Academics at Otterbein

UNDERSTANDING THE OTTERBEIN DIFFERENCE

Photo of new Science Center’s three story atrium.

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WANT AN EDUCATION THAT MATTERS?

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HOW WILL OTTERBEIN PREPARE ME TO SUCCEED? Students, parents and faculty have their own answers to this important question.

But all of the individual hopes, expectations and investments converge in one simple but powerful set of shared values that define the Otterbein experience.

Otterbein will prepare you … to have an in-depth mastery of your major and a breadth of understanding across disciplines for the kind of learning that will serve you throughout your lifetime; to gain the knowledge and experience that will enable you to have a better understanding of yourself and your world; to develop intellectual and practical skills that will help you clearly articulate ideas and effectively collaborate with a wide range of people; and to better succeed in your career and your life as a confident, responsible and engaged professional, citizen and scholar.

Otterbein gives you the courses, experiences and skills to secure a better future for yourself so that others will benefit from your influence and contributions.

Key elements of Otterbein’s nationally-recognized curriculum have been re-imagined and intentionally designed to prepare you to achieve your best potential.

THE LEARNING STARTS AT OTTERBEIN.

“Our students’ academic ability and commitment should be matched by our intent that they not leave this place the same individual as they entered. A college education from OTTERBEIN IS A LIFE-CHANGING OPPORTUNITY.” KATHY A. KRENDL President of Otterbein

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WHAT DO I NEED TO KNOW TO SUCCEED AT OTTERBEIN?

When our first-year students had the chance to describe their Otterbein experience in the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE), their answers put Otterbein in the top 10 percent of schools in the country for providing a “supportive campus environment” and for the “level of academic challenge.” When it comes to day-to-day life on campus, that means your professors notice and care if you miss class. When it comes to the big picture, it means your ability to accomplish your goals and your potential are noticed, too.

NSSE BENCHMARK: LEVEL OF ACADEMIC CHALLENGE Challenging intellectual and creative work is central to student learning and collegiate quality. Colleges and universities promote high levels of student achievement by emphasizing the importance of academic effort and setting high expectations for student performance.

Otterbein First-Year Student Score: Top

10%

in the nation

NSSE BENCHMARK: SUPPORTIVE CAMPUS ENVIRONMENT

Otterbein First-Year Student Score:

Students perform better and are more satisfied at colleges that are committed to their success and cultivate positive working and social relations among different groups on campus.

Top

Of all proud Otterbein Cardinal graduates, nearly do so in four years.

80%

(Of course, those students who enter with AP, IB or dual enrollment credit and/or who take full advantage of the immersive mini-term may graduate in less than four years.)

10%

in the nation

“My biggest job as an Otterbein faculty member is to help students succeed. Students who want to succeed work to connect themselves with faculty both inside and outside of the classroom.

Students who engage with faculty in our ‘Five Cardinal Experiences’ truly get the most from their Otterbein education.”

SHELLEY PAYNE Assistant Professor of Health & Sport Sciences Otterbein’s 2012 “New Teacher of the Year”

“College is a great time to explore new courses, new experiences and new ways of thinking– to figure out who you are as a person.

You may never get another chance to conduct scientific research or discuss philosophy or art history with an expert three times a week.

Go to concerts and theatre productions and special events on campus. You can never tell where your interests may take you.”

JOHN TANSEY Associate Professor of Chemistry Otterbein’s 2012 “Master Teacher of the Year”

96%

Within one year of graduation, of respondents from a survey of the Class of 2011 were either: employed, continuing their education in graduate school or performing full-time service.

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In Natural Foundations, you confront the wonders and dangers inherent in science and our modern understanding of nature and the physical world.

Creativity and Culture encourages deeper understanding and appreciation of the role of the arts across a diversity of human cultures.

WHAT IS THE VALUE OF THE INTEGRATIVE STUDIES CURRICULUM?

knowledge and skills you’ve acquired and plan for how you’ll apply them.

