Advice to Baruch College

There are several ways Baruch College can make use of new media to improve the college. New media can be used for either marketing efforts or in the classroom to assist in the education. Various technologies can be used for one or both of those purposes for little to no cost to the college.

Tools like Twitter and Facebook could be used for marketing purposes to get the word out there about Baruch and its many offerings. The college's various departments already have accounts on these social networking sites, so my suggestion would be to make a general Baruch College account which would be used for promotion. It could be used to generate buzz by holding giveaways and using other such gimmicks to gain followers, and thus get the college's name out there. Perhaps even a creative video on YouTube could go viral and make the college known around the country. Something well produced, and funny, could go a long way towards promoting Baruch College.

Secondly, blogs, wikis, and Twitter could also be used in the classroom for students to share their knowledge. Much as they are used in this online class, they could be used for traditional classes and would allow students to continue the discussion outside the classroom. Having a place for students to post articles and information they have come across could be of great advantage. Allowing students to connect through groups on sites like Facebook where most already have profiles could provide them with an opportunity to network outside of the classroom as well.