The University of North Carolina - Asheville

Most importantly, the academic quality at UNCA is top-notch. The professors are personable, passionate, knowledgeable, and accessible. Nearly all of my professors have been very passionate about their material - and all of my professors have put their own individual bent on the classes to make them genuinely interesting. Some of my favorite profs have brought their own materials into class - African drums, a theremin, ancient Chinese scrolls.

Being a liberal arts university, UNCA offers a huge variety of courses, from Astronomy to Honors Classical Non-Western Literature to Yoga. Depending on the individual student, the liberal arts requirements can be either inspiring or frustrating. I loved taking a wide range of classes, but some of my friends felt like they were wasting their time. However, in my opinion, this is a huge strength: no student graduates without being well-rounded. The ideas generated in our classes were never limited to discipline alone - while freshman Humanities is usually hit-or-miss (use ratemyprofessor.com!!), the more advanced Humanities classes in particular improve exponentially because of the huge range of knowledge and experience students have acquired - and everyone starts pitching in ideas from their specific majors during discussion.

I got to know many faculty members and administrators well, and I never once had a professor who did not know my name - even in my largest class of 88 students. I also have never, ever encountered a professor who could not speak English, though a fair amount of my professors were polylingual. I've had three TAs total over 4 years - and never did I interact with them without a professor present and interacting too. TA duties were generally grading, handing out papers, preparing materials for labs, and occasionally co-facilitating small discussion groups in class alongside the professor.

On the topic of labs, the educational facilities are generally impressive for the school's size and being a public university. There are many computer labs for open student use, including a general print labs, physics labs, a Mac lab with advanced graphics, and several free student help centers like the writing center and math lab. The Quad, the grassy lawn that the main buildings surround, is beautiful, especially in the fall, and on fair-weather days the Quad is almost always speckled with groups of students laying around and reading, napping, chatting, playing with dogs, and just basking in the sun.

In general, the student population size is not so small that everyone knows your business, but it is not so large that you are just another number. You can lose yourself in a crowd if you want to, but it's also relatively easy to become well-known amongst students if you desire to stand out. There are numerous student organizations, including activist groups and subject-based clubs. Athletics games are fun to go to - especially women's volleyball, basketball, and men's soccer - but sports are not a very heavy emphasis. There are a few low-key sororities and fraternities as well. It's true that the general population of the school and of the city is liberal - I believe a conservative student would have a much harder time here. Asheville itself is a beautiful midsize city full of arts and music, and does have a nightlife, though a more quiet one than Charlotte or Raleigh. I personally found the social environment a fairly happy medium between stifling and overwhelming, though the city and campus could both use some more late-late-night amenities.

The quality of the dorms range from pretty good (Founders) to really nice (the Ridges, Governors Hall), with Mills and Founders being more social dorms. The Ridges are usually more quiet students - South Ridge being the substance free dorm - and Governors Hall, the most aesthetic of the group, is generally populated by upperclassmen who already have cemented their social circles (read: the best dorm in my opinion, but not a good freshman/sophomore/party dorm). There aren't many on-campus parties, but there's practically a party a night at the Grove (student apartments about 5 minutes from campus, and you definitely don't need a car to get there). The student union is a cool building - home to the bookstore, almost all the student organizations, and a late-night go-to for food. And - the caf food is pretty good! I'd give it a B on most days (but a serious D on Friday nights). The desserts are awesome. Definite A+.

As for the downsides - The Financial Aid office is unpleasant. The parking sucks - but when I say sucks, I mean you might have to, at worst, walk 15 minutes to class. There's not much team spirit, though recently there have been student groups working hard to change that. The population is very white, more so than the surrounding area's demographics justify. There are some druggies/hippies who are kind of annoying, though not nearly as many as the average stereotype would lead you to believe. (Seriously, there are more hipsters than hippies, and the average "hippy" is a suburban upper-middle-class white kid with dreads who smokes pot once a month and showers every other day.) The bookstore is overpriced, but at least the money goes to the university.

In my opinion, the aspects of the school which are most likely to be impacted by personal preference are size (about 4,000 students), the social environment (liberal and artistic), and the desirability of a liberal arts curriculum. Regardless of personal preference, however, there is no denying that the academics themself are top-notch.

That "atmosphere" that I based my decision to go here on - an atmosphere of openness, acceptance, and creativity - was a lucky glimpse into all that UNC Asheville represents: a place where students are free to be themselves and pursue their personal interests while making connections across the liberal arts that will help them be well-rounded, capable citizens of humanity. The artistic and intellectual city of Asheville is ideal ground for a place of learning, and highly competent, dedicated professors who believe in what they're teaching are the heart of the school. The motto of the school is "Levo oculos meos in montes" - I lift my eyes to the mountains. I've taken it to heart - I'll always look up to UNCA for being an inspiration and guide, and for sending me out into the world feeling nurtured, capable, and self-confident.All in all, I believe that I got an amazingly high-quality education - and the low tuition cost was just icing on the cake.

The facilities are surprisingly first-rate for a small school. For example, the biology department has an electron microscope ? most unusual for such a small campus. Public access computers are all over the place. Academics are top-rate, make no mistake about that. I know a girl who did very well on her SATs in a college-prep curriculum and was rejected by UNCA. It seems like the admissions standards get tougher every year. Enrollment has expanded comparatively little over the years compared to WCU and ASU.

That said, I saw a number of bright kids so consumed with social activism that their academics suffered (shades of UC Berkeley in the 60s).

For a school with such a supposed free spirit reputation, I found the professors quite regimented. Every course I took had a syllabus and every instructor stuck to it religiously. We knew exactly what was expected of us from one class to the next. Still, the professors are very caring and generous with their time. I consider myself quite bright and hardworking, but it was a challenge to maintain good grades there. They'll definitely push you.

There is a certain amount of hypocrisy, however. Despite all the talk of ?diversity?, UNCA is as white as the driven snow. I?m almost certain UNCA is the least diverse campus in the UNC system. In fairness however, there are few people of color in the mountain region of NC, so it might be difficult to recruit minorities to attend college so far from home.

Through my studies at UNCA, I learned how to speak, understand, read, and write Spanish. I also learned a great deal about the history, geography, and culture of Spain and Latin America. Some might say, ?Well, duh! Doesn't everybody who majors in Spanish everywhere learn that?? Based on my interaction with people with Spanish degrees from other colleges, my answer is ?No.?

Count me among the 74% majority who would definitely attend UNCA again.