Prescott College

If you are looking for an innovative approach to higher learning, then Prescott College might be the school for you. It is in the Bradshaw Mountain Range, and has a “Mediterranean” climate, which means that the winters are temperate and the summers are warm-to-hot. Prescott College takes advantage of that climate with many outdoor social and learning activities. The college is ranked #75 of Regional Universities –West. It began in 1966 with the goal of establishing the school as the “Harvard of the West,” in the Congregationalist tradition of many prestigious eastern schools. Traditional, however, is not a word that applies to Prescott. You won’t find any fraternities or sororities at the school, nor will you find a mandatory grading system. Most evaluations are done as narrations. The school features collaborative learning, experimental education and student-designed programs that lead to a non-competitive atmosphere. Nearly all your classes at Prescott College will have fewer than 20 students, as the student-to-faculty ratio is 9:1. The most popular major at the school is psychology.

Prescott College Accreditation Details

Prescott College is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, the North Central Association. All programs at the school are accredited by the Association for Experimental Education, located in Boulder, Colorado. Experimental education is characterized by a high level of interaction between faculty and students.

Prescott College Application Requirements

Undergraduate students applying to the school have an August 1st deadline. All materials must be received by that date. You may be designated as an early-deadline applicant if you apply by December 1st of the year prior to admission and agree not to apply to another school. Early-deadline applicants receive priority in registration. Students who score fours or fives on advanced placement can also enroll with four credits per test, up to twenty credits. The school also accepts CLEP and allows military credits for classes and experience gained in the armed forces. The Requirements for undergraduate admission are:

• Applicants must demonstrate that they have been successful students in high school or in previous college experience. This is necessary for effective learning in the Prescott College learning atmosphere.
• They must have good citizenship and involvement in community affairs.
• Applicants must have set goals.
• They must have good communication skills.

All of these requisites are necessary, because Prescott’s admission process is highly individual and not based only on prior scores and grades. The first step to admission is filling out the form that is available online. Applicants must also have one letter of recommendation, transcripts from their high schools or previous colleges and must write a personal essay. Applicants to the graduate program must complete two essays: one about their career aspirations and one about their readiness to enter the graduate program. Transcripts from an undergraduate program are required, too, and you will find other requisite information included in the application to the graduate degree program in psychology that is available online. Transfer students must have successfully completed at least two terms at the previous college.

Tuition and Financial Aid

There are two types of programs at Prescott: resident and limited resident. Limited resident degrees are hybrid programs requiring some campus presence but mainly pursued online. Undergraduate tuition for full-time resident students is $26,088 for two terms, or one year. In addition, there are fees, books and housing costs. The campus housing is $6,800 and the cost of a chosen meal plan. Limited undergraduate residency tuition is $561 per credit. There are other costs such as lodging and meals during required on-campus times. The graduate degree offered is a limited residence degree and tuition is $23,728 along with other fees and costs for two terms. An average of 67 percent of Prescott College students receive needs-based financial aid.

• First, you must fil out a FAFSA form. This free resource gives your estimated family contribution and matches you with all federal aid, such as the Pell Grant, for which you are eligible. Your financial need is based upon the cost of your education less your family contribution.
• Once you know how much your family is expected to contribute toward your college education and which federal aid you will receive, you must apply for scholarships and grants. There is a list of scholarships available to Prescott students on the college website, but a search of financial aid sites can be fruitful as well.
• You should also apply for student loans, both private and state or federally-sponsored. The Prescott website lists several approved sources for these loans.
• If there is still shortfall in your education funding, you can look into work-study programs at your school.

Online Degrees Available

Master of Psychology  - School Counseling Degree

While this school does not offer any completely online degrees, it does allow students to earn a bachelor of arts, bachelor of science and certain master’s and doctoral programs in the limited residency format. This entails a weekend orientation and two colloquia of several days each that require campus presence, but the rest of the program is completed online. That means you can earn your degree while continuing to work full time.

The Master of Psychology, School Counseling Degree, for instance, begins with the orientation during which you become familiar with the Prescott campus, its faculty and peers. The colloquia are times that you can build your relationship with cohort groups, give presentations and listen to talks by professionals in the field. In this program you will study psychopathology, human growth and development and other courses while exploring the idea of holistic treatment. There is a required capstone project, and you will also take two, three-credit supervised practicums and an internship.

Your education at Prescott is unique because it is student-catered from the design of the courses to the availability of the faculty members, who are referred to as your mentors. You will learn to look at traditional methods and theories as being based in industry such as pharmacology and a concept of “normal” versus “abnormal.” Because of the experimental, and experiential nature of the degree programs, your education is tailored to who you are as much as to what you study. If you get your degree at Prescott, your mind will open to endless possibilities that have nothing to do with the traditional views of learning.