About Appalachian
"One of the top five masters degree-granting universities in the South."
Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of northwestern North Carolina, Appalachian State University has built a national reputation for providing outstanding academics. With a student/faculty ratio of 17:1 and an average class size of 25, faculty members are able to take a personal interest in student progress, often becoming mentors, advisers, and friends - even tennis partners. That can only happen in a close-knit community.
Nestled at the base of Howard Knob, the university is located in downtown Boone, NC (year-round pop. 15,000), a small town which thrives as one of the Southeast's premier tourism and outdoor recreation destinations. The nearby Blue Ridge Parkway and Pisgah National Forest provide a beautiful natural setting with unlimited possibilities for outdoor adventure.
Appalachian is a public institution and part of The University of North Carolina System.
Fast Facts
data source: Fact Book from the office of Institutional Research and Planning
Enrollment, Fall 2008
- 16,610 total
- 14,561 undergraduate
- 2,049 graduate
- 2,781 first-time freshmen (Fall 2007)
- 1,026 new transfer students (Fall 2007)
- 53% females
- 47% males
- 7% ethnic minorities
- 15,185 in state
- 1,425 out of state
- North Carolina counties most represented (all students): Mecklenburg, Wake, Watauga, Guilford, Forsyth
- States most represented: North Carolina, Georgia, Virginia, Florida, Tennessee, South Carolina
Freshman Admissions, Fall 2008
- 15,057 applications
- 2,781 enrolled
- 1163 SAT average
- 3.87 GPA average
Cost (tuition, fees, room and board), 2008-09 academic year
- $9,894 in state
- $19,954 out of state
Academics
- 17:1 student/faculty ratio (Fall 2008)
- 25 - average class size (Fall 2008)
- 5 undergraduate colleges, 1 music school, and 1 graduate school
- more than 140 undergraduate and graduate majors
- 87.4% freshman retention rate, third highest in the University of North Carolina system
- 61.1% five-year graduation rate, fourth highest in the University of North Carolina system
Degrees Awarded 2007-08
- 2,634 Bachelors
- 702 Graduate
- 3,336 total degrees awarded
Faculty, Fall 2008
- 779 full-time faculty
- 95% percentage of full-time faculty with doctorate, first professional degree, or other terminal degree
- 2,843 total full and part-time staff
Alumni, Fall 2008
- More than 90,000 alumni from all 50 states and several foreign countries.
Buildings & Campus, Fall 2008
- 1,300 acres, including a 410 acre main campus
- 19 academic buildings
- 210,000-square-foot library
- 1 off-campus center in New York City
- 20 residence halls, housing 4,976 students on campus
- 4 dining facilities
- 11 recreational and athletic facilities
Athletics, Fall 2008
- 20 varsity sports offered
- 19 club sports
- more than 60 intramural sports
Points of Pride
Solid Accolades
Appalachian State University’s consistent quality is reflected by high rankings in these national publications:
- U.S. News & World Report’s 2009 America’s Best Colleges Guide
- Consumers Digest magazine’s listing of the top 50 best values for public colleges and universities
- Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine’s “100 Best Values in Public Colleges”
Comprehensive Degree Choices
Appalachian offers more than 140 undergraduate and graduate major programs through the College of Arts and Sciences, College of Fine and Applied Arts, College of Education, College of Business, University College and the School of Music. Additionally, Appalachian offers a doctorate of education.
Internationally Connected
Exchange programs with 41 universities in 17 countries make Appalachian part of the global academic family.
Contributors to Knowledge
More than $12 million in research grants and contracts was awarded to the university in 2008-09. Appalachian encourages faculty/student collaboration on research and creative endeavors, so many of these projects generate special opportunities for undergraduates.
Volunteers in the Community
Between 2005 and 2009, the Appalachian and the Community Together (ACT) office contributed more than $9 million of value through volunteer service to the local community, based on the national standard for volunteer time. Total student service hours for the 2008-09 academic year exceeded 93,000.
Opportunities for All
The Appalachian ACCESS scholarship program, now in its third year, supports deserving and outstanding students from North Carolina’s lowest-income families. In 2008-09, Appalachian enrolled 95 ACCESS scholars from 40 counties.
Athletic Champions
Appalachian offers 20 intercollegiate varsity sports for men and women. The Mountaineers have earned both the Southern Conference’s Commissioner’s Cup for overall excellence in men’s athletics 29 times since the award was established in 1979 and the Germann Cup, recognizing the top women’s program in the conference, six of the 18 years the award has been presented. In football, the Mountaineers won three consecutive NCAA Division I FCS national championship titles in 2005, 2006, and 2007.
Love those Mountaineers!
Alumni and friends made record-setting contributions to athletic scholarships in 2008-09. Giving to the Yosef Club, the student-athlete scholarship program, exceeded $2.05 million. The Athletic Facilities Enhancement Campaign receipted more than $1.4 million as of May 31.
An Environmental Friendly Campus
Appalachian is included in the National Wildlife Federation Report Card of environmental friendly campuses. The report is the nation's largest study to date created to gauge trends and new developments in campus sustainability.
