Academics
Located in Boone, North Carolina, a town of about 18,000, Appalachian State University provides “a great education in the heart of the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains,” offering “a strong sense of community and a challenging academic environment” grounded in “a broad liberal arts education.” Students agree that most “professors get to know each student by name and really strive to make connections [to] everyone in their classes. They embrace all sorts of teaching styles, but are always open to helping students outside of class.” And while students commonly find “some of the most caring and invested professors inside [their] major,” some report that their “general education professors have been less than stellar” and find advice from their peers “helpful when choosing the general education courses.” Students praise the “student-oriented” administration, especially Chancellor Evert, “who is very caring and visible to the student body” and “invites many student organizations to her home for lunch or dinner.” The school “is very good at communicating with students” about issues that affect the student body, but many say the school should beef up its counseling services. Students appreciate the practical side of their Appalachian education, which focuses on helping students get “a solid job out of college.” They also enjoy the school’s focus on green initiatives and sustainability, noting that their education is “strongly influenced by the surrounding environment”: “Appalachian State is about exploring both yourself and the world around you.”
Student Body
“The typical student is usually out-going and friendly but very focused on their major.” Still, regardless of major, “everyone gets along pretty well.” Many describe the student body as “artsy” or “edgy and hipster,” with many sporting bean boots and a Jeep, and say that demographics skews towards “white, upper middle class, Southern, American, and Christian” populations. Appalachian attracts students “who [believe] in all things environmentally friendly . . . and live for experiences not material possessions.” Students agree that it is easy to make friends and get plugged-in to campus life “by joining in on outdoor activities” or through one of the school’s many student organizations. This “down-to-earth” community triumphs acceptance and “is driven through classes” and “by getting involved with community service.”
Campus Life
Contented students tell us that “Appalachian State is a university tucked quietly in the Blue Ridge mountains with a sustainable agenda [and] encompasses a diverse community of students and brings life to the peaceful area of western North Carolina.” “Appalachian is not a ‘suitcase school’” that sees a weekly exodus; instead, “students stay around and are well connected” with one another. In warm weather Appalachia becomes an idyllic retreat: To relax “students enjoy grabbing their Eno [hammock] or laying out on Sanford Mall,” or to keep active they enjoy “running, slacklining […] or throwing Frisbee.” Boone has “a very small-town, college-town feel,” with “a number of bars and options for students who party,” “and of course the surrounding area is great for anything outdoors,” ranging from “skiing to fly fishing to waterfalling and mountain climbing.” On campus “there is so much to do, you can never get bored. There are hundreds of clubs and organizations to get involved with.”
Save School
