Emmitsburg, MD: During my college search, I have visited several institutions, one of which was Mount Saint Mary's University. The Mount, as its 2,000 students call it (1,600 of whom are undergrads), is located near the Maryland-Pennsylvania border. True, this is really in the middle of nowhere, but the minute I stepped onto the 1,200-acre campus, I was overwhelmed by a certain and strong sense of community.

All the students I encountered at the Mount seemed to know everyone else (63% of undergrads come from Maryland, 34% from other Mid-Atlantic states). Everyone seemed really happy to be attending the school, which is no surprise since 90% of freshmen listed Mount Saint Mary's as their first or second choice for college.

The buildings are beautiful, the dorms are decent, and the gym/recreation center, home to 18 NCAA Division I varsity sports, is amazing with several full-length basketball courts, squash courts, a pool, and an arena for games. There are more than 40 majors, minors, concentrations and special programs to choose from. This year's cost to attend is $22,000.

Although it may be in the middle of no-where, the Mount is a community unto itself. The students seem to enjoy themselves even with the lack of a metropolitan area, keeping busy with the more than 50 clubs.

The Mount is a Catholic school, which according to its web site makes it "an enterprise wholly committed to evangelical ministry," but I think it is a great choice to add to your college search even if you're not interested in Catholic schools since it didn't seem that Catholic.

Reviewed in 2004