• TRANSITION. SYE bridges all that you’ve learned with your

future plans, including co-curricular offerings like financial literacy workshops and professional networking to help prepare you for life after Otterbein.

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VICTORIA MCGILLIN Otterbein Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs

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“The problems of the 21st century are complex–like the healthcare crisis, or the world economic meltdown, or Sept. 11, for example. The problems of the 21st century aren’t differentiated by one major or the other. Training you narrowly isn’t educating you for life. Otterbein’s Integrative Studies curriculum teaches you how to think across boundaries so you can access knowledge, assimilate it and come up with a better understanding.”

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• REFLECTION. SYE asks you to forecast applications for the

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BETH RIGEL DAUGHERTY Professor of English, 2002 Otterbein Master Teacher of the Year, and former chair of the IS Program

curriculum and your major curriculum and apply them to develop solutions to a contemporary problem.

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JULIE LONGSTRETH MOOREHEAD ’95 Founder of Growth Solutions Ltd. and recipient of the 2012 Otterbein Young Alumni Award for Professional Achievement

“Your major keeps you from becoming dangerously superficial, whereas IS courses keep you from becoming dangerously narrow.”

• ACTION. You will combine the knowledge from the IS

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“It was that concept of thinking bigger than just a class, bigger than just a major that has guided and really been helpful to me in my career. I’ve had more experiences in my career than I could have ever expected a little girl from the tiny town of Dresden, Ohio…to get to do. I’ve had to think big. Those Integrative Studies courses and seeing how things connected and all worked together really paved the way.”

GRATIV E T IN &S

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Responsibility and Reflection invites reflection on your own values and ethics, while examining issues like the common good and personal and civic engagement.

OTTER NG O ARNI

c Major Curric i ul em d u a c

There are 32 FYS course offerings, including one taught by Otterbein President Kathy A. Krendl. Explore the complete list at www.otterbein.edu/firstyearseminar.

Through Interconnections, using approaches of history and social sciences, you will examine how and why peoples and societies have become increasingly interconnected and interdependent.

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If FYS was your transition into college, think of SYE as your transition into life. SYE can be completed either through a course, an intense immersive experience, study abroad or an internship.

It has three goals:

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How Green do I Have to Be? The Science of Happiness The Soundtrack of Your First Year Evolution and Identity in Science Fiction Leadership Pathways

The Identity Projects develop your writing skills while emphasizing critical inquiry.

The Senior Year Experience (SYE)

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• • • • •

The core of the eight required Integrative Studies courses is organized around the following five curricular threads, which are designed to help grow the breadth of your knowledge.

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A Sampling of FYS Courses

The Five Curricular Threads (IS)

Senior Year

The First Year Seminar (FYS) is an introduction to your new responsibilities and opportunities as a member of Otterbein’s academic community. It also serves as the first course in the Integrative Studies curriculum. Guided by a team of faculty advisors and peer mentors, your FYS will help you tap into your strengths, experience diversity, engage in intellectual conversations and develop relationships.

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First Year Seminar (IS)

YEAR 2 & 3

In a dyad, two courses are linked together by a shared theme with perspectives informed by two different disciplines. For example, in the dyad, “A Sense of Place: An African Experience,” you’ll explore the biological uniqueness of African countries while also considering connections to the evolution and history of the great apes. The dyad culminates in true interdisciplinary and integrative learning.

L A N O I T CA U D E N A E C N E I R EXPE O OTHER! LIKE N

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YEAR 1

Interdisciplinary Dyads (IS)

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Some schools call it general education. But Otterbein’s required Integrative Studies (IS) curriculum is anything but general.

In fact, experts call Otterbein’s curriculum the model they hope others schools will follow. Our alumni will tell you the IS curriculum truly prepares you for the complexities that await you. Each one of your four years of IS is detailed below.

YEAR 4

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HOW DOES THE INTEGRATIVE STUDIES CURRICULUM WORK?

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Otterbein’s entire educational experience– its curriculum, its commitment to applied experiential learning and the community’s personal investment in students–is purposeful.

