As Becker College Closes, Nearby Schools To Help Students

WORCESTER, MA — Becker College in Worcester is closing its doors for good after this spring semester. The college's Board of Trustees issued a statement on Monday announcing the decision to close the college permanently, although some nearby colleges will take over some programs.

The closure comes after a year of the 237-year-old school struggling through the COVID-19 pandemic and prior to that, struggles with declining college-age students, the heightened level of student subsidy and the increased competition for a smaller pool of students, according to the board.

Graduation is still set for May 8, but classes will not commence again in the fall. The college has committed to offering academic, support and transitional services to students through August 31.

Nearby Clark University is establishing the Becker School of Design & Technology to continue Becker’s video game design, esports management and integrated graphic design courses. Becker students majoring in business, criminology and computer science will also be able to attend Clark.

Worcester's Assumption University will also offer transfer opportunities to allow Becker students to continue pursuing degrees.

"Per the arrangement, those students who meet Assumption’s criteria and were enrolled in a Becker College baccalaureate program in spring 2021 or were accepted for fall 2021 admission to a baccalaureate program at Becker College are eligible to partake in the transfer opportunity or apply to the University," the university said in a news release. "Assumption is offering to Becker students a waiver of all application fees and access to the University’s Instant Decision Day program, in which students (with the exception of nursing students) can obtain an acceptance decision on the spot, eliminating the stress of waiting for an admissions decision."

Financial hardships for the college went back to 2018 and 2019 when enrollment began to fall and the college made budget cuts and sold vacant properties in Worcester. According to the board, when the pandemic began, the cost of remote learning was high and coupled with a significant drop in the number of students who, due to the uncertainty surrounding the pandemic, chose not to live on campus, never registered, took a leave of absence, or dropped out.

The board's statement reads in part:

"The Greater Worcester region has been a wonderful home to Becker College. This has proven out in the outreach from so many over the past few weeks, providing words of encouragement. Closing the College is not the path we wanted to pursue. It is sad at every level. We have sufficient resources to complete this academic year, but not beyond that in a way that is fiscally responsible and in the best interest of students. We have worked diligently to prepare appropriate academic pathways to allow students to transfer to several new institutions without worrying about things such as deadlines and admissions fees.

The College has made arrangements with several area universities to provide admission to Becker students; those details are available on the Becker microsite. We are committed to doing everything possible to ensure that our students, faculty, and staff have access to the best opportunities moving forward and finish this term in a strong and positive way."

The full statement is available online as well as answers to questions about student transitions to new colleges and universities.