University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill

UNC-Chapel Hill (visited 3/26/24)

A painting of The Well (part of our tour was on a bus and I couldn’t get a good shot of this in person as we went by!)

The Old Well (the icon that shows up on all the school’s logos) sits in the middle of campus and is the location of one of the students’ best-loved traditions. According to the students we talked to, “We drink at the beginning of the semester for good luck in our classes.”

“I’m impressed with the community. We house half of undergrads on campus; a lot of flagships can’t do that. [FYI – 40% of juniors and 15% of seniors live on campus]. Chapel Hill is a special place. We look at applicants for the type of person they are: they want to engage with each other, and they’re more cooperative and collaborative than competitive. There’s a lot of commitment to building community which makes the passion extend beyond the 4 years.”

Chapel Hill is located in a great area right in the center part of the state. “We’re equidistant to mountains, beaches, and Charlotte! The Triangle has social, cultural, academic opportunities.”

The Quad

“We’re proudly a public institution. It drives the mission.” North Carolina requires that the state institutions (with a few exceptions) enroll at least 82% of their student body from NC – and due to Chapel Hill’s increased popularity, it’s increasingly difficult for non-NC residents to be admitted. In 2023, they received 69K applications, 51K of which were from out-of-state. “This is about a 15% uptick since last year,” said one of the admissions staff members. About 5% of their population are international students which counts as part of the out-of-state numbers. All told, their admit rate for non-NC residents is about 6%.

The Pit is the central hub of student activity: the union, the largest library, a dining hall.

“Yield is up slightly. Regular Decision became more competitive; we used to be able to say that it didn’t much matter when they applied, but we’re changing our messaging. We now tend to see the strongest applicants in EA.” Last year, they got 44K applications in EA – and the deadline is 10/15: “It HAS to be that early or we couldn’t get the answers back out.” They don’t read by territory; instead, the apps “are sort of randomly split up.” About 50% of in-state and 30% of out-of-state apps go to a 2^nd read before going to committee.

They pull kids from every county in NC – but because the school is so heavily populated with in-state students, some students think there are a lot of cliques. “Lots of students know each other already.” One said that this can make it a little weird, but usually works itself out. “There’s a lot of passion and camaraderie; people find their people quickly here.” One of the Deans said, “We know that they’re going through their transition. Even if they think they’re ok, at some point they won’t be ok and will need some support. There’s a lot in place for people to find their communities whether that’s through interests, faith, etc.”

During lunch, we had a chance to talk to a variety of people about the recent SCOTUS decision (that doesn’t allow the schools to consider race in the admissions process). “We took it as an opportunity to lean into our mission. We’re serving the state and beyond, service to community, making it the best it could be. We’re more than an admissions office. It’s a spectrum of services to the students.” However, some students feel like campus is “really white” and could use more diversity.

Chapel Hill has 12 undergraduate schools (and 3 more at the graduate level), but all first-years start in the School of Arts & Sciences. They won’t look at majors during the admission process. “We know that students change their mind.”

The main library

• Some students are brought in to a few assurance programs (like PharmD); this is helpful so students know they’ll get into certain programs, but they still start in A&S.
• Several (pre-)professional programs require a secondary application that students complete after finishing the pre-reqs. These spots are not guaranteed and can be competitive! If students are really sold on doing one of these areas, it would be good to look for a school that provides a direct-entry or guaranteed spot.
  • Journalism
  • Business (Students can still major in Econ if they don’t get into Business)
  • Nursing
  • Education
  • Computer Science

The Ideas in Action Gen Ed Curriculum encourages students to try things across the curriculum. They’ve a revamped core curriculum which “can look complicated on the front end, but it works out.” The point of their Gen Eds is to broaden ideas and support next generation of leaders. First Year foundations includes an English class, a Triple-I class (Ideas, Information, and Inquiry) taught by 3 different professors, and Global Language. There are 9 Focus Capacity Areas (different thematic spaces with different outcomes and competencies) like Engagement with Human Past. “Hundreds of classes fulfill these, and students can use AP credits to fulfill up to 5. Dual Enrollment can fill more than that.”

They offer a few unusual majors such as City & Regional Planning, Statistics & Operations Research, Microbiology & Immunology, and Pathology & Laboratory Medicine. Starting in Fall 2024, they’re going to offer a major in Applied Sciences with tracks (at least to start) in Material Sciences and Environmental Engineering. “We’re still figuring out what this is going to look like for students, internships, and jobs. It may be a pathway to engineering down the road.”

Selection for the Honors College is a comprehensive review in admissions in partnership with the program. They’re looking for a balance of students: in and out of state, etc. Students need the academic piece, obviously, but they looking for students with a curiosity of many subjects and interested in interdisciplinary experiences. “If they’re super focused in one particular area, they probably won’t get into the program.” They were just awarded a multi-million dollar promise geared towards the humanities which is likely where they’re going to focus their efforts. “The honors classes are pretty accessible,” our tour guide told us. “They save about 20 or 25% of seats for non-honors students so there’s space for those who want to take it.”

© 2024

North Carolina State University (Take 2)

NC State University (visited 3/23/24) (Click here to see my post from my 3/2012 visit)

Fun fact: State sells more Chic-fil-a than anywhere else on the east coast.

“This school isn’t as hard to get into as the one down the street – but it’s harder to get OUT of! A lot of people have no idea how intense the academics are here,” said one person we talked to. During the student panel, we asked them why they chose State over their other choices.

