Macon State College

<h4 id="section---Pros">Pros</h4> <ul><li>Total expenses were $2,701 less than the national average for comparable schools </li><li>Accepts advanced placement (AP) credits and dual credits </li></ul><h4 id="section---Cons">Cons</h4> <ul><li>Four-year graduation rate was 38 percentage points lower than the national average in 2010 </li><li>Limited amount of programs available </li><li>Acceptance rate 16.8 percentage points lower than the national average </li></ul><h3 id="section---RankingSchoolAnalysis">Ranking &amp; School Analysis</h3> <p>If you decide to attend Middle Georgia State College, you will likely pay less overall than at a different 4-year, public school. According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), tuition, fees, and on-campus room and board expenses for the 2012-2013 school year totaled $15,159 at MGSC, which is less than the national average of $17,860. </p> <p>Though overall costs are lower at MGSC, the acceptance rate is lower as well. Information reported to the NCES showed that the acceptance rate at the school was 47% versus the national average of 63.8%. The NCES also reported that the student-to-faculty ratio was 19:1, four points higher than the national average of 15:1 in 2012. </p> <p>While the college does accept AP and dual credits, which many students use to graduate faster, the overall four-year graduation rate at MGSC was only 2% in 2010, far beneath the national average of 40% during that same year. </p> <h2 id="section---AdmissionsFinancialAidAtMGSCCollege">Admissions &amp; Financial Aid at MGSC College</h2> <p>According to MGSC's website, incoming freshmen applicants must hold either GEDs or high school diplomas to be accepted into the college. Other requirements vary depending on which programs you want to enroll in. For example, if you're interested in vocational certificate programs, you only need to show proof of fulfilling high school college preparatory coursework credits. On the other hand, if you want to start a bachelor's degree program at MGSC, you will need to submit high school transcripts and test scores from either the SATs or ACTs. Those entering bachelor's degree programs at MGSC also have to meet the minimum freshman index of 1850, and this index number is determined by each applicant's high school grade-point average and test scores. </p> <p>As of 2013, mandatory fees were charged for recreation and wellness, student orientation, public safety, student activities, special institutional fees, liability insurance, technology and health insurance fees. Since you are required to pay mandatory fees, it means you are eligible to use the services for which the fees cover. The NCES showed that in 2011-2012, 87% of MGSC students received some form of financial aid. During that same year, about 46% of all financial aid offered to MGSC students was in the form of loans, and the average loan amount was $5,725, per the NCES. </p> <p /> <table border="1"><tr><th><b>Applications &amp; Tuition Info</b></th><th /></tr> <tr><td><i>Priority Application Deadline (2013-2014)</i></td><td> July 16***</td></tr> <tr><td><i>Financial Aid Application Deadline (2013-2014)</i></td><td> July 16***</td></tr> <tr><td><i>Application Fee (2011-2012)</i></td><td> $20**</td></tr> <tr><td><i>Acceptance Rate (2011)</i></td><td> 47%**</td></tr> <tr><td><i>Tuition &amp; Fees (2012-2013)</i></td><td> $2,865**</td></tr> <tr><td><i>Average Grant or Scholarship Aid (2011-2012)</i></td><td> $3,916**</td></tr> </table><h2 id="section---StudentLifeAtMGSC">Student Life at MGSC</h2> <p><i>U.S. News &amp; World Report</i> showed that in 2011 there were only 56 student organizations or clubs at MGSC. Information from the College Board indicated that seven of these clubs were sports related. Although there are several clubs on campus, the College Board pointed out that there were no Greek organizations available as of 2013. According to MGSC's website, you can get on-campus housing by renting one of the college-owned apartments near the lake. </p> <p>The Macon campus has one library available, but the library allows students to use interlibrary loan services to obtain research documents from other participating institutions. One unique feature on campus is a botanical garden, according to the College Board. Also on campus you can find a student life center, game room, dining facility, professional sciences center and a conference center, per the college's website. </p> <p>Available student services on campus include health services, veterans' counseling, personal counseling, tutoring, a career center and disability services. As of 2013, the College Board did not show any evidence that MGSC offered on-campus day care. However, information from the college's website showed that weekend and evening classes were available to accommodate the schedules of working students. </p> <p /> <table border="1"><tr><th><b>Student Life Info</b></th><th /></tr> <tr><td><i>Campus Setting</i></td><td> Small city***</td></tr> <tr><td><i>Student Population (2012)</i></td><td> 5,780*</td></tr> <tr><td><i>Male-to-Female Student Ratio (2012)</i></td><td> 36% Male to 64% Female**</td></tr> <tr><td><i>% of Full Time Students (2012)</i></td><td> 56**</td></tr> <tr><td><i>% of In-state Students (2011)</i></td><td> 98%**</td></tr> <tr><td><i>% of International Students (2011)</i></td><td> 1%**</td></tr> <tr><td><i>Retention Rate (2011-2012)</i></td><td> 44%**</td></tr> <tr><td><i>Campus Housing Available</i></td><td> Yes*</td></tr> <tr><td><i>% of Students Living on Campus</i></td><td> 5%****</td></tr> <tr><td><i>Number of Libraries</i></td><td>1*</td></tr> <tr><td><i>Extracurricular Activities</i></td><td> Some student organizations and club sports***</td></tr> </table><p><i>Sources: *University website, **NCES,***College Board and ****U.S. News &amp; World Report.</i> </p> <h3 id="section---SchoolContactInformation">School Contact Information</h3> <ul><li><i>Address:</i> Office of Admissions, MGSC College, Macon Campus, 100 College Station Drive, Macon, GA 31206 </li><li><i>Phone:</i> (478) 471-2800</li></ul>