Education
According to numerous statistical sources, Monmouth County has some of the finest primary, secondary and higher education systems in New Jersey and the tri-state region. From preschool to university, continuous investment into schools, resources and student support facilities gives Monmouth County residents a pronounced advantage when seeking a superior education for their children.
The Monmouth County Board of Chosen Freeholders has made education a top priority. The board created and expanded the Monmouth County Vocational Education School District to provide thorough and diverse educational opportunities. The district is ranked as one of the nation's finest: the Marine Academy of Science and Technology (MAST) and High Technology High School consistently produce the highest SAT scores in the county and among the highest in the nation.
The district focuses on career opportunities and enhancement. Students are given a rigorous education in the field they have chosen and are sought after when seeking a good job or further academic achievement upon graduation. Monmouth County is justifiably proud of the vocational district's successes, and businesses that hire the graduates can expect to find highly qualified highly motivated employees.
Students in all Monmouth County schools can be confident that the educational resources available will enable them to succeed personally and professionally. The public, parochial and private facilities include 167 elementary, middle, and high schools, 11 vocational schools, and two charter schools. A significant number of high school students' SAT verbal and math scores exceed the national mean. In fact, Monmouth County's own Rumson-Fair Haven High School ranks third in the county in SAT scores, while Holmdel High School ranked fifth on InJersey's list of the top 20 New Jersey schools ranked by SAT scores, with a combined verbal and math score of 1,157.
Students pursuing higher education have an opportunity to attend a community college or a state university here in central New Jersey. The colleges include Brookdale Community College in Middletown, Monmouth University in West Long Branch, New Jersey Coastal Communiversity, or nearby Rutgers University and Georgian Court College in Lakewood, also offer excellent academic and extracurricular programs.
Monmouth University is a leading, mid size, private-teaching institution that offers coeducational undergraduate and graduate degrees and 40 distinctive curricular programs.The university occupies a magnificent historic campus less than 100 miles from Manhattan and Philadelphia,and within walking distance to the Atlantic Ocean. Monmouth offers students state-of-the-art facilities and the vibrant atmosphere of a large institution with the individual attention of a small liberal-arts college.
Brookdale Community College offers associate degrees in more than 50 programs, plus non-credit courses in many areas of professional and personal interest, ranging from business skills and performing arts to entry-level career training and seminars on a variety of topics. The Center for Business Services at Brookdale offers area businesses high quality business and computer training courses, many of which are customized for presentation on-site to client company employees. Distance Learning Technology is also promoted through a recent partnership between Brookdale Community College and Rutgers University.
New Jersey Coastal Communiversity is an innovative solution to New Jersey's higher education needs. Comprised of seven colleges and universities - Brookdale Community College, Georgian Court College, Kean State University, NJIT, Montclair State University, Ocean County College and Rutgers University - the Communiversity offers associate, bachelor and master's degrees and certificate programs in a wide array of disciplines. It features the latest technology to train students in real-world career development.
Georgian Court University is a Catholic women's liberal arts university open to students of all faiths. It offers 23 fields of study leading to bachelor's degrees in the arts, fine arts, sciences, and social work. Georgian Court also has a coeducational undergraduate evening division as well as a coeducational graduate division that offers 11 graduate degrees. Future plans for the college include the construction of a $3.2 million Instructional Technology Center that will provide distance-learning opportunities in southern New Jersey and elsewhere, serve as a training center for technology for on-campus students, and provide the business community with facilities for interactive video conferencing.
DeVry Institute in North Brunswick is part of an international degree-granting higher education system with campuses in eight states and two Canadian provinces. With more than 30,000 students, DeVry, Inc. is one of North America's largest private post-secondary education systems. DeVry/New Jersey confers associate's degrees in computer information systems, business administration, telecommunications management and electronics engineering technology, and a bachelor's degree in electronics engineering technology. Students can also earn an electronics technician diploma or a communications and computer technician diploma, which is available through an evening program. Working adult students can earn the computer information systems and telecommunications management associate's degrees through an accelerated weekend program.