Every choice and opportunity you have as a student is shaped and considered by what potential outcome it will provide you as a lifelong skill after graduation.

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Experiential learning gives you the chance to take what you’ve learned in a class and put it to work in real-world situations.

Otterbein believes this is one of the most important and powerful ways to learn and is recognized as a national leader in this arena. With access to Columbus, the state’s capital, a network of regional and national partners and a community invested in your goals, the possibilities for how Otterbein’s Five Cardinal Experiences are realized for you are limitless.

UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH & CREATIVE WORK

As a sophomore, Bobby Geiger co-authored a research article with Dr. Jennifer Bennett accepted by the Journal of Bacteriology.

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COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

VE STUD IES SYE

Otterbein has been recognized by the White House for six consecutive years on the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll with Distinction.

GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT & INTERCULTURAL EXPERIENCES

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JONATHAN HILL Sophomore, Music & Business major, Public Relations & Marketing minor

LEADERSHIP & CITIZENSHIP

As a senior, Nisa Williams was recognized by The Women’s Book magazine for her leadership in coordinating the Ubuntu mentoring program for area high school and middle school students, teaching the importance of preparing for college.

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“I genuinely believe that in one year at Otterbein, I gained more positive experiences than I would have at any other university.”

Submitting a video every day for 147 days in hopes of earning attention for her moxie and creativity, senior Kahla Johnson earned an internship with The Ellen DeGeneres Show.

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INTERNSHIPS & PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

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Students in the course, Tropical Biology and Agriculture of Costa Rica, developed a medicinal forest trail in Costa Rica to help support an indigenous tribe’s livelihood.

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MAJOR ACK

EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING: WHAT ARE THE FIVE CARDINAL EXPERIENCES?

WILL I BE READY TO SUCCEED IN LIFE AFTER OTTERBEIN?

There are five key outcomes by which Otterbein is measuring itself—in its course offerings, its department programs and its students’ success.

These outcomes aren’t just important to Otterbein. They have been identified as essential outcomes in part by the Association of American Colleges and Universities (AAC&U), the nation’s authority in regards to excellence in undergraduate liberal education. These outcomes also strongly mirror many of the expectations of employers in a national survey* of what they want in college graduates as prospective employees. *SOURCE: “Raising the Bar: Employers’ Views on College Learning in the Wake of the Economic Downturn,” AAC&U, 2010

AS A GRADUATE OF OTTERBEIN, YOU WILL BE

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EABLE

You will acquire a deep knowledge of your chosen major(s), as well as a solid grounding in a broad range of disciplines in the liberal arts and sciences.

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T E R AT U LT I - L I

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You will develop and demonstrate a range of intellectual and practical skills, including written and oral communication skills; research skills, and quantitative, technological, visual and information literacies.

INQUIS

ITIVE

You will know how to learn. As a confident lifelong learner, you will be curious and eager to discover more about yourself and the natural, cultural and social worlds.

ENGAG

ED

You will become . . .

Intellectually engaged: Able to critically reflect upon and evaluate what you know.

Aesthetically engaged: You will value and practice the art of imagination and creative expression.

Civically engaged: You will be prepared to confront, act upon and lead collaborative responses to increasingly complex challenges in diverse local, national and global communities.

RESPON

SIBLE

You will make choices that promote your own well-being and that of others and will move toward ethical commitments that reflect a sense of honesty and fairness.

NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION U.S. POSTAGE PAID WESTERVILLE, OH PERMIT NO. 177

Office of Admission 1 South Grove Street Westerville, OH 43081-2004

OUCH T N I P KEE WWW.OTTERBEIN.EDU/ ADMISSION 1.800.488.8144 614.823.1500

11:1 96%

OTTERBEIN’S STUDENT TO FACULTY RATIO OF OTTERBEIN FACULTY HOLD THE HIGHEST DEGREE IN THEIR FIELD

73 & 44

MAJORS

MINORS

VIEW THE COMPLETE LIST AT WWW.OTTERBEIN.EDU/MAJORS