The prospects are looking up for students hoping to earn a bachelor's degree at one of Miami University's two regional campuses.
Currently both campuses are moving forward on a plan to offer a general bachelor degree within the next few years.
According to Jeff Sommers, interim associate dean for academic affairs at Miami University's Middletown campus, the degree would not resemble the traditional Bachelor of Arts or Bachelor of Science degree usually earned at four-year institutions. Currently, students at the regional campuses can only earn two-year degrees in majority of the majors offered.
With no specific "major," under this new offering, students would take clusters of similar classes focusing on generalized skills such as critical thinking, problem solving and communication.
The program would be interdisciplinary in nature, with students actively working to shape the thematic focus of their degree.
"There is much more input than your traditional bachelor's degree," Sommers said. "What it won't be is 64 accumulated courses. This isn't a complete free-for-all."
Plans for the degree, which Sommers said does not have a formal name yet, also include seminars, thematic sequences and capstones.
According to Sommers, the degree program would be a two-year program with 64 credit hours at the junior and senior level.
Sommers said it would primarily be geared toward students who have already earned an associate degree, however regional students with junior status may move into the program without earning a two-year degree.
Sommers pointed out that several neighboring universities also offer a similar degree at their regional campuses, such as Ohio University's Bachelor of Specialized Study.
The process of proposing this kind of program, Sommers said, has been long in the coming.
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According to Sommers, the deans of the regional campuses, as well as top university officials, hired a consultant from the University of Central Florida to evaluate its campuses and provide recommendations for improvement.
The consultant recommended that Miami's regional campuses work together to develop a bachelor's degree-an option, Sommers said, regional deans had already been seriously considering for a few years.
Sommers said that students at regional campuses had long requested a bachelor's degree program.
"We have a lot of students who would prefer to complete their degree this way, either because they're from the area or they like the (regional) campuses," Sommers said.
Kelly Cowan, dean of Miami Middletown, agrees, pointing out that the average age of a student attending Miami's regional campuses was 31.
"These people have families and jobs," Cowan said. "They need convenience and flexible scheduling. They go back and get multiple associate degrees, because the campuses that offer associates degrees fit their lifestyles."
Daniel Hall, dean of Miami's Hamilton campus, noted the strong community support for a bachelor's program.
"This is long overdue," Hall said. "We have known at the regional campuses that there has been a demand in the community for people who are place bound, but would like to complete a bachelor's degree in the region."
Cowan also hopes the program would convince students to continue their education beyond an associate degree.
"Most students start out saying they want a bachelor's degree, but less than half of them actually do," Cowan said.
Hall pointed out that many regional students want to earn a bachelor's degree to improve professional skills, as well as advance in their career.
"I think what you'll find is that for many people in the region, these are people already in the workplace who want to improve their communication, analytical and problem solving skills. This is the kind of skills this degree will give them," Hall said.
After the consultant's report in June, a task force was formed with faculty and administrators from both the Hamilton and Middletown campuses.
According to Cowan, they are currently working on drafting a proposal for the bachelor's degree program-a process that Cowan says will be completed by October.
At that point, the proposal will go through the established approval procedure for all degree programs, passing through such bodies as the university curriculum committee and the university senate.
If passed, it will then go to the chancellor for the Ohio Board of Regents-the main governing body for higher education in the state of Ohio-for final approval.
Cowan believes that, if accepted, the Middletown and Hamilton campuses may be offering bachelor degree programs within one to two years.
"I won't say I'm confident (that it will pass), because I don't want to speak for the faculty that may be opposed to it, but I am extremely hopeful and optimistic," Cowan said.
Cowan noted that not all are supportive, with some faculty wary that the final product won't be of the same caliber as a traditional bachelor's degree from Miami.
"This is a degree of a different kind, but it's still Miami quality," Cowan said.
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