A member of the University of North Carolina, Western Carolina University offers courses in the arts, sciences, technologies, humanities, and professions. Students can elect degree programs at the bachelor’s or master’s-level, or doctoral-level study in educational leadership. As a regional comprehensive institution, it serves the people of North Carolina from its residential campus at Cullowhee and through off-campus instruction in Asheville and other locations.
Teaching and learning constitute the central mission of Western Carolina University. The university seeks to create a community of scholarship in which the activities of its members are consistent with the highest standards of knowledge and practice in their disciplines. The commitment of the community to service, research, and creative activities complements the central mission and extends the benefits of its scholarship to society. As a major public resource for western North Carolina, the university assists individuals and agencies in the region through the expertise of its faculty, its staff, and its students. Western Carolina University seeks to provide an environment in which students, faculty, and staff jointly assume responsibility for learning, where free exchange of ideas, intellectual challenge, and high standards of scholarship prevail.
Western Carolina University (WCU) is a coeducational public university located in Cullowhee, North Carolina. The university is a constituent campus of the University of North Carolina system.
The fifth oldest institution in the system, the university was founded to educate the people of the western North Carolina Mountains. The university has expanded its mission to serve the entire state and the nation and has grown to become a major cultural, scientific, and educational force in the the state and region. WCU now serves more than 11,000 full time undergraduate and post graduate students, providing an education to students from 46 states and 39 countries.
Western Carolina University is located in Jackson County, in the unincorporated village of Cullowhee, North Carolina. The university operates satellite campuses in both Asheville and Cherokee with programs offered online and at various community colleges. The main campus is located in a picturesque valley of the Tuckasegee River between the Blue Ridge and Great Smoky Mountains, west of Asheville, North Carolina. The university lies close to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Eastern Cherokee Indian Reservation (officially known as the Qualla Boundary) and some of the nation's most beautiful national forest lands. At an elevation of 2,100 feet, but located in a thermal valley, the campus enjoys the best of all four seasons but is shielded from most extreme temperatures by surrounding peaks. Cullowhee typically enjoys a rather mild winter season, in fact, Cullowhee can go some winters without snowfall or with just a trace.
While winters in the valley are generally mild, snow is not unusual in the higher elevations of Jackson County around Cashiers or Balsam. In nearby Sapphire Valley, snowmaking machines maintain prime snow skiing conditions from mid-December through February. Locations in Jackson County are also within reasonable driving distance to ski slopes at Maggie Valley. The Blue Ridge Parkway is usually closed during winter weather, and has become popular with cross country skiiers during those times.
|
Full-Time vs. Part-Time
|
Men vs. Women
|
||||
|
Race/Ethnicity
|
|
In State vs. Out-of-State
|
Top States for Incoming Freshman
|
| Percent of Students International: | 4% |
| On-Campus Housing Available: | Yes |
| Percent of Students Living On-Campus: | 55% |
| Freshman Students Required to Live on Campus: | Yes |
| Member of: | NAA, NCAA |
| Sports Include: |
Football (Southern Conference) Basketball (Southern Conference) Baseball (Southern Conference) Track (Southern Conference) |
| Tuition & Fees (undergraduate) | In-State | Out-of-State | |
Published Tuition and Fees: |
$ 3,410 | $ 12,846 | |
Average Tuition for Full-Time Undergrads: |
$ 1,651 | $ 11,087 | |
Required Fees for Full-Time Undergrads: |
$ 1,759 | $ 1,759 | |
| Financial Aid | Avg. Amount Received | % of Students Receiving Aid | |
Federal Grants: |
$ 2,708 | 24% | |
State and Local Grants: |
$ 1,978 | 30% | |
Institutional Grants: |
$ 1,041 | 55% | |
Student Loans: |
$ 3,256 | 49% | |
Any Aid: |
71% |
| Acceptance Rate: | 76% (Selective) |
| Test Scores | |
| SAT Scores: | |
| % of Students Submitting SAT Scores: | 95% |
| Bottom 25th Percentile: | Verbal: 460, Math: 470 |
| Top 75th Percentile: | Verbal: 560, Math: 560 |
| ACT Scores: | |
| % of Students Submitting ACT Scores: | 17% |
| Bottom 25th Percentile: | Composite: 18, Verbal: 16, Math: 17 |
| Top 75th Percentile: | Composite: 22, Verbal: 21, Math: 22 |
| Application Fee: | $ 40.00 |
| Formal Demonstration of Competencies: | Recommended |
| High School Diploma or Equivalent: | Required |
| High School GPA: | Required |
| High School Rank: | Required |
| High School Record: | Required |
| Recommendations: | Not Required |
| TOEFL: | Required |
| Test Scores: | Required |