• “The reputation; it’s academically rigorous, but there’s also an emphasis on inclusion, sports, and other things.”
• “We can tell that the professors love what they’re doing. I’ve found them really approachable. They’ve been willing to help out.”
• “There are ways to create smaller homes on this large campus. You’ll find your people.”

Along those lines, we asked them how their view of NC State changed since arriving:

• “I didn’t want to go here; I didn’t see it before I got here because of Covid. I ended up loving it! I give tours and recruit people, so that should tell you all you need to know. People here are spirited and passionate. There’s a lot of school spirit.”
• “The campus continues to grow. They’re trying to improve things. We’re currently putting up a building to help do more research.”

Some of the new construction going on in 2024

A rep told us, “No one is going to do it for you here. It’s a big public university. We have all the resources and want to help you, but no one is going to tell you that you have to.”

In 2023, they received 43,878 apps, admitting about 17,900 of them (for an incoming class of about 5,600 first-year students). “We have room for out-of-state students, not like some other colleges I won’t name. [NC requires that their public institutions enroll at least 82% NC residents]. We’re not as popular yet for students coming from other states.” Their in-state acceptance rate was about 45%; acceptance for non-NC residents was in the 35-40% range.

The Wolfpack – the mascot of the university

Each application is read by 2 admissions officers. “We aren’t quite as holistic as we’d like to be since academics are at the forefront of our decisions.” During the admission process, they recalculate GPAs to the NC scale (adding 1 point for AP and .5 for Honors). The averages for admitted students last year were: 4.22-4.48 weighted GPA/3.84-4.0 unweighted GPA. The readers can see the last 3 years of decisions from an applicant’s school which helps them put the students and their schools into context with what was offered and how students have done in a similar academic environment. “We’re trying to compare apples to apples as much as possible.”

This is the state’s land-grant institution, so of course their agricultural, animal sciences, and related fields are strong – but they offer amazing opportunities across the board. Students list a first and second choice major on their application. Admissions pays attention to this because of space issues and because some majors have specific prerequisites that students must meet to be successful in the program. Some majors that have gotten (or remain) popular based on applications numbers.

• Animal Science: 1507 apps for ~180 spots. Within the major, they offer Industry, Science, and Vet Bioscience concentrations as well as certificates in Swine Science and Animal Nutrition.
• Psychology: 2215 apps for 100 spots: they’ve seen a huge growth in the last 5 years; “it’s overwhelmed the department!”
• Sport Management: 1127 apps for 100 spots.
• For STEM majors, students MUST have taken pre-calc – and they prefer to see calc. “Sometimes there’s wiggle room, but sometimes we have to place them into a 2^nd choice major or the Exploratory Program because we think they need to figure some things out before declaring a major or to see if they’ll be successful in what they say they’re interested in,” said one of the reps.
• All students coming into the School of Engineering start in the First-Year Engineering program, completing a Common Core of classes. This includes the Computer Science majors.
  • Comp Sci is one of their most popular majors (as it is at a lot of schools!). Last year they got 3185 applications for 400 spots.
  • NCSU recently got a $50m grant to grow their engineering program, much of which went to CompSci. This may help alleviate some of the space issues, but they anticipate that this will remain highly competitive.
• For undecided students, there’s an intentional, high-touch First Year Inquiry program so students can figure it out. They offer several “First Year” Programs within different schools geared to help students figure out majors and career paths:
  • Environmental First Year Program.
  • The Life Science First Year program got 5765 applications last year for a yield of 594 students. Students get to explore Biological Sciences (including microbiology), Biochem, Genetics, Nutrition, Plant Bio, and Zoology.
  • They’re looking for a Social Science (and some other) First Year programs – “but that takes about 3 years to roll out,” said one of the Deans.
• Students coming into the Business School take the intro classes for all the concentrations!
• There are no majors in music, but minors. Students can rent instruments and take lessons. There are practices rooms: “I’d recommend using them or you’ll become a future tour story!” said our tour, adding that her freshman year roommate would practice in the room which annoyed a lot of people trying to study.

Students are going to have large classes; there’s no getting around them. For the students on the panel, their largest classes had: 200, 120, 265 and 205 (both Intro to Chem), 120 (Comm), and 200 (Intro Business). I asked what their favorite class has been and why they liked it so much:

• Audio Productions: “I didn’t think I was going to take it but ended up loving it. He had such a great attitude and was so passionate. I didn’t think I’d be good at it, and now want to do it for a career.”
• Data Communications: “This put in perspective how to talk to outwards to people outside of the STEM field. We had to improvise and be in the moment. There were only 8 people in the class! It was so much fun. We also did a book club through the class. Now I’m looking to take “Data for Dancers.” I have no idea what that is but I’m excited to try it.”
• Equitable Teaching Practices: “It had a lot has to do with the professor. I look to see if she’s teaching something, and I’ll even sign up for an 8:30am class – and that’s a strong statement coming from me! We looked at national legislation and what that looks like on the classroom level. How does it affect 5-year-olds? It was mixed at all levels – elementary and secondary so we learned about a lot of different perspectives.”
• Interpersonal Communications: “This was a 120-person class because it’s required in the dept – but the professor was all about no tech – it was so tedious taking notes and everything by hand, but I’ve never absorbed so much! It was totally engaging, and I learned a lot of niche facts.”
• Intro to Paper Sci Engineering. “The Professor was amazing and had really high energy. It was stuff that I knew I’d need to know someday.”
• Business Law: “This is kind of a beast. The prof had been a lawyer and was really passionate. I ended up finding the law so interesting.”

We asked the students how easy it was to get an internship and what supports were in place to help them:

• In Communications, students have to do one. “It’s a class; students have to have certain pre-reqs before they can do this, but there’s a lot of support.”
• Engineering works to get students in career pathways. “I had interviews lined up in the first month of my first year and an offer in the 2^nd month.”

