School Spotlight: University of South Dakota | Alexa Flash Briefing

There are over 4,000 colleges and universities in the U.S. And while the media tends to focus on just a handful of schools, we at College Coach encourage students to think outside the box during their college selection process and explore a wide range of colleges, including this week’s School Spotlight, the University of South Dakota. Why should you consider the University of South Dakota? Like most public, flagship universities, USD offers students a wide range of academic and extracurricular options. Future doctors, lawyers, teachers, and business professionals flock to USD in large part due to the school’s welcoming community and commitment to individualized attention. Within the university’s 200+ majors, minors, and specializations you’ll find unusual options like addiction studies, human resource management, and medical laboratory science. And with over 120 students clubs, including 18 Division 1 sports and 12 Greek societies, students at USD love to get involved. But given the school’s relatively small size (just over 7,500 undergraduates), it’s easy to connect with your professors and get involved in the honors program, first-year seminars, or undergraduate research opportunities. Parents may be pleased to learn that out-of-state students (which comprise 35 percent of the student body), can expect to pay approximately $22,000 per year for tuition, room, board, books and fees. And if you hail from the neighboring states of Colorado, Iowa, Montana, North Dakota, Nebraska, Wyoming, or Minnesota, you’ll pay $3,000 less than that. It’s an incredible bargain! Fun fact: USD students looking to broaden their global perspectives will find plenty of opportunities to study abroad, including USD faculty-led programs in Italy and New Zealand over spring break and Greece, Spain, and Kenya over the summer!