsity sports, including cornhole and bacci. In addition, President Maackley (beloved by the entire student body), challenges any student to beat him in a game of racquetball for a free semester of tuition. No one so far has been able to best him though many have tried.

The Amica Career Center is very active in helping students find internships and full-time jobs. The surrounding areas are ripe with employers like FM Global, CVS, Fidelity Investment, Hasbro, TGX, Alex And Ani, Toys R Us, Sirius, Z100 and Amica Insurance (which financed the career center).

Little known fact – their annual Bingo Night is so well known that the NEW YORK TIMES did an article on it on April 17, 2011.

Providence College – Providence, Rhode Island

If I were the 2015 NCAA Ice Hockey Championship Team Winner of the “Frozen Four,” I’d host high school counselors and independent consultants in my ice hockey arena too! So we recently spent the morning in Providence College’s newly renovated Schneider Arena to hear presentations from the Deans of the Arts and Sciences School, the Business School and the Professional Studies School.

Providence College, with the only major in Public and Community Service in the country, also announced their new Musical Theatre Major. It is only fitting that PC should have this major since this is part of their application process where they look for a serious commitment on the part of applicants to community service.

They are also building a new 70,000 square foot building for the Arthur and Patricia Ryan Center for Business Studies that will be open in January of 2017. This shows where some of the program emphasis is being placed on campus.
The “Campus Transformation Project” is an amazing campus revitalization that encompasses the new Business School building, as well as many walkways and landscaping formations. There are many new areas that separate motor vehicle and pedestrian traffic, and create a whole new feeling on campus. It is a very exciting time for Providence, both physically and academically.