Hello Youniversity TV watchers. We're at Northwest Missouri State University. I'm Lavon [assumed spelling] join me on a tour of Bear Cat country. Let's go. Northwest Missouri State University is in Missouri conveniently located in the middle of three metropolitan regions; Kansas City, Omaha and Des Moines all within a two-hour radius. Northwest is comprised of 370 acres complimented by 315 acres of rural lakefront near Maryville and a 450 acre laboratory farm north of campus. Northwest is known for being green. The campus began using alternative materials like wooded chips and color size paper. Northwest is not only known for saving the environment, but over 12 million dollars has been put back into the university. 

 Northwest going green is not just good for the environment; it saves the student the green that they would pay to go to college here. It helps with our tuition costs. 

 Northwest Missouri is 6,600 students large with a diverse group of men and women who come from more than 30 states and about 30 countries around the world. 

 We have moderate admissions standards here at Northwest so we look at students' ACT scores; we look for a 21 or above ACT; that they've completed the high school core curriculum; in addition then we take a look at their GPA out of high school and their class rank. 

 In-state students can expect to pay approximately $13,000; but out-of-staters will pay about $18,000 in tuition per year. Traditional living and regular meal plans will run you around $6,500. Keep in mind that these fees include the cost of lap top computers, full time student's receipt as well as primary books for undergraduates in the textbook program. 

 In the textbook service this is an awesome opportunity. It's just $5.00 per credit hour so that saves you a lot of money and they package it up for you already. 

 There is a high priority at Northwest Missouri. Top students overcome personal, financial and academic difficulties. So if you think you can't afford an education here, check if you're eligible to receive the American Dream grant. Northwest offers more than 100 undergraduate majors and more than 35 Master's programs. Some favorites among students are biology, business, education, agriculture and mass communications. 

 The unique thing about the Department of Mass Communication at Northwest is that we try very, very hard to make sure that you are hands-on within your first year. We have a hands-on television station and they're able to get in here and work on the cameras and work on the switchers and the editing bay. We also have a student radio station; it's a low [inaudible] student radio station where students can actually put into work the skills that they learned in radio production class. 

 We've actually gone out into the community and done like TV packages for our campus newspaper website. 

 Northwest is highly regarded for its education program, and is a recipient for the Christa McAuliffe award for excellence in teacher education. Northwest Missouri has nearly 250 faculty members who are required to have office hours posted to serve students; and 70% hold the highest degree in their fields. 

 We really have this sense of a family of knowing who our students are; our students call us by our first name primarily because we work on so many projects with them one on one. 

 Professors really truly care about you here. You're not just a number. 

 I love the faculty here; they're really nice. I feel comfortable just going to the office just talking to them. 

 Within the department the faculties are here to teach. This is a teaching institution and everybody who's on the faculty is here because they want to interact with students and they want to do things with students; they want to see students succeed. 

 Northwest competes at the NCAA Division II level and dominates the MIAA conference. The Bearcat football team has won two national championships and three runners' up since 1998. 

 The atmosphere of the Bearcat football game is electric. 

 I love the football games here; they're so much fun; they're always packed. 

 We have 8,000 fans screaming constantly and they call it one of the hardest places to come and [inaudible] football to play. 

 We just [inaudible] throughout the whole time. I go Bearcat, [inaudible] [inaudible] view and stuff like that so the support from the community helps out a lot. 

 Northwest Missouri offers students' freestyle living as well as modified suits and apartments. No matter where you chose to live, all housing will leave you sleeping soundly. 

 I liked it because it's kind of like a circle community around like there's the bathrooms in the center and all the rooms are around and the doors are always open; like I noticed in the first couple of weeks that people just leave their doors open and people just kind of stop by to say hello. I just really liked that everyone was wanting to get to know people. 

 There are more than 170 student organizations offered at Northwest Missouri including residential experiences, campus activities, volunteerism and political groups. There are also a variety of student employment opportunities. Just be part of something--anything. Northwest Missouri State University was the first comprehensive network campus in the nation at a public school. They began their electronic campus program back in 1987 to better prepare our faculty, staff and students for an information-given society. Now all of campus is capable for network computing and every full time student is provided with a very own laptop computer. So if you're looking for a university that is willing to give you all the tools you need as well as hands-on learning, you may have just found your fit at Northwest Missouri State. Thanks for joining me in Maryville, Missouri at Northwest Missouri State University. From Youniversity TV I'm Levon and just remember once a Bearcat, always a Bearcat. See you next time. 

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