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College Prowler

Academics

If you're in the sciences you will have excellent teachers. If you're in anything else, you have about a one in twenty shot of getting an awesome teacher. We can't afford full-time teachers, so we're hiring a bunch of adjuncts that, for the most part, are absolutely horrible. It's a joke how bad a lot of them are. And I don't feel like the student/teacher interaction here is anything special. Most teachers I've had hardly acknowledge me when they see me, even if I've done well in their class and we're on good terms. The classrooms are not that intimate, and they are lecture-based classes that, at least in the humanities, are taught by dull teachers who don't know how to facilitate discussion. The classes are overcrowded, and all the teachers acknowledge it. I have been thoroughly frustrated by the academics here. I learned the majority of what I have here through the work program The crew bosses are, for the most part, incredible people with a huge breadth of knowledge. You also learn a lot of practical things on the work crews, like how to operate heavy machinery, do electrical and plumbing work, or forest management—whatever you want, you can pursue here. But then the question becomes 'What am I going to class for when I'm really learning at work?'

Athletics

This isn't an athletics-based school. We do offer a lot of different varsity sports, but they don't all have the same competitive atmosphere as larger state schools. Participating in basketball here helped shape my college experience, but it was another activity on top of everything else. I still had to go to school, participate in the work program, and do community service. There are also club sports and intramural opportunities.

Campus Dining

The food has its ups and downs. As far as cafeteria food goes, Gladfelter is decent. The fresh salad bar is one of my favorite things about it. There are always vegetarian and vegan options (something that not all cafeterias cater to). My biggest grievance is the lack of variety. After four years of eating at Gladfelter, one can get sick of eating the same things.

Campus Housing

The dorms here are almost always about the people, but here's the basic run-down. So far as freshman dorms go, Vining is quieter and more relaxed, but it's also known for potheads and looks like a confusing prison of narrow cinder block when you walk through. It is known for being the nicer freshman dorm, but Sunderland is where you will meet a lot more people and get a chance to hang out en masse. Some are afraid of Sunderland for its reputation for being large (it's the biggest dorm on campus—150 students) and unruly. The split between these two dorms evidently continues throughout your four years. Schafer is beautiful but has a bad rep as a party dorm. The Village and the Ballfields are gorgeous but far, far away and isolating. Ballfield A has ridiculously insane parties. I recommend Sutton or ANTC depending on who is living there that year. They're really pretty and homey and hold 35 people.

Campus Strictness

The campus is not terribly strict. If you are in a dorm drinking, then you probably wont get any trouble. If you're outside and public safety sees you, they will write you up. As long as you keep your drug use private, don't smoke weed in public, and don't drink outside unless you have a cup, then you will have no trouble.

Computers

Our computer network is great. We just recently had our bandwidth increased, so the Internet is nice and fast. We have several computer labs on campus, so I've never seen them completely crowded. There is always access to a computer somewhere. Having your own personal laptop is definitely handy, though not necessary. There are students here without personal computers that get by just fine using campus computers. It just means you need to plan in advance before a paper is due.

Diversity

The campus is about as diverse as other private liberal arts colleges in the country. We have a lower percentage of American minority students due to a small endowment and a resulting lack of major financial aid packages. However, we do have a decently high percentage of international students. Politically, we are fairly left-leaning, but there is a lot of diversity even within that. For example, I thought I was liberal until I came to WWC only to find that I am actually pretty moderate. We are also a diverse campus in terms of sexual orientation. Overall, I would say that most everyone is accepting of difference, which is crucial.

Drug Scene

As I’m hanging out with a lot of different groups and ages at Warren Wilson, I’m finding that a lot of upperclassmen don’t care about drugs as much as the freshmen. After a while, they just become happy with cheap beer.

Facilities

The facilities at Warren Wilson are alright. The gym is well-equipped, though the library leaves much to be desired. The closest thing we have to a student center would be Lower Gladfelter, which has the post office, school store, two vending machines, some couches and a ping-pong table.

Greek Life

Warren Wilson is great in that we have no Greek life whatsoever. As a result, we don't have a huge schism between frat/sorority people and non-Greek life folk. That doesn't mean we don't know how to have a great time on a Friday night. Swing by the Eco-Dorm, and you may find an old-style jam session going on, complete with fiddles, banjos, guitars, and sometimes even a nickleharpa (a Swedish, keyed violin). Saturday you may find a birthday potluck, or a movie night over in Village B. Socially, we're pretty diverse here at Warren Wilson.

