College of Charleston's First Year Experience Is Among the Best

U.S. News & World Report has confirmed something that just about every Cougar already knows: the College of Charleston’s First Year Experience is among the best.

The news outlet, which ranks colleges and universities, recently named the College’s First Year Experience as the No. 10 such program in the country.

U.S. News & World Report compiled the rankings by asking presidents, chief academic officers, deans of students and deans of admissions from more than 1,500 colleges to each name up to 10 schools with great first-year experiences. The College quickly rose to the top, beating out every other college and university in South Carolina.

CofC’s First Year Experience goes beyond a simple university 101 course, offering both seminars and learning communities to welcome new students into the College’s fold and introduce them to a possible major or career.

Courses run the gamut, including the real estate on Charleston’s iconic King Street, houses of worship and how they’re shaped by current events, the representation of education in popular culture and the visual language of theatre.

Students even have the opportunity to gain passport stamps through the experience. The College sends students to Europe, South America and the Caribbean through its First year Experience Abroad. One student, Luke Morris, was able to get an internship with Nottingham Forest Football Club after going to England for a First Year Experience Abroad course.

This is not the only accolade U.S. News & World Report has given the College. In 2016 the publication named the College the No. 10 regional university in the Southeast and the No. 4 public school in the Southeast.