New College of Florida

When I think of a state college, I generally think of a medium to very large college with big lecture halls.  New College of Florida (NCF), however, is an honors state college with only 800 students and an average class size of 18. The liberal arts and sciences college is on the water, in Sarasota.

Not only, is the college unusual in its size, but it is unusual in its academics.  There are no grades.  All students do independent research for three years  in the January term and all complete a senior project or write a thesis which they defend before a faculty committee. In lieu of grades, there is a written narrative for each class taken. Each semester students prepare a contract of work that they negotiate with heir advisor, a professor.  About 80% of graduates go on to graduate school.

A student who would fit in here is a liberal student who can drive their own education.  There is no core curriculum.  Everyone must take 1 course in humanities, 1 course in social sciences, 1 course in natural sciences and a total of 8 liberal arts course.  On the Thursday and Friday before a new semester’s registration, professors give 15-minute snippets of their classes, which students can take before registering.  Tutorials, which are self-designed classes are popular.  Professors generally teach 2 classes and may support up to 5 or 6 tutorials.  The college offers about 300 classes per year.

The cost for out of state students isn't too bad either.  While the Cost of Attendance is $43K per year, every out-of-state student who gets accepted gets a minimum of a $15K merit scholarship making the price comparable to in-state fees for Rutgers.  Currently, about 20% of students are from outside of Florida and they are trying to increase this percentage.  NCF is a member of the National Student Exchange so you can attend another college in the US or abroad, and pay the NCF tuition.

This is a residential college which can accommodate up to 640 students with on-campus housing.  The rest of the student body lives locally.  There are 60-80 clubs and organizations and students can start their own club or organization.  While there are intramural and club sports, there are no NCAA sports teams.  Sailing is the only intercollegiate team.  There is no Greek life at NCF.  The college accepts the Common App and has rolling admissions with a priority deadline of November 1.

Eckerd College

Beach

Library

In January, I visited Eckerd College, a small, private college on the water in St. Petersburg, Florida.  Eckerd has about 1800 students from 48 states and 40 countries on 188 acres and  eighty percent of the students are from outside of Florida.  The school is good match for a politically liberal, liberal arts, science or business student who is adventurous, likes the outdoors, would like to volunteer, and wants to study abroad.  Eckerd is one of the forty “Colleges That Change Lives”.  If you haven’t read the book by that title, I heartily recommend it. 

Academics – Eckerd is a liberal arts and sciences college, with business and management majors.  Its biggest major is environmental studies and it is well-known for its marine science major.  One third of the students are majoring in the natural sciences, Students can double-major or take a major and a minor.  Every student has an academic mentor.  In addition, Freshman also have an student mentor.

Freshmen take a 3-week term in August.  This helps them get acclimated to college before the rest of the students arrive.  During that term they take one class, have orientation, and participate in a host of activities.  

All students, except Freshmen, take a January term where they take one course on-campus,  study abroad, participate in an internship or independent study.

Above average students can get money to do research with professors starting as Freshmen.

About 500 students go abroad each year.  Students can study broad for a month, a summer, a semester or a year.  

Campus – The newest building is the $25 million James Center for Molecular and Life Sciences.  The campus has a beach and a waterfront with free sailboats, canoes, kayaks, and tents for student use. 

Boats on Waterfront

Waterfront Equipment

Housing – Housing is guaranteed all four years and there are no triples.  The school has special- interest housing which lets you bring your dog or cat to live with you.  There is even a fenced-in dog park on campus.

Extracurricular activities –

The school has Division II sports.  Sailing is very popular. Rugby is a popular club sport.

All students are required to do at least 40 hours of volunteer work. The school has emergency volunteers on the water in the form of a search and rescue group.  They respond to over 500 marine distress calls each year.

There are plenty of clubs at Eckerd.  One popular club is the Improv club.  If at least two students get an advisor, they can start a new club.  Lots of the extracurricular activities are held outdoors.

There is no Greek life at Eckerd. 

Getting In and Aid – Both need-based and merit aid are available.  The average GPA for admitted students is 3.3.  The middle 50% of the admitted pool earned between 1010 aand 1230 on the SAT; the school does not look at the SAT Writing score.

