Quick Facts & Points of Pride

National Survey of Student Engagement
Selected Results for Ferrum College, Fall 2007

Ferrum College considers student and faculty interaction as one of its distinctive core values.  In the NSSE Survey, our students rated student/faculty interaction higher than did their peers at other regional and national institutions.  In fact, when compared to the top 10% of institutions across the country who participated in NSSE, Ferrum’s  students rated student/faculty interaction higher than did students at institutions rated highest on this factor!   Students at Ferrum College see the emphasis Ferrum College places on student-faculty interactions and the NSSE report helps validate the energy and resources we devote to this important concept.

Students learn firsthand how experts think about and solve practical problems by interacting with faculty members inside and outside the classroom.  As a result, their teachers become role models, mentors, and guides for continuous, life-long learning.

Active and Collaborative Learning

Students learn more when they are intensely involved in their education and asked to think about what they are learning in different settings.  Collaborating with others in solving problems or mastering difficult material prepares students for the messy, unscripted problems they will encounter daily during and after college.

Ferrum College seeks to develop an active, engaged and collaborative learning culture on its campus.  Our first-year students rated their experiences with active and collaborative learning higher than did their national peers.    Notably, by the time they become seniors, Ferrum students rate their experiences with active and collaborative learning significantly higher than do their peers.   Students at Ferrum are engaged in meaningful collaborative learning, helping prepare them for the challenges of today’s workplace where emphasis is placed on collaboration.

Supportive Campus Environment

Students perform better and are more satisfied at colleges that are committed to their success and cultivate positive working and social relations among different groups on campus.

First Year and Senior students consider the Ferrum campus environment to be very supportive, surpassing its peers in this very important indicator of student engagement.   Ferrum College strives to put students first and this value is reflected our students’ ratings across multiple indicators.

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Vision Statement
Ferrum College’s unparalleled setting in Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains forms an inspiring backdrop for a unique and multifaceted educational experience that will focus on leading-edge learning opportunities, diverse outdoor, cultural, and service activities, and spiritual enrichment.

Mission Statement
Ferrum College is a liberal arts institution founded on Christian principles and related to the United Methodist Church. It is our mission to educate students in the disciplines of higher learning and to help them be thoughtful and perceptive, to be articulate and professionally capable, and to be caring and concerned citizens of their community, nation, and world. We therefore commit ourselves to developing the whole student, both in openness to a wide range of intellectual discovery, and in the physical, spiritual, and social aspects of life.

Our campus environment supports service to others and the development of a personal code of values. Toward these ends, we expect all members of the campus community to treat each other with compassion, to respect each other's diverse qualities and backgrounds, and to support each other in the common pursuit of insight and discovery. In all these endeavors, we encourage students, faculty, and staff to appreciate excellence and to dedicate themselves to achieving it.

Founded in 1913, Ferrum College provides life-long learning and outstanding career and graduate school preparation in a setting of rich natural beauty. Located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains of Southwestern Virginia, Ferrum is a four-year primarily residential college with easy access to the major metropolitan areas of Roanoke, Virginia (35 miles to the north) and Greensboro, North Carolina (70 miles to the south) where shopping, social, dining and entertainment opportunities abound. Surrounded by mountains, lakes, rivers and state parks, and numerous small towns brimming with regional heritage, Ferrum also boasts a wide variety of venues for outdoor adventure and recreation and cultural enrichment.

Ferrum offers 33 areas of study ranging from business and environmental science to teacher education and criminal justice, free in-room computers, small class sizes, and a dedicated faculty.   The 1,000 men and women who attend Ferrum come from 25 states and a dozen countries, and 80 percent live on Ferrum's 700-acre campus.

Come visit us! We'd love to show you why Ferrum is right for you. Give us a call at 1-800-868-9797 to schedule your visit or e-mail us at admissions@ferrum.edu. We hope you enjoy your visit to Ferrum College's Website and please remember to fill out the online questionnaire.

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