Kirsten Finger SEBS’19 feeding the pigs at the Rutgers Cook Farm. Photo credit: Nick Romanenko.
Students at the Fiorello H. LaGuardia Community College (LaGCC) will be able to seamlessly transfer and earn an undergraduate degree in animal sciences at Rutgers, thanks to a new articulation agreement between the two institutions.
Under the agreement, students in the animal science track who graduate with an associate’s degree in environmental science at LaGCC will be able to transfer college credits toward completion of a bachelor of science degree in animal sciences at Rutgers School of Environmental and Biological Sciences. Signed in December 2022, the agreement is in effect from September 1, 2023, to September 1, 2025, and will be reviewed and updated every two years.
LaGCC, a federally designated Hispanic-serving institution in New York City that serves low-income, inner-city students, is part of the City University of New York (CUNY) system. LaGCC launched its new animal science option in February 2023.
Sydney Gavinelli SEBS’19 and Alexander Eldridge SEBS’21 handling a cow and her week-old calf Boo at the Rutgers Cook Farm. Photo credit: Roy Groeting.
The articulation agreement specifically provides academic coursework that will allow LaGCC students to earn college credit toward completion of the B.S. in animal sciences at Rutgers.
“The agreement not only establishes the mechanism by which LaGCC students can apply a total of 60 credits to meet the 120-credit graduation requirement for the animal sciences degree at Rutgers, but it also addresses how to assist students in making the transition to Rutgers-New Brunswick and SEBS, as well as achieve success in the animal sciences program,” said Aparna Zama, associate teaching professor and director of the undergraduate program in animal sciences at Rutgers.
At a recent LaGCC open house in February, Preethi Radhakrishnan, a professor in the Department of Natural Sciences, and her colleagues, targeted their students who have an interest in animal science and related careers, but previously had no nearby access to that area of study.
As she explained, LaGCC is the only program in the CUNY system with an animal science track that will prepare students for a four-year degree and potential internships in the field.
“Upstate New York has great animal science programs, but within the city, our urban students have absolutely no access, as of now, to animal sciences, which is why we’re very excited to bring this onboard,” Radhakrishnan said.
“Post-associate degree, you can seamlessly transfer all of your 60 credits, so within your two years here at LaGuardia in animal science, you can take all those 60 credits and move with them to Rutgers, who is our articulating partner,” she added.
Successful transfer candidates into the animal sciences undergraduate program at Rutgers will be exposed to a wide range of topics, including veterinary science, companion animal science, equine science, laboratory animal science, and production animal science.
The Rutgers program prepares students for potential careers in veterinary medicine, dairy and livestock management, animal-assisted therapy, and pet adoption counseling as well as the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, part of the United State Department of Agriculture.
About Rutgers Animal Sciences Program
The Animal Sciences program at Rutgers serves the university’s land-grant mission of integrating teaching, research and outreach to solve problems in animal-related industries and improve animal, human, and environmental health. It is the only Animal Sciences academic department in New Jersey, a broad range of educational opportunities are provided to the students that includes options in Pre-Veterinary Medicine/Research, Laboratory Animal Science, Companion Animal Science, and Equine and Production Animal Sciences.
