Which campus is right for you? Try on one of these campuses at an Envision program this summer
Choosing a college can be nerve-racking. How do you know what would be a best fit? Should you go urban or suburban? How big of a student population is right for you? Visiting a campus can help to answer a lot of questions. Check out these 20 campuses and try one on this summer at an Envision program to see how it fits!
Emory University
Location: Atlanta, GA
Established: 1836
Student Population: 15,451*
A suburban-style campus in the middle of a major city, Emory is situated on 600 heavily forested acres. The trees come in handy since it’s smack in the middle of Hotlanta! An environmentally conscious campus, Emory has among the largest number of LEED-certified buildings (by square footage) of U.S. colleges. Lullwater Park and Candler Lake are near the heart of the university, where students can experience a waterfall, historic mill, and numerous walking trails.
You can experience Emory’s campus when you attend NYLF Medicine or NYLF Explore STEM.
Tufts University
Location: Boston, MA
Established: 1852
Student Population: 11,489
Said to be one of the prettiest campuses in the U.S., Tufts has a lot of notable architecture. Divided into two sections. “Uphill” contains the academic and “Rez” quad and is accessible by the memorial stairs, one of the main entrances to the campus. “Downhill” is home to the engineering school, campus center, and major dining hall. Walkable to the Mystic River, Tufts is adjacent to the port city of Boston. It isn’t required, but it’s a good thing if you like beans, since Boston is known as Beantown!
Check out the Tufts’ campus while attending NYLF Medicine.
Washington University in St. Louis
Location: St. Louis, MI
Established: 1853
Student Population: 15,045
Brookings Quad is where the most picturesque and iconic buildings of the university are located. If you like to push buttons, the Olin Library shelves are fitted with buttons to move the shelves back and forth to allow access to the books! The campus offers lots of grassy areas and wide-open spaces. Located adjacent to Washington University in St. Louis is Forest Park, 1,326 acres of greenery, paths, and the St. Louis Zoo, Art Museum, History Museum, and Science Center, together known as the “Heart of St. Louis.”
Want to check out this campus? NYLF Medicine has a location there!
Rice University
Location: Houston, TX
Established: 1912
Student Population: 7,124
If you’re looking for a smaller school, Rice may be for you! A gem in the heart of Houston, Rice’s campus is situated on 285 acres with only 50 buildings throughout, maximizing the green space. The university is a designated arboretum, and follows all sustainable efforts to maintain all trees, grass, and plants around campus. Because of this, there is a low threshold of pests on campus. So, if you don’t like bugs and love trees (many are over 100 years old!) this could be the place for you!
Interested in learning more about this green campus? You can stay at Rice while attending the Rice University Aerospace & Aviation Academy, Fueled by Envision or NYLF Medicine.
University of California – Los Angeles
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Established: 1919
Student Population: 45,428
UCLA has a large student body, making it a bigger campus than most. It’s not in the top 10 largest, but it’s up there! It’s also a great campus for movie buffs. The proximity to Hollywood makes UCLA’s grounds a great backdrop for movies, like Legally Blonde, and shows, like The Mindy Project. The campus is also close to many museums and entertainment venues as well as the Santa Monica Pier, for those students who want a taste of the coastal life in their college experience.
Is a large school your scene? Find out at NYLF Medicine.
St. John’s University
Location: Queens, NY
Established: 1870
Student Population: 21,087
St. John’s main campus is in Queens, but they also have locations across several of the New York City boroughs. A gated and quiet campus, the grounds are an oasis amid a bustling city. The heart of student life is the D’Angleo Center, a 110,000-square-foot structure that houses technologically advanced classrooms, dedicated student meeting rooms, recreation and entertainment spaces, a café, and lounge. St. John’s is well known for its media and performing arts programs, for those interested in those fields!
GYLC, NYLF Medicine, or NYLF Explore STEM will give you a chance to check out St. John’s!
