So, you're thinking about attending a college or university in North Dakota?

A Midwestern state of the U.S., North Dakota is the northernmost of the Great Plains states. Formerly considered a part of the Wild West, today it boasts the third largest man-made lake in the nation, called Lake Sakakawea. North Dakota is bordered by Canada in the north, Minnesota in the east, South Dakota in the south, and Montana in the west.

As to be expected of a Great Plains state, the landscape of North Dakota is relatively flat. The west is composed of the hilly Great Plains and a part of the Badlands areas. In Central North Dakota, the Drift Prairie and Missouri Plateau regions provide an area covered in lakes, stream valleys, and rolling hills. To the east lies Red River Valley. This flat area has rich farmland and, thus, is dotted by farms and small towns.

Being far away from any major bodies of water, North Dakota has generally extreme weather. The climate of the state runs the gambit from sweltering heat and humidity in the summers to bitter cold in the winters. In the summers, the state averages 20-40 days of thunderstorm activity a year. These thunderstorms can be very strong, often causing hail and, occasionally, tornadoes. In the winter, the weather is cold and dry, with occasional snow flurries. When blizzards occur, they happen during the late fall or early spring, usually. Spring can bring its own problems as well. Flooding is a fairly common event in the Red River Valley area.

As of the 2005 census, North Dakota had an estimated population of 636,677. This makes North Dakota 48th out of the 50 states in terms of population. This is due in part to a substantial number of people leaving the state, especially younger people with university degrees. Of the approximately 636,677 residents of North Dakota, about 6.1% of them have been reported as under 5 years old, 25% were under 18, while 14.7% were 65 or older.

The political leanings of North Dakota residents is fairly unclear. The Republican Party holds large majorities in the state legislature and, since 1964, no Democratic presidential candidate has won the states electoral college delegation. In fact, during the 2004 presidential election, George W. Bush won the state with 62.9% of the vote. On the other side of the fence, however, the Democratic Party has won North Dakota's federal Senate and Congressional seats in every election since 1986.

86% of the people living in North Dakota identify themselves as Christian. Of these 52% follow one of the various Protestant belief systems while 30% are Roman Catholic, 1% are Mormon, and 2% hold other Christian affiliations. With only 3% of North Dakota residents saying they are non-religious, the state actually has the lowest percentage of non-religious people out of any other U.S. state.

In North Dakota, state income taxes are based on five separate tax brackets. These range in rates from 2.1% to 5.54%. The sales tax in North Dakota is presently set at 5%. Local authorities, however, are allowed to levy additional sales and use taxes. These added rates usually range from 1-3%.

Several colleges and universities lie within the state of North Dakota. These schools include:

• North Dakota State University

• The University of North Dakota

• Jamestown College

• The North Dakota State College of Science

To find more information about universities and colleges in this area, visit the Online College Degrees page on this website.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "North Dakota".

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