Discovery
UNT students have earned more than $1 million in prestigious national scholarships and are among the nation’s Fulbright Scholars, Truman Scholars, Udall Scholars, Rotary Scholars, Goldwater Scholars and James Madison Fellows. In fact, the University frequently has the maximum of four Barry Goldwater Scholars in Math and Science per year. In 2007, UNT was one of only seven universities nationwide to have four Goldwater Scholars.
A commitment to lifelong learning begins in the intellectually rigorous and nurturing environment at the University of North Texas. Every classroom and laboratory experience, field trip and extracurricular activity supports students in their quest to become well-rounded, highly qualified and engaged global citizens as they prepare to graduate and join ranks with more than 170,000 other UNT alumni.
Faculty members design courses with a student focus to ensure students explore firsthand the application of theory. Seminars, lectures and master classes further enrich learning as students, faculty and community members challenge age-old ideas and explore new issues facing the modern world.
Keith Owens, assistant professor of visual arts, is one of the dedicated faculty members at UNT providing a supportive educational experience to students as they prepare for leadership in a changing world.
While absorbing the unique UNT version of a traditional university experience, students may participate in more than 300 organizations that span intercultural, political, professional, religious, service and social interests. In addition, a more than 100-year-old Fine Arts Series brings renowned practitioners of the performing, visual and literary arts to campus to complement the more than 1,000 musical concerts, art exhibitions and dance and theatre productions presented annually by UNT faculty and students.
UNT is a leader in anticipating student needs and providing developmental support. In 2005, UNT opened the Student Money Management Center, one of the nation’s first at a university, and in 2006 it launched Mean Greens, one of the nation’s first campus dining halls dedicated to locally grown, organic healthy food choices. UNT offers assistance in writing and academic development, career placement through internships, a nationally accredited cooperative education program and numerous other programs that support student success.
At UNT, students are surrounded by dedicated faculty and staff members prepared to meet their unique needs as they discover the power of ideas.
93%
93 percent of the 2006-07 graduating class is employed or attending a graduate or professional school.
300
UNT has more than 300 student organizations, including 30 Greek chapters.
1092
UNT’s first-time freshmen for fall 2007 scored an average of 1092 on the SAT, significantly higher than the state average of 999 and the national average of 1017.
1 of 7
UNT was one of seven universities in the nation to earn the annual maximum of four Goldwater Scholars in 2007. Since 1997, UNT has had 35 Goldwater Scholars.
Honors College
Nearly 1,000 students pursuing degrees through UNT’s Honors College are immersed in linked core courses that explore the richness of human knowledge in the tradition of America’s greatest liberal arts programs. Students, many of whom live in the Honors Hall learning community, participate in out-of-class seminars and field trips and conduct research guided by UNT faculty. In Edward Dzialowski’s biology lab, for example, Stephanie Sbong (left) documented respiratory and cardiovascular interactions in chicken embryos as part of a study of organ development, which may help reduce infant mortality. The Eagle Feather, an annual journal, showcases student scholarship. Honors Scholars must complete a thesis or capstone seminar.
TAMS
UNT’s Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science is the nation’s first accelerated residential program for gifted teens who take university courses to complete their first two years of college while earning high school diplomas. Students also work alongside faculty in research laboratories. Four TAMS students became regional finalists in the 2007 Siemens Westinghouse Competition for Math, Science and Technology. UNT had more regional finalists than any other Texas school and the third highest number in the country. One of the Siemens finalists, Vinay Ramasesh, also was named a finalist in the 2008 Intel Science Talent Search. He was one of seven Intel semifinalists from TAMS. In 2007, USA Today named Amelia Lin (left) to its 20-member All-USA first high school academic team and Monica Lu (right) to its second high school academic team. Lin and Lu are May 2007 TAMS graduates.
Exploring Disciplines
In fall 2007, a group of biology and English students and faculty canoed part of the Brazos River in Texas to commemorate the 50th anniversary of a similar trip taken by author John Graves. Goodbye to a River, Graves’ account of his journey, is often cited as a reason numerous dams were never built, preserving the river. The students in David Taylor’s creative nonfiction course and Jim Kennedy’s environmental science and ecology course wrote their own journals and gauged the health of the river by collecting aquatic insects. They prepared a presentation about their trip to show other universities what can be accomplished through interdisciplinary projects.
World Finals
A group of UNT student computer programmers will compete in the 2008 world finals of the Association for Computing Machinery programming contest in Canada. John Rizzo (left), captain of the Knapsackers@UNT and a senior computer science and mathematics major, also was a member of the Texas Codeboys, a UNT programming team that finished fourth in the International Online Programming Contest sponsored by the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur. The Codeboys also competed in the finals of the international Challenge 24 programming contest in Hungary, finishing 14th in 2006 and 19th in 2007. They were the first U.S. team ever to reach the final round.
First-Year Experience
All new UNT students participate in mentoring programs, a virtual community and other initiatives provided by UNT’s First-Year Experience, which connects students to campus resources and plugs them into UNT’s academic and social community so they are more likely to graduate. UNT mentors include returning students, faculty and staff members who are trained to provide guidance and support. Discipline-specific mentors and buddy system mentors from the Multicultural Center also are available to help students with academics, social issues, and interpersonal and leadership skills, as well as cultural awareness.
Winter in Nepal
Miguel Acevedo, Regents Professor of geography and coordinator of UNT’s planned biological and environmental engineering program, introduced eight students to Nepal during the 2007 winter intersession. A collaborative effort between UNT and Kathmandu and Tribhuvan universities, the Human Interactions with the Environment course let students explore firsthand environmental quality, urban development and watershed management, endangered wildlife management, community forest practices and the application of models to the study of grassland and floodplain hydrology.
Service Learning
UNT students learn the value of partnership through community service opportunities that are woven into the classroom experience and campus life. Innovative class projects in 2007, for example, allowed kinesiology students to devote more than 4,000 hours to helping schoolchildren with disabilities practice physical activity, and the College of Public Affairs and Community Service has service learning partnerships with nearly 500 organizations in the Dallas-Fort Worth region. UNT’s Volunteer Center also links those who want to serve with those who need assistance, including off-campus projects that support community needs and on-campus projects such as Beautification Day (left).
Murphy Enterprise Center
UNT’s Murphy Enterprise Center, part of UNT’s top-quality College of Business Administration, gives students an opportunity to put their innovation to the test and earn up to $25,000 to start a business with an annual new venture creation contest. Opened with a $1 million donation from UNT alumni Ken Murphy and the late Shirley Murphy, the center focuses on entrepreneurship and business education programs. UNT’s student-operated investment group provides undergraduates in all majors with the chance to actively manage the stocks of a $290,000 fund that must meet or exceed the expectations of its stakeholders.
National Student Exchange
Since 1996, UNT undergraduates have participated in the National Student Exchange, which allows them to study for up to two semesters at one of more than 190 member colleges and universities in 48 states, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Canada while remaining enrolled at UNT.
In Residence
Marc Cutright, who joined UNT in August to direct the Center for Higher Education as well as teach in the College of Education, lives in West Hall as part of the university’s faculty-in-residence program. The program is designed to connect students’ academic development with their personal development by making faculty members more accessible to students outside of the classroom.