Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Best Colleges

College of the Atlantic

Work 105 Eden Street Bar Harbor, ME 04609
Work(800) 528-0025
Web site: http://www.coa.edu/
Tier 3
College Category:
Liberal Arts Colleges

Overview : College of the Atlantic

General Information  
Institutional Control: Private
Year founded: 1969
Religious affiliation: N/A
Academic calendar: trimester
Total number of undergraduates: 341
Setting rural
Endowment: $19,999,000
Fall Admissions  
Application deadline: 2/15
Application fee: $45
Fall 2007 Acceptance rate: 77.0 %
Selectivity: more selective
Expenses  
Costs: 2008-2009 Tuition and Fees: $31,470
Mission  
School mission Located between the Atlantic Ocean and Acadia National Park, College of the Atlantic is distinctive for its mission, structure and size. COA awards two degrees: a B.A. and M.Phil., both in Human Ecology. Students prepare their own academic trajectory, integrating knowledge from all academic disciplines and personal experience to fulfill the mission of Human Ecology: investigating and improving relationships between humans and our social, natural, built and virtual communities. COA is fully interdisciplinary: no departments exist. Coursework consists of readings, usually from primary sources, as well as active investigation. Students may conduct research on heavily metalized plants, look into whale activity in the Gulf of Maine, contribute to the human genome project, participate in international meetings on climate change, investigate the impact of big box stores, prepare GIS maps for town planners, create health posters for local nonprofits. Still others compose CDs, write novels, produce dance concerts. COA's small size encourages tutorials, intensive seminar-style classes and frequent faculty-student interchange, as common in the college's one dining room as in faculty office hours. Ultimately, a COA education is based upon the mentoring relationships formed between faculty and students and upon the depth and self-direction of an individualized curriculum. COA is also a democratic institution, with students involved on all levels of governance. Decisions involve students, all committees include participation by students. To graduate, students must complete a one-semester internship and a one-semester capstone project. Opportunities for travel abroad abound, as do international connections on campus, as COA has one of the highest percentages of international students of any college. A degree in human ecology means that knowledge from the arts, sciences and humanities are valued and applied by faculty and students helping to shape a more sustainable, just and balanced world.

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