I can't decide between Appalachian State University and University of North Carolina-Wilmington?

College Search & Selection
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<p>I think I have a good chance of being accepted into both of these schools, but I don't know which one I'd enjoy more!! My sister is a year older than me (we're very close!), and she just moved into her dorm at UNCW yesterday. I've been there with her and my parents several times, and it's great there because it's right by the beach! I like the warm weather there and a lot of the people seem great. It would also be cool to be around my sister because we grew up sharing a room, so we have a really close bond. </p>

<p>However, I'm not sure if Appalachian would be a better school for me or not. I've never actually visited Boone, but I know the weather is INSANE in the winter! I'm not sure if I would enjoy dragging myself up hills through blizzards to get to class...Based off of the weather I would definitely choose UNCW, but of course there are more factors that I need to think about. If any of you have any knowledge of NC schools, could you please let me know what the people are like at both schools, what the dorms are like, what the classes are like, etc? I need as much information as possible, preferably from people who have actually gone to these schools!! Thank you!</p>

2

<p>As you’ve noted, Wilmington is a medium-sized town on the coast; Boone is a small mountain town. I think you’re slightly overhyping the weather at App; it snows a fair amount, sure, but you won’t freeze to death. In the fall and late spring it’s absolutely gorgeous! Still, if you don’t like snow, it’s not the best choice for you.</p>

<p>The gender ratio is the other big difference. App is about 50/50 (47% male, 53% female). UNCW is about 2/3 female (36% male, 64% female).</p>

<p>App is a bit larger than UNCW and (in my opinion) has more school spirit, owing partially to App’s enthusiasm for football and UNCW’s lack of a football team. </p>

<p>Boone is very much a college town, though it’s popular with skiers in the winter. Wilmington is centered on tourism. My impression is that App has more drinking, but I’m not sure how the stats for this compare. Boone has a noticeably larger hippie population than Wilmington, but I’d give Wilmington a slight edge in arts offerings. </p>

<p>Unless you want to study a strength at either university (e.g. music at App or marine bio at UNCW), academics are a wash.</p>

<p>App has been on a building/renovating spree, and the education building, science center, cafeteria, etc. are all fairly new and quite nice. The library and student center in particular are very nice and impressive. The honors dorms are pretty good, but I don’t know how the regular dorms compare. It’s been way too many years since I’ve seen UNCW for me to compare the two campuses, but you should have a good idea of the campus from your visits with your sister. </p>

<p>You really can’t go wrong with either. Apply to both and compare financial aid offers. You may want to check out ECU and especially UNCA as well. </p>

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<p>I came on here to offer a lot of comments, then saw that warblersrule has said just about everything I would have said.</p>

<p>I’ve seen the dorms at both places recently. The non-honors dorms vary greatly. Some are nice; some much less so. The UNCW dorms seemed much nicer overall, but one of them (don’t remember the name) resembled, in its dumpy appearance and rowdiness level, a fraternity house. One consideration is that housing at Appalachian isn’t guaranteed after the first year and many, if not most, students move off campus after only one year.</p>

<p>There are some other differences: Appalachian lets you rent rather than buy your books (thumbs up). However, all food is a la carte, without any all-you-can-eat options, so food expenses can add up quickly (thumbs down).</p>

<p>I agree that you can’t go wrong with either. Go visit Appalachian if you can, especially if you can make it to one of their super open house Saturdays. However, I think it’s nice that you’d like to be near your sister, and it sounds like you’d be happy at UNCW. Best wishes!</p>

4

<p>Thank you both so much for your information! c: It’s still going to be hard to pick because they both have their ups and downs but I guess I still have a lot of time to think about it</p>

5

<p>In case you haven’t decided already, let me put my two cents in since I feel pretty strongly about these two schools. First of all, I’m a graduate of ASU, and secondly I have lived in Wilmington for several years and know many UNCW graduates. </p>

<p>UNCW is described as “laid back” and students attend there because they want to beach it and surf, and not because it’s a good college to go to. As you might expect, it is not ranked very highly. In all rankings I’ve seen, ASU is higher than UNCW; statewide App is ranked 5 and “The Dub” is 11th. I’ve also noticed that a lot of local kids attend there because it’s the most convenient, easy to get into, and cheapest…also not because of good rep or quality. From the news and the students attending, I have also learned that UNCW has a reputation for being mismanaged: programs, faculty, and staff. My impression is that UNCW is a ‘just scraping by school’, and the only program of any repute is the Marine Biology. They do also have a creative writing major, but that gets attention just because it’s unusual to have a whole program dedicated to it. </p>

<p>Appalachian State is larger, more research, more choices, and (to me) has higher standards. Business, Education, Art, and Music are very reputable, some are nationally accredited. Unusual programs are Communication Disorders and tons of very specialized education concentrations. Some students have an outdoorsy interest in snow-boarding, rafting, climbing, etc.- and those things are available even through the university, but they are not really the sole reason people attend there, (like with the surfing and beach diva-ing). They host tons of dance, theater, and concerts there that are very affordable. UNCW much less so as they have limited facilities for this and charge pretty high prices when they do book anyone in Kenan Auditorium. </p>

<p>You seem to giving a lot of credit to atmosphere, weather, how posh the dorms are, but I would suggest looking at programs a little closer, and think more about future life after graduation. </p>

6

<p>Between these schools, go with the cheapest option. Make sure to keep your debt at a minimum or non-existent.</p>

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<p>^I disagree with Shoomadoo’s characterization of UNC-W. It’s currently the 3rd highest ranked public university in NC, roughly on par with UNC-A and below UNC-CH and NCSU. Appalachian State certainly is first tier but knocking Wilmington doesn’t make it better.
Warblersrule description of both universities, with strong points and weak points, is much more accurate.</p>

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<p>Op: visit both. Apply for honors college at both. Sit on classes, talk with students, eat in the cafeteria, check the campus paper at both. Apply to both if you haven’t done so yet. And as Informative said, keep costs in mind. All things being equal, the option that requires the less debt between these two will be a choice you’ll congratulate yourself over :)</p>

9

<p>Hey guys! So I’ve decided to go with App State! I think I’ll really enjoy it because I did go and visit and I felt right at home. I love how everyone there has a lot of spirit, and I have a feeling it’ll be like I’m part of one huge family while I’m there. Another reason I chose App was because of their academics. I intend to go into business, and I know they have a strong program for that. The total fees also seem to be a bit lower than fees of attending Wilmington. Oh, and my sister is halfway through her freshman year at Wilmington, and she’s made the decision to transfer to App. She says that she feels bored while she’s there because there’s not much school spirit or activities for her to do, and whenever she visits her friends at App she enjoys it a lot more. Another reason she has for transferring is because she’s really into singing in choir, and the Wilmington choir isn’t too good according to her. App’s chamber choir made a couple visits to our high school a couple years ago, and they were so amazing they gave her further persuasion to join the Mountaineer family!! I received my acceptance letter from App last week, and I’m currently in the process of stocking up on warm clothes for the winters there lol. I appreciate all of your input in helping me make my decision! I think I’ll have a wonderful time in Boone c:</p>

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<p>THanksfor the update!</p>