Skip to header Skip to Content Skip to Footer

UNCW Makes Fiske Guide Again

The University of North Carolina Wilmington’s academic excellence, extensive undergraduate research opportunities and other high-impact learning experiences are among the characteristics highlighted in the Fiske Guide to Colleges 2023. UNCW is once again included in the best-selling college guide that profiles 300 of the “best and most interesting” colleges and universities in the nation.

The university, one of only four UNC System schools included, has been featured in the guide consistently since 2017. The guide noted UNCW’s convenient proximity to the ocean and its spate of new construction, including the addition of four new residence halls and a dining hall since 2020. It also praised UNCW’s “old-fashioned Southern charm,” Georgian architecture and designated campus conservation areas that are “significant zones of natural beauty with their longleaf pines, oaks, dogwoods, and native magnolias.”

“As UNCW continues its trajectory of success, we are pleased to once again be included in the Fiske Guide to Colleges,” said Chancellor Aswani K. Volety. “We are a student-focused university with outstanding opportunities for students to thrive within a campus culture that values academic success, applied learning opportunities, cutting-edge research, career readiness and community engagement. When prospective students are considering where they want to attend college, we want them to choose UNCW.”

The guide highlighted UNCW’s “stellar marine biology program” and other sciences, as well as programs that set the university apart, including film studies, creative writing and new majors in respiratory therapy, digital arts and coastal engineering – the only program of its type nationally.

Additionally, UNCW’s University Studies curriculum, First-Year Learning Communities available to students and the Honors College earned special mention in the annual printed guide, which arrived on shelves July 20.   

The Fiske Guide also featured UNCW’s Support Opportunity Access Responsibility program (SOAR), which supports high-achieving students from low-income families with grants and scholarships equaling the cost of in-state tuition and fees.

Compiled by former New York Times Education Editor Edward B. Fiske, the Fiske Guide has been a leading resource for nearly 40 years. The guide offers prospective students a glimpse into student life, degree programs, campus climate, athletic opportunities and admission criteria. Inclusion is based primarily on academic excellence, a key priority of the university’s Strategic Plan. College life, athletics and the campus environment are other factors considered.
  
UNCW has been consistently recognized for academics and affordability. The university is one of three UNC System schools ranked in U.S. News & World Report’s Top 100 Public National Universities for 2021 and is ranked among the Top 20 on the publication’s list of “2021 Best Online Bachelor’s Programs.” Several graduate programs also have been recognized on U.S. News lists of Best Graduate Schools and Best Online Graduate Programs.


top