Engaged Students

A Mount education happens both in and out of the classroom.

• The Mount sponsors semester-long study abroad programs in Ireland, London, Ecuador, Florence, and Prague, short term sessions in China, Cameroon and Russia, and summer programs in Costa Rica, Spain, France and Austria.

• The Office of Social Justice at Mount St. Mary's University gives students a chance to put social justice education into action. By participating in local, domestic, and international service experiences, students become agents of positive social change.

• Service-Learning integrates experiences outside the classroom with an academic curriculum taught within the classroom. Service-Learning is offered two ways: as a requirement for a particular course, or as an optional fourth credit. The fourth credit is awarded to students who complete a service-learning project in addition to regular course work.

• The Mount offers internships in every field of study - providing students with valuable experience and marketable skills. The Mount in Washington program is a special program specifically designed so that Mount students spend a semester in Washington DC in a credit based internship - building critical thinking, problem solving, oral and written presentation and interview skills that will ensure their success in the future.

Great Teaching

• The Mount believes great teaching involves a personal interaction between student and professor.  With a 14:1 student - faculty ratio and an average class size of 21, students actively engage with faculty in the classroom. Faculty also serve as advisors, meeting with and providing advice to students to about their plans (or confusion) about the future.

• The Veritas program provides all students with a Catholic liberal arts experience. Faculty challenge students to reflect on ideas and perspectives in courses that are integrated throughout a student's four years at the Mount. The new Leadership Institute helps students discover their own leadership skills, preparing them for life after the Mount.

• Independent study, honors and research programs give students other opportunities to work closely with faculty. Students present their work at the annual Scholarship, Performance, Arts, Research, & Creativity (SPARC) Festival as a way of making public their engaged work.  And of course, students in programs such as Education and Business have the opportunity to engage in extensive internships to understand better the relation between their classroom experience and the professional world.  Students who come to the Mount know that they will be engaged by great teachers throughout their four year college career.

Vibrant Community

Mount students often say there isn't enough time to experience all the extracurricular activities offered on and around campus. Between outdoor adventure programs, Division I athletics, intramurals and club sports, Campus Ministry, or one of the other 80+ organizations on campus, there are endless opportunities to get involved. The most successful activities and events at the Mount are all student led.

• Typical on-campus events include comedians, hypnotists, movie premieres, bands, and late night dance parties in 1808, the state of the art nightclub. Along with these weekend events, the Office of Campus Activities plans some of Mount St. Mary's students' favorite traditions, like the annual crab feast, Christmas dance, homecoming, and spring blow out day.

• Athletics play a big part in the Mount community, both at the varsity and intramural levels. Mount St. Mary's has 19 Division I sports teams to cheer for and has won at least one conference championship for the last five years. Participants in the intramural program range from seasoned-athletes to novice players looking for fun.  We offer a range of different intramural leagues (men's, women's and co-rec) and levels of competition (competitive and recreational), so everyone is sure to find an opportunity that suits them best.

• The Mount's outdoor adventures program - CRUX - empowers students to discover more about themselves and each other through hiking, climbing, caving and rafting trips. World class whitewater, pristine wilderness, meandering streams, breathtaking vistas, expansive trail networks and magnificent cliffs are all nearby ready for students to enjoy and appreciate.

• The Center for Campus Ministry is one of the largest student life groups with over 28 clubs and organizations and over 60 student leaders.  Rooted in our Catholic identity and embracing students of all faiths and Christian denominations, Campus Ministry encourages the integration of faith, vocation and leadership in the lives of all students.

Successful Outcomes

Mount graduates are leaders in virtually every facet of American life from politics to sports, business to medicine. And Mount graduates are in high demand - 96 % of the class of 2010 were employed or in graduate school within 6 months of graduation.  But this number doesn't reveal the quality of the Mount experience.

• Teacher education candidates who go to local county schools are appreciated for the breadth of their understanding, their ability to write well, and their abilities to think critically.

• The FBI comes to Mount St. Mary's to actively recruit, and in the most recent year selected 22 students to come work for them.

• Accounting majors are typically hired by the end of the first semester of their senior year at the Mount, since accounting firms know the quality of the Mount accounting program.

• Students in science disciplines go to graduate school or are hired as researchers because they have been well-trained through one-on-one work with excellent scientists.

• Students who major in liberal arts disciplines are praised for their writing, speaking, and problem solving abilities.  A rigorous academic program will help lead students to successful careers, and the Mount's attention to students' lives as spiritual human beings, as persons of character, and as citizens of the world means that students graduate from the Mount as richer, fuller human beings than when they began.

• The Mount's Career Center holds numerous job fairs, resume writing and interview workshops, helping students make the transition from student to employee.