Mercy ‘College’ Transitions To ‘University’
Instead of giving it “that old College try,” incoming Mercy College students can now say they are going “off to University.”
Mercy College has been in the process of becoming Mercy University, according to Mercy’s Executive Director of Public Relations & Community Engagement.
As of Jan. 26 of last year, the New York State Education Department (NYSED) Board of Regents changed the definition of “university” after a vote to do so. Based on the new definition, Mercy College complied with university status requirements.
The new definition of a university stated, “University means a higher educational institution offering a range of registered undergraduate and graduate curricula in the liberal arts and sciences, including graduate programs registered in at least three of the following discipline areas: agriculture, biological sciences, business, education, engineering, fine arts, health professions, humanities, physical sciences and social sciences.”
This new definition removed the need for universities to provide doctoral programs and degrees in two or more professional fields and add other graduate program requirements.
Mercy’s Executive Director of Public Relations and Community Engagement Zodet Negrón provided a statement, “In light of the recent criteria change from the New York State Education Department Board of Regents on what constitutes a university, Mercy College is seeking university status. We are currently in the process of obtaining the necessary approvals to be officially designated a university and expect to make an official announcement later this year.”
This change may have an effect on seniors graduating soon since their degree will say Mercy College rather than Mercy University. Student Government President and senior Eniola Ogunlade, known as Enny, said, “I believe Mercy University will look better on degrees than Mercy College so it’s just unfortunate that we won’t have university on our degree as university (is regarded as) a larger institution that offers more variety.”
A nearby institution in New Rochelle, Iona College changed to Iona University in July of last year following the change of the definition with the hopes of growing the institution academically and building its prestige. Furthermore, right after implementing the new university definition, Utica College in Utica, New York became Utica University in February of last year. Utica University’s mission in changing its status was to recognize its academic growth and abundance of opportunities for students throughout the years.
Before implementing the new definition of university, colleges and the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities (CICU) recognized issues with the old definition. The old definition was adopted by the Board of Regents back in 1969. Firstly, the requirement of doctoral programs for a university was an expensive and strenuous task for some colleges to fulfill, especially since New York was the only state with this requirement. Secondly, confusion arose, especially from international students, surrounding the word “college” in comparison to “university.” Confusion also stemmed from other states not including a definition of “university” as specific as that of New York or even a clear distinction between the two terms.
Lastly, the use of the word “college” rather than “university” had presented a serious marketing challenge for colleges in competition with other institutions, even through the more recent years when the demand for higher education has increased significantly. Community colleges utilized the word “university” in their own marketing. In addition, universities outside of New York were recognized as universities in marketing, despite them possessing fewer academic programs and opportunities than others deemed colleges in New York.
The Board of Regents members considered addressing these issues at the time back in a meeting in November 2020 with support from public comments, a few educational institutions, and CICU. In a February 2021 meeting, a new definition was proposed. However, the new definition still included the requirement of doctoral programs. The State Education Department evaluated public comment after the Notice of Revised Rule Making in the State Register’s publishing on Nov. 3, 2021. After concerns arose from the revised definition and proposal, the definition was rewritten again to its current and effective definition.
The new definition provided colleges that qualify the opportunity to change their name to include “university” and compete more effectively when marketing what their institution offers compared to other universities.
You can read the official documentation regarding the new definition in the January 2022 Meeting of the Board of Regents.
Alyssa Politi is a senior at Mercy University majoring in journalism and minoring in business. She serves Mercy University presently as the Director of...