As you’d expect for a school this size, campus is huge. Train tracks cut through campus (and a couple trains passed through while with were there); there are 3 tunnels under them for students to get back and forth. One of them is the Free Expression Tunnel with all sorts of painting.

There are several statues celebrating athletics at NCSU

• Centennial campus, about half a mile from the main campus, houses the engineering and tech departments.
• They have a beautiful Humanities Quad; “we used to have a tree for every county in the state. I’m not sure if that still holds,” said the tour guide. They’ll light the quad red for victories like when a prof gets a grant.
• Their gym is a block long! They have 2 Olympic sized pools, a nutritional kitchen (students can take classes there), a 3-story rock climbing wall, camping equipment and kayaks. Students do have to take 2 fitness classes – “The first one is basic; the other can be more advanced. I’m taking a bunch just because they’re fun and actually skills that I’ll use.” They offer everything from snowboarding to scuba – the students are taken on trips.

One of the housing quads

Students are required to live on campus for the first year. They have multiple options for housing (including a couple “hotel-style” buildings). The Housing quads “are great – there’s always something going on,” said the tour guide – including competitions to get to call the volleyball court the “X Beach” (after whichever dorm wins). Students can’t choose their dorm as a first year, “but the Living Learning Communities are a bit of work-around on that.” Students told us that campus housing for upperclassman is hard to get unless you’re in Honors or a leader on campus, “but that’s kind of the case for any large school.” Food, students agreed, was generally pretty good – but “I wish the dining halls were open longer. There are some late-night labs that don’t get out until 10:15.” Another said, “I wish we had more meal exchanges at local restaurants just for some more variety.”

We asked students what Raleigh was like:

• It’s a young, up-and-coming city. It’s pretty cool. There’s plenty to do – I’d consider staying after graduation. I’ve never been bored. The art museum is impressive. As a freshman, I didn’t have a car and there are ways to get around.
• There’s a lot of diversity here, and a lot of companies are coming here.

© 2024

Duke University (Take 2)

Duke University (Take 2) (visited 3/23/24) (Click here for notes and pictures from my 3/2017 visit)

The amount of money here is absolutely staggering. Students are not going to be hurting for opportunities. “There are tons of opportunities here. We can take workshops like ceramics, not just classes. There’s one called Chef’s Kitchen where we take a class and eat what we make.”

Part of the Science complex

The last time I was at Duke (2017), I toured with a student I knew instead of through Admissions. I got to see things that may not have been on an official tour, and I had a lot of time to pick her brain about the student experience. This time, I attended a counselor event. They provided a lot more of the admissions and academic side of things which was a good balance and gave me a more complete picture of Duke.

Their academics are split into 2 schools: Pratt School of Engineering (enrolling 20% of the students) and Trinity Arts and Sciences (the remaining 80%). They don’t have a heavy core which gives students more flexibility to explore or “do more of what we like,” according to the tour guide. This isn’t even just in the classroom — Engineers go abroad at 4 times the national average. They offer Focus programs which act essentially as interdisciplinary First Year Seminars, but students have to apply into these with essays! They can pick up to 4 that they’re interested in; they’ll be apprised of their placement usually within a couple weeks. The cohorts take 2 classes together in the fall.

With an enrollment of about 6700 students, there are going to be some large classes. We asked the students on the panel what their largest classes have been. They said: 50, 100 (with smaller discussions/ problem solving sections and labs), 300 (Econ 101), and 110 (Gen Chem). We also asked them what their favorite class has been:

• Castles in Europe: “We learned so much about architecture. For our final, we created a castle including a whole back-story – who are we fighting, how did we get the materials. We built 3 different models.”
• “My first biomedical engineering class. I knew it was going to be hard. I was prepared to get my ass kicked, honestly. I was challenged like never before. He’d ask the most ridiculous questions – but through problem solving, I learned how to extrapolate information. Did I get a lot of questions right? No! But I really evolved. I could then talk about blood pressure mechanics. In hindsight, I didn’t know I had that kind of brain capacity. I know I can now get through whatever I need to get through.”
• Human Rights 101: “It changed my degree trajectory. I’m adding a concentration in this area. I interviewed a man on death row via zoom; it changed my opinion on the prison system, and it taught me a lot on what inmates go through.”

There are plenty of cultural experiences as well as lots of socio-economic and religious diversity here. In recent years, there’s been increased sexual and gender diversity which is great, particularly for the school’s location in the south. “You’ll find people you identify with,” said one student. “There are lots of identity centers which will hold events open to the community so you can learn things or get involved and find a home.”

Housing is required on campus for the first 3 years. All first-years live on East Campus, about 5 minutes away on the bus (it can be a bit of a haul in terms of walking, the students told us, but “it’s easy to get back and forth.”). This initiative was brought about by the students 30+ years ago. “Everything you need is over there. Everyone there is looking to make friends – it was easy to chat with people.” First-year dorms have a Faculty-in-Residence who host Monday night socials. This has built a solid community (as demonstrated with their almost unprecedented 98% retention rate!) – so much so that they’ve now started housing the same groups together in the 2^nd year. “Based on the building you live in during the first year, you already know where you’ll live in the 2^nd year. That identity carries with you.”

Some of the food options in the dining hall

Food is amazing: their main dining facility has over a dozen stations – everything from Indian to Mexican to a Surf-n-Turf grill. During the counselor event, we were given a card with $15 (everything is priced out with main meals averaging from $10-14ish; many places had a $5 daily deal). All the counselors raved about what they were eating. There’s plenty of indoor and outdoor seating ranging from small group rooms to a large one resembling Harry Potter Dining Hall (not quite to that scale!).

