America's Best Colleges for B Students. Tamra B. Orr
programs, Greek Recruitment, Greek Sing, Greek Week, Splash Into Spring, University Program Council-sponsored entertainment, Holiday Tree Lighting, Tiger Nights, Burn the (Georgia) Bulldogs, Homecoming Week, student government elections, outdoor and international movies, Rolling Toomer’s Corner, athletics events, Step Shows & Tiger-Stomp, service opportunities/events, Welcome Week, Beat Bama Parade, Beat Bama Food Drive and Black History Month. Auburn University has 250 official student organizations. The most popular are: G.A.N.G. Student Ministries • Gay Straight Alliance • Historic Preservation Guild • Agriculture Ambassadors • American Institute of Chemical Engineers • Association of Certified Fraud Examiners • Mock Trial Competition Team • Public Relations Council of Alabama. For those interested in sports, there are intramural teams such as: badminton • cycling • lacrosse • rowing • rugby • sailing • soccer • table tennis • tennis • volleyball • water polo • water skiing • wrestling. Auburn University is a member of the Southeastern Conference (Division I, Football I-A).
Academics and Learning Environment
For the B student, the learning environment of a college is just as important as the quality of its academic program. Auburn University has 1,184 full-time and 159 part-time faculty members, offering a student-to-faculty ratio of 18:1. The most common course size is 20 to 29 students. Auburn University offers 271 majors with the most popular being finance, biomedical sciences and marketing and least popular being international trade (German), theatre and music. The school has a general core requirement. Cooperative education is available. All first-year students must maintain a 1.5 GPA or higher to avoid academic probation, and a minimum overall GPA of 2.0 is required to graduate. Other special academic programs that would appeal to a B student: independent study • double majors • dual degrees • accelerated study • honors program • Phi Beta Kappa • internships • distance learning certificate programs.
B Student Support and Success
Auburn’s network of academic advisors is by department or major. Advisors assist students with selecting classes and career planning, and they also give general advice. Some department heads provide information about their departments to prospective applicants as well. Learning Communities bring together first-year students in the same major to take certain required classes as a group. This enables students to easily form study groups and to navigate classes cooperatively. Departments also offer help that is basic to a student’s field of study. For example, the Auburn Office of Engineering Student Services provides tutoring for freshmen and transfer engineering students who need assistance in entry-level math, chemistry and physics classes. The tutoring is done by volunteer upperclassmen in group or one-on-one sessions.
Auburn University provides a variety of support programs including dedicated guidance for: academic • career • personal • psychological • minority students • military • veterans • non-traditional students • family planning. Additional counseling services include: sexual assault. The average freshman year GPA is 2.9, and 86 percent of freshmen students return for their sophomore year. Among students who enter the work force, approximately 80 percent enter a field related to their major within six months of graduation. Companies that most frequently hire graduates from Auburn University include: Alabama Power • AmSouth Bank • Baptist Health System • Cargill Steel Corporation • Chevron • Colonial Bank • DMJM Harris • Ernst & Young • Exxon Mobil • Georgia Pacific • Honeywell • IBM • Kimley-Horn & Associates • KMPG • Lockheed Martin • Lennar Homes • Merrill Lynch • Michelin North America • Milliken & Company • Northrop Grumman • Pepsico • PricewaterhouseCoopers • Proctor & Gamble • Regions Bank • Sony • Southern Company • Weyerhaeuser.
Highlights
Auburn University
Auburn/Opelika, AL (Pop. 71,000)
Location: Large town
Four-year public
Founded: 1856
Website: http://www.auburn.edu
Students
Total enrollment: 24,602
Undergrads: 19,926
Freshmen: 3,918
Part-time students: 8%
From out-of-state: 43%
From public schools: 80%
Male/Female: 52%/48%
Live on-campus: 19%
In fraternities: 22%
In sororities: 31%
Off-campus employment rating: Excellent
Caucasian: 86%
African American: 8%
Hispanic: 2%
Asian or Pacific Islander: 2%
Native American: 1%
International: 1%
Academics
Calendar: Semester
Student/faculty ratio: 18:1
Class size 9 or fewer: 8%
Class size 10-29: 56%
Class size 30-49: 21%
Class size 50-99: 9%
Class size 100 or more: 5%
Returning freshmen: 86%
Six-year graduation rate: 67%
Most Popular Majors
Finance
Biomedical sciences
Marketing
Support for Students with Learning Disabilities
Students with learning disabilities may take advantage of specific support programs offered by Auburn University. If necessary, the college will grant additional time to students with learning disabilities to complete their degree. Also, a lightened course load may be granted to LD students. According to the school, The Program for Students with Disabilities offer a variety of Assistive Technology for students with learning disabilities. Text-to-speech software and electronic text are available for students with reading disabilities. Kurweil 3000, a scanning and reading software, and Dragon Naturally Speaking, a speech-to-text software, are available for student use in two locations on campus. Individual training is offered for students that may benefit from the use of assistive technology. Students with learning disabilities will find the following programs at Auburn University extremely useful: tutors • learning center • testing accommodations • extended time for tests • oral tests • readers • typist/scribe • note-taking services • reading machines • early syllabus • diagnostic testing service • priority registration • waiver of math degree requirement. Individual or small group tutorials are also available in: time management • organizational skills • learning strategies • specific subject areas • writing labs • math labs • study skills. An advisor/advocate from the Program for Students with Disabilities is available to students.
How to Get Admitted
For admissions decisions, non-academic factors considered: extracurricular activities • special talents, interests, abilities • character/personal qualities • volunteer work • work experience • geographical location • alumni relationship. A high school diploma is required, although a GED is also accepted for admissions consideration. SAT or ACT test