Guys & Girls

There's a huge variety of people here, not just the stereotypical hippies (though there are plenty). You can find people like you to mingle with, but don't be discouraged if you don't find them right away. Most people are very respectful of who you are and what you're about. There are always a few jerks, but overall I was really impressed with how welcoming, outgoing, and friendly an environment Wilson is. The women are great, but don't wince when you see hairy legs or armpits. Natural is sexy.

Local Atmosphere

Asheville is an easy bus ride (free for Wilson students) from the college. It's a beautiful but small city with lots to do, particularly in the art and music scenes. There are fantastic shops and restaurants for all budgets. Don't miss the French Broad Chocolate Lounge!

Nightlife

There are still some good parties on campus, mostly in Schafer, but for some reason they aren't quite what they used to be. Lately the bigger parties tend to just consist of a bunch of drunk people dressed up and standing around listening to music. Some people attempt to dance, but not enough people are good at dancing to make the effort worthwhile. Smaller parties with a few friends who really know how to have a good time are a better bet. The club I hear about is a gay bar called Scandals, and I've heard it's a lot of fun. I'm pretty sure it's 18 and up, so practically everyone can go. There's also a bar called Pisgah Brewery that brews their own really wonderful beer. If you are 21, Pisgah is an excellent place to go. There are a few others bars and such, but not many places in Asheville stay open all that late, even on weekends.

Off-Campus Dining

Theres nothing to eat within walking distance unless you like hunting cow, but Swannanoa has a great selection of fast food and cheap dives. Cocula serves great cheap, typical Mexican, and Asian on The Go is delish and has fantastic service. And the Waffle House is, of course, fantastic with very friendly waitresses. In Asheville, the prices go up, but there's a great variety of great eating from all over. There's Indian, French, South American, Middle Eastern, tapas, Southwestern---all the fun stuff. I highly suggest Mamacitas, Pablo Honey, and Mela.

Off-Campus Housing

Off campus housing is not convenient and not worth it. The rural setting means you'll need a car to get to class, and the work program is strengthened by the student residency. Warren Wilson emphasizes community, and that is lost when students live off campus.

Overall Experience

I am so happy here. I'm a freshman, and I'm about thirteen hours away from home, so I was a little worried about being homesick at first. I wasn't. Every single morning I wake up, and no matter what kind of mood I'm in, I always feel happy just for a moment when I walk outside and see the Blue Ridge Mountains next to me. Sometimes you can smell the cows from the farm ever-so-faintly on the air, and you can always go down to visit the calves and piglets (soooo cute!). There's always something unusual and new to do here or someone interesting to meet. People are friendlier here than anywhere else I've ever been, but they expect you to work. Wilson kids work hard and take things seriously but also with a grain of salt. It's just a really amazing group of people, and I'm happy to be a part of it.

Parking

Be prepared to get Island Fever if you don't have a car. Wilson is already a little bubble, but it's easy to get tired every now and then of on-campus activities that groups and dorms organize. It's helpful to have a car. Period. Freshmen have to take the bus, as first years aren't allow to bring cars. Advice: If you're a freshmen, make some friends with lots of upperclassmen and hope that some of them can help you out when you need rides if they've got cars.

Safety & Security

Warren Wilson is pretty safe. Some people lock their doors, other people don't, and most people don't have a problem, except sometimes on Saturday nights when drunks barge into unlocked rooms. Most people don't lock up their bikes, but if they go missing, they usually turn up somewhere else on campus. You do need your ID to get into the dorms, but you generally don't have to worry about people from off campus because the campus is out in the middle of nowhere, and also very small, so strangers are easily recognizable.

Transportation

Public transportation is pretty good but not perfect. A bus runs every day except for Sunday, which can sometimes be annoying because Sunday would be a nice day to catch the bus into town to go to a café to study or have breakfast. Also, the bus doesn't come until 4 every day, which can also be annoying if you are done with class sooner than that and you want to go somewhere. But since WWC is kind of out in the country, it wouldn't make much sense for a bus to drive all the way out there just to pick up one student. The bus is free for students, which is great, and it runs late on the weekends.

Weather

Bring a jacket and a swimsuit. There is skiing within a few hours of campus, and there is a river on campus that many students swim in. Students also swim in the pond year round, which is crazy, but it’s an important part of social life here, as well.