• Student Population: 9040
  • Acceptance Rate: 59%
  • Graduation Rate: 80%
  • Student Population: 24,000
  • Type: Public
  • Acceptance Rate: 88%
  • Graduate Rate: 59%

This beautiful 180-acre campus located on a mesa overlooking the Pacific Ocean is an idyllic setting to learn and grow. USD is a private school with contemporary Catholic values and a diverse campus population. Religious services are available but not required. This is a liberal arts campus with a high research component. The beautiful Spanish-style architecture surrounds you as students live and attend classes around large central quads. The campus is noticeably building and renovating the campus each year. Their current project is to double the space and capacity of their respected business school. The undergraduate academic program has 43 potential majors, as well as master’s, professional, and doctoral degrees. Study Abroad is highly encouraged, they have 17 NCAA sports teams, numerous student clubs, and fraternity/sorority life. Some folks think private schools can be financially out-of-reach, when realistically, USD and other private campuses have excellent financial aid resources to support students.

The Lyceum (built in 1848), with its towering columns, immediately brings up pictures in one’s mind of the old South, however, the campus is well maintained, and the buildings are updated to meet all student needs. There was a new student gym built in 2019 and the student union building was completely renovated. The campus has a strong focus on student services. Athletics are very popular as is the Grove where alumni and community members turn out in droves for football pre-game and other celebrations. This is one of the most welcoming campuses I have ever visited. The campus is set in Oxford which is the epitome of a college town with the businesses providing student discounts and flying Ole Miss colors along the main avenues. Students have a wide variety of campus living and dining experiences to choose from on-campus. The students are also involved heavily in the community through internships and volunteer programs, they are living the motto “To whom much is given, much is required.” The University of Mississippi is the state’s flagship university. It is included in the elite group of R1: Doctoral Universities – Highest Research Activity by the Carnegie Classification and has a long history of producing leaders in public service, academics, and business.

  • Visit Date: 10/5/21 in-person
  • Location(s): Paradise, NV
  • Student Population: 25,864
  • Type: Public
  • Acceptance Rate: 81%
  • Graduate Rate: 41%

This small private campus in Sunny Southern California boasts big opportunities. 75% of the students have at least one internship and 40% study abroad. They have a 58% acceptance rate and a 79% graduation rate. The campus also encourages research experience at the undergraduate level and has a recently built (2018) science building with state-of-the-art equipment. The campus has an interfaith focus, welcoming students from around the world. There is a homey feel around campus with small classes and an average 13-1 faculty-to-student ratio in the classroom. The campus runs for two semesters with a January term to add an extra opportunity to tackle your classwork. The campus has an active fraternity & sorority life as well as 21 NCAA and 7 Club sports teams. First-year students live in triples in theme focused living & learning communities. Upperclassmen can apply to live in on-campus apartments and find apartments in nearby communities. The campus is easily accessible on the Metrolink Line and is integrated into the surrounding city.

