SUNY Oneonta

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First-Rate, Flexible Liberal Arts Education at SUNY Oneonta

SUNY Oneonta appears in our ranking of the 50 Great Affordable Colleges in the Northeast.

Ranked the North’s 55th best by the U.S. News & World Report, Oneonta State College is a public, four-year SUNY campus of the Mohawk Valley that offers 42 bachelor’s, eight master’s, and six certificate programs, including seven fully online, at a 13:1 student-teacher ratio. For example, the Childhood Education BS shapes a 126-credit, CAEP-accredited plan under Dr. Jan Bowers for 98 percent NYSTCE certification exam success with Reading Clinic and Oneonta City School District practice. Directed by Dr. Wendy Lascell, the 122-credit Environmental Sustainability BS involves Golding Hall Lab projects, Hudson River field trips, AirTek internships, and Activism Club membership.

Online via Blackboard Collaborate, the Nutrition and Dietetics MS builds a 36-credit, ACEND-accredited curriculum led by Dr. Jennifer Bueche for aspiring Registered Dietitians to mix courses like Population Health with 1,220-hour supervised practica, such as Bassett Medical Center. Chaired by Dr. Gretchen Sorin, the Museum Studies MA splits into two 48-credit, two-year Cooperstown specializations in History or Science for 100 percent job placement at the National Baseball Hall of Fame, Fenimore Art Museum, Edith Warton’s House, Lincoln Park Zoo, and more.

Other Oneonta degrees include the Gerontology BS, Meteorology BS, Music BA, Fashion Textiles BS, Sport Management BS, Africana Studies BA, Lake Management MS, Literacy Education MSEd, and School Counselor MSEd.

About SUNY Oneonta

SUNY Oneonta originated in September 1889 when Principal James M. Milne welcomed an inaugural class of 200 aspiring teachers to Maple Street for the Oneonta Normal School. In 1938, the junior college started its first four-year Bachelor of Education program. In June 1942, it was renamed Oneonta State Teachers College. In 1948, it became a founding member of the State University of New York system. In 1951, President Royal F. Netzer oversaw its transition to the SUNY State University College of Education. In 1958, Wilber Hall became the school’s earliest on-site residence. In August 1963, thirteen liberal arts degrees began admitting upper-division transfers. The next year, SUNY Oneonta was officially born for multi-purpose schooling. In 1968, its 300-acre Biological Field Station on Otsego Lake was acquired in Cooperstown. By 1981, the “Pass Through the Pillars” tradition at graduation was started.

Endowed for $49.1 million, SUNY Oneonta now employs 490 faculty teaching 6,056 Red Dragons from 12 countries online or at the 250-acre Otsego County campus 80 miles west of Albany with 150+ clubs like Lambda Pi Eta. In 2017, O-State received the Insight Into Diversity Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award. In 2018, Oneonta won the AASCU Excellence and Innovation Award for Sustainability Development. Its Harvey Delaney Leadership Institute accepted the 2014 NACA Outstanding Delegation Award too. Forbes named SUNY Oneonta the 144th best public institution. On Niche, O-State boasts America’s 141st best criminal justice, 161st best sociology, and 200th top communications degrees. The Education Trust declared SUNY Oneonta the 11th best for Hispanics. The “College of Distinction” was positioned 249th by Money magazine and 39th by The Economist for value.

