Local Community College Information

The two colleges listed here are both located in Southwest Virginia. Both of these are very good community colleges and offer a great variety of programs from which to choose. The information that follows is for Wytheville Community College and New River Community College.

The first college listed here is Wytheville Community College located in Wytheville Virginia at 1000 E. Main Street. Their phone number is 276-233-4700 and they can be found on the web at www.wcc.vccs.edu.

Wytheville offers certificates or degrees in the following programs:
College Transfer programs.- this program includes first and second year courses in art, science and pre-professional that when successfully completed will transfer to a 4-year college or university.

Career and technical Education programs - this program is designed to meet the increased demands for technicians, para-professional workers and skilled craftsmen for employment in industry, business, the professions and government. These courses are designed for first time job hunters or retraining for persons who must develop new skills for the present job markets.

Developmental Courses - These courses are designed to help students overcome academic deficiencies and build foundations needed to succeed in college.

Cooperative Education Courses - co-op students are employed part-time at work experience sites in positions related to their future career goals. The typical work week is 10 to 25 hours depending upon the number of credits to be earned. Experience learning combined with classroom theory enhances the development and preparation of the co-op/internship students.

Workforce Development program - This program offers employee training services, apprenticeships, and development in manufacturing technology.

Each of these programs offer either certificates, degrees or diplomas in many different areas of study. See the actual website for the many different career path studies offered.

Wytheville also offers a certificate in career studies. These studies are designed for students with career goals that can best be met through short-term programs. The programs included are: Air conditioning and refrigeration, Carpentry, Child Development, Pharmacy Tech and Phlebotomy just to name a few.

Wytheville offers class times and class locations to fit everyone's schedule. They have both day and night classes and some classes are evened offered on the weekends. They, also, offer classes online for the person that doesn't have time to go to an actual classroom.

The VCCS (Virginia Community College System) has established nearly 30 guaranteed administrative agreements with various colleges and universities that allow students to transfer as a junior into a BS degree program at the 4-year institute. A list of these institutions can be found at http://myfuture.vccs.edu/transfer

Financial Aid
Wytheville works with every student to get all possible financial aid. All students need to complete the FAFSA application online and also complete a WCC local application and submit to Wytheville's financial aid office. Check their website for actual grants and loans available.

Wytheville Community College estimates the cost for an in-state student taking 12 credit hours per semester at $10,100 per year. This is broken down as follows:
tuition and fees: $2500.00
Books and supplies: 1200.00
Room and Board 3000.00
Transportation 2400.00
Miscellaneous 1000.00
Costs for out-of-state students is significantly higher.

The second college we will look at is New River Community College located in Dublin Virginia at 5251 College Drive. You can also find them on the web at www.nr.vccs.edu.

New River CC also offers classes at New River Valley Mall in Christiansburg, Virginia. They have 7 classrooms, 4 computer labs, a science lab, 2 auditoriums, 2 testing and conference rooms and office space. They offer classes Monday through Saturday.

New Rvier offers degrees and certificates in many different areas of study. They have Aircraft dispatcher skills set, Banking and Financial fundamentals, Physical Plant Welding technology, Receptionist and Technical Sales Specialist to name a few.

They offer a certificate program in Fire Science Technology and in Technical Office Procedures and Skills. There is also a certificate in Technology Studies. These include Machine Technician, Medical Assistant, Medical Insurance Billing and Coding and a certificate in Paramedics.

Students can also get an Associate of Arts degree in Liberal Studies, or an Associate of Science degree in Computer Science, Corrections, General Business Accounting, Business Management and Business Marketing. New River offers an Associate of Applied Science and an Associate in Applied Science Studies Degree program. See the website for a list of the programs listed under these two degrees as the choices are too numerous to mention in this article.

New River offers what they call Middle College. This is a program that helps high school dropouts ages 18 to 24 become a part of the workforce. Middle College students move through the GED certificate program to a NRCC certificate, diploma or associate degree program.

New River estimates the cost for an in-state student taking 12 credit hours per semester as follows:
Cost for credit hours $81.65/hr = $979.80
Maintenance fee 1.30/hr
Student Activity fee 0.75/hr
Technology fee 4.50/hr 78.60
Semester total $1058.40

This estimate does not include books and any other costs incurred for living, travel and miscellaneous expenses. Out-of-state student costs are significantly higher.

New River offers help to each student in obtaining all the financial aid they are eligible to receive. For information on Financial Aid contact:
New River Community College
P O Box 1127
Dublin, VA 24084
540-674-3615 or 1-866-462-6722 Ext. 3615
email: nrschefj@nr.edu

NRCC is also a part of the VCCS quaranteed administrative agreement with 30 various colleges and universities. These institutions can be found at http://myfuture.vccs.edu/transfer.

I hope that anyone looking for the right community college will find this information helpful. For more information on both of these schools be sure to check them out on the web.

Sources
www.wcc.vccs.edu
www.rv.vccs.edu