Squeezed in among the Santa Monica Mountain foothills, Pepperdine University is a Christian college known for its picturesque location in Malibu, Calif. The school upholds the New Testament-based traditions of the Churches of Christ. Students must attend 14 spiritual events a semester and take at least three religion courses during their time at Pepperdine. There is a Church of Christ on campus, as well as a handful of student-led ministries. Outside of church, the schools sports teams, the Pepperdine Waves, compete in the Division I West Coast Conference. Students can also play club sports, such as lacrosse, tennis and surfing, and a variety of intramural sports, from flag football to volleyball. Freshmen and sophomores must live in university housing on the dry campus, and student spiritual life leaders live in each residence hall. About a third of students are active in more than a dozen sororities and fraternities, though there is no official Greek housing on campus.In addition to its main campus in Malibu, Pepperdine University offers graduate courses at campuses in West Los Angeles, Irvine, Encino and San Jose. The school also has facilities in Germany, England, Italy, Switzerland, Argentina, China and Washington, D.C. Beverly Hills is 24 miles away and Disneyland is 54 miles away from Pepperdines Malibu campus. Los Angeles is about an hours drive away. The school has graduated dozens of top athletes, including baseball player Randy Wolf, golfer Jason Allred, basketball player Alex Acker and beach volleyball Olympic medalist Nicole Sanderson, among its many notable alumni.

Located in Southern Florida, the University of Miami has an ideal location for students who love the outdoors. With popular spots like South Beach, the Florida Keys and Everglades National Park nearby, students have plenty of opportunities for water sports, hiking and sunbathing. Downtown Miami, also near to the school, is a thriving sports and cultural center. On campus, 2,500 students are involved in nearly 30 fraternities and sororities. Students can also choose from more than 290 clubs and organizations to join. Freshmen are required to live on campus and can live in one of the schools five residential colleges. Modeled after the housing setup at Englands Oxford and Cambridge universities, the different communities combine living and learning with communal meals, poetry readings, sports and other activities. Freshmen who don't live in university housing are paired with an on-campus representative through the Commuter Assistant Program to help ease the transition into college. University of Miami Division I sports teams are known as the Hurricanes and compete in the Coastal Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The schools mascot is Sebastian the Ibis, a species of marsh bird that is known for weathering tropical storms.The University of Miami is known as a research institution, and research opportunities begin at the undergraduate level. Annual campus events include the Canes Film Festival, which showcases student-produced movies, and Sportsfest, a weekend of competition between residence hall teams. Undergraduates are also known for upholding school spirit with traditions like the Boat Burning Ceremony held on Lake Osceola during homecoming. Notable alumni of the University of Miami include actor Sylvester Stallone and entertainer Gloria Estefan.