By 1960, CCNY had been joined by Hunter College, Brooklyn College, Queens College and several community colleges to provide public higher education in New York City. For over a decade, thought had been given to the creation of a city university that would integrate the colleges into a coordinated system that would improve the quality of education and offer doctoral degrees. This action was taken in 1961 when the City University of New York (CUNY) was formed. The new university began a program of expanding the number of colleges and improving access for potential students. Perhaps its most significant action came in 1970, when CUNY adopted a policy of open admissions that allowed all graduates of New York City public high schools to gain admission. That year, CUNY admitted 24,000 more students than it had the year before.
From the creation of CUNY, an independent Baruch College would eventually emerge. The issue of the School of Business becoming an independent senior college was partly related to its inadequate facilities and the need to obtain funding from within the City College budget. It was also about improving business education, although some students did not want to separate, as CCNY had a strong academic reputation that would not necessarily translate to a newly independent Baruch College. Following several years of discussion, the Bernard M. Baruch School of Business and Public Administration ceased to be a part of City College and became an independent senior college within CUNY on July 1, 1968. This ultimately made Baruch more attractive to potential students, and in 1979 it emerged as the CUNY College to which the largest number of new students applied.
