Some stories don’t need entire pages to get their message across. Still, we must find some way to get the information from our brains to yours. For this purpose, we bring you News Made Small.
Brandeis reportedly accepting no midyears for Spring 2026
With the end of the fall 2025 semester approaching, The Brandeis Hoot has been investigating the reported dissolution of the Midyears Program. This has, to our knowledge, not been officially announced by the administration. However, during an orientation meeting in August attended by a Hoot member, it was stated that there would not be an orientation for midyears this year, or in the future, because Brandeis will not be having a midyear program.
The Hoot has reached out to Brandeis Admissions for updates on the situation. We emailed Brandeis Admissions asking for confirmation if there were no midyear students next semester or if there is a significant reduction in midyear admissions, the reasons for the dissolution and whether something similar would happen in future years. As of press time, Brandeis Admissions has not responded.
Brandeis liberal arts restructure brings five ‘Microcredentals’ for Spring 2026
As previously announced during the fall semester, Brandeis students will have access to new “microcredentials” as an addition to their coursework to build career-focused skills. This change comes as part of a major restructuring that Brandeis is undergoing to improve the liberal arts education. According to the Brandeis registrar’s website, employers will see these microcredentials on official school transcripts as well as through badges on LinkedIn.
The University is piloting five microcredentials in the Spring ’26 semester: Applied Statistical Analysis, Foundations of Data Analytics, Person-Centered Research and Analysis, Policy Analysis and Implementation and Sound and Video Media. The coursework for each microcredential includes 2-3 relevant courses of mostly social science classes and some STEM. Students can currently sign up for microcredentials through Workday and find additional resources on the registrar website.
The Chapels were on fire?
Students may have noticed a variety of emergency service vehicles parked near Chapel’s field on the afternoon of Friday, Dec. 5. While firetrucks are often seen at residence halls, it is rare to see them in non-residential buildings.
According to the official Waltham city website, a fire occurred in Berlin Chapel. The incident was reported at 12:46 pm, and first responders were on scene by 12:52 pm. Crews reported a small electrical fire contained to a bathroom electrical fixture. The fire was quickly extinguished with no flames spreading to other parts of the building. First responders cleared the scene at 1:14 pm. There has been no update on the damage incurred from the administration as of publication.
