McDaniel included in new ranking of top innovative colleges

Innovation is in our DNA. And to develop your skills, you need to be in an environment that fosters creative ideas and innovative thinking. We're that place. It's why we've been recognized as one of College Consensus’ “50 Underrated Colleges Doing Great Things”, a ranking that includes schools that are “doing something unique, something innovative, something meaningful, that deserves to be more widely recognized.”

McDaniel College has been recognized in a new college ranking of the top innovative colleges that don’t always get their due. McDaniel was highlighted for the McDaniel Plan, a personalized, interdisciplinary curriculum that emphasizes experiential learning and student-faculty collaboration, and the Center for Experience and Opportunity.

College Consensus’ “50 Underrated Colleges Doing Great Things” includes schools that are “doing something unique, something innovative, something meaningful, that deserves to be more widely recognized.”

The ranking comprises colleges and universities with unique curricular designs, model or influential programs, and community engagement and service.

According to College Consensus:

“McDaniel College began in 1867 originally as the Western Maryland College (named not for the region, but for the Western Maryland Railroad, the president of which was chairman of the college board). From its beginning, McDaniel was intended to be different; it was the first coed college in the South, and at least nominally integrated (though African-Americans did not attend in numbers until the 1960s). Today, McDaniel is proudly ranked as one of the most innovative colleges in the US, with academic rigor, community service, and experiential learning at the heart of its curriculum.

McDaniel’s learning is built around the McDaniel Plan, a unique curriculum designed to be flexible and hands-on. While McDaniel offers more than 60 defined majors, students are free – in fact, encouraged – to mix courses, design their own majors, or combine majors and minors into a form that fits their professional goals. McDaniel puts career preparation at the heart of the McDaniel Plan, with the Center for Experience & Opportunity working as a central planning hub for internships, study abroad, service learning, and other experiential learning opportunities. The Center is crucial, since all students are required to take at least two hands-on learning experiences before graduation.”

Nov 12, 2018