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Location: Chapel Hill, NC
Established: 1789
Student Population: 29,847
UNC’s campus, located in the heart of downtown Chapel Hill, encompasses the many shops and stores on Franklin Street. Considered a “Public Ivy,” UNC provides an exemplary education at a public university tuition. The faculty and the student-run organizations, such as the student-run paper and radio station, consistently receive numerous accolades. The campus has been deemed one of the most beautiful in the country by many landscape authorities and is committed to a green initiative, requiring that any new buildings meet LEED certification. One of the campus' most unique buildings is the Morehead-Patterson Bell Tower. Traditionally, only graduating students are allowed to visit the top a few days before commencement.
Interested in checking out UNC and learning more about the field of medicine? NYLF Medicine is the program for you!
University of California – Berkeley
Location: Berkeley, CA
Established: 1868
Student Population: 42,519
UC Berkeley has a little bit of everything to offer. For the nature lover, many of the trees around campus date back to the school’s founding year and two branches of Strawberry Creek run through the grounds. For the foodie, Berkeley is adjacent to the Gourmet Ghetto, a commercial district renowned for its fine dining options, such as Chez Panisse. For the science buff, there are campus houses the UC Museum of Paleontology and the Lawrence Hall of Science. Into the arts? The UC Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive is there as well!
You can try on Berkeley’s campus at NYLF Engineering, NYLF Medicine, or NYLF Explore STEM.
University of Maryland
Location: College Park, MD
Established: 1856
Student Population: 41,200
The UMD campus is known for its red-brick Georgian architecture and its large central lawn, McKeldin Mall or “The Mall,” which is the largest academic mall in the U.S. The grounds are a designated arboretum and botanical garden, due to the many trees and garden plantings throughout. You won’t find just turtles on campus either - located in alumnus Jim Henson’s Statue & Memorial Garden, you can find Kermit the Frog!
Walk the paths of the UMD campus at NYLF National Security or NYLF Medicine.
Georgia Tech
Location: Atlanta, GA
Established: 1885
Student Population: 32,718
Located in the heart of Atlanta, Georgia Tech offers vistas of the city skyline at every turn. While sandwiched between large buildings, the campus itself has few buildings over four stories, giving it a suburban feel. Divided into four main sections, East and West Campuses are primarily made up of student residences, while Central Campus and Technology Square house most of the academic, administrative, and entertainment venues on campus.
Want to check out this urban campus in Atlanta? NYLF Engineering is held at Georgia Tech!
Babson College
Location: Wellesley, MA
Established: 1919
Student Population: 3,133
One of the newer and much smaller colleges on our list, Babson is in Wellesley, a suburb outside of Boston. The main landmark of Babson College is the Babson Globe, which is currently under renovation. In its heyday, the globe rotated both on its axis and base. Over time, the globe deteriorated and wasn't able to turn anymore, so it is now stationary when on display. For many years, it was the largest rotating globe in the world and is still one of the largest ever built.
NYLF Explore STEM for middle school students provides an opportunity to check out Babson’s campus.
Bowling Green State University
Location: Bowling Green, OH
Established: 1910
Student Population: 20,395
This rectangular campus holds 116 buildings. In the southwest corner of Bowling Green is the Old Campus, which houses the original buildings dating from the early 1900s. This green space offers large trees and is a great place for students to hang out or study. The central west area of campus features student facilities, such as the Bowen-Thompson Student Union, that contains eateries, coffee shops, convenience stores, computer labs, meeting rooms, and even a movie theater.
Give this campus a try during NYLF Explore STEM this summer!
Loyola University
Location: Chicago, IL
Established: 1870
Student Population: 16,422
Loyola’s flagship campus is Lake Shore Campus, adjacent to the shores of Lake Michigan. The campus has plentiful green space and striking architecture, including an Art Deco chapel completed in 1939 and a 200-foot-tall Art Deco skyscraper that houses the fine and performing arts’ departments. Lake Shore is just one of Loyola’s several Chicago-based campuses; students can see more of the Windy City by visiting the school’s additional grounds.
Loyola is home to one of our NYLF Explore STEM sessions.
