College of the Ozarks Admission
College of the Ozarks Undergraduate Program
College of the Ozarks Application

The Facts

The College of the Ozarks is a unique private Christian school located in the town of Point Lookout, Missouri, and is home to over 1,300 undergraduate students. The college offers its students an amazing deal: if the student works on campus 15 hours per week in addition to working at least two 40 hour weeks during breaks, they don't have to pay tuition. There are many great work opportunities, including positions at the on-campus airport and the Child Development center, among other unique opportunities. There are over thirty majors offered at the college, including some unique ones like animal science and broadcast journalism; some of the most popular choices include business, education, agriculture, computer science, and criminal justice.

Admission to the College of the Ozarks is extremely competitive, as the administration is very picky in terms of admitting students from the Midwest who come from rather modest financial means, and the no-tuition plan is so appealing. Last year, over 2,100 students applied for admission and approximately 300 students were accepted; of those, about 150 matriculated. The admitted students had an average combined SAT score ranging from 1030 to 1210, and an average comprehensive ACT score ranging from 17 to 26. Additionally, over 50% of those admitted were ranked in the top 25% of their high school graduating class with an average high school GPA of around 2.99.

The College of the Ozarks has a student to teacher ratio of 15:1, which isn't great for such a small school. The teachers truly care about their students, but they definitely aren't easy on them. Students are expected to do their work and have it in on time, and there is no tolerance for skipping classes or being late without a truly legitimate reason. The workload is heavy, but most students are quite passionate about their studies.

The Social Scene

The town of Point Lookout doesn't really offer very much besides a few bars, drugstores, and country music venues. There is a grand total of one movie theater, and most students head there to see a movie or two on the weekend. There are no official fraternities or sororities on campus, but most students couldn't be less interested in wild parties--they are usually too busy studying or working to let loose, even on the weekends.

The administration is incredibly strict, and enforces a tight dress and appearance code that governs clothing, hairstyles, piercings, and tattoos. The atmosphere is extremely religious and conservative, to say the least, but most of the students don't mind complying with that standard. Drinking is basically nonexistent on campus, but some “rebellious” students do sneak off campus to get their party on.

The dating scene at Ozarks is chaste to say the least; there isn't a whole lot of diversity, and most people on campus are pretty modest.

What’s Good

“People here have their priorities in order. It's nice not to have any pressure put on you to drink and be crazy.”

“The teachers pay so much attention to you, and they are extremely caring about both your academic and personal life.”

“The dorms are quite nice, and you have plenty of personal space to get a bit of peace and quiet.”

What’s Bad

“The administration is extremely controlling, and basically governs every aspect of your life.”

“A lot of the classes are way too big. Even the upper level classes that are dealing with specific majors tend to be a bit too large for my tastes.”

“The mandatory work schedule is pretty stressful, because you know that if you slip, you won't be able to afford tuition.”

Let the Penn Group help you apply to college.

• View our services
• Send a request now
• Read articles about applying to college