data source: Fact Book from the office of Institutional Research, Planning and Assessment.

Enrollment, Fall 2012

• 17,589 total
• 15,712 undergraduate
• 1,877 graduate
• 3,028 first-time freshmen
• 943 new main campus transfer students
• 54% females
• 46% males
• 11% ethnic minorities
• 15,871 in state
• 1,718 out of state
• North Carolina counties most represented (all students): Wake, Mecklenburg, Watauga, Forsyth, Guilford, Catawba.
• States most represented: North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, South Carolina, Florida, Tennessee.

Freshman Admissions, Fall 2012

• 12,248 applications (completed)
• 3,028 enrolled
• 1153 SAT average
• 26 ACT average
• 3.99 GPA average

Cost (undergraduate tuition and fees), 2012-13 academic year

• $6,288 in state (excludes room and board)
• $18,336 out of state (excludes room and board)

Academics

• 16:1 student/faculty ratio
• 26 - average class size
• 6 undergraduate colleges, 1 music school, and 1 graduate school
• more than 150 undergraduate and graduate majors
• 87.6% freshman retention rate
• 65.1% five-year graduation rate
• 65.7% six-year graduation rate

Degrees Awarded, 2011-2012

• 3,435 Bachelors
• 872 Masters/Specialists/Graduate Certificates
• 13 Doctorate
• 4,320 total degrees awarded

Faculty, Fall 2011

• 871 full-time faculty
• 99% percentage of full-time faculty with doctorate, first professional degree, or other terminal degree
• 2,826 total full and part-time staff

Alumni, 2012

• More than 100,000 living alumni from all 50 states and several foreign countries.

Buildings & Campus, Fall 2012

• 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 about 5,500 students on campus
• 3 main dining facilities
• 11 recreational and athletic facilities

Athletics, Fall 2012

• 20 varsity sports
• 19 club sports
• more than 80 intramural sports

Appalachian State University is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award baccalaureate, master's, intermediate, and doctoral degrees. Contact the Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097 or call 404-679-4500 for questions about the accreditation of the university. Contact information for the Commission on Colleges is provided to allow interested constituents to: (1) learn about the accreditation status of the institution, (2) file a third-party comment at the time of the institution's decennial review, or (3) file a complaint against the institution for alleged non-compliance with a standard or requirement. Normal inquiries about the institution, such as admission requirements, financial aid, educational programs, and educational support services, should be addressed directly to Appalachian State University and not to the Commission's office.

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Solid Accolades

Appalachian State University's consistent quality is reflected by high rankings in these national publications:

• U.S. News and World Report's 2013 America's Best Colleges Guide
• Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine's "Best Values in Public Colleges, 2013"
• Forbes' lists of America's top colleges and best buys
• Princeton Review's "Best in the Southeast"
• Open Doors 2012 report on the nation's top institutions for the number of students who study abroad
• Victory Media's Military Friendly Schools®
• The Princeton Review's "Guide to 322 Green Colleges: 2012 Edition"
• SIERRA magazine's Top 10 "Coolest Schools" for 2012
• U.S. News and World Report's "Highly Ranked Universities that Operate Efficiently"

Student Satisfaction

Appalachian ranks No. 7 out of 592 schools in MyPlan.com's student rankings for "Overall Satisfaction & Happiness with Choice."

Value and Affordability

Repeatedly cited as a best value in public education, Appalachian's tuition and fees include a textbook rental program, which literally saves a student hundreds of dollars over four years.

Energy Efficient Buildings

Appalachian has nine buildings that are certified, registered or built on LEED® standards, the nation's preeminent program for the design, construction and operation of high performance green buildings. Frank Hall, a residential facility, was Appalachian's first building to achieve LEED® Gold certification.

Comprehensive Degree Offerings

Appalachian offers more than 150 undergraduate and graduate major programs through its College of Arts and Sciences, College of Fine and Applied Arts, Reich College of Education, Walker College of Business, University College, Hayes School of Music, College of Health Sciences and Cratis D. Williams Graduate School. Appalachian also offers a doctorate of education.

Undergraduate Research

Appalachian encourages opportunities for undergraduate students to participate in research projects alongside their professors. Their work is showcased during the annual Celebration of Student Research and Creative Endeavors held on campus as well as at professional conferences in the region and across the United States.

A Focus on Entrepreneurship

Twenty-eight percent of Appalachian students say their primary career aspiration is to own their own business. More than 200 students enroll in elective entrepreneurship courses each year, and Appalachian's Center for Entrepreneurship helps prepare them for success. More than 1,000 Walker College of Business alumni are already active entrepreneurs.

Internationally Connected

With study abroad opportunities on nearly every continent, Appalachian students have access to approximately 200 foreign sites for semester, summer and year-long programs of study. The cost is usually equivalent to tuition and fees at Appalachian.

Preparing Quality Nurses

Appalachian's Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) degree program, part of the new College of Health Sciences, has been accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) for five years, the longest period of time for which CCNE grants accreditation to a new program.

Established in 1899 as Watauga Academy, Appalachian State University has evolved into a preeminent university located in a unique, rural mountain environment. As a member of the University of North Carolina, Appalachian's fundamental mission is to discover, create, transmit, and apply knowledge to address the needs of individuals and society. This mission is achieved by providing undergraduate students a rigorous liberal education that emphasizes transferable skills and preparation for professional careers; offering graduate students distinctive, relevant programs; maintaining a faculty whose members serve as excellent teachers and scholarly mentors for their students and who produce high levels of scholarship and creative activities.

Appalachian recognizes that the success of the University depends upon the achievement and cooperation of a diverse community of students, faculty, and staff and strives to implement policies and allocate resources accordingly. We accept our responsibility to be actively involved in addressing the educational, economic, cultural, and societal needs of the changing region, state, nation, and world. As a publicly funded institution, Appalachian is committed to accomplishing its initiatives through efficient and effective resource utilization.

Appalachian aspires to be a model 21st-century, nationally recognized university combining the best characteristics of liberal arts and research institutions by resourcefully blending teaching and scholarship. To achieve this, Appalachian is committed to attracting, educating, and graduating the best students and to producing the highest levels of scholarship. Additionally, the university will provide excellent value; will be an influential world citizen; and will develop a distinctive identity built on the university's strengths, location and tradition.