MESSIAH COLLEGE M-18

One College Ave.
Grantham, PA 17027
Tel: (717)766-2511; 800-233-4220; Admissions: (717)691-6000; Fax: (717)796-5374; E-mail: [email protected]; Web Site: http://www.messiah.edu/

Description: Independent interdenominational, 4-year, coed. Awards bachelor's degrees. Founded 1909. Setting: 400-acre small town campus. Endowment: $88 million. Educational spending 2002-03: $7270 per student. Total enrollment: 2,952. Student-undergrad faculty ratio is 13:1. 2,252 applied, 79% were admitted. 41% from top 10% of their high school class, 73% from top quarter, 94% from top half. 13 National Merit Scholars, 42 valedictorians. Full-time: 2,894 students, 63% women, 37% men. Part-time: 58 students, 66% women, 34% men. Students come from 41 states and territories, 35 other countries, 48% from out-of-state, 0.1% Native American, 2% Hispanic, 3% black, 2% Asian American or Pacific Islander, 3% international, 2% 25 or older, 89% live on campus, 3% transferred in. Retention: 86% of 2003 full-time freshmen returned. Academic areas with the most degrees conferred: education; business/marketing; social sciences and history. Core. Calendar: semesters. Academic remediation for entering students, services for LD students, advanced placement, accelerated degree program, self-designed majors, honors program, independent study, double major, summer session for credit, part-time degree program, adult/continuing education programs, internships. Off campus study at Christian College Consortium, Council for Christian Colleges and Universities. Study abroad program.

Entrance Requirements: Options: Peterson's Universal Application, Common Application, electronic application, early admission, early decision, early action, deferred admission, international baccalaureate accepted. Required: essay, high school transcript, 2 recommendations. Recommended: minimum 3.0 high school GPA, interview. Required for some: SAT I or ACT. Entrance: moderately difficult. Application deadlines: Rolling, 10/15 for early decision, 11/15 for early action. Notification: continuous, 11/1 for early decision, 12/1 for early action.

Costs Per Year: Application fee: $30. Comprehensive fee: $25,890 includes full-time tuition ($18,880), mandatory fees ($670), and college room and board ($6340). College room only: $3280. Room and board charges vary according to board plan, housing facility, and location. Part-time tuition: $790 per credit. Part-time mandatory fees: $28 per credit.

Collegiate Environment: Orientation program. Drama-theater group, choral group, student-run newspaper, radio station. Social organizations: 60 open to all. Most popular organizations: outreach teams, student government, music ensembles, Small Group Program, Outdoors Club. Major annual events: Family Weekend, Homecoming, Christmas Tradition Banquet. Student services: health clinic, personal-psychological counseling. Campus security: 24-hour emergency response devices and patrols, student patrols, late night transport-escort service, controlled dormitory access, bicycle patrols, security lighting, self-defense classes, prevention/awareness programs. College housing designed to accommodate 2,369 students; 2,462 undergraduates lived in college housing during 2001-02. Freshmen guaranteed college housing. On-campus residence required through senior year. Options: coed, men-only, women-only housing available. Murray Library with 258,097 books, 114,029 microform titles, 1,327 serials, 14,141 audiovisual materials, an OPAC, and a Web page. Operations spending 2002-03: $1.3 million. 463 computers available on campus for general student use. A campuswide network can be accessed from student residence rooms and from off campus. Staffed computer lab on campus.

Community Environment: Population of Harrisburg 100,000. Grantham is a semirural community in south-central Pennsylvania located 12 miles southwest of the state capital, Harrisburg - providing easy access to urban centers such Harrisburg, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C.