Tufts Blogs

At Tufts University, everyone is an intellectual. With a curriculum highlighting the breadth and depth of academic knowledge, and various breakthroughs led by Tufts affiliates in every field imaginable, it is easy to see why Jumbos play a pivotal role in shaping the world, both today and tomorrow. However, no level of intelligence makes asking the tough questions any easier. It is the friction caused by challenging questions, ideas, and conflicting morals that holds a country, which is becoming increasingly divided, from even attempting to comprehend these issues. One of the hardest decisions any leader will face comes not in what they want to say but in how they want to say it. How do the students at Tufts University, trailblazers of the next generation in an increasingly divided country, approach the complex issues that plague it? This question is openly embraced and answered by Tufts University, largely through the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Civic Life and the various advocacy groups found on campus. Through the many courses, programs, community service initiatives, research opportunities, and nonpartisan political engagement it offers, Tufts University sets a clear paradigm for civic engagement, which can be boiled down to three simple words: Listen, Learn, Lead.  
 
Listen 
One of Tufts’ biggest strengths is the diversity of perspectives. As a liberal arts university, breadth of knowledge is not only valued but required of all students who study here. One of the most important skills that such a mixed education provides is the ability to view problems through various lenses. It implies that none of the world’s problems are ever single-faceted and, because of this, require many viewpoints to fully grasp. Tufts particularly excels at this; one of the most interesting and heartwarming examples comes from Community OF Faith Exploration and Engagement (COFFEE). As the name suggests, COFFEE seeks to foster meaningful, inclusive discussions about the various facets and degrees of faith, promoting peace and the common good. Tufts students home in on their perspectives and incorporate them with those of others, creating a rounded, thoughtful approach that inspires the desire to learn about others. By seeking to understand as much as to be understood, these students exemplify what it means to listen within a community.  
 
Learn 
Learning is the wheel that keeps the community at Tufts—and the larger society—moving. What sparks passion within you, and why does it motivate you the way it does? Tufts University challenges itself to ask these questions, and the harder ones they carry, through the Experimental College (ExCollege) courses. Quite literally by a Jumbo, for a Jumbo, the ExCollege courses are some of the most innovative, engaging, and practical courses in any post-secondary institution. When examined closely, an abundance of passions, reflecting those of the greater Tufts community, comes into focus. From “AI & The Mind: Adverse Effects” to “Climate Futurism,” from “Sports, Religion, and Social Justice” to “Neurodiversity in Literature and Life,” Tufts students do not back down from the tough questions in our society. In fact, they embrace the difficult, yet necessary conversations needed to address these issues.  
 
Lead 
Knowledge is not power; knowledge in action is power. The Experimental College is just one of various ways Tufts students learn about the world around them. Programs such as Jumpstart work with the greater Boston area to create positive change in local communities. Tufts also boasts a plethora of advocacy groups, such as Advancing Civic Thought In Our Nation (ACTION), Strong Women Strong Girls, Mental Health Reps, and United for Immigrant Justice. Collectively, these groups dedicate countless hours to advocating for change in every aspect of the world imaginable. They take what they’ve learned in the classroom and create palpable change. One of the most noteworthy examples of this is the Tufts Civic Semester abroad. This year, groups of incoming Jumbos spent their first semester in either Peru or Thailand, engaging deeply with important social issues through Tufts coursework and hands-on learning with local community organizations. This is the hallmark of the Tisch College of Civic Life. Adjusting to the college lifestyle is already an enormous challenge, yet these cohorts of incoming students dedicate themselves—and an important part of their time at Tufts—to bettering the world around them. This servant leadership is one of the key characteristics of any Jumbo, facilitating their ability to manage difficult questions, ideas, and concepts that surround them.  
 
True change begins with a willingness to confront challenges and the courage to act. At Tufts University, this philosophy is embodied by students who listen deeply, learn passionately, and lead boldly, striving to make the world a better place every day. If it exists as a problem in the world, Tufts University is having a conversation about it, learning about it, and creating leaders today to build positive change tomorrow. Every day, countless Jumbos lead by example, showing the world what it means to forge a path once thought impossible or impractical. They stand intrepidly, invigorated by passion and inspired by their education. Through academic, advocative, and practical collaboration, they constantly strive for a more harmonious community. And, perhaps most importantly, they stand together as a herd, realizing that it takes one to lead the change but many to create it.