Years from now, long after graduation, when we look at the diploma hanging on the walls of our offices or sitting on the shelves in our homes, we look at one of the few tangible items that will remain from our college careers. However, a St. Bonaventure diploma means much more than simply that 8½” x 11” document. Although many of us will pursue careers in whatever major is stated on that diploma, our field of knowledge extends greatly from that area alone. This is done by coupling our decided major with a liberal arts education, what is known at Bonaventure as “Clare College”.
When applying to colleges, I found a lot of schools focused solely on business, or solely on liberal arts. What was much more rare to find was an institution that emphasized the importance of both business and a general liberal education. When I graduate from St. Bonaventure with my Accounting and Finance degree, my education will mean more than my familiarity with the Financial Accounting Standards Board or my technical ability of running a regression analysis. Those skills (as important as they may be) would mean nothing without the critical thinking, analytical and communication skills I learned through Clare College.
However, for many students around Bonaventure, the mention of Clare classes puts a bad taste in their mouth. Students have a tendency to want to avoid these required classes in favor of those within their major field.
A liberal arts education, at its basis, not only helps students at Randy’s Up the River’s trivia nights on Wednesdays, but also develops them as a person and makes them a more interesting conversationalist. The broad and diverse nature of Clare College helps students understand about the world and its people from various points of view. The perspectives gained through classes such as The Good Life, Intellectual Journey and Catholic and Franciscan Heritage are invaluable, and teach diverse and widely applicable skills.
I understand the importance for students to focus their attention on developing proper “skills sets” to make him or her appealing to employers upon graduation. However, the fallacy exists through the belief that these skill sets are simply the technical training that is taught within a major field. All successful careers require teamwork, critical thinking, and sensitivity to cultural, economic, and societal differences. This is where Clare College enters the picture.
The liberal arts are essential and critical to success in every field, providing skills that are adaptable from one career path to the next. However, at St. Bonaventure, this is overshadowed by an incredible distaste for Clare College. The mentality of “I need to get my Clares out of the way, so I can focus on my real, important classes” disregards the benefits Clare College provides.
Nobody knows what one’s future job may be, or in what field his or her skills will be required. Here is what we know: the skills acquired through a successful Clare College liberal arts education are applicable in all fields. One-third of all Fortune 500 CEOs have liberal arts degrees. Leslie Moonves, CEO of CBS has a Spanish Degree from Bucknell University, and Howard Schultz, head of Starbucks, majored in communications at Northern Michigan University. Yet, on the other hand, here at St. Bonaventure Clare College is losing its emphasis and importance. Clare College teaches students the ability to take tough issues and apply them into a larger context, and in a world as controversial as today, it will be those students who are the most successful in life after graduation.
Sebastian Bellmsa contributing writer for the Bona Venture, his email is bellmsh12@bonaventure.edu
