Anyone been there? What do you think about the surrounding area? Anyone taken classes there?

pros/cons?

7/18/2008 8:41:55 AM

cons - druggies
pros - mountains

7/18/2008 8:59:57 AM

it's a long way from anything entertaining out there, believe me

7/18/2008 9:02:44 AM

yeah cullowhee is pretty much a dead town except for wcu

there's a wal-mart like 5 miles from campus, but that's about it

and there's a ghetto ass movie theater in a strip mall

the campus is sorta nice looking though

and mountains are always a plus




...but then again, it IS wcu... not exactly the best school in NC.

7/18/2008 9:29:39 AM

I grew up in Cullowhee. The campus and area are very beautiful and growing by the year. There is not much to do socially, but Asheville is about an hour's drive away. The caliber of classes and programs on campus are gaining in stature, especially in the teaching field. I'd say it would be a fun experience to take a few classes there; I'm not sure staying there four years would be ideal. The student body is about 90 percent Greek Life-involved, probably because there's not a whole lot of other entertainment nearby, other than some great hiking trails, lakes and rivers, and the like. The Casino is only 30 minutes away in Cherokee though. I think it would be worth the experience of Western in itself to take a few classes there.

7/18/2008 10:24:19 AM

You're probably not going to go there for forestry...but if you do, then it'd be a waste of time because Western isn't accredited by the Society of American Foresters.

7/18/2008 10:29:52 AM

It's like a high school in the mountains

7/18/2008 10:35:43 AM

We always preferred the term "glorified community college."

7/18/2008 10:43:44 AM

My girlfriend went there, so I was around there a lot like 2 years ago before she graduated.

Pros:
Mountains, nature
Good small college (although it's grown a lot recently)
More individual attention

Cons:
Tiny town
Apartment prices were pretty high (I guess they had a limited supply)
No indoor plumbing

7/18/2008 11:50:31 AM

i love Cullowhee

7/18/2008 12:58:18 PM

I went there for a while- it was a pretty campus but there's not a whole lot to do in cullowhee.

the classes were NOT difficult at all.

7/18/2008 1:14:36 PM

i remember back in the day that was one of the schools my brother was looking at...my parents and me and my brother were headed up there to check it out, and my dad was driving...brother back seat drivers side...i remember he leaned up towards my dad and let out some massive nasty burp right in his face...it was pretty funny

7/18/2008 1:18:09 PM

I got my BA from there. It is, like all schools, exactly what you make of it. The classes arn't really all that easy after lower level classes, but the administration sucks so if you don't do well, they'll pretty much pass you. What I would recommend is just driving out there and seeing for yourself what you think. Most of the people I've talked to knew immidiatly whether they could or could not do it. The isolation from drinking/club/bar atmospheres is really more than a lot of kids of that age can take, but there are a fair number of Greek faggots willing to let you come to a drinking party if you just really need to nail a sorority girl.

Some things they're really strong in:

Social Sciences
Broad focus History
Education

Some things they suck at:

Math
Most sciences


Pros:
Small class sizes usually
Depending on your department, better professors than you'll get at a place like NCSU, since you actually get a professor
Asheville isn't that far for say, a weekly outing


Cons:
Less budget for toys than bigger schools
Much fewer options for class choice
Annoying ass Greek faggots running around every goddamn where, with no way of avoiding or ignoring them
Parking now that they've redone it to a pedestrian school
Most of the local towns do not have liquor by the drink

7/18/2008 1:59:10 PM

we have a house in cashiers right up the road from sylva/collowhee. i dont know much about the university itself, but i do know its a good place for people to go if they aren't "large university" material, and want to go somewhere a little more laid back for a while before they transfer into a different school.

One of my suitemates freshman year at NCSU was a junior that transferred from WCU.

the wal-mart is lots of fun and you're close to lots of great hiking, fishing, and other outdoor activities.

7/18/2008 2:16:10 PM

I graduated from WCU in 2005. It is a small college in a small town, but I really enjoyed the time I spent there. The classes are smaller, and there is a good community feel about the place.

For the record, I didn't notice a higher percentage of druggies there than I do here. It's college; people are going to experiment.

The mountains were gorgeous and Asheville is a great city. I plan to get back there to live someday.

What are you looking at doing at WCU. PM me if you want advice, etc.

Evan-those are mighty big words coming from someone associated with MOO U.

7/18/2008 3:48:36 PM

my brother's about to graduate from WCU...he says, pretty much:

Quote :

"cons - druggies pros - mountains"

i think it's probably a great place to go if you just want to get a degree from a university (though i think they have one or two really good programs, i just can't remember what they are)

[Edited on July 18, 2008 at 3:59 PM. Reason : .]

