Overview
Bucks County, Pennsylvania, Offers Top Education and the Best of Rural Living Near Philadelphia
In southeastern Pennsylvania, Bucks County sits between the Delaware River on the east, and the world-class city of Philadelphia on the southwest. Delaware Valley College ("DelVal") is located in this beautiful region. The county reaches back through American history, past the Civil and Revolutionary Wars, to its original founding in 1682. Today's Bucks County balances its celebrated past with an enlightened future with vibrant activities and leading-edge services for its more than 620,000 residents. Boasting a range of lively city downtowns and peaceful townships, the Bucks County area of Pennsylvania is noted for signature seasons and bucolic beauty and is also close to the internationally-renowned city of Philadelphia, gateway to the world. This area truly has it all, as locals know and visitors soon discover.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is not just the celebrated birthplace of our nation, with its Liberty Bell and central role in the formation of the country. It is a truly international city and vibrant center of arts, culture, literature, history, education, and award-winning sports at the university and professional level. DelVal students really do enjoy the best of both worlds, as the serene setting of Bucks County makes it a perfect place for focused study and personal growth, while the metropolis to the southwest offers not only additional resources for learning, but phenomenal opportunities to grow as a young adult. From blues and jazz music to dance and theater, from first-rate foreign cuisine to the best cheesesteak sandwiches in the world, Philadelphia is an incredible resource for the DelVal family of students, professors, and staff.
DelVal Excels Across the Board in Arts and Sciences, Agriculture and Animal Studies, and Biosystems Management Programs
DelVal is a premier school in the region for a wide range of education. Undergraduates can opt for associate's degrees in computers, food technology, and management, while bachelor's degrees run the gamut from agricultural and animal studies to a full array of arts and sciences offerings. In addition, the natural resources and biosystems management programs offer specialties for the environmentally motivated students of today with agronomy and environmental science, horticulture, and environmental design. Students who want to apply themselves to fighting hunger and malnutrition in the world can do no better than these curricula, while business-minded young people can study floriculture or landscape contracting and management.
Agricultural and animal studies programs likewise range from zoo science and conservation/wildlife management to such business-centric fields as restaurant and food service management. Students can choose to make a difference in the world in the ways best suited to their abilities and characters, whether it be in research, industry, or academia. Natural resources and biosystems management even overlaps in places with the arts and sciences curriculum, since the biology department comprises botany, environmental biology, and microbiology/biotechnology.
From chemistry, computers, and counseling psychology to English and pre-professional studies in dentistry, medicine, optometry, and veterinary science, the arts and sciences programs are as diverse as the agricultural and animal studies. There is something at DelVal for all students, no matter what their gifts and goals may be. Its setting, its faculty, and its first-rate educational offerings make DelVal a premier destination for students who want to make a difference in the world.
Student Life at DelVal Means Learning In and Out of the Classroom, and Student Organizations Enrich the Student Body
A basic mission for DelVal is to educate the whole person, cultivating the best in each student through rigorous academics, certainly, but also a balanced, healthy student life. The classical ideals of enriching the student in heart and soul, as well as mind, are alive and well at DelVal, and the students themselves take the active lead in their own growth. There are over 50 student organizations and clubs, dedicated to a variety of mental and physical pursuits, in addition to serving others on the campus and in the community.
An active student government oversees a wealth of offerings to the student community, and the Ram Pages student newspaper does a good job of informing students what is happening at DelVal. In addition to the "major-related" clubs such as the Biology Club, Equine Club, and Students in Free Enterprise, there are several professional organizations on campus (Association of Information Technology Professionals and the National Agri-Marketing Association) as well as half a dozen Greek societies. In addition, the service-based Habitat for Humanity and Lions Club student organizations offer opportunities for helping, hands-on style, in the Bucks County region.
From Lacrosse and Chorale to the Rock Climbing Club, interest-related clubs are many and varied. Student organizations also include the practical (Commuter Student Club), the artistic (Drama Club), the fun (Ultimate Frisbee Club), and the farsighted (Wildlife Society). College is meant to be a maturing experience, but not a somber or one-dimensional one, so a student life that is varied and rich is an important goal at DelVal.
