CSM, Johns Hopkins Univ. Sign Student Transfer Agreement

LA PLATA, Md. (March 8, 2012)—The Johns Hopkins Carey Business School (JHCBS) and the College of Southern Maryland (CSM) have partnered to offer students a seamless transfer from CSM to the Bachelor of Science in Business program at JHCBS through the Johns Hopkins Carey Alliance Program for Excellence (CAPE).

The program’s first participants can transfer in fall 2012.

“Knowing where the College of Southern Maryland is located, where it draws its students from, and given the footprint of Johns Hopkins in the state of Maryland, this is a very, very important partnership. It allows us as a university business school to find the best and the brightest that is within our neighborhood and to get access to those students without losing them to other states,” said Johns Hopkins Carey Business School Interim Dean Dr. Phil Phan.

“We want to encourage area high school students who are considering a business degree to look into starting their studies at CSM. This partnership provides students affordable tuition at CSM with access to advising and resources from Johns Hopkins University while they are working on their associate’s degrees close to home. CSM students will continue to receive great value as the partnership has built-in scholarships for eligible students when they transfer to complete their bachelor’s degree at Carey Business School," said CSM President Dr. Brad Gottfried.

Phan singled out CSM student William Hill of Waldorf as one of the best and brightest Carey Business School graduates, saying, “We know the quality of the students that attend [CSM].”

Hill received the dean’s award for outstanding achievement upon his graduation from JHCBS in 2009. “Without the foundation I received from my courses at CSM, I would not have been prepared for the intense academic environment at Hopkins,” Hill said.

Following a career in the Marine Corps, Hill knew that he wanted to pursue a college degree, he said. He began taking evening classes at the La Plata Campus and graduated with an associate’s degree in management development. “Once I felt academic success at CSM, I knew that I could succeed anywhere if I tried really hard. I knew that a degree from a prestigious school like Johns Hopkins would be an accomplishment. I had faith that if I applied and was accepted, it was meant to be,” Hill said.

While studying at Johns Hopkins, Hill made a 100-mile commute two to three nights a week for two years, traveling from his home in Waldorf to his job at the Pentagon in Arlington, to a Johns Hopkins campus in Columbia or Baltimore and then home to Waldorf. “This agreement between CSM and Johns Hopkins is a great opportunity for students who are serious about getting a business degree from a really top-notch university,” Hill said.

JHCBS Chair of Undergraduate Review Committee John Baker, who taught Hill and recognized his potential, told CSM representatives gathered for the signing, to “send more students like William” to continue their work toward bachelor’s degrees in business.

“As the newest business school in the country and as the newest division of Johns Hopkins University we are very focused on being highly competitive,” Phan said, adding that given the quality of students at CSM, this kind of partnership will help JHCBS remain competitive.

“I think that this strategic alliance is phenomenal. It provides a tremendous opportunity for our students in the business department. I know that when I mentioned it to my students they were very excited about it,” said CSM Professor Athena Miklos.

The Johns Hopkins Carey Business School was established in 2007 with a gift of $50 million from Trustee Emeritus Wm. Polk Carey.

For details of the JHCBS articulation agreement and other transfer opportunities, visit http://www.csmd.edu/Academics/fouryear.html.

For info on JHCBS, visit http://carey.jhu.edu/.

Source: CSM