New liberal arts and science programs positively affect enrollment

Rider's largest academic college, the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS), continues to grow, offering a variety of new academic programs that have positively impacted Rider's enrollment over the past five years.

Since 2013, CLAS has added 10 new academic programs, which have brought nearly 800 new students to Rider.

"We are constantly assessing our current academic offerings and exploring areas where we can create new programs," says CLAS Dean Jonathan Millen. "We want to ensure our academic programs align with employer expectations and industry trends so our students can be prepared to enter the constantly evolving job market."

CLAS programs introduced in the past five years include bachelor's degrees in criminal justice, sports media, health care policy, health sciences, actuarial science, organizational psychology and computer science. While master's degrees in business communication, homeland security and applied psychology were also created.

With the expansion of health care-related occupations, CLAS also added a concentration in health communication to the Master of Arts in Business Communication program to further bolster the College's health-related offerings.

To accommodate the growth of science majors, Rider has begun an ambitious plan to renovate the original 30,000-square foot first floor of Science and Technology Center. Two phases have been completed with the creation of the state-of-the-art DiDonato Family Lecture Hall and renovations to four combined lecture-lab spaces on the first floor. Faculty offices, a psychology research lab and chemistry lab were constructed on the third floor, while a space in the Maurer Center was converted for academic use by health science and biology majors. Renovations are slated to continue throughout the year.

The new CLAS programs are proving popular with students. Criminal justice, health sciences and computer science are among the top 20 programs with the highest enrollment.

"I decided to study criminal justice at Rider because I wanted to further my understanding of the criminal justice system and fell in love with Rider when I came to an open house," says Rory Molisso, a sophomore criminal justice major and law and justice minor. "I heard so many great things about the program that it really helped finalize my decision."

Academic program growth will continue to develop throughout the University during the next few years as Rider’s strategic plan calls for several more academic programs to be created through 2020.