Obviously, sports are huge here and the teams do well. Something that surprised us is that the Women’s golf is the most accomplished team! Everyone assumes it’s the basketball teams, but nope! Club sports are also a big deal. “They’re pretty competitive!” said one student on the panel who has played club softball since she started at Duke. The cool thing with this is that the university funds a dream trip every two years for these teams. The student on the panel just came back from Costa Rica. “We lost most of our games, but it was a great trip!”

The social scene on campus got mixed reviews. There’s lots to do, but Greek Life does play a huge part (about 1/3 of the students join, and “it can dictate the social scene in a lot of ways”) – or people don’t always get involved, focusing more on academics instead. Some feel that it can get a bit cliquey. However, they love the opportunities available to them – and almost all of the students we spoke to did things over the summer, such as:

• One did archaeological research over one summer (as an econ and art history major!) AND did a finance internship the next summer.
• One participated in Duke Engage which are 8+ week summer immersion trips. She went to Uganda after freshman year.
• One student is working on medical devices already as a sophomore!
• Takes students backpacking for a week during orientation

© 2024

University of Virginia

University of Virginia (visited 3/22/24)

UVA academically lives up to much of the hype. Although this isn’t the flashy flagship of some other southern states, it makes up for it in the history and gorgeous buildings. Located in Charlottesville in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, they have the best of both worlds: the city has lots of art and music venues, restaurants, and more while the rest of the area provides about any outdoor activity you can imagine.

I appreciated the good communication before the info session, including directions about how to get where we needed to be – and the signage on campus was helpful. The info session was comprehensive (and big! It was held in a lecture hall and probably about 80% full), better than many I’ve seen. They were up-front about their long, complex history as a school founded by Jefferson, and they acknowledged the enslaved laborers who helped build the university. They do now have a monument to the people who put the work in. “Without this history, we wouldn’t have the university as we know it today.” Interestingly, they do still have a ways to go with increasing student diversity, particularly drawing Hispanic and African-American students (both well under 10%). One student mentioned that she thought that they could do better supporting people from a variety of socio-economic brackets.

That all being said, the tour left a lot to be desired. Our guide was lovely, enthusiastic, and very well trained (I overheard her telling another visitor that they train for a semester), but the university would be much better served by rethinking the format of the tour. Even though they had 10 or 12 tour guides, the groups were large out of necessity due to the sheer number of visitors; however, I’ve been on big tours before, and they’ve worked. We only saw a tiny portion of “The Grounds” (what they call the campus), making 5 or 6 stops; at each place, there was a massive Info Dump (like 6-10 minutes worth). At several points, she repeated large chunks of what had already been presented in the info session, despite that fact that all of us had been there (they split up the tours by rows from the lecture hall). The tour groups all followed the same path so there were bottlenecks while we waited for people to come out of particular buildings – and then we were given way more time to look at a mural than needed (which, although a cool thing to see, should’ve been a 1-minute stop, not 5). A lot of people in the group got fidgety and clearly lost interest as the tour went on. At one point, I wandered over to listen to another guide speaking – and learned a lot about Greek Life and some other things that our guide hadn’t shared.

One of the Residential Colleges

However, the tour’s quality isn’t indicative of the overall quality of the school; we just didn’t learn much that we couldn’t get off the website – I wish we had learned more about the lived experience of students on campus. Academically, UVA is great. They’ve consistently ranked in the top 5 best public universities in the nation, boasting an impressive 97% retention rate and 91% 4-year grad rate – that’s huge! Students have a lot of autonomy through the honors system, clubs, and other things due to the self-governance the university allows within these areas.

The school touts that “You can make it what you want it to be.” I did get to pick a couple students’ brains – and they agreed that this equates to more of competitive environment than many of them would like. There are opportunities here, but “you have to be a little aggressive about it.” Students seem to vie for recognition, socially and academically. If that’s you, keep looking into UVA. If it’s not, you may want to look elsewhere.

During the info session, the rep said, “As a public university, we have a commitment to the commonwealth of VA – 2/3 come from in-state – but we also have a commitment to all the students.” Not surprisingly, it’s a bit easier to get in as a VA resident; last year, they accepted 28% of VA applicants but only 17% of out-of-state (from a total of 56,500 first-year applications). For admissions, they’re looking to see that students have challenged themselves in all subject areas. They get the most apps in EA (and accept the most from then).

When applying, it’s important to know that students apply directly into a SCHOOL. The direct-entry options for first- year students include:

• College of Arts and Sciences: this is the most common and most flexible school.
• Engineering and Applied Science: students have some flexibility here; they come directly into the school but don’t declare the specific major (out of the 10 choices) until the end of the first year. Computer science (as well as computer engineering) is within this school. There are also 14 minors, including most of the engineering areas as well as Technology Ethics, Engineering Business, History of Science & Tech, and Science & Tech Policy.
• Architecture
• Nursing: this is a direct admit program.
• Within the School of Education and Human Development, Kinesiology is the only major that students can apply directly into as a freshman. All others, they apply into later (see below). They can double major; if they decide it’s not what they want, it’s easy to transfer to A&S.

