Gourmet food, rock-climbing walls, spacious dorm rooms, an on-campus masseuse — these are just some of the things colleges across the United States are offering their student body.

As Elon becomes more competitive, it is drawing students from across the United States.This year’s freshman class included students from 35 states.

Elon’s well-manicured campus may be part of the draw. In August, the Princeton Review named Elon the nation’s second most beautiful campus.

However, as more and more schools are offering smaller class sizes, professors that are easy to access and learning that goes beyond the classroom, schools must offer more than a guaranteed job after graduation to attract the best and the brightest.

One way schools are staying competitive is by offering amenities.

West Virginia University, for example, has a $34-million, 177,000 square-foot recreation center with a 50-foot climbing wall, two pools, whirlpools, an elevated running/walking track and other facilities, such as a sports cafe that serves healthy snacks.

Mark Meadows, an admissions director at James Madison University, which has a masseuse on campus in its Recreation Center, said he believes that those students are not enrolling in schools only because of such amenities, but they do play a part in recruiting students.

Meadows said one of the reasons why students choose JMU is because the "students are incredibly friendly and lots of fun. They stick around on the weekend and are some of the friendliest people you will meet."

Penny Davis, coordinator of the Welcome Center, said that the close-knit community is another reason students choose Elon.