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High Point University

Julie’s Top 5 Takeaways

  1. Wow, where to start. The vibe on the High Point campus is hard to explain. It is singularly focused on Being Exceptional. There are signs, flags, and banners with this slogan; giant murals both inside and outside with this slogan; street names with this slogan… It is everywhere. But, not only can you see the actual words, you can feel it in the air. The campus is exceptional; pristine, beautiful, classy, lux,.. The campus is 430 acres surrounded by a beautiful brick and wrought iron wall. There are plaza and promenades, courtyards and amphitheaters, botanical gardens and arboretums. There are fountains everywhere: Roman, kugel, spouting, tiered, wall, cascading, waterfall... There are topiary trees: spirals, balls, cones…  There are 23 bronze statues of important societal leaders. And did I mention the classical music being piped out of ornate street lights? Concerto Grosso in F, Op. 6, No.2 to be specific - no need to be impressed, I Shazam-ed it. I felt like I was on Main Street USA at Disney World.

  1. Everyone was exceptionally friendly and approachable.
  1. The President of the campus, Nido Qubein teaches an intro class that all freshman take titled, “The President’s Seminar on Life Skills.” He was filming a podcast when he saw our tour group go by and came to speak to us. He greeted every student, asking where they were from and then stayed and talked and answered questions for 20 minutes. He is an exceptional human being; an immigrant who moved here when he was 17 who now sits on numerous boards of Fortune 500 companies and knows how to inspire those around him to be better than they ever imagined.
  2. I was peeking down a hallway (I'm inherently nosy) when a professor in a room saw me and bustled out to get me. Next thing I know, I’m getting a one-on-one tour of the Sales Learning Lab from Professor and Chair of the Marketing Department, Larry Quinn. We hit it off immediately and I even ended up with a job offer myself.
  3. The security guard at the arched entrance to campus leaned into the car and told us all about his aunt who lives in Maine and how he’s always wanted to visit.
  4. The Admissions Officer assigned to speak to the two of us sat and happily answered questions for 30+ minutes. She joked about their free water bottles being bigger than the free water bottle at Elon and gave us complimentary dining passes when she realized how late it was in the day. The food was exceptional and we even got an ‘extra’ side of gelato. Mine was salted caramel, recommended by the very nice woman running the Butterfly Cafe counter.

  1. Free masters programs. Yes, you heard that right. Undergrad High Point students who continue on for a master’s degree in communication and business leadership can get it tuition-free as long as they live on campus. And, if the dorm I saw is an actual representation of living on campus - sign me up. Dorm spaces are exceptionally large, well appointed, and have free laundry. If you want to kick in an extra $18,000 a year you can live in a tiny house of your very own.

  1. The seating is, well, exceptional. Inside and outside there are spaces to encourage you to sit in groups and chat with friends or tuck yourself away and feel the zen. Outside there are the normal metal benches lining the main thoroughfare but there are also hammock swing seats, carved and polished tree trunks, giant swinging nests filled with plump cushions, and couches with bright pillows. Inside entryways and along hallways there are circular pods, fainting couches, high back wing chairs, seats for one with high ‘walls’ in vibrant colors, seated groupings… It is like the entire campus is begging you to sit and stay for a while.

  1. High Point touts itself as the Premier Life Skills University. What that means is that - yes knowledge is important and yes studying is important but if you don’t know what it means to “dress for success’, how to tie a tie, what is considered taboo when meeting a Lebanese hospital director who may want to buy a MRI machine from you, how to politely and clearly get your ideas across, or which fork to use at a formal business lunch - you won’t make it in today's face-paced, corporate world. High Point wants you to have ALL these skills when you leave them. So, to that end they have numerous opportunities to practice these life skills. There is a wine pairing class for seniors, mock interviews, required headshots, and two (soon to be three) 5-star restaurants on campus that, with a reservation, are free once a week to students. The meals are 4 courses and last 2 hours. Business dress is required and no cell phones are allowed. The menus have varied foods from all around the world so you can find out now, instead of during a business lunch with an important client, if you like escargot and how to eat it without stabbing yourself with the tiny fork or saying something like, “Bring me an order of escargot, but hold the slugs” ~ Orson Bean.

