Best Community Colleges: Coastal Carolina Community College (NC)

 

Best Community Colleges: Coastal Carolina Community College (NC)

Coastal Carolina Community College, a two-year institution, is located in Jacksonville, North Carolina. Coastal Carolina Community College is one of the 58 public community colleges in North Carolina and serves Onslow County, which hosts two of the most strategic bases of the US Marine Corps.

Coastal students consistently meet or exceed all of the annual performance measures in the North Carolina Community College System more often than any other college.

Coastal Carolina Community College offers associate degrees in the arts (A.A.), science (A.S.), and fine arts (A.F.A.) for students seeking to transfer to a four-year college or university.

AFA programs of study include Drama, Music and Music Education, and Art.

A.S. programs include Biology Education, Biology and Engineering.

Examples of A.A. programs are Art Education; Economics, Finance and Marketing; Communication/Communication Studies; Elementary Education; English Education; Geography; Information Systems; Middle Grades Education; Physical Education; Political Science; Social Science Secondary Education; and Sociology.

Coastal Carolina Community College’s 64/65 credits of coursework are designed to parallel freshman and sophomore years at four-year colleges and universities.

Coastal and University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) have an articulation agreement guaranteeing Coastal Carolina Community College’s two-year degree graduates who maintain at least a “B” average begin as juniors at UNCW. Additionally, Coastal, UNCW, Onslow County Schools, and Marine Corps Base Camp LeJeune have developed a partnership to offer “2+2” teacher training for elementary education.

Forty to fifty percent of Coastal Carolina Community College students are active duty military and their family members. The college offers eight-week semester courses on Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune and on Marine Corps Air Station New River to accommodate the military work schedule.

The school’s Division of Continuing Education serves more military personnel than any of the other fifty-seven community colleges in the state. The school’s Customized Training Program provides education and training opportunities for local businesses and industries. Coastal Carolina Community College’s Continuing Education Program focuses on licensure & certification courses for a wide variety of professional and technical careers.

The community college is a member of the National Collegiate Honors Council (NCHC). Coastal Carolina Community College ranked #46 in the CNN Money listing of community colleges in 2012

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Best Community Colleges: Washington County Community College (ME)

 

Best Community Colleges: Washington County Community College (ME)

Washington County Community College (WCCC) is located in Calais, Washington County, Maine, overlooking the St. Croix River; it’s in a rural area on the border between the United and Canada. WCCC is one of seven colleges in the Maine Community College System. Washington County Community College has a general enrollment of 500 students.

WCCC is a residential college with 24 study programs – from Adventure Creation and Tourism to Geographic Information Systems, from Building Construction Technology to Human Services.

The college provides Associate of Arts (A.A.) degrees, Associate of Science (A.S.) degrees, Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degrees as well as diplomas and certificates.

Washington County Community College also offers courses in business/job training, personal enrichment, community service, for high school students and online learning.

Associate’s degree credits may be transferred to a four-year university and count towards completion of the first two years of their bachelor’s degree. MaineStreet is a listing of transferrable courses that fall within the articulation agreements with colleges within the Maine College System.

Washington County Community College ranked #11 in the 2010 Washington Monthly ranking of the top 100 U. S. community colleges. College Atlas.org named WCCC one of the top 25 community colleges in 2012. The Aspen Institute listed Washington County Community College among the top 10% of community colleges in 2011 and 2013.

 

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