Do you think you would like attending Eckerd?  Why or why not?

Arcadia University

In mid-November, I visited Arcadia University, a school with a global focus.  Three unusual things about Arcadia are that students can study abroad starting in their first semester, there are some Bachelor’s degrees that are designed to be completed in three years, and the school has a castle. 

Arcadia has about 2500 undergraduate students and about 65% graduate within 6 years.  Business/marketing, biology, psychology, interdisciplinary studies, social sciences, and visual and performance arts are the most popular majors. The school has a physical therapy program.

Travel abroad is very popular.  In addition to studying abroad for a semester, students can go abroad for 7 – 10 days during spring break for just $600 (including room, board, airfare, and touring), after taking a course related to the trip.

My tour guide, a junior majoring in Math from Connecticut, was also a resident assistant and participated in the dance club.  As we walked around campus, I saw that a number of the buildings were connected.  Freshman may be excited to hear that the castle has some freshman housing on the third floor.  The flags on campus reflect countries where students are studying abroad or where international students are from.

Extracurricular activities that I saw advertised during the week I visited included NCAA Division III sports, a comedian, a hypnotist, a student dance club recital, movies, and midnight Bingo.  

There is a bus stop by the school that goes to a local mall.  Students can walk to a train station in ten minutes and catch a train that takes them to Philadelphia in under thirty minutes.

What is your experience with Arcadia University? 

College of St. Elizabeth (CSE)

Looking for a Catholic women’s college in central New Jersey?  The Women’s College at the College of St. Elizabeth has about 600 students and about 80% of freshmen live on campus in one of two dorms.  If you want a college with a small, close-knit group in a welcoming and supportive environment, CSE might be for you. 

On the college grounds there are also college classes for adults, and a high school.  Most students study the liberal arts or are pre-professional.  Students can double major or major and minor.  There are a number of 5-year combined Bachelors/Masters programs in areas such as Education, Counseling Psychology, Business, and Theology to name a few.  The most popular majors are Education, Biology, Business and Psychology. Internships are generally available starting in the freshman or sophomore year.   An unusual CSE major is Food and Nutrition, with an option for a 5^th year Dietetic internship.

Class size is small with typically 12 – 15 students per class.  The college has study abroad, free tutoring, a medical facility, a counseling center and more.  There is cross registration with nearby Drew and Fairleigh Dickinson.  There are two required religion classes, but no required chapel.  Typically, students with a 3.8 GPA or higher qualify for the Honors Program. 

There are eight NCAA Division III sports.  Students like watching the basketball and softball games.   Community service is popular with students working at a soup kitchen, homeless shelter, and non-profits like the Red Cross. There is an Olympic sized indoor pool. Mass is available daily.   Some residential students go home on weekends and some stay on campus. 

The average GPA of applicants is 3.0 and the mid-50% score for the SAT is 1350 – 1500 (for Critical Reading, Math, and Writing).  Merit aid is available.

Across from the college entrance is the Convent Station train station.  Florham Park and Morristown stations are just one stop away.  CSE is less than an hour away from New York City by train. Students can walk to Fairleigh Dickinson for classes or social activities.  Cars are allowed on campus all four years. 

What is your experience with CSE?

Gettysburg College

In October, I had the pleasure of learning about Gettysburg College from Gail Sweezey, the Office of Admissions Director.  Here are some highlights:

Academics:  The most popular major at Gettysburg is political science.  Other popular majors are Organization and Management Studies, Psychology, History, English, and Biology. 

About one quarter of students do a double major.  About 35% of students have a major and a minor.

Gettysburg has a music conservatory which opened in 2005. There are over 150 students who major or minor in music.  Students must audition to be a major or minor.  Students can double major with a major in the conservatory (BA) and another major outside of the conservatory.  25% get a degrees in music performance (B.M.), 25% in music education (B.S.), and 50% in music (B.A.).

Gettysburg College houses the Eisenhower Institute, a center for leadership and public policy.  The Eisenhower Institute has offices in Washington DC as well as operating in the historic Gettysburg home once occupied by Dwight and Mamie Eisenhower.  It combines dialogue among policy-makers with a learning experience for undergraduates in a variety of fields, including energy, nuclear nonproliferation, foreign relations, Middle East affairs, U.S. politics, the U.S. presidency, economics, international security, and environmental sustainability.

