Engaged Students

Ambitious, idealistic, and independent, Warren Wilson students are passionate about social justice and believe in taking risks...

See the Difference

• One unique feature of the college is that all students work fifteen hours a week on any of more than one hundred campus work crews. This student work helps defray the cost of room and board. One of the largest work crews runs Warren Wilson’s farm, which was recently named Outstanding Conservation Farm Family for the mountain region of North Carolina. Other students work in office jobs or on other outdoor crews such as forestry.

• About 70 percent of Warren Wilson’s students take part in the Warren Wilson Worldwide program, which provides a cross-cultural field experience. Recent destinations have included Japan, Korea, Ireland, Mexico, Vietnam, Thailand, and New Zealand.

• All students are expected to complete at least one hundred hours of community service before graduating. Service projects in the local community have included helping to clean up a local center for domestic violence, performing stream renovation, working in a food bank, and volunteering at a Presbyterian home for children. Students have also worked at soup kitchens in Washington, D.C., and in New York City, and some have traveled several times to the Gulf Coast to help rebuild homes destroyed by Hurricane Katrina.

• Internships are offered through the college’s Environmental Leadership Center and the career services office. The most popular internships focus on conservation work with a variety of governmental agencies and nonprofit organizations.

• Students in the sciences conduct their own research under the direction of a mentoring professor. They regularly present the results of their research at the annual conference of the North Carolina Academy of Science, where Warren Wilson students have won more awards than students from any other school in the state.

• Warren Wilson is closely affiliated with the North Carolina chapter of Outward Bound, located on the western edge of campus, so many students experience an Outward Bound course during their undergraduate years. In addition, the Warren Wilson Worldwide Program offers an Outward Bound course as one of their study-abroad options.

Great Teaching

The unique Triad Education Program, found only at Warren Wilson, challenges students to make connections in and out of the classroom and become truly educated...

A Curriculum that Connects

• Warren Wilson’s average class size is fourteen students. First-year and transfer students take part in a first-year seminar featuring small groups of students.  The goal of these seminars is to help students develop their learning, research, and problem-solving skills. Recent first-year seminar topics have included courses on great trials throughout history and on Caribbean literature.

• The most popular majors at Warren Wilson are environmental studies, art, and biology. The school has developed a specialized double major that pairs Spanish with studies in psychology, outdoor leadership, or art. Through a partnership with one of the largest private universities in Mexico, students receive bilingual training in these fields.

• Warren Wilson students engage in deep, significant learning. An abiding commitment to the liberal arts provides a curriculum that challenges students while expanding their minds and creating a foundation for lifelong study. Professors come from the nation’s top graduate schools, including Duke, Harvard, Northwestern, Stanford, UC-Berkeley, and Yale. The liberal arts focus encourages students to explore various fields of study before choosing from 41 majors and concentration areas, and 26 minors. Choices can be broadened further with several dual degree programs, including Forestry and Environmental Management with Duke University, Engineering with Washington University, and a special concentration in Pre-Peace Corps, International and Non-Government service.

• Programs of distinction flourish throughout the curriculum: Discovery Through Wilderness, International Field Study, and Peace Studies. The Environmental Studies curriculum, one of the longest-standing programs in the country, recently featured in the National Wildlife Federation’s Campus Yearbook.

• The Outdoor Leadership Program, focusing on education, facilitation, and experiential learning, which partners closely with the North Carolina Outward Bound School and the Nantahala Outdoor Center, the nation’s leading whitewater rafting organization.

Major Programs
Art, Biology, Business & Economics, Chemistry, Creative Writing, Education, Engineering, English, Environmental Studies, Global Studies, History & Political Science, Humanities, Integrative Studies, Modern Languages, Mathematics, Outdoor Leadership, Philosophy, Psychology, Social Work, Sociology/Anthropology, Women’s Studies

Special Programs of Study
Honors English, Honors Mathematics, Honors Science, Nature Science Seminar, Peace Studies, Pre-Engineering, Pre-Environmental Management, Pre-Forestry Program, Pre-Law Studies, Pre-Medical Studies, Pre-Peace Corps, International, and Non-Governmental Service Studies, Pre-Veterinary Studies

Vibrant Community

With only 800 students and an atmosphere that encourages interaction, every person is a major part of the campus community...

Community with a Difference

• The 1,100-acre campus includes six hundred acres of forest and three hundred acres of farmland. Roughly 90 percent of Warren Wilson’s students live in college-owned housing. Living-and-learning residences include a wellness dorm, which focuses on promoting healthy decisions, and physical and mental well-being; and the EcoDorm, a live-in educational facility that models energy-efficient designs and renewable-energy sources. Warren Wilson students were heavily involved in the conception and planning of the 36-bed residence hall.

• A sense of community is one of the main reasons students give for choosing Warren Wilson College. The college’s academics, work, and service philosophy, seamlessly integrated into its environmental commitment, creates a natural connection between students, faculty, and staff. Each student has an important voice, and helps to shape campus life and college policies. Forums abound for finding a voice, through the Student Caucus, Community Meetings, and other venues. Many faculty and staff live on campus, as educators deeply committed to overseeing internships, helping with individual study, assisting research, and taking students to conferences.

• Life at Warren Wilson is rich and diverse, with a range of clubs and organizations, student and faculty readings, and guest speakers. The college has an abundance of visiting writers and musicians due to the Master of Fine Arts Program for Writers and The Swannanoa Gathering. The college’s theater offers half a dozen productions annually, and many musical events enliven campus life. Notable environmental speakers are frequent visitors to campus.

• Warren Wilson has been featured in Outside Magazine for its ready access to outdoor activities. The outdoor programs office offers trips and technical skills workshops. Activities available include backpacking, day hiking, cycling, running, rock climbing, bouldering, caving, surfing, snowboarding, skiing, canoeing, kayaking, and rafting. Most of these activities are organized and facilitated by student trip leaders who are trained and certified as wilderness first responders, as well as having backgrounds in leading and teaching groups in an outdoor setting.

Successful Outcomes

Warren Wilson graduates work hard and excel at jobs that hold real meaning for them...

Offering you the World

• Warren Wilson produces a high number of professionals, particularly in environmental education, service professions, social work, and teaching. The college’s alumni work in almost every field, from urban planning to veterinary medicine. Warren Wilson alumni include Tony Earley, author of “Jim the Boy,” musician David Wilcox, perinatal physician Dr. Anne Graham Masters, and songwriter Billy Edd Wheeler, who has written many chart hits including “Jackson” by Johnny Cash and June Carter. Alumni satisfaction with Warren Wilson is demonstrated by the high rate of alumni giving.

• An average of 17 percent of Warren Wilson graduates begin advanced study each year at respected institutions around the world. Through research practices provided by the Warren Wilson experience, students have the tools crucial for entering these programs.