All other programs are Upper Division Options. Students will start at UVA in the School of A&S, then apply into the school of their choice in the 1^st or 2^nd year. You can only apply to one school for a major, but you can minor in another school or double major across the upper-division and the direct-entry schools:

• Leadership and Public Policy: they only offer a single undergraduate major but have 2 minors in Public Policy/Leadership and in Social Entrepreneurship.
• School of Commerce: This is their business school. They’re currently switching from a 2-year to 3-year program; students will now apply as freshman to start in their 2^nd year at UVA. Acceptance into the school runs about 50-60%. Students who don’t get in can work with the advisor to select a different major (like Econ) and can minor or just take some classes in the Commerce school.
• Data Science is their newest school.
• All majors except Kinesiology in Education and Human Development apply to enter the school after their first or second year. Youth & Social Innovation is their newest major.

Undecided students can take a COLA (College Advising Corps) class taught by deans for 1 credit. This is designed to help provide more intense advising and a chance to explore options.

UVA is 1 of 2 public schools that meet 100% of demonstrated need, but they have limited merit aid and academic scholarships. The vast majority of aid is for need-based. Highly accomplished students should consider applying for the Jefferson Scholars program as well as the Walentas (first-generation) and alumni scholarships which are all separate applications from admissions.

The Lawn

The iconic part of campus, “The Lawn,” has the rotunda at one end; this had been the original part of campus. The Lawn is lined with some of the original buildings – the Pavilions are the 2-story buildings where the professors used to live; the student rooms are in the connecting 1-story buildings. Now, 4^th year students can apply to live there. “It’s a huge honor to be selected. Usually, students have to be really involved in the life of the campus and have contributed significantly to groups and organizations. But before getting to jealous, know that then bathrooms are around the back, so going for a shower can really suck in cold weather!”

Some of the food trucks on campus.

They have 3 residential colleges that are centrally located on The Grounds. Incoming students can apply to live in one of these or opt for the freshman dorms which are more on the outskirts of campus, about a 10-15 minute walk to the main academic buildings. There are doubles and suites; students are randomly assigned so there’s no need to rush to apply for housing. Students must live on campus for at least 2 years; after that, students can stay but don’t need to – although many in the Residential Colleges will stay all 4 years.

There are plenty of dining options on campus including all the typical college fast-food places (like chic-fil-a, Panda Express, Starbucks, etc). Our tour guide describe the dining hall food as “aggressively average – but the pizza is really good!”

First years can’t have cars on the grounds because parting is limited (and can get pricey). “We can’t tell you not to have a car, but you need to find somewhere else to park it,” said the tour guide. Campus is fairly big but there shuttles run continuously on 5 loops so it becomes less of an issue.

In terms of social life, this is what I picked up from the tour guides:

• There’s a big a capella culture here. Pitch Perfect was based on this – there are something like 26 groups. “Tryouts are insane.”
• There’s a big running culture. Students can run with the President twice a week. “he does marathons. I’ll be at the back of the pack.”
• There’s lots of Greek Life.

© 2024

North Carolina Central University (Take 2)

NC Central University (visited 3/26/24) (Click here for notes and pictures from my 2017 visit)

Between some of the athletic fields (and several res halls on the far side of those) and a good chunk of the academic part of campus sits the “Jesus Steps” – a long, steep staircase that a lot of students have to climb at least once a day. On our tour, we saw a kid sitting at the top, telling us they almost killed her. “You’re gonna be asking Jesus for mercy when you’re climbing these things. These are a workout on their own.”

NCCU is a public (so reasonably priced), up-and-coming HBCU. It’s strategically located in Durham (across town from Duke). “The area is rich with jobs and opportunities; lots of big companies are headquartered here. People come here for school and stay,” said one of the reps.

Students bring a LOT of energy to the student center on Tuesday Common Hour when there aren’t classes offered; instead, they do community events.

Their graduation rate, until recently, hasn’t been great. Now, their retention rate is close to 80% and their 4- and 6-year graduation rates are increasing. “We’re putting things in place to make sure that students successful. We’re meeting students where they are.” Part of this intentionality includes instituting the Eagle Promise: students who participate are given a 4-year pathway to graduation (they get out on time, are job ready when they graduate, are socially and globally engaged, and get student leadership training). With the Eagle Promise, the mechanisms are in place to increase retention. Part of this impetus for increasing graduation rates (which seemed stagnant for many years) is that they’re now getting money based on who many people graduate, not how many they bring in. For years, the state funded on the front end based on enrollment. Because they also have a big gender disparity (about a 70/30 split), they’re working on recruiting more males AND helping them persist until graduation through the Men’s Achievement Center, a 4-year matriculation plan, and a Living Learning Center. They’re also recruiting Latinx students.

A few counselors expressed concern about the part of town the university is located in, but this doesn’t feel unsafe to most people. In fact, the university is consistently ranked 1 of the top 3 safest school. As part of the counselor program, the Head of Security spoke to us (so maybe the security reputation is out there for a reason). They have 2200 cameras on campus. Kids feel safe. “Campus safety is more than the officers – it takes everyone to protect everyone.” Stemming from this philosophy, the university is working on helping students connect and create community: “It’s hard to hate a person you have a relationship with them. You’re more willing to work on issues,” said a rep.

The newest dorm on campus

Part of the community building is increasing the residential nature of the university – and they know that living on campus not only builds community but increases success and persistence-to-graduation rates. Currently, only 40% of students live on campus, but they did just build a brand-new dorm which will increase this.

They have an Living Learning Community for students with documented disabilities; they have coaching, etc. “If you want us to be the person who just gets a letter for the professors for extended time, we can be that school for you, but if you want more, we’re going to be more. You get out what you put in.” Very intentional about trying to address figuring out living away from home, how to communicate with roommates, figure it out.

Students get academic advising through University College until they have about 55 credits; then they get transferred to an advisor in their school – but they can declare their majors before then.

