In a world of small liberal arts colleges and large state universities, it's always great to find those midsize institutions that high school students seem to be so fond of. Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida is just that. With just under 7000 students on a beautiful campus, Nova Southeastern is 15 minutes from the beach and 15 minutes from a major airport, a real plus for out-of-state students who make up half the student population. Important to note: while most universities these days have slightly more women than men, NSU skews a little further than most, at 70% female/30% male.

Housing is not guaranteed, as there's currently a housing shortage on campus, so there is no on-campus housing requirement, but out-of-state students are prioritized. However, here's a tip: Razor's Edge Scholars, a selective program here that combines academics and extracurricular interests, is a residential program that requires students to live on campus for 2 years, effectually guaranteeing housing.

Biology, Psychology and Nursing (which is NOT direct-admit) are the most popular majors, but with graduate programs in Dentistry, Optometry, Audiology, traditional Medicine, Nutrition, Marriage and Family Therapy, Osteopathic Medicine, Public Health, Physician Assistant, Pharmacy, Physical Therapy, and Speech-Language Pathology, there's a real focus here on healthcare education. There are a number of dual admission programs in healthcare and other fields, some of which are accelerated, so your senior year, you're already in medical school, dental school or other professional programs. The president-elect, Harry Moon, is the former CEO of the Cleveland Clinic in Florida, and I don't think that's a coincidence. The university is currently building a new healthcare simulation center to promote interprofessional education among undergraduate and graduate students. The idea is that healthcare professionals must communicate with each other; why not teach them to collaborate while they're still learning?

Students are assigned a dedicated academic coach and career coach for 4 years, and I'm told the average starting salary for graduates is $54K. With an all-in cost of $51K and merit scholarships as high as $35K, that's a nice ROI.