Why LaGuardia?

Recent LaGuardia Honors, Recognition and Accolades

Click here for profiles of LaGuardia students and graduates.

*Named a Best Practice College by the MetLife Foundation. A total of 9 colleges were honored. (2004)

*Named one of the two national winners of the Theodore M. Hesburgh Certificate of Excellence. This honor recognizes innovative college faculty training programs. (2004)

*Cited for excellence in our E-portfolio project by the Carnegie Foundation and the Association of American Colleges and Universities. (2004)
 
*Named 1 of the Top 3 large community colleges in the U.S. by the Community College Survey of Student Engagement (2003).

*Named an Institution of Excellence by the Policy Center on the First Year of College. A total of 13 colleges nationwide honoredonly 2 community colleges. (2003)

Location
Western Queens. 10 minutes by subway from Times Square and just minutes from Brooklyn. Long Island City is quickly becoming a center of the New York City arts scene. Queens is the most rapidly growing borough of New York City, as well as its most ethnically diverse borough, which makes it the ideal place to learn about business, science & technology, health & human services and the arts.

Academics
31 Majors, 3 Certificates plus an Honors Program for highly motivated students. In 2003, LaGuardia was 1 of 13 colleges nationally to be chosen by the Policy Center on the First College Year as an Institution of Excellence, along side West Point, Purdue University in Indiana and Texas A&M. Only 2 community colleges received this honor. We also have student exchange and transfer programs with Columbia University, Barnard and Vassar Colleges.

Students
Annual enrollment is approx. 13,000 students. LaGuardia students come from the United States and more than 160 countries. Our students have high educational goals: 34% plan on earning a Bachelors degree; an additional 45% plan on earning a Masters degree. Most students have part-time or fulltime jobs during at least part of their matriculation.

Tuition
As part of the City University of New York, LaGuardia has the lowest college tuition in New York City. Our graduates often transfer LaGuardia course credits to more expensive 4-year colleges where they can earn their Bachelors Degree 2 years later.

Faculty
231 fulltime professors. 45% of LaGuardia faculty have a doctorate or first professional degree, compared to 20% of community college faculty nationally. LaGuardia received the highest level of re-accreditation for the Middle States Commission on Higher Education in June 2002 until April 2012.

Campus
4 buildings, over 1.5 million square feet, which includes over 100,000 square feet of laboratories, a 750 seat theater, 6-lane NCAA regulation size swimming pool, fitness center, sports gymnasium, tennis court and the Archives of New York Mayors LaGuardia, Wagner, Beam, Koch and the New York City Council.

Financial Aid
50% of our student body is awarded Financial Aid.

Honor Society
Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society

Post-Graduation Plans
52% of our graduates transfer directly to a 4-year college, a rate that is higher than the national average. 55% are in the workforce; some graduates work while also continuing their education.

Articulation Agreements
LaGuardia has articulation agreements with over 32 public and private 4-year colleges and universities. These automatically guarantee acceptance of LaGuardia credits when students transfer to 4-year colleges after earning their Associates Degree at LaGuardia.

Entrance Requirements
High School Degree or GED. The S.A.T. is not required but a satisfactory score can exempt a student from certain placement tests.

Cooperative Education
4000 students placed in internships annually.

Business Development
In its first 3 years of business, our Small Business Development Center (SBDC) obtained a total of $11 Million in loans for more than 1000 local NYC businesses. LaGuardias NYDESIGNS, a brand new incubator for local entrepreneurs in the design industry (i.e. home furnishing, gift, architectural businesses), provides counseling, seminars, rental equipment and space to help these young businesses grow. Our faculty and students will participate in the support of these young companies as well as learn about the new techniques, processes and design technologies that these companies develop and utilize. The LaGuardia Center for Corporate Education provides workforce training to NYC businesses of all sizes.

Adult & Continuing Education
Annual enrollment is 34,000 students. These non-credit courses are geared to personal and professional development, educational preparation, leisure pursuits and programs for special populations including children, youth, deaf adults, visually impaired adults, veterans, unemployed and under-employed, homeless heads of households and non-English speaking adults. Classes are offered 6 days and evenings a week.

Pre-College Programs
LaGuardia believes that education should be on a lifelong continuum. We have 3 high schools on our campus and offer several programs for high school and middle school students in the Queens community.

Background
Founded in 1971 as part of the City University of New York, LaGuardia Community College is nationally acclaimed for its commitment in preparing students to become full participants in the economic and civic life of the city, nation and world, via its tradition of academic excellence and innovative real world applications of classroom learning.

How We Compare to Other Community Colleges

LaGuardia has:

• the 3rd largest graduating class of Business majors in the country.
• the largest graduating class of Health Sciences majors in New York City
• the 2nd largest graduating class of Computer & Information Systems majors in New York City
• the largest graduating class of Latinos in New York City
• the 2nd largest graduating class of minorities in New York City
• the 3rd largest graduating class of Asians in New York City
• the 4th largest graduating class of African-Americans in New York City

Source: Community College Weeks analysis of U.S. Department of Education statistics, June 23, 2003