CALIFORNIA UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA M-3

250 University Ave.
California, PA 15419-1394
Tel: (724)938-4000
Admissions: (724)938-4404
Fax: (724)938-4138
E-mail: inquiry@cup.edu
Web Site: http://www.cup.edu/

Description:

State-supported, comprehensive, coed. Part of Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. Awards associate, bachelor's, and master's degrees. Founded 1852. Setting: 148-acre small town campus with easy access to Pittsburgh. Endowment: $7.3 million. Research spending 2003-04: $75,960. Educational spending 2003-04: $5520 per student. Total enrollment: 6,640. Faculty: 364 (275 full-time, 89 part-time). Student-undergrad faculty ratio is 19:1. 3,015 applied, 74% were admitted. 3% from top 10% of their high school class, 13% from top quarter, 40% from top half. 9 valedictorians. Full-time: 4,830 students, 51% women, 49% men. Part-time: 625 students, 64% women, 36% men. Students come from 22 states and territories, 15 other countries, 4% from out-of-state, 0.2% Native American, 1% Hispanic, 5% black, 0.3% Asian American or Pacific Islander, 1% international, 16% 25 or older, 25% live on campus, 37% transferred in. Retention: 77% of full-time freshmen returned the following year. Academic areas with the most degrees conferred: business/marketing; education; communications/communication technologies. Core. Calendar: semesters. Academic remediation for entering students, services for LD students, advanced placement, accelerated degree program, honors program, independent study, distance learning, double major, summer session for credit, part-time degree program, adult/continuing education programs, co-op programs and internships, graduate courses open to undergrads. Off campus study at other members of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, National Student Exchange. Study abroad program. ROTC: Army.

Entrance Requirements:

Options: Common Application, electronic application, early admission, deferred admission. Required: high school transcript, minimum 2.0 high school GPA, SAT. Recommended: essay, minimum 3.0 high school GPA, ACT, SAT Subject Tests. Required for some: recommendations, interview. Entrance: moderately difficult. Application deadline: 8/15. Notification: continuous.

Costs Per Year:

Application fee: $25. State resident tuition: $4810 full-time, $200 per credit part-time. Nonresident tuition: $7216 full-time, $301 per credit part-time. Mandatory fees: $1441 full-time. Full-time tuition and fees vary according to location. Part-time tuition varies according to location. College room and board: $7280. College room only: $4590. Room and board charges vary according to board plan.

Collegiate Environment:

Orientation program. Drama-theater group, choral group, marching band, student-run newspaper, radio station. Social organizations: 80 open to all; national fraternities, national sororities; 10% of eligible men and 10% of eligible women are members. Most popular organizations: student government, In-Res Hall Council, Graduate Student Association, Black Student Union, sports recreation. Student services: legal services, health clinic, personal-psychological counseling, women's center. Campus security: 24-hour emergency response devices and patrols, student patrols, late night transport-escort service. 1,873 college housing spaces available; 1,660 were occupied in 2003-04. Freshmen guaranteed college housing. On-campus residence required through sophomore year. Option: coed housing available. Manderino Library with 437,160 books, 819,891 microform titles, 881 serials, 59,703 audiovisual materials, an OPAC, and a Web page. Operations spending 2003-04: $2 million. 1,220 computers available on campus for general student use. A campuswide network can be accessed from student residence rooms. Staffed computer lab on campus.

Community Environment:

Population 6,635. California is located 35 miles south of Pittsburgh on the Monogahela River. This is a coal mining region of the Appalachian Foothills. Some part-time employment is available.