new college of florida ranking

Degree Programs at the New College of Florida

New College of Florida appears in our ranking of 50 Beachfront Colleges Ranked by Affordability.

The New College of Florida is a unique college that offers 35 areas of concentration for students that are similar to the majors offered by other schools. At the undergraduate level, students must sign a contract with their advisors at the beginning of the semester that outlines the classes they will take and the work they will do in the coming months. Signing the contract means that they are responsible for following that outline. Students will also agree to do independent study projects and a senior thesis. Another feature of the undergrad program is that it includes written evaluations that professors do for each student at the end of the term.

In addition to the standard concentrations that are available, students have the right to create their own with the help of an advisor. Students in the past have created programs in policy studies, urban studies and renaissance studies. The traditional concentrations they can choose from include history, humanities, anthropology, English, environmental studies, political science, psychology, theater, and chemistry. Students must do some independent research and create a plan that includes a new area of study or multiple areas and get permission from their advisors if they do not want to choose a traditional concentration.

The only graduate program offered by the New College of Florida is in data science. It includes four semesters of classes that total 36 credit hours. Students take three to four classes each semester and need to maintain a grade point average of 3.0 in the program. The final requirement of the program is a practicum that allows students to do paid work in the information technology field. The data science and related classes they take include Data Storage and Retrieval, Optimization and Machine Learning, Practical Data Science and Topics in Computing for Data Science.

About the New College of Florida

The New College of Florida is a public college with a campus in Saratoga, Florida. Founded in 1960 as a private university, it opened due in part to a large donation from the Board of Homeland Missions of the United Church of Christ. The school operated with the belief that race, gender and other factors should not dictate who could attend college. It accepted men and women equally and granted acceptance to minority students. Facing closure during the 1970s due to financial issues, the college became a new branch of the University of South Florida, which renamed it the New College of the University of South Florida. It would keep this name until becoming an independent campus in 2001. Also called NCF, it is now part of the Florida State University System.

NCF ranked as the 29th best liberal arts college by U.S. News and World Report and the nation’s 90th best liberal arts school by Washington Monthly. It requires that all undergrads do independent study projects, which can include co-op programs and internships with some of the region’s leading employers. The college’s unique programs and the numerous organizations on its campus helped NCF enrollment climb to around 1,000 students.

New College of Florida Accreditation Details

To get financial aid, students must attend a college or university that has regional accreditation. The New College of Florida has this accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). It reduces any of the problems they might otherwise have when transferring between schools and also lets them use the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Once they complete and file the FAFSA, they can get government aid and aid from the college.

New College of Florida Application Requirements

NCF uses the Common Application and allows students to apply to any other colleges through that site. They can either submit a letter of recommendation through the application or have a letter sent to the college. It must come from a high school teacher, guidance counselor or a principal. Students can either pay the $30 application fee or request a waiver and use the code given to them on the application. NCF also asks for a self-reported student academic report (SSAR) and a standardized test score. The SSAR allows students to report their high school classes and grades. They only need to submit official transcripts after receiving an acceptance letter from the college.

The minimum standards for acceptance into the NCF data science program include a bachelor’s degree with a GPA of 3.0 or higher and passing grades in Linear Algebra and a programming class. The college does not guarantee acceptance based solely on these factors though. If there are more applications received than the program has space for, the college will look at the academic and professional history of each applicant. Students can submit resumes to show that they did internships and/or fellowships and had/have jobs in the field. NCF will also look at the letters of recommendation submitted on behalf of the student and the score the student received on the GRE or any other graduate exam.

Tuition and Financial Aid

Undergrads attending NCF who are Florida residents pay $6,916 each year for their classes. Nonresidents pay $29,944 per year, which is the same rate that students pay if they cannot prove that they live full-time in the state. Those who live on the NCF campus pay an extra $9,529 for room and board too. The college estimates that undergrads will pay an average of $4,400 a year for their indirect costs, including their transportation costs and textbooks. Graduate students pay $477 to $1,170 per credit hour, which brings their costs to $11,384 per year for residents and $28,068 per year for nonresidents.

As long as NCF receives a student’s FAFSA by April first, that individual can qualify for the college’s scholarships. A scholarship guarantee is available that states students will get these awards if they pay an enrollment deposit, receive an acceptance letter and are either an American citizen or a legal immigrant. Students who work for any of the 600 companies and organizations that are in the Tuition Exchange will receive extra financial aid of up to $17,000. The Pell grant and student loans are some of the other financial aid options available to students enrolled in the degree programs at the New College of Florida.