University of Maine--Farmington

The University of Maine at Farmington offers the educational experiences typically found at selective private colleges to bright and ambitious students from Maine and beyond. Farmington is committed to the belief that a liberal education in a residential setting is the best preparation for careers and for citizenship. Because all Farmington graduates, including those who have studied in pre-professional programs, are liberally educated, they are creative problem solvers who have learned how to learn and how to work on complex challenges with people from a variety of backgrounds and fields.
The University of Maine at Farmington offers baccalaureate programs of high quality in the arts and sciences, education, and human services. Its approach to education is based on the belief that students must have opportunities to form meaningful relationships with inspiring teachers. They must be challenged to be active citizens in a campus community that helps them find their own voices, teaches them the humility to seek wisdom from others, and prepares them for ongoing explorations of how knowledge can be put to use for the common good.
Established in 1864 as Maine's first institution of public higher education, the University of Maine at Farmington is rooted in tradition but also values innovation. Because scholarship contributes to excellence in teaching and learning, it supports faculty, staff, and students in their scholarly and creative endeavors. As a public institution, Farmington values engagement with, and service to, the community. The University of Maine at Farmington takes pride in being an intellectual and cultural center for western Maine.
In order to achieve this mission, Farmington focuses on baccalaureate education; fosters collaborative, active learning in small classes; limits its enrollment through selective admission; invests in ongoing efforts to assess and improve teaching and learning; provides financial aid and academic support to students who need assistance; provides physical and technological accessibility; seeks out and celebrates human diversity.
The University of Maine at Farmington is located in the foothills of the Western Maine Mountains. It is convenient to the Saddleback, Sugarloaf, and Sunday River ski areas, the Appalachian Trail, the Kennebec and Androscoggin rivers, and a variety of lakes, streams and countryside that serves as a classroom as well as place to get away and enjoy nature.
Over the years, the University of Maine at Farmington has earned a national reputation for excellence, gaining stature as one of the finest state-supported universities in the northeastern United States. It is one of just 20 colleges and universities across the nation featured in Student Success in College: Creating Conditions That Matter. The book identifies schools that serve as models of educational effectiveness. Student Success in College highlights 20 high-performing institutions that create a more supportive campus culture, where students are engaged, satisfied with their post-secondary experience, and are successful. Farmington is distinguished as a college that is alive with a steady stream of innovative ideas and initiatives.