Macomb Community College (MCC) Academics and Admissions

Academics

Macomb Community College is a fairly comprehensive community college in a suburban setting, offering a wide range of associate’s degree and career programs, and also providing a means for its many non-traditional students to carry on their studies to earn a bachelor’s degree without having to move off to a four-year institution.

While the college’s main campus is in Warren, Mich., a suburb of Detroit, the college also has about five other campuses offering courses to students, including a University Center that allows Macomb students to work toward four-year degrees in partnership with Wayne University.

A key mission of the college is to help Michigan residents adjust to the new work force demands of Michigan’s economy, which is becoming less reliant on the automobile manufacturing sector, although that sector remains an important part of the Michigan economy.

Macomb Community College offers more than 200 degree and career certificate programs. Career certificate programs give students a credential in a specific employment field they can use to demonstrate to employers they have a recognized skill in this field. Career certificate programs allow workers to quickly gain certification in career fields, allowing them to quickly find a new job if they’ve been displaced from an old one, or increase their value to their current organization.

The most popular degrees at the college are liberal arts, health professions, business marketing and engineering technology.

The college has done a lot of work in expanding its training program for first responders in recent years. In the mid-90s, Macomb Community College opened a Fire and Emergency Services Training Center on a satellite campus. By 2003, the program had grown and a Public Service Institute was opened to provide training for emergency first responders from throughout the U.S.

The college maintains libraries on its main and south campuses, allowing students ample research and study facilities.

Macomb Community College is accredited by the North Central Association of Schools and Colleges. The NCA accredits schools in Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. The NCA also accredits schools in the Navajo nation. More than 1,000 colleges are accredited by the NCA.

Macomb Community College has some impressive rankings. The college ranks among the top two percent of community colleges nationwide for the number of associate degrees awarded each year. In Michigan, the college is the state’s largest associate degree grantor.

The college has worked on a number of local work force development initiatives aimed at improving the struggling economy of Michigan. Recently, Macomb Community College received a $428,000 grant from the New Economy Initiative for Southeast Michigan to develop the defense industry in southern Michigan. The college will work with the U.S. Department of Defense and other stakeholders to see what components of the defense industry would best fit in the area’s economy, and how the work force can be developed to meet the needs of the defense industry. The college is also currently in its second year of a three-year, nearly $5 million grant from the Department of Labor to prepare local residents for jobs in the defense industry.

Most Popular Fields of Study

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Information Summary

Ranks 71st in Michigan and 3034th overall. See the entire top 2,000 colleges and universities list
Overall Score (about)	50.5
Total Cost On-Campus Attendance	$5,015
Admission Success rate	N/A
Student Ratio Students-to-Faculty	30 : 1
Retention (full-time / part-time)	65% / 50%
Enrollment Total (all students)	20,220

Admissions

Macomb Community College has a fairly liberal admissions policy and just about all students who apply are accepted. Students applying to the college should submit high school transcripts and standardized test scores. All new students will take a placement test to determine whether they will need to take remedial courses.

The college has no deadline for applications, however, for consideration for scholarships, students are encouraged to get their applications in before April 15.

Some programs in the college do have a selective admissions process that takes into account things such as college GPA, prerequisite courses, etc. The programs at the college that practice selective admissions are the clinical laboratory technology, health information technology, nuclear medicine technology, nursing, occupational therapy assistant, physical therapist assistant, respiratory therapy, surgical technology and veterinary technician programs.

As of May 2011, the university does not charge an application fee.

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Financial Aid

Students applying to Macomb Community College are eligible for federal grants and student loans. There are also a number of grants and scholarships offered by the state of Michigan, the university and other organizations that students may be eligible for. About $10.5 million in financial aid is awarded to Macomb Community College students each year.

For example, the Tuition Incentive Program pays full tuition for Michigan residents in a community college who were 20 or under at the time of their graduation from high school or a GED program, who are enrolled in an academic degree, academic certificate or transfer program at the college.