7/18/2008 3:58:37 PM

The music program is pretty good there...Bob Moog was very involved with it before his passing.

7/18/2008 4:01:20 PM

I went there for 3 semesters before transferring to NCSU.... It's practically unrecognizable from what it was 10 years ago. Had 3 siblings graduate there.

Great place if you like making your own fun.

Bad if you have an addictive personality.

Good if you like knowing everyone you're around & small class sizes.

Bad - there really isn't much to say about the surrounding area, other than join a fraternity/ sorority (much different there than here) or drive an hour to fun - barring Harrah's or tubing with a case roped to your tube.

Good - you can earn a 3.85 there for the same effort as a 2.2 at NCSU ( Let's just say I read a book on it, OK?)



I could go on, but really don't think it's necessary.
You're welcome to PM me with specifics.

[Edited on July 18, 2008 at 11:19 PM. Reason : I can't spell]

7/18/2008 11:17:20 PM

it's a pretty nice area.

quiet and not the same kind of things to do as in a city, but the mountains are nice and there's a lot to do if you like being outside. people are generally nice/nicer.


lots of partying/drinking.

7/19/2008 12:27:38 AM

It's by far the best community college in western North Carolina.

7/19/2008 12:41:01 AM

just come to app

7/19/2008 2:17:38 AM

Quote :

"Some things they're really strong in:"

not trying to be a douche, but it's western carolina. they're not really strong in anything.

7/19/2008 2:33:20 AM

Quote :

"Evan-those are mighty big words coming from someone associated with MOO U."

gtf outta here with that


NCSU academics crushes WCU.

7/19/2008 5:31:00 PM

^ If you're in eng or ag maybe, hence MOO U. Otherwise your undergrad education will be like everywhere else--what you make of it (thx RedneckBob). I've known people that graduated from WCU's math program and got calls from NASA (no shit). At the same time, I've known people that graduated from NCSU and wound up working the counter at the State Employees Credit Union.

So don't get your panties in a wad, Sally. Book learnin' isn't that important.

7/19/2008 11:36:59 PM

^

On the whole, NCSU Academics >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> WCU academics

not saying that what you said doesn't happen, but looking at the big picture....

7/19/2008 11:44:17 PM

Well considering you needed more to graduate from my old high school than to get into WCU I would overall agree with the above statement.

7/20/2008 12:37:18 PM

^ I don't think being required to learn Yiddish to graduate makes your high school the acme of academic excellence, HebrewHammer.

j/k

7/21/2008 9:23:35 AM

Quote :

"Good - you can earn a 3.85 there for the same effort as a 2.2 at NCSU ( Let's just say I read a book on it, OK?)"

thats where being a woman and having a pretty face come in

7/21/2008 11:00:40 AM

i think whoever was talking about the math student getting calls from NASA needs to see that this was a once in a million thing. I have a friend that graduated with majors in English and Math and got his teaching license after. He graduated above 3.85 and I am pretty sure I was better at Math after High School than he is now... (he was not that good at Math in HS). Maybe he cheated a lot but a 3.85 and its sad that he is a teacher.

7/21/2008 11:17:54 AM

I'm not going to school there, but a friend was considering their nursing program.

Just curious as to the atmosphere and the 'city' itself.

mapquest says that Asheville is about an hour and 10 minutes away, anyone have experience with that drive on a regular basis?

unfortunately, app state does not have a nursing degree.

Obviously, ECU, UNC, UNC-G and some other schools are also being considered, but they are considering some smaller schools as well. I just didn't really know anything at all about Western to even give an opinion.

UNC wilmington is not an option. doesn't want to move there. *shrugs*

any opinions about the other nursing programs?

7/21/2008 11:31:26 AM

Quote :

"Otherwise your undergrad education will be like everywhere else--what you make of it"

this is about right...i can't believe people still rely on undergrad degrees to get their jobs...these days, the BA/BS just shows you have commitment, (pretty much) regardless of where you go...job experience makes up a lot of it

i'd rather hire someone with a 2.5 who worked their way through school and has actual experience coming in than someone who studied hard for his/her 3.5

find me one with both (and yes, i know they exist) and you might have something

7/21/2008 12:02:39 PM

WCU DOES have a good nursing program.... BUT the number of people who go there for nursing vs the people who graduate in the program are nuts.... There are photos of the nursing graduating classes small enough the they make you go "huh??" at orientation.

Do not advise your pal to go to WCU for the 'city'
There are LOTS of fun things to do, but you aren't going to find them til you've been there a bit. I started having fun about 3 weeks before I left.

7/21/2008 12:05:09 PM

hahaha yeah, from what we've looked at, I think WCU is out of the running.

7/21/2008 3:06:11 PM