UNLV is a beautiful campus with green tree-lined paths, not what I would have expected of the desert. It is located on the quieter side of the city but the Las Vegas strip is visible from the balcony several stories up in the Culinary Arts building. The campus is spread out, clean, updated, and clearly well-resourced with sponsors’ names on the sides of buildings. Not surprisingly, the hotel management, culinary arts, and performing arts all benefit greatly from access to internships and work opportunities in the nearby entertainment district. However, many other majors including business museum science, computer science, human resources, and architecture also benefit as the Vegas area has a spectacular array of work options. I spoke to 4 students at random while exploring the campus, they seemed calm and comfortable on the campus. They reported feeling safe on campus and walking to their cars. Belying the large campus, only one student could give me accurate directions to the Student Life Office.
New Discoveries: The campus has a wide range of on-campus housing options and off-campus apartments are available in the nearby community. UNLV offers scholarships and grants for both in-state and out-of-state students. The nursing program facility has been recently renovated and the program expanded. During finals, the library is open 24 hours and they host hourly cookie breaks.
  • Student Population: 17,488
  • Type: Public
  • Acceptance Rate: 90%
  • Graduate Rate: 65.6%
  • Student Population: 6,302
  • Type: Private
  • Acceptance Rate: 71.7%
  • Graduate Rate: 83.7%
Chico State is set in a true college town where the Wildcat mascot hangs in business windows and the student discount is common at eateries around campus. It’s truly a California campus with almost 98% of its students hailing from inside the California borders. There are nine 1st year student villages and 1 upper-division living community but there is no live-on requirement and apartments are plentiful and inexpensive in the community. 90% of all students live within 2 miles of campus. There are over 120 majors on campus and if you are not ready to declare a major when you arrive that is no problem, all students are admitted as undeclared, and you can explore courses. There are 13 NCAA sports, but no football. Students can also play a wide variety of club-level and intermural sports or remain active in the campus recreation center. The most popular majors are business administration, psychology, pre-nursing, criminal justice, and liberal studies.
New Discoveries: Chico is one of four CSUs with agricultural studies majors and the second oldest CSU campus. Some interesting majors include Game Development, Sustainable manufacturing, and Recording Arts. Chico also has a set of campus-specific scholarships (Wildcat Scholarships) students can apply to between Jan 2 and Feb 15 for the following year.
Elon University is a private university in Elon, North Carolina. Founded in 1889, this small private institution is based on service to students. They have two central beliefs: students learn most deeply through engaged, hands-on experiences; and students’ lives are transformed through personal relationships with faculty and staff whose first priorities are teaching and mentoring. The six academic colleges award bachelor’s degrees in over 70 majors and the campus has been awarded the top ranking in the teaching of undergraduates by U.S. News and World Report for the past 2 years. There are also 9 graduate programs and a number of interdisciplinary degree options. For a small university, Elon has a global curriculum and prioritizes study abroad opportunities for every major. The campus has 16 NCAA athletic teams, as well as dance, cheer, and band opportunities to support the teams and build school spirit. When visiting Elon, I noticed the ease and comfort of the students on campus and the school spirit throughout the campus. This is in part due to the beautiful park-like setting of the campus and the well-established student services. The students live in 8 residential communities. Elon’s goal is to have 75% of students live on campus because they believe that living closer to classes, libraries, and campus facilities creates students who are more involved in student organizations and have higher GPAs.
New Discoveries: Elon’s historic 690-acre campus in central North Carolina is designated as a botanical garden and includes the 56-acre Elon University Forest, a land preserve and natural area for scientific research; and Loy Farm, a center for environmental research and sustainability that includes a solar farm.
  • Student Population: Tempe - 55,000; Downtown – 7,000; Polytechnic – 6500; West Valley – 7,000
  • Type: Public
  • Acceptance Rate: 88%
  • Graduate Rate: 68%
  • Student Population: 8,373
  • Type: Public
  • Acceptance Rate: 89%
  • Graduate Rate: 55%
Description: Arizona State University is a very large public institution in the suburbs of Phoenix. Starting as the Tempe Normal school to train teachers in 1884, it now has four campuses in the Phoenix area with the Tempe campus being the largest (@55,000 students). The campus sits on 1 square mile and though busy, did not feel overwhelming. A shuttle service connects the four campuses running continuously throughout the day. Each campus is self-contained with a residential community and all services available on each campus. Students can take classes at or live on any of the four campuses. ASU has over 400 majors in its 15 colleges. There is also a designed exploratory program for students who are undecided to help students focus on a major without losing time or credits in the process. I was impressed at the range of services available to students and included in tuition. There are tutoring services for every course; extensive international study programs; and three levels of sports. Tickets to all D1 sporting events are available for free to students and students who want to play can participate in competitive club sports or intramurals for fun. In addition, ASU has the 2nd largest recreation facility in the country. The campus is beautiful, well-maintained, and up-to-date. One of ASU’s claims to fame is that they have been voted the #1 school for innovation for multiple years running and it is evident all over campus as you see student-developed projects throughout the campus. Innovator labs, creation spaces, and entrepreneurial advisers are part of student tuition. The virtual science lab and Zoom Innovation lab are open to all students. The smaller campuses are specifically located to maximize student access. The Downtown campus is located near several hospitals and housing nursing and health-related programs. The aeronautical program is located at the Polytechnic campus which borders an airport where ASU pilots in training can walk to their airplanes.
Central Washington University is a regional public institution. They say their secret to success is small classes + dedicated professors + hands-on experience. CWU was founded in 1891 and has expanded its reach around the world with experiential learning projects on multiple continents. They have 135 majors, a full athletics program, and a comfortable, walkable campus. CWU is also the most diverse campus in the state of Washington. They are in the process of building a state-of-the-art $60 million dollars health sciences building. In addition to their focus on medical sciences, they also have award-winning print and broadcast journalism programs. This is just a glimpse at the array of academic programs available on the Wildcat campus. The climate on this great Northwest campus is fairly mild. They boost 200+ days of sunshine a year. The Cascade mountains and the beautiful city of Seattle are within a couple of hours’ drive.
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Presidio Group Education Planning is driven to provide excellent post high school planning to empower all students to pursue their passion through higher education and career planning. We aim to restore the joy to the discovery experience.