SUNY Oneonta Accreditation Details

On June 1, 2018, SUNY Oneonta satisfactorily submitted the Fifth-Year Periodic Review Report to the Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE) Board of Trustees to continue the Level III accreditation status through the 2022-23 under its eighth president, Dr. Barbara Jean Morris, who earned the Center for Public Economics Award. Located 246 miles down Interstate 81 in Philadelphia, this superb six-state Northeast Region accreditor is recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education and New York State Education Department. The Office of Institutional Research also lists the following discipline-specific accreditations:

  • Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business
  • National Association of Schools of Theatre
  • Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation
  • Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics
  • National Association of Schools of Music
  • American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences

SUNY Oneonta Application Requirements

Enrolling at SUNY Oneonta is classified “very selective” by Peterson’s because only 6,607 of the 11,100 Fall 2017 applicants were successful for 60 percent acceptance. First-year Red Dragons must graduate with a New York Regents diploma or another state’s college-prep equivalent. Rigorous AP and IB courses graded 4 or better are strongly preferred. The Class of 2021 had a mean 3.43 GPA or 91 average. The middle 50th percentile scores between 1070-1190 on the SAT. Mid-range ACT composite scores were 21-25. Access to College Excellence cohorts must present at least 880 SAT or 16 ACT marks. Competitive transfers will possess 30+ accredited credits at cumulative GPAs over 2.5. Minimum English proficiency scores of 6.0 IELTS, 3.7 ITEP, and 75 TOEFL are required. Master’s programs seek four-year baccalaureate graduates with overall GPAs of 3.0 and higher. All MSEd tracks mandate New York State teaching licensure and passing Praxis scores.

Oneonta State set a non-binding Early Action deadline of November 15th for freshmen. The Office of Admissions makes undergrad decisions beginning January 1st for Fall and October 1st for Spring enrollment. Filing before March 15th or November 15th is recommended. Graduate programs have varying deadlines. For instance, the Nutrition and Dietetics MS closes on February 15th while the Special Education MST considers cohorts until March 1st. Submit the SUNY or Common Application online with the $50 non-refundable fee. Forward official transcripts to 108 Ravine Parkway in Oneonta, NY 13820. For testing results, select Oneonta’s ACT code 2940 or SAT/GRE code 2542. Supplemental materials may include the resume, art/design portfolio, music audition tape, 500-word autobiography, counselor report, 1-3 recommendations, and financial statement. Contact (607) 436-2524 or [email protected] with questions.

Tuition and Financial Aid

For 2018-19, SUNY Oneonta charged full-time New York State undergrads $6,870 each year. Non-resident bachelor’s tuition was $16,650 annually. Mandatory student fees were $1,551 yearly. Unless waived, health insurance premiums were $1,225. Residing at the Mohawk Valley campus’ dorms like Blodgett Hall added $8,854 for housing. Standard meal plans for Wilsbach Dining Hall were $4,350 extra. O-State budgeted $1,200 for books and $1,000 for personal expenses. Annual undergrad attendance equaled $25,050 in-state and $34,830 out-of-state. Kiplinger’s 96th best public value billed NYS post-grads $11,090 by year. Non-resident master’s tuition was priced $22,650. Fully online out-of-state graduates spent $13,310 annually.

According to the NCES College Navigator, the Financial Aid Office in Netzer Administration Hall Room 123 gets 56 percent of full-time Oneonta State Red Dragons tuition assistance averaging $7,439 each for $23.92 million combined. Institutional funds include the Steven Edelstein Scholarship, John Doherty Scholarship, John & Claudia DeMelis Scholarship, Carol Henning Donovan Scholarship, Peg Crawley & Jean London Scholarship, Percy Bugbee Scholarship for Excellence, Chalmers Means Scholarship, Alphonse Belmont Scholarship, Carey Gabay Scholarship, O’Connor Foundation Scholarship, and Dr. Olga Santora Scholarship. The Presidential Award for Academic Distinction gifts $6,500 yearly to freshmen with minimum 1300 SAT or 28 ACT scores. The Excelsior Scholarship covers full tuition for families making under $125,000 total who’ve lived in New York State 12+ months. Federal programs, including Work-Study and the Teach Grant, require FAFSA applications coded 002847. NYS Tuition Assistance Program forms coded 0930 also unlock a maximum $5,165 in-state award.

Search through 26 accredited departments conferring 50+ degrees placed 403rd overall by Washington Monthly at the SUNY Oneonta website.