City: Myrtle Beach, SC

Category: Education

Telephone: (843) 347-3161

Description: Coastal Carolina is a comprehensive liberal arts institution offering baccalaureate degrees in more than 30 major fields of study as well as master’s degrees in education. The university is committed to excellence in teaching, research, and public service. Covering more than 300 wooded acres just minutes from the Atlantic Ocean and the resort area of Myrtle Beach, the Coastal Carolina campus is home to more than 8,049 students from South Carolina and 44 other states as well as 32 foreign countries. A Coastal Carolina education offers a hands-on, personal educational experience. Approximately 240 faculty members bring impressive credentials from universities throughout the nation. Select faculty have been awarded Fulbright grants for research projects and study in such countries as New Zealand, Kenya, Colombia, Poland, and China. In addition, students can interact with worldwide experts on a variety of topical issues through the advanced technologies of long-distance education and online computer services.Coastal Carolina’s academic programs often are supplemented with field experiences and “real world” applications. Students have the chance to participate in faculty-led travel to a pristine barrier island on the South Carolina coast, the Grand Canyon, archaeological digs in surrounding historical settings, Fortune 500 companies, the marbled chambers of the U.S. Supreme Court, Oxford University, and East Africa. Coastal’s many international partnerships make it possible for students to study in places such as Australia, Costa Rica, England, Ecuador, the Galapagos Islands, Germany, India, Japan, Russia, and Spain.The university boasts many accreditations, including AACSB (the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business) International, the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), the South Carolina State Board of Education, and the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). Coastal is also an accredited institutional member of the National Association of Schools of Art and Design (NASAD). The university’s four applied-research centers help students realize the practical applications of classroom theory and the importance of university-community relations.University programs that serve the community include continuing education; Lifelong Learning, an academic program for those age 50 and older (see the Senior Scene chapter); and cultural events including live arts performances.Coastal Carolina athletes participate in NCAA Division I, with 17 varsity teams competing in the Big South Conference.Coastal Carolina is accredited by the Commission of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award the baccalaureate degree and the master’s degree in education.In 1954, when a group of concerned citizens met in the Horry County Memorial Library to discuss the creation of a local college, the foundation was laid for Coastal Carolina to provide quality education for its students. For more than 50 years, the university has been building a tradition of excellence. In 1994 it broke from the University of South Carolina system in a major political battle over endowments; it seems that Coastal officials felt that they were at the bottom of the priorities list for fund-raising expenditures. Since the split, Coastal Carolina has begun major expansion, and the Golf Course Management program has come to be recognized as one of the nation’s finest.