UVA Wise Attracts Record Applications Across U.S., Highest Ever Within Virginia

Highland Cavalier curious? You’re not alone. Nearly 3,300 students applied to attend UVA Wise this fall. That’s the single largest number in nearly two decades and a 204 percent increase from last year.

Kallie Berry, UVA Wise student government association president, says she’s not surprised.

“‘Go Cavs Go’ isn’t just a saying on a T-shirt, we are a tight-knit community. People want you to succeed more than you want to succeed. They are so motivated to help you. That is the spirit of campus,” Berry said. “You are on a first-name basis with your professors, and you get to do things here you don’t anywhere else.”

With the Covid-19 pandemic mostly in the rearview mirror, campus is active with a growing number of student clubs and organizations created this year, Berry said.

“Everyone is having fun and the new clubs have been successful and making a visible impact on campus and student life,” she said.

This year, more prospective students are discovering the College nestled in the heart of Appalachia, applying from 47 states—including Hawaii, New Jersey, Montana—and Puerto Rico.

A total of 1,920 Virginians applied from 122 of the Commonwealth’s 134 counties, the most ever from the Commonwealth to seek entrance to the College in Virginia’s far Southwest corner.

Outside of Virginia, the most represented states are nearby North Carolina and Tennessee, which had 201 and 197 applicants respectively.

The Appalachian region has a big showing in the applicant pool. In 2018, the College announced a significantly reduced tuition rate for students living within the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) territory, which includes mountainous, rural counties ranging from New York to Mississippi.

This year, 533 students applied from ARC counties in North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Mississippi, West Virginia, South Carolina and Kentucky.

To date, 1,255 prospective students have been accepted, a 41 percent rise from last year’s class. Of those, 413 have confirmed enrollment, nearly a 77 percent spike from 2022. The average grade point average of students who have confirmed attending UVA Wise in the fall is 3.646 out of a 4.0 average. The average GPA of all students who were accepted is 3.531.

There has never been a better or more affordable time to attend the College. Over the past year, 25 newly established scholarships—the second highest number ever created in a year—have been created to help students seeking degrees in earth and physical sciences, pre-law and nursing.

“It took a financial burden off my shoulders,” said Peyton Wilson, an exercise science major and member of the UVA Wise golf team. “That way I could focus solely on my academics and my sports. I could be the best student in the classroom and the best teammate and golfer I can be.”

Berry, an English major with a minor in secondary education, was on the fence about coming to UVA Wise when she first was accepted.

“I lived right down the road. I had always said ‘I am not going to a small campus,’ and ‘I want to go to college far away from home,’” Berry said. “I toured the campus and it was beautiful, but I still fought it for a really long time.”

It wasn’t until she learned she received a full scholarship to attend UVA Wise that she gave it a second chance.

“I started looking more into the College and noticed all the great programs and the benefits of not having to pay for school,” Berry said.

She said UVA Wise has allowed her to grow personally and academically, have huge opportunities to take on leadership roles and study and travel internationally, in her case, to the Dominican Republic and Honduras.

Applicants’ most expressed interest in majors in nursing, computer science and business.

Admitted students should take the next steps as soon as possible, which are to confirm their intent to attend in fall 2023, begin the orientation process and sign up for campus housing.

“The sooner students take care of these items, the better their transition from high school to college will be,” says Jeffrey Baylor, vice chancellor for enrollment management at UVA Wise. “And we will be here to help them each step along the way.” 

For more information, visit www.uvawise.edu/admissions.