Katz School Launches Pathways Program for Graduating Seniors, Cuts Their Potential Tuition in Half

On May 4, The Katz School announced its new Pathways program to streamline the process for graduating seniors from Stern College for Women, Syms School of Business, and Yeshiva College to enroll in its graduate programs. The program waives the GRE and letter of recommendation requirements for admission to Katz School programs and cuts tuition in half for qualifying students.

“We believe that undergraduates should be given the opportunity to complete both a bachelor’s and master’s at YU,” said Director of Graduate Recruitment and Admissions Jared Hakimi. “The Katz Pathways program will provide YU undergraduates an important next step in their educational and professional goals.”

More specifically, The Katz School is looking to make their programs more accessible to undergraduates, in an effort to ready students for a “competitive job market,” where technical skills and know-how are becoming more important for job seekers.

In order to qualify for Pathways, a graduating senior must have at least a 3.0 GPA. Some of the programs require several pre-requisite courses to qualify as well. For instance, the Data Analytics and Visualization program, beginning in the Fall, requires a B+ or better in at least two quantitative, programming, or database courses.

For now, Katz School classes are not available for undergraduates to take prior to graduation, unlike with the Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education & Administration, or the Bernard Revel Graduate School of Jewish Studies. Nonetheless, according to Hakimi, the school is taking steps “to work with Deans and Faculty across the university to develop flexible and seamless Pathways where students begin taking graduate courses during their senior year.” Hakimi added, “This is an important initiative to support YU undergraduates whose goals are to earn a master’s degree early on in their career planning.”

Currently, The Katz School offers graduate programming in marketing, mathematics, quantitative economics, data analytics, speech-language pathology, and biotechnology management. Still, more new programs are in the works, under a plan Hakimi calls “ambitious.” A master’s program in cyber-security is set to begin in 2019. “We are excited about launching degree programs that meet market demands and students’ need. We share the President’s commitment to educate the whole, for spiritual life, family, community, and career,” continued Hakimi.

As far as getting the word out about the opportunities offered by The Katz School, Mr. Hakimi noted Katz School administrators are working with “student clubs, student advisors, faculty, and other campus organizations” to spread the word and adapt programmatic opportunities based on student need.

As a final note on this new component to The Katz School, Hakimi enthused about the “quality of education” and “future-proofing” for students’ careers that Katz provides. “[We are] thrilled to offer this incredible opportunity for YU graduating seniors.”

*The author of this article was accepted to The Katz School’s Biotechnology Management and Entrepreneurship program, prior to the announcement of the Pathways program.