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The Quest for Knowledge
From the beginning, Quest University was a vision with grand scope and as its first graduating class moves into the real world, the school’s founders can finally say they have achieved their goal
by Susan Hollis
Page 8 of 8
"That's such a key because from there on everything else is wide open."
The payoff
Everyone involved with Quest speaks openly about the gamble, but all admit it was worth it.
"Oh yes, it was a big risk...not just for us at the funding stage but for all the people that came and devoted their lives to it," continued Blusson. "And it was a risk for the students and their families - I think they've been well rewarded now."
The rewards aren't just seen in this year's graduating class, whose members are carrying on to law school, grad school, think tanks, Oxford University and various NGOs, but in the overall ability of the school to really tap into its students' potential. In a National Survey of Student Engagement, a tool used to measure the true quality of undergraduate education based on level of academic challenge; active and collaborative learning; student-faculty interaction; enriching educational experiences; and supportive campus environment, Quest shone the brightest.
Out of 1,500 universities and colleges surveyed last year in the U.S. and Canada, Quest ranked number one in all categories. In Canada their ranking was off the scale.
"It's just a reflection of the fact that starting from scratch has its advantages - it has its challenges also, but it has its advantages and you can think of all the things that don't work in a regular university and you can do them differently," said Helfand.
"We have a really radical approach here that is clearly extraordinarily effective.
There are still many things we are going to be changing. One of the great virtues of a new organization is that it's not ossified and one can continue to change."
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