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There’s Something About Sierra Nevada College If you’ve never heard of Sierra Nevada College, it’s probably because it’s Nevada’s best-kept secret. Nestled within the Sierra Nevada mountains near the clear blue waters of Lake Tahoe, Sierra offers a small, academically challenging community where professors not only become lifelong professional contacts, they can become friends.
While there are several reasons to apply to Sierra Nevada, and far too many to list here, here are some of the best to consider, according to Sierra’s Director of Admissions Bernie McConnell:
- You’re only two blocks north of tourist destination Lake Tahoe, where California meets Nevada. Weekends provide students with the opportunity to take bus trips to the Lake or one of the 15 nearby ski resorts that offer students special rates. (A student can get a $1500 pass for only $200). Indeed, Sierra Nevada may be the only college that has an admissions counselor who also doubles as a snowboarding coach. If that’s not enough, you’re 30 minutes from Reno with its rich arts and music scene. Weekend shuttle busses take students into town for bowling, shopping, and the movies, and classes often end on Thursday so students can take advantage of a long weekend.
- You get all the advantages of attending a small school. At Sierra Nevada, the average class size is 15. The advantage? An almost unheard of faculty ratio of 14 to 1. Not only will you get personal attention, you’ll make connections. “I just hired our valedictorian after graduation,” says McConnell. “These things happen at smaller colleges because you get to know people one on one.”
- You get a private education at a reasonable cost. McConnell says that one of Sierra Nevada’s strengths is “making private affordable.” If a student in need is able to pay for most of his or her education through financial aid, loans, and grants, Sierra Nevada often provides the rest of the necessary support through grants and campus jobs. But this depends on the student’s need and GPA.
- You get an excellent education with reasonable admissions requirements. Being so close to the California border, Sierra draws some of the best professors from Stanford and Berkeley. “It’s a tough school and we challenge students academically,” says McConnell. Sierra offers strong environmental sciences, visual arts, business, psychology, and humanities programs. They also have a unique entrepreneurship major where students can learn ski resort management, in addition to a digital art and entertainment technology major. Even though the programs are academically rigorous, Sierra is generous when it comes to admitting students. “A student has to have an overall GPA of 2.6 and we’d like to see at least an 18 on the ACT. I use the test score to help, not hinder, a student. I’d rather look at a four-year transcript than a four-hour exam.” The essay is also important in applying. “Very seldom do I tell a student ‘no,’ says McConnell. “I tell them what they need to get here. I believe in giving a student an opportunity.”
Find out more about admissions at Sierra Nevada.
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