There are over forty choices for the first year seminar.  One seminar was on homelessness.  In addition to classroom work, the students lived in a homeless shelter for a week and worked in a soup kitchen. Freshmen live with students in their first year seminar.

The first year orientation includes a walk to the national cemetery, followed by listening to the Gettysburg address there. 

Study abroad: Gettysburg is 5^th in the nation for sending students abroad for a semester or longer.  Their financial aid travels with them.  There are also shorter 2-3 week study abroad programs.  Students can participate in a 3-semester bridge course where they study an issue for a semester at Gettysburg, study abroad about that issue for a semester, and spend a semester writing/publishing about that issue.

Career planning:  70% of students were involved in an internship before graduation.  Other career planning options include week long externships, shadowing opportunities, and networking dinners.

Location: The college is in Gettysburg, PA which is very close to the Maryland border.  Students are close enough to Baltimore and Washington, DC to intern there.

Housing: 92% of students live on campus and 95% stay on campus on the weekend.  

Extracurricular activities: Greek life, football games, the marching band, orchestra concerts, theatre and dance performances are all popular pastimes.  1 in 7 students is involved musically.  80% of the marching band is not in the conservatory.

Retention: 91% of students return for their sophomore year.

Politics:  The students at the school are politically middle of the road.

After graduation:  95% of students are in graduate school or employed within a year of graduation.  About 15 students per year go on to medical school. 

Financial Aid:  There is both need-based and merit aid.  The Net Price Calculator is usually within $2K of their actual net price.  For need based aid, students need to complete the FAFSA and the CSS PROFILE.  The need-based aid package meets 100% of need and is made up of grants, loans, and work/study.

The largest merit aid is the $25K/year Lincoln Scholarship given to about 30 students who have taken rigorous course with grades of A and have a SAT score of 1400 or more in Critical Reading/Math. 

The Presidential Scholarship of $15K/year is typically given to students taking rigorous courses, graduating in the top 10-15% of their class and have an SAT score of 1300 or more in Critical Reading/Math.  

There are other merit scholarships including the David Wells Scholarship ($10K/year) and the Leadership Scholarship ($7K/year).  There are also scholarships for those pursing a Bachelors of Music in Performance.

Applications:  The Early Decision deadline is 11/25 and 43% of students apply Early Decision.  The school is test-optional, with about 20% applying test-optional.  Students who choose to go test optional can’t get merit scholarships.  The average SAT score is 1290 (Critical Reading and Math).  A student with SAT scores between 1100 and 1150 (Critical Reading and Math) and great grades should apply test-optional.  The college is interested in demonstrated interest and recommends that students take advantage of an interview.

What is your experience with Gettysburg?

What's new at NJ, NY and PA colleges

Admissions representatives from several universities shared highlights of what’s new at their institutions at the NJACAC fall kickoff. 

The Rider representative talked about:

•  Special activities to commemorate the college’s 150^th anniversary, including a gala, special performances, the breaking of a Guinness world record for the longest string of cranberries.
•  The Westminster Choir College getting a new building. 
• Sports management being offered as a new co-major.
• The Musical Theater degree becoming a Bachelors in Fine Arts, requiring an application by January 1.
• The current college president retiring on June 30th and the search for a replacement.

The Rutgers representative spoke of:

• The opening of the Residential Honors College housing for 500 students and faculty in September 2015. 
• Mason Gross having a new digital film making major starting in 2015.
•  Rutgers planning for a 2016 celebration of their 250^th anniversary.

Lehigh:

• Will be celebrating their 150^th anniversary in 2015 with a Lehigh vs. Lafayette football game in Yankee Stadium. 
• Has purchased two Bethlehem Steel buildings and turned them into research space. 
• Has a new college president who came from the University of Virginia. 
• Is in the midst of a one billion dollar capital campaign.

NYU:

·         Has fully integrated the engineering school into the university. Has new majors including Design and Performance Study, and an interdisciplinary Business and Film/TV.

·         Is looking for a new president. 

