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Ramapo College Profile

Mahwah, New Jersey

The Basics

Ramapo College of New Jersey was established in 1969 and is currently one of the fastest growing public colleges in New Jersey’s public education system, which has approximately 10 schools. Ramapo is unique because it’s one of the largest state campuses within the education system with a physical footprint of 314 acres. The school is located in the northwestern suburban town of Mahwah New Jersey as part of a college for liberal arts and sciences. Ramapo is also unique because it offers students the ability to enjoy a park like setting within an hour from New York City. The footprint of the site is large, but the school itself feels small with students and administrators enjoying the beautiful landscape property within the mountain town of Mahwah, which, is located geographically on the New York State border.

The campus has approximately 54 buildings including lecture, sports, performing arts, and student housing facilities. The issue of student housing on campus is not a challenge for Ramapo due to it’s relatively small student population. The university provides guaranteed housing for undergrad, and graduate students according to school officials. The physical layout of the academic buildings, athletic fields, and residence halls is designed to separate the campus into 3 parts, for easy access to students. The freshmen housing is in close proximity to the lecture halls for easy access to classes.

The internal campus setting provides students and employees with several types of student services including physical fitness, library services, cultural meeting places and dining halls. The university also has a state of the art performing arts pavilion for music, and theatre performances for students and local residents to enjoy. The facility was a gift from the Sharp Corporation, which is located in the town. Ramapo College’s observed focal point of reference during the campus tour was the state of the art athletic facility, which has floor to ceiling glass windows that allows visitors the ability to enjoy scenic views.

The second area for non-educational activities was the student center, which has a dining hall, and a food court called the Atrium for fast meals. My tour guide told me that students come to these areas to workout, relax, and eat fast food in the food court. Students also use this space to socialize and talk about school and life. The facility is small compared other state campuses I have visited but the building was busy during my school observations. The student center houses all the student clubs and campus activities for students to participate in, and to enjoy.

Ramapo Demographics

Ramapo is home to approximately 1718 male, and 2555 female full time undergrad students. The university also has 376 male, and 584 female students attending on a part-time basis. Ramapo also has 60 male, and 245 female graduate students attending the campus. The average age of a freshman is 18 years old; all undergraduates are 23 years old. 92% of students are state residents with the rest coming from 19 other states, and 57 foreign countries. 79% of students are white, 8% are Hispanic, and 6% are African American, and 5.5% are Asian.

Ramapo offers a Liberal Arts and Sciences programs for undergraduate students. Below is a list of specific admission requirements for admission.

Student Housing

The purpose of student housing is to provide safe and reasonable accommodations for students living away from home. The issue of housing and dormitory life is a critical element of overall campus life because students spend a large amount of time in their rooms. Student housing units historically come in 3 different styles including traditional corridor, suite, and apartment style units.

Ramapo guarantees housing for all undergraduate, and graduate students who have filed their intent to reside on campus by the stated deadline and who have continuously registered as full time students. The university has also developed beautiful new housing units that blend into the college’s natural landscape with state of the art amenities for students to enjoy including mini kitchens and suite style common rooms.

Off Campus Housing

The Township of Mahwah has been described as a small suburban community within driving, and commuter distance to New York City. The reason I have mentioned the overall community is to re-assert the point that the college is situated in a suburban setting with a high number of homes that are privately owned. The school does provide off campus housing resources for students who request help. Information about services can be found on the quick links page.

Campus Life

Ramapo College is an active public university campus environment that provides students with an outstanding social, and educational atmosphere. The admissions demographics paint a picture of a local educational community with a high number of in state residents on campus as full time students. The local community of Mahwah is a short distance away from the school by car and is very supportive of the schools mission to provide educational opportunities to local residents and on-campus students.

The emotional climate and culture of the entire community is social due to it’s close relationship with community, and educational resources in my opinion. Ramapo is an attractive institution because it offers students natural beauty with the mountains of western New Jersey, while providing student activities for everyone including cultural, athletics, and performing arts to enjoy throughout the year. This issue of school culture is also a very important part of campus life because everyone wants to have a connection and emotional fit to their new school and community. The school does have it’s share of suite case students but, the new residence halls have made more students stay on campus.

Ramapo also addresses the issue of ecology in a positive way. The physical environment is reasonably clean and well maintained and the economic conditions are favorable to students and local residents due to the available services in driving distance to the school. The university is also going through a growth period with construction of new state of the art student housing facilities that provide scenic views of the entire campus footprint. The development of a state of the art athletic center also helps students connect with each other in non-classroom environments by providing a central meeting place for recreational clubs and student run activities.