• Their School of Business is a Direct-entry program. They offer several concentrations: data analytics, cybersecurity – do the business side to set up policy etc. New building – including a culinary lab, a trading room, 200 seat auditorium, and other bells and whistles. Joint MBA-JD degree within 4 years.
• College of Health and Sciences: “These are combined because there’s a synergy between them.”
  • They have some accelerated programs including a BS/MS Pharmaceutical Sciences, a BS/MS Kinesiology &Recreation Management, and a BS/MS Food & Consumer Sciences/Food & Nutrition
  • Nursing is “our crowned jewel program” with over 400 students in the major. Students come in as pre-nursing majors and must pass all their pre-reqs with at least a 3.2GPA as well as scoring at least 70 on the Test of Essential Academic Skills before they’re allowed to declare the nursing major.
  • The Environmental, Earth, & Geospatial Sciences department is the first to have a licensing program for drone operations!
• NCCU’s School of Education is the only one in the state that provides training for working with students with visual impairment.
• The School of Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities has several programs to note:
  • NCCU’s Psych Department is rated as the best at an HBCU. Students have the option to do dual/accelerated BS/MS degrees in General or Clinical Psych.
  • Their Music Department won a national championship in 2023: “This is a department – not a full school or conservatory – competing against full schools of music!” said one of the reps. They’ve competed at Carnegie Hall and other similar venues.
  • They have a Hip Hop concentration in their History department.

Honors College has about 650 students enrolled at any given time. “We start with the end goal in mind. Student have a chance to talk to representatives of the prestigious scholarships [Fulbrights, etc.], grad schools, and employers. They learn what do they need to have do be competitive, and then we build those skills in. It’s innovative.” Incoming students can compete for a competitive full-ride scholarship: they can provide 50 total (for students in all 4 years) at any given time. Students need a weighted GPA of 4.0 to apply for the scholarship – but for the honors college, the average student in the program has a 3.7.

They’re working on having a fully funded experience for Honors Students to go abroad; they’re not there yet, “although we do have payment plans” for what they do provide. Hopefully this year, the trip will be ‘The Black Experience in Europe.’ They also encourage students to go abroad through group and individual experiences – and they have corporate partnerships for internships abroad and across the US. “They need to experience other spaces. Grades won’t get you where you want to go. What’s going to make you stand apart?”

They also have a partnership with MIT with guaranteed summer research up there. Sponsored research funding has almost doubled in recent years for on and off campus experiences. Enrolling is going up because of this.

© 2024

Longwood University

Longwood University (visited 3/22/24)

I finally had a chance to visit Longwood, located in the southern part of Virginia. I visited on an admitted student day; I’m really impressed with what a great job they did putting this together – everything from the pre-event communications to the multitude of signs and greeters around to welcome people to campus set the tone for the day. The rep, himself an alum, recognized that this isn’t always the easiest school to get to: “I know a lot of people say, ‘I don’t know if I want to go to school in rural America’ – but this place has a way of pulling people in! This is such a great college town. There is always something to do. There’s lots of recreational activities in town: historic sites, outdoor stuff, and a downtown scene. At some point, y’all will be turning 21 and there are plenty of options for you there, too.”

Maybe because of its location, Longwood seems to be kind of the forgotten child of the Virginia Publics which is unfortunate – although after making it into the initial round of March Madness this year (2024), maybe it’ll end up on a few more people’s radars! There’s a lot going for it, including being ranked as a Top 10 Public University in the south, and the students seem to be well taken care of. Being a DI school (despite its smaller size) means there’s a lot of school spirit.

Because it’s not on as many people’s radars, it’s one of the more accessible Virginia schools – and I believe also the smallest with only about 3,200 undergraduates (Virginia State, Norfolk State, Mary Washington, and Christopher Newport are the next closest, ranging from about 3500-4500 students each). “Being smaller has its perks,” said our tour guide. “You really have to check out these smaller schools – there are enough people to make it interesting but you get so much more access to things. It helps you make friends, connect with professors, focus, and stay engaged,” he said. All of these have been shown to lead to higher success rates.

About 70% of classes have fewer than 30 students; the average is 18. They offer more than 100 areas of studies. Their Civitae Core Curriculum helps students develop the skills needed in the 21^st Century workplace: thinking critically, communicating, making decisions from collected data, and making students a more well-rounded professional. A few unusual concentrations or majors offered at Longwood include Books & Printmaking (within General Art); Public History; Water Resources; Cyber Security, Forensics, & Policy; and Therapeutic Studies. “Every area has a hands-on component,” said one of the reps. “Longwood allows you to build a solid foundation before the job market or grad school. It’s all about connections and experiences; internships may feel scary, but it sets you up for success and your life. It’s more than a degree.”

This is a highly residential community with a lot of traditions and events that bring students together. Octoberfest and Spring Weekend are big deals on campus, including Color Wars when students get either green or red thrown at them depending on their year. Around campus at different places on the sidewalks, people have spraypainted 2 rotundas and 7 crowns. Students are NOT supposed to step on the rotundas and will be diligent about going around them – but stepping on the crowns is good luck! “If you accidentally step on a rotunda, you have to find and step on all 7 crowns to counteract the bad luck,” our tour guide told us – and he enthusiastically jumped on the crowns when we went by them on our tour. “The one with the best luck – and the most sentimental value – is the one at the top of the steps by the quad. This is the last one we’ll walk over as we process into graduation.”

