About the Graduate School

Mission and Vision

The Graduate School at Western Carolina University serves to support graduate students and faculty, beginning with the support of prospective students as they explore programs of interest and move through the application process. The central mission of the Graduate School is to provide services and resources to promote an engaged and diverse community of study and to ensure quality graduate education and active scholarship.  The Graduate School will advocate for graduate students, faculty, and programs to benefit the scholarly activities within the university and the region.

 

Activities coordinated by the Graduate School

• Recruitment of prospective students
• Collection and processing of applications
• Coordination of the admission process with academic programs
• Assisting students with academic policy, course registration, and course withdrawal
• Coordination and allocation of graduate scholarships and tuition remissions
• Processing and assignment of graduate assistantships to graduate programs and campus units
• Monitoring academic eligibility
• Coordination of Graduate Student Association
• Processing of graduate faculty applications
• Reviewing theses/disquisitions for formatting
• Working with the Graduate Council to approve new/revised graduate programs, curricula, and policy
  
  

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Strategic Plan

Read our Strategic Plan (2020-2025) 

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Graduate Program Locations

Main Campus - Cullowhee

Western's main campus is located in Cullowhee, North Carolina, in a valley of the southern Appalachian Mountains. Scenic vistas, clear whitewater streams, and dense forests abound in our mountain environment. While the climate is mild, four distinct seasons offer a variety of picturesque scenes at any time of year.

Asheville - Biltmore Park

Western Carolina University operates an instructional site at Biltmore Park Towne Square in Asheville where it offers graduate programs in business, nursing, counseling,  and more. 

 Online Programs 

WCU is home to top-ranked graduate programs in fields ranging from nursing to education to business. We build online learning communities that bring accomplished students together with professors dedicated to their success.

 

 

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Message from the Dean

Thank you for your interest in the Graduate School at Western Carolina University. Graduate study is increasingly important to your career advancement and professional development. The Western Carolina University Graduate School is ready to assist you with your climb to a Masters or Doctoral degree or graduate certificate.

Individuals with graduate degrees provide a highly skilled workforce required to strengthen the region’s global economic position and also play a vital role as citizen leaders. They provide solutions to societal and business issues and help create a higher quality of life through applied science, education, and service. Graduate students inspire, think critically, and solve society’s big problems. Higher-level positions and decision-making powers often go to people who have pursued graduate education.

I hope that the Western Carolina University Graduate School is in your future. Our programs serve to launch successful careers that will positively impact the region, state, and nation. Western has much to offer, such as state-of-the-art facilities in the health services, engineering technology, and business. We also offer many of our degree programs at our contemporary Biltmore Park instructional site in Asheville. The Graduate School also offers many meritorious graduate students with teaching assistantships, stipends, and financial assistance grants.

Western graduate students actively engage in collaborative research with world-class faculty in the quest to develop their own expertise. The graduate faculty includes more than 450 experts from over 43 Masters and Doctoral degree programs. You will share your graduate experience with more than 1700 graduate students in Cullowhee, Asheville, and around the world. I am proud of our students, of their achievements, and of the outstanding graduate faculty who are their mentors.

I hope that you take the time to learn more about graduate education at Western Carolina University on this web site, to visit our campus virtually or in person, and to talk with faculty and graduate students. The Graduate School staff is committed to providing timely, accurate, and professional service to you when you need it most.

Sincerely,

Brian Kloeppel - Dean, Graduate School and Research