TCNJ:

·         Is building a Campus Town Center which will open in August.  It will have a first floor with Panera,Starbucks, Barnes & Noble, and a pizza place, and a second floor housing 430 TCNJ students. 

·         Has a new STEM facility housing natural sciences, engineering and mathematics. 

·         Will be switching to a 4-1-4 schedule to encourage a higher 4-year graduation rate and to give more students the opportunity to study abroad. 

·         Will require students to complete the CSS PROFILE in order to get financial aid.  They expect this will enable them to give more aid to students whose families make between $75K and $150K per year.

The Rowan representative spoke of:

•  Bringing in five companies, including Lockheed Martin, on property Rowan owns next to the college campus so students can do research and work with those companies.
• Two new med schools and the integration of medical studies with arts, business, and STEM.  Students can get accepted into medical school right after high school; the med schools are focusing on community/family medicine. 
•  The freshman class being 40% bigger than last year. 
• Rowan focusing on improving their graduation rate and having a goal to reach a 90% graduation rate. 

University of Pennsylvania

In early September, I visited the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn), a member of the Ivy League.  While the college is in a busy part of Philadelphia, the layout of the campus gives you a sense that you are away from the hustle and bustle of the city.  UPenn has about 10,000 undergrads in 4 colleges and about another 10,000 graduate students.  The university was founded by Benjamin Franklin with the idea that the university would provide a practical, diverse, well-rounded, broad-based education with a liberal arts foundation.

Academics - Undergraduate students apply to one of four colleges:

• College of Arts and Sciences (known as “the College”) - In “the College” students have general education requirements in seven sectors of knowledge and can take two years before they pick one of the 55 available majors.
• Engineering and Applied Sciences - The Engineering and Applied Sciences offers both a Bachelors of Engineering and a Bachelors of Applied Science.  Those pursuing the Bachelor of Applied Science have more electives.  Those pursuing a Bachelors of Engineering must pick a major after the freshman year and need to do a Senior design project.
• Wharton School of Business - At the Wharton School, there are 20 different concentrations.  Forty percent of the classes students take are outside of the Business school.  Freshmen participate on teams of ten to solve a business problem for a company.
• Nursing - The Nursing School takes 90 – 100 Freshmen each year.  The nursing students begin their clinical rotation in the second semester of their Sophomore year.  There are four hospitals within five blocks of UPenn.  Many nursing students pursue a Bachelors/Masters degree in five years.

Undergrads can take classes in all four undergraduate colleges.  They can double major or major/minor in multiple undergraduate colleges, and they can take classes in all the grad schools (except the Vet school).  Students have both an academic advisor and a peer advisor.  Many of the majors are interdisciplinary.  Study abroad is popular in the Junior year, the summers, and the Fall of the Senior year.  The Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships helps students find research opportunities or identify funding for research they wish to do.

The average class size is 26 students.  There are large lecture classes of up to 600 students, like Intro to Chemistry, Intro to Psychology, and Intro to Political Science.  These classes also have smaller recitation sections.

Applying - Early Decision applications are due by 11/1 and students hear if they are accepted by 12/15.  The Early Decision admit rate is 24%.  Regular Decision applications are due by 1/1 and students hear if they are accepted by 4/1.  The overall admit rate is 10%.  Students apply using the Common App plus a supplement which includes a “Why UPenn?” essay.  Students need to submit the ACT with Writing or the SAT with two Subject Tests.  Two letters of recommendation from core subject teachers are required.

Since Wharton is quantitative-heavy, they expect you have taken the highest level calculus offered by your high school.  The Engineering School is looking to see you have taken high level Physics and the Nursing School is looking to see you have taken advanced Chemistry while in high school.

Financial Aid - UPenn offers need-based aid, but does not offer merit aid.  They meet 100 percent of a student’s need and determine that need from the FAFSA, CSS PROFILE and their own supplement. Their financial aid packages do not include loans.  Their Net Price Calculator does not work well for divorced parents, parents who own a business, and self-employed parents.  If you are in one of these situations, call the financial aid office to get a better early estimate of your net price. The school is need-blind for citizens and residents of North America, and need-aware for others.

What is your experience visiting or attending the University of Pennsylvania?