The symbols represent a couple major things on campus. The rotunda building was the original building when the school began as Farmville Female Seminary. In it stands one of 3 Joan of Arc statues; students will rub the hand of this statue for good luck. The crowns represent a secret society, the Princeps, dedicated to leadership. There’s also a Secret Society, Chi, is dedicated to service. People in these groups are sworn to secrecy until they get revealed as Seniors in the spring at a special ceremony. 

Tower dorms

Students must live in campus housing for 3 years; the university owns 2 apartment complexes located within a 10-minute walk of campus that they’ll count as part of the 3 year requirement. All on-campus dorms have been renovated within the last 5 years; they’re attractive and centrally located. The two towers (on the edge of campus – but still easily walkable to classes) house a lot of the first-year students. About 20% of students join Greek Life; many of the sororities room together in one of the female dorms; there’s no separate housing. Students in the Honors College can opt to live in Wheeler Hall. Many opt to do so, but this is not required. There are 9 dining options scattered across campus including Moe’s, Starbucks, and Panda Express. First-years can have cars on campus; they can pay for the parking pass along with deposit and will get the pass at orientation.

For admissions, they have Early Action and Regular Decision options; the only people allowed to apply Early Decision (the binding type) are nursing students. Applicants interested in the Honors College have to fill out a separate application. Admitted students, once they submit their enrollment deposit, can register for orientation and classes, submit housing preferences, and set up college email. Virginia residents should also submit their in-state tuition form on their portal.

© 2024

McDaniel College (Take 2)

McDaniel College (visited 3/21/24) (Click here for notes from my 1/25/12 visit)

There’s a lot going for this CTCL school in Maryland – but it unfortunately gets overlooked a lot. Here are a few fun facts I picked up on my recent visit:

• “We’re ranked for tailgating! People stake out their spots days in advance.”
• It’s the only school in Maryland with Footgolf.
• It’s the oldest coed college south of the Mason-Dixon line.
• Students are guaranteed at least 2 experiential learning experiences which could be research, study abroad, independent studies, or internships.

They are as transparent in admissions as possible: they use a holistic process, focusing on whether students are prepared for a Liberal Arts based education. They’ll accept an unofficial transcript for the purpose of admission (but need the official one for matriculation). “We’re proudly test-optional and have been since before Covid, so we don’t anticipate changing that.” The essay is optional for the first time this year: “We debated this for a long time and decided to change our policy,” said one rep. “About 90% submitted it this year. Usually, we’re going to say that it’s never NOT helpful. Our counselors value it, but they’ll find other ways to get to know you if it’s a barrier.”

Last year, they brought in 424 first year students, 54 of whom were admitted in Early Decision. They still mostly draw from a regional area, but being a CTCL school helps them draw more students because they travel the country for fairs. About 40% of their students are First-gen “which has been fairly consistent for a number of years. We’re proud of the work we do with access to higher education.” They’ve been deliberately working on retention initiatives and have created a new position geared towards that; currently, about 80% of freshman return for the 2^nd year, and they’re seeing improvements since the new person started last year.

They have several admissions deadlines to be aware of:

• Early Decision: this comes with perks! Students get 1^st choice of McDaniel Local events (so they register for classes early); they get a guaranteed parking permit rather than going through the lottery; they can upgrade to suite-style housing (for a fee) if its available; they’re guaranteed their 1^st or 2^nd choice of First Year Seminar; and they get a Platinum meal plan upgrade for the first year for no additional cost.
• EA1: Most of their apps come in during this round.
• EA2: This is also the deadline for Honors Program consideration.
• RD Priority
• RD Final: this acts a bit like a Rolling Admission plan; they’ll continue to admit student until about July if there’s any space available.

If students visit BEFORE completing their application (this is a must!!), they’ll get a $1000 visit grant because they know how important it is to get feet on the ground. Beyond this, there are plenty of healthy scholarship opportunities including the Legacy Scholarships which honor educators (if 1 or both parents work in K-12 or college education), military (active or retired), and alumni (children or grandchildren).

This is a highly residential campus with 85% of students living on campus; there are 2 first-year dorms with bigger rooms (traditional doubles) than many freshman dorms I’ve seen. Micro-fridges are provided in rooms, and the students’ ID cards are programed for 3 wash-dry cycles a week without extra cost. They also have 2 levels of apartments with 4-6 beds as well as suites for students after the first year. They use a community policing model with officers attached to specific dorms to build relationships. The town of Westminster isn’t huge (there are about 20,000 residents), but there are things to do. Students can take a shuttle to stores – and can also book it to BWI.

A great feature of McDaniel is its sister Budapest campus. Our tour guide studied there in her first semester of sophomore year with a cohort of 12. “It was one of the best experiences; I got to travel a lot and learn so much.” For students who want another experience, they also have plenty of partner programs for study abroad. Many students go abroad for minimesters.

They also have an extensive Environmental Center located a couple miles off campus. It’s 60+ acres includes farmland, fields, and forest – along with 15 bodies of water (7 of which are active springs). Although used most extensively by their Environmental Studies students (a major in which they can concentrate in Envi Bio, Earth System Science, or Policy & Management), other students use it as well, such as those majoring in Food Science.

Students with at least a 2.5 GPA are eligible to join one of the 9 fraternities/sororities (including 3 of the Divine 9) after their first semester on campus. About 20% of students end up joining.

Education remains one of their strong majors, and they have a BA/MS Pathway program in Education and Special Education. Their 3^rd Masters Pathway is in Human Services Management.  Their American Sign Language and Writing & Publishing programs are also big draws, as are their Health Sciences – students can do concentrations in Pharmacy, Chiropractic, PA, PT, Athletic Training, Occupational Therapy, and Nursing. They’re starting a full BSN program this year (2024).