Piet’s Top 5 Takeaways

  1. It took me a couple of days to figure this out.  Here’s how I’m making sense of it. High Point is like an exhibit in EPCOT. Just as Disney World was the culmination of Walt Disney’s vision, so too is High Point the vision of President (since 2005) Nido Qubein brought to life. He is the very embodiment of the American Dream–he arrived from Lebanon as a teenager with $50 and a limited command of English–and started six businesses before he came to the Presidency at High Point. He’s like a little kid that figured out the secret password and just can’t wait to share it with everyone so that they can benefit from it too. The predominant ethos of the billionaire set of late has been buy another yacht, build another rocket, kill Twitter.  We forgot that once upon a time, people like Charlie Cawley turned back around to see who he could help up, so it’s hard to know what to make of Dr. Qubein kicking it old school.  I think that he’s a modern day Rockefeller or Carnegie (mixed with a little bit of Robin Hood), who made their fortune and then built universities and libraries to benefit others. In the process he comes off as a little bit larger than life, but his enthusiasm for making it possible for others to do what he has done is infectious.  Which is why HE teaches the seminar for all first year students (two sections of ~700 kids) and is extraordinarily accessible.  We came upon him filming something in the auditorium and he came out to greet us and spent about 15-20 minutes talking about the school, asking (and using) each student’s name. It’s clear that he is super passionate about preparing kids for a world that doesn’t yet exist (this made me think of Wayne Gretzky, who was small and slow but had a knack for going where the puck wasn’t but where it would be), wanting to equip students with the skills necessary to succeed in the real world. This is what prompted him to create a tuition-free Master’s program in Communications and Business Leadership available to all graduates. I asked him what he considered the most important skill or disposition for a young person to bring to the world and he replied, “Focus.” It doesn’t matter how smart you are if you can’t focus. He is one of the highest paid college presidents in the US but is also High Point’s greatest benefactor.  It’s very clear that High Point is his baby and he has dedicated his life to making it the best that it can be.

  1. High Point takes care of the “little things” that can make or break a graduate’s success, giving every student the opportunity to make their way in the world successfully. High Point teaches skills to all students that were previously only available to tawny bluebloods in secret societies at selective colleges. A Brooks Brothers seminar on how to dress for success (what’s the difference between business and business casual? A HPU student could tell you) Not one but two fine dining establishments (that students can access once a week with a reservation, included with the regular meal plan) so that students learn the ropes of doing business in an informal dining setting. Simulation labs where students take turns role-playing different business scenarios, then watch tape to provide performance feedback. There are 12 articulated advantages to matriculating at High Point:
  1. Student success coaches assigned to every student
  2. President’s first year seminar
  3. Unprecedented connection to innovators (co-founder of Apple, co-founder of Netflix, etc)
  4. Lifeskills learning labs
  5. Accelerated access to research
  6. Guaranteed internship
  7. Guaranteed tuition free global Maymester experience
  8. Guaranteed graduation in four years
  9. Tuition-free Master’s Degree
  10. Instant ROI on HPU degree (98% of students employed or in grad school within 180 days from graduation)
  11. Love where you live
  12. Values based living and learning

  1. High Point strives to serve all students. Students with disabilities can bring their IEP or 504 plan, meet with disability services, and let them take care of the rest.  No need for the student to advocate individually with teachers–that is all taken care of. And yes, you can apply to bring your emotional support animal to campus.

  1. Residence halls are what you would expect. Furnished suites with single rooms. Recreational  opportunities in every hall. And yes, you can bring your car to campus and park for free.

  1. Diversity is observable on the ground. While we were eating lunch (grilled chicken on ciabatta and turkey pesto flatbread, yum)  in the Butterfly Cafe, all manner of students came and went.  The first admissions person that we encountered was a young man of color, and one of the tour guides (though not ours) was BIPOC as well. We finished the tour at the Admissions Office and had a debrief with one of the Admissions reps; our rep was white but there was one person of color among the group.

It is truly one of a kind. If you’re able, come see for yourself! You won’t believe your eyes!

The P.I.E.T. (Postsecondary Introvert-Extrovert Testimony) Report

The Introvert’s POV:

Single rooms. Emotional support animals. Conservatory with Koi pond. SO many nooks and crannies to sit in. Plenty of space for quiet contemplation.

The Extrovert’s POV:

There is a FREE arcade with PacMan, billiards, Mario Bros, air hockey, and gaming rooms you and your friends can reserve. There is a FREE movie theater with free popcorn, candy and soda so you and your pals can have a night out without leaving campus. There are also 6 sorority houses and 6 fraternity houses all in a neat row. 40% of students are involved so it's a quick and easy way to meet people with similar interests. Our tour guide, when introducing herself, took about 5 minutes to tell us all the clubs and activities she is involved in so there are obviously many ways to be involved and engaged.

Campus Photos