This issue of school culture is also a very important part of campus life because everyone wants to have a connection and emotional fit to their new school and community. NJIT has done a great job developing positive social systems with it’s students by providing a series of coordinated programs including workshops and seminars for freshman students. This type of process provides a foundation for learning and personal growth by providing numerous academic clubs, student organizations, and sports activities for students to interact with each other. Ramapo is also home to a substantial Greek population with 12% of students belonging to 9 national fraternities and 10 national sororities. Ramapo participates in 22 NCAA Division III Varsity Sports for Men, and Women. The campus student handbook identifies 13 intramural sports including bowling.

Public Transportation

Public transportation resources for Ramapo students are limited due to the location of the campus. Students who attend the university usually drive to campus because parking is readily available and public transportation is limited. Another issue for public transportation is the students themselves. The university has a very large number of in-state students who know the streets and highways very well. Knowing the area is key because students who come from other states may not know the area as well and might opt to take a bus or train to their destination because they don’t want to risk getting lost on local roads. Ramapo does provide a campus shuttle system within the campus and nearby roads for students. In formation about the service can be found on the quick links page.

The public transportation for the college is served by The New Jersey Transit’s Bergen County Line, and Short Line bus line, which serves the residents of Mahwah. This specific line connects with several other transit lines within the overall system including the Northeast Corridor. Public transportation resources are directly linked to local resident commuter schedules for bus and train service, students should pick NJ Transit handouts or service information. New Jersey Transit Info: www.njtransit.com/ & www.shortlinebus.com

Community Profile

Mahwah New Jersey is a suburban mountain town of approximately 27 square miles with 24,062 residents in the northwestern county of Bergen. The town has been described as a gracious family centered residential community within striking distance to New York City. Mahwah also has an intellectual side due to its historical colonial architecture. The community has a real small town feel to it when you are walking, and driving to neighborhood eateries. The township also has several community parks and ball fields in and a round the community for people to enjoy. These parks, along with public tennis courts, swimming pools, outdoor skating rinks, and theatres make out activities very enjoyable to everyone.

The town itself is located within a short distance to the school, which makes the area a student friendly destination throughout the year. New Jersey Transit also provides commuter rail service to local residents in the area with the Bergen County Line”. This rail corridor links to New York City, Newark Airport, and N.J. Penn Station for Amtrack northeast rail service. The main airport to Ramapo College is Newark International airport, which is also connected to N.J. Transit rail service. Mahwah Township also has several local highways that links students and residents to a large number of restaurants and shops within the nearby town of Ramsey on Route 17. Residents also have numerous shopping, and dining options on Route 287, which is a 10-minute drive from the campus.

Community demographics

The following demographics for Mahwah New Jersey describe a culturally diverse community within a total population of 24,062 according to the U.S. Census Bureau. The survey highlights several characteristics to describe the population including: 11,435 residents are male, 12,627 are female. 88% of residents are white, 2% are African American, 4% are Hispanic or Latino, and 6% are Asian. The median age of population is 37 years old. 77.8% of residents are 18 years old, 72 of residents are over 21 and 10.7 % of town residents is over the age of 65. The issue of housing in Mahwah is also interesting. 97.5 % of all housing units within the town are occupied.15 % of housing units is renter-occupied, while 84 % of units are owner-occupied. Only 2.4 % of total available housing was vacant according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Local weather

Weather is also an issue to consider for students preparing for a college experience. New Jersey enjoys all four seasons of weather including rain and snow. Northeast weather patterns sometimes allow for temperatures to drop below 32 degrees for a considerable amount of time during the winter. New Jersey also gets it’s share of rain during the spring and summer months as well.

Ramapo College of New Jersey Local Hotel Quick Links

Holiday Inn Suffern
3 Executive Blvd
Suffern N.Y. 10901
Doubletree Hotel Mahwah
180 Route 17 South
Mahwah N.J. 07430
Courtyard by Marriott
140 Route 17 South
Mahwah N.J. 07430
Sheraton Hotel Mahwah
1 International Blvd
Mahwah N.J. 07495
Comfort Suites Mahwah
220 Route 17 South
Mahwah N.J. 07430
Homewood Suites Mahwah
375 Corporate Drive
Mahwah N.J. 07430

Below is a sample list of local restaurants in Mahwah & Ramsey N.J. National restaurant chains & shopping resources can be found on Route 17 around this major highway.

The Your College Profile web site also contains an “Everything in New York City” document for families who wish to explore the NYC while visiting Ramapo College. This site contains a full list of hotels, restaurants, shopping, and entertainment, and tourism resources for families enjoying the region.

Ramapo College Quick Links

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