Western Carolina University is a beautiful college nestled in the Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina. Perhaps you are beginning your college search, narrowing your options or considering transferring. If so, this article is for you. I hope this list will help you understand the town of Cullowhee that 10,000 WCU students call home. It’s a great place to live and go to school. But it is possible that it’s not the place for you. If that’s the case, you can relate to these points.
1. You don’t like being surrounded by mountains.
It may be possible that instead of lifting your spirits, walking around campus every day and seeing the mountains or having a great view from your dorm room window may actually make you sad. You may not want to experience beautiful fall colors or bright green summer trees, but that’s okay.
2. You want to live in a big city.
Some people want the big city life. That’s fine, but if that’s the case, then Cullowhee is not the place for you. We are proud of our one street downtown, and our town is proud of us. We live in a very typical college town, including signs up and down the main road and parades just for WCU. We find ways to have fun without the big city life.
3. You don’t like walking across campus and seeing people you know.
If you want to go to a school where you are surrounded by strangers every day and struggle to find your friend’s whereabouts, then look elsewhere. However, if you want to go to a smaller school where you see your friends everyday on the walk to class or you know they’re always by the café or fountain, then consider yourself a Catamount.
4. Speaking of walking on campus… you want a long walk to class.
If you’re looking for a walk to class that will keep you completely winded from walking two miles or climbing mountains, then don’t look here. Almost all of the academic buildings are located in one place and an easy 10-minute maximum walk from the dorms.
5. You don’t want to live close to the Blue Ridge Parkway or the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
With the parkway only 20 minutes away, an afternoon drive or hike is a must, and it’s very doable. During a stressful week, a trip to either one of these is a great break. But, I mean, some people aren’t into that kind of thing.
6. You are one of the people that think there is nothing to do here.
If you come here and think there is nothing to do, that’s okay. You will never know the creative ways we find to have lots of fun with our friends every weekend. You can take one look at this school and sell it short, but you will certainly miss out on all of the fun.
7. You don’t enjoy beautiful snow days with your friends.
Snow days around here come enough to give us a fun break from classes, but not too much that we are tired of constantly trekking through the snow everyday to class.
8. You don’t like to watch sunsets or sunrises, or you don’t like star gazing
If you want to go to a school so saturated by lights that you can’t get away to take in the beauty of more stars than you could ever imagine, WCU isn’t for you. If you think that sunrises and sunsets from mountain tops aren’t the most breathtaking things you will ever see, then you are truly missing out on a wonder.
9. You don’t like day trips to Asheville.
Being less than an hour from Asheville, day trips full of finding new coffee shops or eclectic stores are a must. Plus, you can always get your Target fix with just a quick drive.
10. You don’t want to meet some of the best people you will meet in your life.
Western is full of wonderful people, some of the best friends I’ve ever made. I couldn’t imagine living with anyone else or doing life beside any other people at any other school. These people are always up for chasing an adventure, going on a road trip, or chilling with a movie and popcorn at your apartment.
11. You don’t want to go to the best university in the country.
So maybe there’s some bias in that statement, but the people who call WCU home will all agree. Not only are we the top adventure college, but we have tons of programs that are top notch. If you truly give Western a chance, you’ll find that the small town, the rain, the not so exciting sports program, and all the other things that people may say make WCU not the best place won’t make you any less proud to call yourself a Catamount.
