SUMMARY
Clemson University is a highly respected academic institution located in the Upstate region among the foothills of South Carolina. Highly competitive in academics and sports – Clemson graduates go on to do work and research for a number of national and international companies located in the area.
ARTICLE
Founded in 1889, Clemson University is located just outside of the greater Greenville area of South Carolina, along the shores of Lake Hartwell. With more than 17,000 students from every state of the nation and a number of countries – the university is a popular and selective public university offering degrees across a wide variety of disciplines.
Along with its rich academic tradition – Clemson also has 19 varsity men’s and women’s sports teams. The teams compete in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) of the NCAA Division I. The school’s mascot is the Clemson Tigers. The school’s teams have won 4 national championships – 1 in football in 1981, 2 in soccer in 1984 and 1987, and 1 in men’s golf in 2003.
Well known for its beautiful campus located in the foothills of the Upstate region of South Carolina – Clemson University provides a fantastic setting for students to pursue their studies. With plenty of outdoor activities like Lake Hartwell and other natural areas in the area – students enjoy plenty of hiking and recreation when not studying. Besides the beautiful natural resources, Clemson is also a short drive from the city of Greenville, SC as well as less than 2 hours from Atlanta, Georgia and Charlotte, North Carolina. Many employers located in these cities seek out Clemson graduates to fill their work force.
Clemson University is a highly competitive school. In 2008, they received over 15,000 applications for admission into their freshman class of approximately 2,800 students. Of those, about 10,000 applications were from outside of South Carolina. The incoming freshman class has an average SAT score of 1200 and a weighted high school GPA of 3.99.
Besides the 14,000 undergraduate students, the university is also home to more than 3,000 students pursuing post-graduate degrees. In recent years the university has sought to increase their masters and PhD programs to increase their overall post-graduate enrollment. Along with its competitive degree programs, Clemson University has also recently established an ambitious automotive research facility in nearby Greenville, SC. This facility is named the Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research or ICAR. ICAR is a 250 acre campus in Greenville that offers advanced degree programs in automotive engineering and other automotive related fields. Support and cooperation from international companies like BMW, IBM, and Microsoft provide students with fantastic opportunities in these areas.
Not only is Clemson University one of South Carolina’s most respected universities, but it is respected on the national level as well. Students travel from all over the world for the opportunity to study in the Upstate region at this university, and many of them stay in the region to work for one of the many companies based in the region. Clemson is helping to develop a highly educated work force in the Upstate region and helping to attract more and more companies to the area.
Updated January, 2010