Ninety-four percent of undergraduates in the Class of 2024 were employed, enrolled in continuing education, or doing volunteer or military service six months after earning their degrees, according to Fordham’s Office of Institutional Research, which compiles this information each year. The “landed rate,” as it’s called, rose five percentage points from 2023, an increase largely driven by a jump in the arts and sciences rate—from 85% to 93% year over year. 

Tracking Graduate Success

Fordham’s commitment to its students continues after commencement; the University’s Career Center follows up with recent arts and sciences graduates, sending surveys, checking in on their plans, and offering help to those who need it. The Gabelli School’s Personal and Professional Development Center follows up with recent Gabelli School graduates, and works with students on career readiness extensively throughout their undergraduate years.

94% of 2024 graduates found jobs and meaningful opportunities within six months of earning their degrees.

According to Career Center Director Annette McLaughlin, the University was able to track down 87% of the 2,115 students who graduated in 2024—an exceptionally high “knowledge rate.” In 2023, the average knowledge rate for American universities was about 55%. 

“ The Career Center and Gabelli’s Personal and Professional Development Center take it very seriously to get as close as possible to knowing where every single student ends up,” said McLaughlin. “We’re proactively reaching out to find out who’s still seeking and why, as well as how we can help them get over the finish line.”

Helping Students Become Career-Ready

As for the eight-point jump in the arts and sciences landed rate, McLaughlin attributes it to a number of efforts that have been rolling out for several years, including partnerships with arts and sciences faculty to bring Career Center staff into their classrooms; working with student “career ambassadors” to connect the student body with Career Center resources; bringing students and alumni together for mentorship; and a one-credit career exploration course that helps students become career-ready. 

According to McLaughlin, even the most highly engaged students can need some help making the shift from college to career. 

“ Many students who do very well academically may not have focused on, ‘What next?’” she said. “We create opportunities for them to catch up.”

Health Careers and Med School

About 8% of 2024 arts and sciences graduates, or 56 alumni, entered the health care field, an industry that’s projected to grow much faster than average over the next decade. Many of these students landed job titles like medical scribe, research assistant, or lab technician, which are often a step before medical school, McLaughlin said.  

This was the case for 2024 graduate Sophie Epstein, who studied neuroscience and sociology at Fordham and is now a clinical research assistant at Mount Sinai. She says her well-rounded undergraduate education prepared her for her job, as well as for her successful medical school application. 

“ Sociology exposed me to the structural factors that might affect how someone interacts with the health care system differently than what I see in a textbook,” Epstein said. “It was a great way to prepare to address those differences so I can best treat everyone as a doctor.” 

Blending Research with Clinical Work

At Mount Sinai, Epstein is researching how different socioeconomic factors—like race, income, insurance status, or zip code—impact patients’ recoveries after surgery for a brain tumor. She’ll be starting medical school at Stony Brook in the fall, pursuing both her M.D. and a Ph.D. 

This dual track will allow Epstein to train as a doctor while also building on her research skills, a passion she developed during her time at Fordham in the chemistry lab of  professor Nick Sawyer, Ph.D. Epstein is interested in researching drugs so she can not only provide care, but also discover treatments.  

“ If I want to be a neurologist and treat patients with Alzheimer’s, I want to also be looking for a drug that treats Alzheimer’s,” Epstein said. “It feels like the perfect way to do the most I can for patients.”

For the past four-and-a-half years, Dean Lang has strengthened the liberal arts, launched new majors and graduate programs, expanded experiential learning opportunities for students, and designed innovative program collaborations between the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences, and Baruch’s two other schools, the Zicklin School of Business, and the Marxe School of Public and International Affairs.  

Dr. Lang has introduced a number of initiatives to support faculty research, teaching, and professional development, including a mentorship program for faculty and department chairs. She has a strong record of attracting and retaining highly sought-after faculty pursuing scholarship in many disciplines across the natural and social sciences, humanities, and fine arts. Dr. Lang has worked with departments, faculty, and staff to elevate the importance of using inclusive pedagogies and supporting student success at Baruch, where the majority of students come from communities of color, receive federal financial aid, and are first-generation college attendees.

Dr. Lang is a champion for the liberal arts, embodies the ideals of Jesuit education, and is a highly effective fundraiser. She is eager to work collaboratively with Fordham’s faculty, students, and staff to advance the mission of Arts and Sciences for the 21st century.

Dr. Lang earned a Ph.D. in English and American Literature from Brandeis University and holds an M.A. from Washington University in St. Louis and a B.A. from Cornell University. An interdisciplinary scholar of early American fiction and Jewish American and Holocaust literature, she served as a postdoctoral fellow at Johns Hopkins University before joining the Baruch faculty in 2004. Prior to her appointment as dean of the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences, Dr. Lang served as chair of the English department and was the founding director of the Wasserman Jewish Studies Center at Baruch.

Dr. Lang is joining Fordham at a pivotal moment, as the University implements a new leadership structure and a more coordinated approach for the Arts and Sciences, the institution’s largest academic unit. Arts and Sciences comprises Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC), Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH), the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS), 20 academic departments, and 19 interdisciplinary programs across two campuses, with approximately 357 tenure-stream faculty; 120 full-time, non-tenure-track faculty; 594 adjunct faculty; and 7,520 students. Fordham’s inaugural dean of Arts and Sciences will have authority, budgetary control, and oversight for all undergraduate and graduate academic programs, faculty matters, and campus-based initiatives in the arts and sciences. She will be supported by an experienced team of vice deans, associate deans, assistant deans, and directors.