By Lisa Stein
Students new to the School of Education & Social Policy enjoy meeting one another at a dinner hosted by Dean Peterson at her home. Transfer student Eric Fingerman is pictured. Photo by Jim Ziv  Fingerman gets advice from Susan Johnston, Advisor and coordinator of student programs. Photo by Jim Ziv  Practicum students in San Francisco take time out for sightseeing. Field studies director Dan Lewis is in the back row. Click on photo for larger image Photo by David Bacon |
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Like many undergraduate students, Eric Fingerman had a hard time narrowing down his academic choices at Northwestern University. By his sophomore year he had explored majors in theater, biology, economics, psychology and philosophy — and his head was spinning. |
| The class also appealed to his strong desire to make a difference in the world. "The professor made us feel like we could change things. He would present a problem and say, 'It's your job to fix it.' It felt empowering and inspirational." Another aspect of SESP that drew Fingerman was the School's small size and low student-faculty ratio. Each graduating class averages between 90 to 100 students, which fosters a sense of community and a nurturing yet challenging environment. "It's a warm, inviting place," Fingerman notes. "The students here are excited about the message 'It's up to you to make things different.'" As a result of his positive experiences in SESP, Fingerman decided to transfer to the School. Before transfer students are accepted into SESP, however, they must go through a formal process designed to make sure the School's mission matches their own academic and personal goals. According to Mark Hoffman, assistant dean of student affairs and adviser to social policy undergraduate students, "Our process is labor intensive, but the last thing I want is a student to transfer without having fully explored what we're about." Transfers account for a substantial number of students graduating from SESP each year. "Usually we start out with about 35 students and by graduation the class has grown to 100," Hoffman says. "High school students don't know what SESP really is, whereas other schools such as journalism, music, engineering and liberal arts are pretty straightforward. They learn more about us once they get to Northwestern." Students interested in transferring must attend an information session that provides an overview of the School's academic programs and curriculum. They learn about SESP's focus on two interdisciplinary areas - human development and social policy and learning sciences. Within these areas are four undergraduate majors: human development and psychological services, social policy, secondary teaching and learning and organizational change. The curriculum offers students myriad combinations in which to study such subjects as organizational behavior and cutting-edge technologies in teaching, and a variety of educational and social programs, The School's 23 faculty members involve students in their area of research and are nationally and internationally renowned for their work in designing science and math curricula and conducting research on the effects of poverty. After the information session, transfers attend a series of meetings with an adviser assigned according to the student's prospective academic major. Fingerman met with Hoffman to discuss his academic and career interests. "Part of the first session is just getting to know the students — what interests them, how they learned about us, their short-term and long-term goals," Hoffman explains. "Some students have known since they were 7 that they wanted to help people in crises or be a teacher. Others don't have a specific plan, but know they want to make the world a better place." Hoffman describes Fingerman as belonging to the latter group, "a student with a passion to help others but not exactly sure how to do it." The two then sat down and looked at Fingerman's current transcript to figure out how his WCAS credits could apply to the SESP degree requirements. Fortunately for Eric, many WCAS credits transferred into SESP credits, especially the School's basic requirements. The two mapped out a plan for his remaining time at Northwestern. "The structure made it feel safe," Fingerman remarks. "It helped me see what the next couple of years would be like, where I was going, what I needed to graduate." Hoffman gave Fingerman the tools to select pertinent classes each quarter. This fall his schedule includes a course called Voting Behavior and Public Opinion, which has proved timely and exciting given the presidential election. He's also taking American Political Institutions, Ethics and Buddhism. He is leaning towards a major in social policy and continues to meet regularly with Hoffman for advice. "Eric likes to reflect before he makes a decision," observes Hoffman. "He's good at keeping in touch and actively asking for advice, which makes him a joy to advise." Fingerman spent last summer working at the Institute for Policy Research. He helped Greg Duncan, the Edwina S. Tarry Professor of Education, and Kathryn Edin, associate professor of sociology, sort through data from a national study investigating how low-income families adjust to life in middle-class neighborhoods. Soon Fingerman will be deciding where to complete his practicum - somewhere in San Francisco, Chicago or Washington, D.C. Now that he has found the School and the path that's right for him, Fingerman can begin to think about life after graduation. At this point he's considering government, education, law and nonprofit organizations. Although Fingerman's career goals are open-ended, his main motivation remains constant. "We're all here to help each other. You can look at any job as helping people in some sort of way. SESP helps me understand the larger forces that result in different policies and how they affect day-to-day life." Lisa Stein is a freelance writer. |
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