University of Denver
Location: Denver, CO
Established: 1864
Student Population: 11,614
Denver University has more graduate students than undergrad, making it a small undergrad population of only about 5,600. The campus is roughly one mile above sea level, making it the highest altitude campus we’ve covered. All that height is put to good use though, through the 11th highest telescope in the world, at Meyer-Womble Observatory (14,148 ft above sea level). The campus’ grassy expanses are dotted with typically Romanesque-style buildings, making this a very picturesque location for your studies.
Want to check out the highest-altitude campus on our list? Join us there this summer for NYLF Explore STEM!
University of Texas at Dallas
Location: Richardson, TX
Established: 1961
Student Population: 28,755
Begun as the research arm of Texas Instruments, UT Dallas has rapidly grown in its short tenure. A heavy research school, the university offers projects in the areas of space science, bioengineering, cybersecurity, nanotechnology, as well as behavioral and brain sciences. The campus’ architecture is a mix of brutalist-style concrete, modern, and postmodern styles connected by skybridges. The grounds have also been recognized for their ecologically friendly efforts.
This young university location hosts NYLF Explore STEM!
Occidental College
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Established: 1887
Student Population: 1,930
One of the oldest liberal arts colleges on the west coast, Occidental College was designed in a Mediterranean style with covered walkways and tiled roofs. Ranked as one of the top 10 “most beautiful” campuses by Newsweek in 2012, one of Oxy’s most notable landmarks is a kinetic fountain that was featured prominently in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. Built on a hillside, the campus also boasts a 1-megawatt, ground-mounted solar array, the largest of any American college campus and the largest of its kind in Los Angeles.
Walk the grounds of Occidental at NYLF Explore STEM.
Villanova University
Location: Radnor Township, PA
Established: 1842
Student Population: 10,842
Just 12 miles from the city center of Philadelphia, the Villanova campus is divided into three main parts, Main Campus, with most of the educational and administrative buildings, West Campus, with the law school, junior housing, and much of the sports areas, and South Campus, with the most freshman residence halls, one of the cafeterias, and one of the markets. The tallest structure on campus is St. Thomas of Villanova Church, which features dual spires piercing the sky.
NYLF Explore STEM scholars can experience Villanova. Or, if you’ve already attended NYLF Explore STEM at any location, you can also stay at Villanova during the NYLF Explore STEM Alumni program!
Wake Forest University
Location: Winston-Salem, NC
Established: 1834
Student Population: 8,116
Wake Forest’s main campus is two quads linked together by Reynolda Hall, the main administrative building and dining facility. North Campus is the T.K. Hearn Plaza or “the quad”, which includes many upperclassman residences, the bookstore, and Wait Chapel. South Campus is where Manchester Quad is located, and it contains freshman housing, most classroom buildings, and the library.
Want to see all the quads at Wake Forest? The NYLF Explore STEM Program is held on this campus.
George Mason University
Location: Fairfax, VA
Established: 1949
Student Population: 35,047
Begun as a Northern Virginia branch of the University of Virginia, George Mason University became independent in 1972 and has since turned into the state’s largest four-year public university. A completely landscaped suburban campus with a pond, the grounds are in walking distance of many off-campus amenities and only 20 miles from Washington, DC. Mason has many large, modern buildings to cater to students’ needs, including indoor and outdoor sports’ stadiums, three gyms, an aquatic center, and large dining halls with multiple food stations to meet any dietary needs or desires.
Future game designers at the Envision Game & Technology Academy will get to experience Mason this summer!
The Culinary Institute of America
Location: Hyde Park, NY
Established: 1946
Student Population: 2,918
An open and green campus, the Culinary Institute of America’s Hyde Park location has four active restaurants where students not only dine, but also work to gain real-life experience. There are on-campus gardens that grow some of the herbs and vegetables used in the restaurants’ cuisine, as well as an apiary and a fungiculture location for cultivating mushrooms. The college is equipped with state-of-the-art kitchens and baking centers where students prepare meals for themselves, each other, restaurant guests, and purchasers of baked goods at the Apple Pie Bakery, also located on campus.
Future chefs and restaurateurs stay at the CIA while attending The Culinary Institute of America Culinary Academy, Powered by Envision!
What campus are most excited to visit? What universities have you visited already? Let us know in the comments, we’d love to hear all about them!
*All facts obtained from Wikipedia