The college also offers a number of grants and scholarships funded by private donors. The college has an extensive list of its private scholarships on its website. Academic performance is not the sole criteria for all scholarships, some take many other factors into consideration, including ethnicity, career path, etc.

Students are urged to apply for scholarship aid early, as many scholarships are first come, first served. The college’s office of financial aid also stands ready to help students find other grants and scholarships they may be eligible for. The school’s website, has a helpful list of scholarships that students can use to see which awards they may be eligible for.

Student Financial Aid Details

Ranks 6583rd for the average student loan amount.
Secrets to getting the best scholarships and financial aid in Michigan.

Students

Macomb Community College’s location in the metro Detroit area gives students plenty of opportunities for diversions and additional educational and internship opportunities.

The college has a large student body, giving the campus a four-year university feel because of the sheer number of other students.

Macomb Community College, like most colleges, has a larger number of female students than male students. The college is predominately white, although other races are also represented at the school.

One of the standout programs for students is the Macomb Center for Performing Arts, which hosts a wide variety of theatre and other performing arts shows each year. The center has about 200,000 visitors annually and serves not just the college but the entire community by sponsoring programs for local K-12 students too. The Lorenzo Cultural Center at Macomb Community College also provides a variety of cultural activities for students to participate in. The center hosts many speeches and symposiums each year, including a recent speech by the granddaughter of former U.S. President Dwight David Eisenhower.

There are more than 40 student clubs and organizations on campus, including academic, professional and recreational groups.

The nearby city of Detroit provides many cultural and entertainment opportunities,. Being the home of Motown, Detroit has a rich musical history which it carries forward into the 21st century. Some points of interest Macomb students will likely want to check out include the Detroit Zoo, Greektown, the Detroit Festival of the Arts, and the Electronic Music Festival.

Macomb Community College offers flexible schedules for students, with plenty of night and online courses for students who may have work or family obligations that conflict with a traditional college schedule.

Like most community colleges, Macomb Community College does not have on-campus housing.

Student Enrollment Demographics

Athletics

Macomb Community College has a proud record of athletic achievement, including six national championships, more than 40 regional championships and 65 conference championship titles.

Macomb Community College has several athletic programs for its students to participate in. The college is a member of the NJCAA and the Michigan Community College Athletic Association.

Men’s teams include baseball, basketball, cross country and track. Women’s teams include baskteball, softball, volleyball, track and cross country.

The most recent national championship win for Macomb Community College came in 2001 for the men’s soccer team. The men’s soccer team is perhaps the school’s strongest program, having won many national and conference titles over the past four decades.

Macomb Community College teams are nicknamed the Monarchs. School colors are blue and white.

Sports fans who attend Macomb will never have to worry about a lack of professional games to attend. Detroit is home to four teams representing baseball, football, basketball and hockey.

Traditions

The community college recently kicked off what it hopes to be a new tradition, the Metro Jazz Festival. The event’s inaugural show was held in 2010 and brought noted jazz artists such as Marion Meadows and Nelson Rangel to campus.

The college also has a strong tradition of community service. Veterinary tech students from the college recently volunteered to help spay and neuter about 75 animals for the local humane society.

Additional School Information

Macomb Community College was established in 1953. The college pioneered the Univesity Center model, that is community colleges that partner with four-year institutions to offer bachelor’s degrees. This model is useful for older community college students, who may have job and family responsibilities that do not allow them to transfer to a larger college when they’re done with their associate’s degree.

Macomb Community College has an interesting design quirk in its south campus. The campus has several service tunnels used by faculty and staff. The tunnels are off-limits to students, however.

Bibliography

Gonsher, Debra A., and Joshua Halberstam. The Community College Guide: The Essential Reference from Application to Graduation. Dallas, Tex.: BenBella Books, 2009. Print.

“Macomb Community College – Locations & Hours.” Macomb Community College – Home. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 May 2011. <http://www.macomb.edu/Current+Students/Library/Locations+and+Hours.htm>.

“Macomb Community College reviews.” College Search – College Admissions. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 May 2011. <http://www.cappex.com/colleges/reviews/Macomb-Community-College-170790>.

Macomb Community College