Cool schools at cool prices

Careers and Colleges, Nov-Dec, 2002 by Robert Franek

www.uhm.hawaii.edu

At Hawaii--Manoa students will study at the flagship of the Hawaii state system. Perfect climate, unbelievable beaches, notoriously friendly students have the potential to make for a fine undergraduate experience. Hawaii--Manoa has a long tradition of strength in the sciences, offering hard-to-find majors such as tropical oceanography and volcanology. Admission to the university is pretty straightforward--solid grades and test scores will easily suffice, however, be aware that many of the students are commuters, making the residential experience on the weekend somewhat dull.

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND, BALTIMORE COUNTY

Cost: $12,040 ($16,808)

www.umbc.edu

Although for many years the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), was primarily a commuter school, the tide has started to change. Now more than 66 percent of freshmen live on campus, and that means student life has been blossoming with more extracurricular activities available. This fall the university plans to open a new facility that will house a food court, shops, and a student recreation center. As for academics, the most popular majors are information systems, computer science, and chemistry. Students report that the workload can be tough, and grade inflation is a foreign concept. Admission officers look for evidence of challenging course work. Downtown Baltimore has been thriving over the last decade with its new shops, restaurants, and beautiful Camden Yards, home of the Orioles baseball team.

U.S. COAST GUARD ACADEMY

NEW LONDON, CT

Cost: $3,000

www.cga.edu

Thinking about joining a service academy? Then make sure the smallest of the five--the U.S. Coast Guard Academy--is on your list. The academy has one of the coolest orientations; students arrive in July and board the academy's training ship, the Barque Eagle, for six weeks of physical and military training on the high seas. Each summer returning students spend 10 weeks on various Coast Guard ships for required field work. The academy only accepts nine percent of its applicants; getting in is no easy task. Once in, depending on your temperament, life can be structured bliss! The Coast Guard Academy also has the largest female population of the service academies--a little more than 30 percent of cadets are women.

WILLIAM JEWELL COLLEGE

LIBERTY, MO

Cost: $19,140

www.jewell.edu

William Jewell is a small school with all the characteristics that implies: close-knit community, small classes, professors who know your name after the first week of class. But Jewell also has some wonderful programs that might go unnoticed with just one glance. Students in the Oxbridge Honors program are offered one-on-one tutorials, comprehensive exams, and a year abroad in England. The Jewell admission office has extended their reach over the last few years and has been successful in attracting kids from across the U.S. Jewell's leading efforts in experiential learning for undergrads have earned it national recognition; it was named one of Time magazine's "Colleges of the Year" in 2001.