Campus presence, student identity, and community

The Crimson's June Q. Wu has written an article about a joint degree program at Harvard College, which allows undergraduates to simultaneously study for a Master of Music at the New England Conservatory of Music. According to the arrangement worked out between the two schools, the Harvard AB is awarded after four years, and the NECM master's degree after the fifth year.

However, one of the students quoted in the article noted a problem that many Harvard Extension School students will recognize -- a struggle to build a sense of belonging amidst infrequent campus visits:

[Harvard administrator Mary C. Gerbi] says administrators at Harvard and the conservatory feel the two schools should provide a stronger sense of belonging at the conservatory. This is vital during the first three years of the program, when students make the trek across the river only once or twice a week for private lessons.

"My first year was not that great. I didn't really feel I was a part of the NEC community," says jazz pianist Malcolm G. Campbell '10, a chemistry and physics concentrator. "This year, I made my own initiative to go there more, and it's been great."

At the Extension School, there are many opportunities to participate in on-campus activities, but often I sometimes feel like an outsider at these events, as the other people are usually from different Harvard schools and departments. Even within Extension School programs and activities, there is no sense of class identity. People finish their degrees at their own speed, and some of the friends I've made over the years in class I've lost touch with later on as we've gone on to different classes meeting at different times and semesters. The author of the ClueHQ blog -- an ALB candidate at the Extension School -- once suggested creating class cohorts based on admit year, which is a great idea. We've all been boosted by the Extension Student online community, but the struggle to build and maintain a sense of community is something most HES students will continue to struggle with, particularly the remote students and people in distance-ed programs.