Education

The Daily Caller Presents: 13 UNLUCKY Colleges

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Each year, in late spring, the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) publishes a big list of all its member schools that are still accepting applications for first-year or transfer students for next fall.

Every school in this list had continued to accept qualified freshmen as of May 2014. Except for Florida Atlantic, of course, all range from good to quite good to downright stellar.

Florida Atlantic sign Creative Commons KnightLagoIt’s no surprise that Florida Atlantic University, America’s worst university, made this list. The public, taxpayer-funded university employs James Tracy, the wackadoodle communications professor who speculated on his personal blog that the Boston Marathon bombings could have been an elaborate hoax. FAU also tried to punish a student who expressed discomfort with another professor’s assignment to stomp on a piece of paper bearing the word “Jesus”. And it punished its campus newspaper editor for practicing journalism. (RELATED: Florida Atlantic University Is Still The Worst Place In America To Attend College)

Cornell College YouTube screenshot Cornell College CLOCSSmall Cornell College in Iowa was founded in 1853, a dozen years before Cornell University, the much larger upstart in Ithaca, got its start. Both campuses are set on picturesque hills. The two Cornell benefactors were distant cousins. The cool thing about Cornell in Iowa is its unique one-course-at-a-time academic setup.

Grove City College YouTube screenshot GroveCityCollegeThe Daily Caller is a little sad to see Grove City College on this list. The genuinely Christian and conservative school has made a national name for itself by refusing federal aid and the byzantine regulations that come with it while keeping tuition costs outstandingly low.

University of Iowa YouTube screenshot University of IowaThe University of Iowa is a Big 10 bastion famous for its raucous party scene and its vital role as a safety school for students who didn’t get into better Big 10 schools. It’s also located in what is almost assuredly America’s most underrated college town.

Baylor Bears YouTube screenshot Vicente BetoretBaylor University is America’s — and almost certainly the world’s — largest and most prestigious bastion of Baptist academics. It’s a conservative, religious place, and the alma mater of some of the most powerful people in Texas.

Marquette University YouTube screenshot excelsior27Marquette University is the Jesuit college in not-very-beautiful Milwaukee, Wis. Students mostly come from suburbia these days, but Marquette will probably always retain its blue-collar charm.

 

Sweet Briar College YouTube screenshot sbcgivingSweet Briar College in Southern Virginia is a quintessential women’s college that offers a stunning campus, great programs in the liberal arts and science and a world-class equestrian program. Like every other women’s college, Sweet Briar is also brimming with a bunch of cool traditions.

Drew University YouTube Drew AthleticsDrew University is a small, private liberal arts college amid the suburban sprawl of New Jersey that offers the typical perks of such a college — intimate classes, individual attention, etc. — but not much to distinguish it from other liberal arts colleges offering the same basic product.

Evergreen State YouTube screenshot Madeline BlevensThe Evergreen State College is an ultra-progressive, public redoubt of the liberal arts in Olympia, Wash. There’s a bizarre curricular format in which students take program chunks and are encouraged to design their own strange majors. Also, there are narrative evaluations instead of boring, old grades.

Hendrix College YouTube screenshot Hendrix CollegeHendrix College is a small liberal arts college near Little Rock, Ark. where academics are rigorous and leftist, social-justice types predominate. According to the school, every single student receives some form of financial aid.

Arizona State Creative Commons Neon TommyArizona State University, a huge school famous for huge frat parties and bronzed and beautiful people, gets plenty of applications from would-be students who want to go to huge frat parties and hang out with bronzed, beautiful people. Except, apparently, this year.

Arizona U CC HuperphuffSpeaking of huge schools with huge frat parties and bronzed, beautiful people, the University of Arizona — Arizona State’ slightly more prestigious cousin — was also seeking qualified students as of May. Just watch out for sick cops in riot gear who knock over coeds. (RELATED: Tucson Cop Who Randomly Slammed Woman To The Ground Not So Tough After Receiving Threats)

Simon's Rock Bard College YouTube screenshot Bryan SchiavoneBard College at Simon’s Rock in the Berkshire Mountains of western Massachusetts bills itself as “the early college.” The roughly 350 students at Simon’s Rock bailed on high school in 10th or 11th grade to jumpstart their college careers. Highlights here include small, discussion-heavy classes and a wealth of interdisciplinary opportunities.

Follow Eric on Twitter and on Facebook, and send education-related story tips to erico@dailycaller.com.

(Photo credits: Creative Commons/KnightLago, YouTube screenshot/Cornell College CLOCS, YouTube screenshot/GroveCityCollege, YouTube screenshot/University of Iowa, YouTube screenshot/Vicente Betoret, YouTube screenshot/excelsior27, YouTube screenshot/sbcgiving, YouTube screenshot/Drew Athletics, YouTube screenshot/Madeline Blevens, YouTube screenshot/Hendrix College, Creative Commons/Neon Tommy, Creative Commons/Huperphuff, YouTube screenshot/Bryan Schiavone)