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<p>I believe that they are the in the majority. In my opinion, this is a typical family’s view of what college is about.</p>
<p>As a current HS student in NC, I’ll first say that whether your son will count as in-state or out-of-state makes a big difference. If he will be considered in-state, Chapel Hill is very much a possibility (I’d say 50% chance if he gets an SAT score above 1900) and entry into NC State for social sciences or humanities is almost guaranteed. NC State’s selectivity runs from very selective in the engineering school to much less so for humanities stuff (that’s not to say it you’ll get a terrible education in those fields there, but NC State certainly doesn’t get its recognition as a great public university from that division.</p>
<p>Asheville is a great great choice to pursue a liberal arts education. Good professors, rigorous academics and it seems the students love it there. But it’s apples and oranges compared to NC State or even UNC. Asheville is a small school in a quieter town in the mountains, while NC State’s campus sprawls around Raleigh. But you’ll get a very good education at both, it’s must a matter of which type of school better meets his preferences.</p>
<p>Much overlooked schools in North Carolina are Queens of Charlotte and High Point University. As far as I can tell, both are pretty good schools with gorgeous campuses. High Point (as a city) has been hit very hard by the housing crisis and recession though so the area around HPU isn’t the prettiest, though it has a gorgeous campus.</p>
<p>I’ll also advise to stay away from ECU. My understanding is that it’s just the Official Party School of the UNC system. I don’t know about its academics, but whatever academic reputation it has is far outstripped for a more ignoble one.</p>
<p>We looked drove around High Point briefly prior to the recession, and it seems as though the area was hit hard when the furniture industry in the area began to die. I always wondered whether HP tried to develop a complete community (ie:restaurant, movie theatre) so one would not need to leave the campus for this reason.</p>
<p>The area around Queens is gorgeous as it sits in a very nice section of Charlotte. I would not be afraid for my kid to leave campus.</p>
<p>The area around UNC-Asheville is lovely too. I think it is a lovely area for people to spend four years. It really seems like a fun area. I know a few people who have gone there for a long weekend to enjoy Asheville.</p>
<p>More and more, I’m thinking Asheville is the way to go.</p>
<p>NC State – ick, all that red brick. Reminds me of a passage from a P.G. Wodehouse novel, where Wodehouse describes a certain section of London as “breaking out into a sort of eczema of red brick.” LOL! No one puts these things better than Wodehouse.</p>
<p>Hello. Just trying to find the right college. I graduate from high school in May</p>
<p>I know people who have gone to both UNCA and UNC-G. Those at UNCA love the school. They get a LAC experience for a bargain price and feel the teachers are engaged and challenging. </p>
<p>UNC-G is a bit of a suitcase school with lots of commuters. Rarely have I heard a student feel academically challenged and the social life is not as good as UNCA</p>
<p>IMO, it’s a no-brainer.</p>