© 2024

University of Alabama

University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa (Visited 2/20/24) (click here for notes from one of their info sessions)

The Welcome Center

I was really impressed at how easy it was to navigate around Alabama – other schools could take a few notes on signage for visitors: helping people navigating to Admissions and having parking as easy as it was here goes a long way. They have a brand-new welcome center in what used to be a hospital (and had been in operation until 2013). They purchased the building and land in 2010, but renovations just started a couple years ago and opened this year. I need to come back sometime when I can check out the museum on the 2^nd floor!

I got to talk to one of the admission reps for about 30 minutes before the info session and tour which was helpful in getting some of the behind-the-scenes info and making sure that I’m helping to get the right kids to apply here. I asked him how he would describe the students: “smart, enthusiastic, trailblazing. So many of them are doing cool, different things whether it’s experiential learning or studying abroad. They’re experiencing things that a lot of us don’t get the chance to do so! They also have a bit of a toughness to them – they’re coming from out of state, different backgrounds. You see some kids come in as shy, not wanting to open up, but boy, when they do – the possibilities are endless! Some come from not-so-great backgrounds and they make something of themselves.”

“This is a fun school – but the academics are harder than people expect!” Half of classes have fewer than 20 students. “That’s not to say that you won’t have bigger classes – because you will,” said one of the tour guides. The students agree that this is a “work hard AND play hard” sort of school – and students have access to the bells and whistles that come with big flagships such as an outdoor pool with a 2-story water slide and a lazy river. They also have the biggest Starbucks in the country (“It’s 1 square foot larger than the University of Kentucky’s!” our tour guide told us) and the Starbucks with the largest revenue on a university campus.

One of the Greek Houses

“You can get the small campus feel but with all the major campus resources.” There are 650+ student-led organizations which means there’s never a shortage of options. However, there are things you should know going in:

• Greek Life is a really big deal here, and in some ways dominates the social scene. “It’s a very Southern thing.” 40% of women and 35% of men are in Greek life – and they have huge Greek houses! “There are definitely other ways to find your group, though,” said one of the tour guides. They university has instituted Greek Points which encourages both the organizations and members themselves to branch out beyond their groups.
• Their 400-person marching band has won awards – they even have their own practice field.
• A LOT of the fall social scene revolves around football! Tailgating is a thing and taken seriously. Students only have to pay for football games ($15 for non-conference games, $20 for conference games). Tickets to all other sporting events are free.

“We encourage students to keep an open mind in terms of majors in their first year or two. If they seek out opportunities and try things that maybe they aren’t as comfortable with academically – or are looking to be stretched – they’re going to surprise themselves and find their feet.” It’s easy to switch between schools/majors if students want to. They do have to meet with advisors to chart out plans.

• New College is an option for students who want to create their own majors by combining two or more interests. “This allows for unique academic experiences.” Students have done things like Sports Management or Music Business. Students have to be admitted to the university before applying to New College; they prefer that students start in the first or second year of university.
• The College of Engineering provides extensive experiential learning opportunities to the 4,800 undergrads in the college. Students can even co-op in certain instances. Currently, more than 100 companies partner with the College to hire students, and Alabama is actively looking to grow this. This all pays off with almost all of the students being hired in their fields or in grad school. They offer all the typical options for majors as well as Aerospace Engineering & Mechanics and Metallurgical & Materials.
• The Nursing program is the only one that requires students to apply into the upper-level division at the end of the first or second year to continue on in the program; students usually come in with a stated interest in nursing. They’ve started to admit more students into the program, particularly those already on campus. “Just know that it is a competitive program!” said the rep. “There’s still not space for everyone.”
• The College of Business is growing quickly. Several students have decided to go into the accelerated masters (AMP)which allows students to start taking Masters classes in junior year. If students get into the program soon enough, they can graduate in 5 years with 2 degrees. “They can have the best of both worlds. The idea is to get students out in 5, maybe 5 ½ years. Students get creative with this, but they have to apply within the first couple years in the undergrad program.”
• Musical Audio Engineering is housed in their Music School; this major allows students to learn how to produce music. Have the flexibility to work with equipment that’s current in the industry. Some are going on to film, creative media, or even going into telecommunications.
• Their new Creative Media minor pulls in aspects of multiple departments (journalism, film, telecommunications). Students are on sets getting experience and are getting jobs as broadcasters, beat writers, social media experts, and more.
• Management Information Systems has built-in internships; graduates have a 100% job placement rate.
• The Criminal Justice department has the top-rated professor in the country.
• A few unusual programs to look at include:
  • Majors in Apparel & Textiles, Addiction & Recovery, Music & Arts Administration, and Music Therapy. There’s also a Marine Science program that’s more unusual away from the coast.
  • Minors in Transportation Engineering; Environmental and Water Resources Engineering; Engineering Positive and Intentional Change; Interdisciplinary Studies in Medicine; Value Investing; Rural Community Health, and Digital, Public, & Professional Writing;
• As an R1 school, UA is one of the top research institutions – and includes plenty of options in the liberal arts, not just in STEM.

In terms of Admissions, “The ‘set test score’ days are behind us. We’re continuing to transition into a more holistic review – but the biggest component is always going to be a GPA. We’re just too big to go otherwise.” Almost half (47%) of admitted students last year had a 4.0+GPA. They currently take the GPA that’s on the transcript to make it more advantageous to the student – they will not recalculate. He feels like it’s comparable for OOS students. The state hasn’t set a limit for OOS students. They are not currently an SRAR school, “but it’s on the table – it’s been up for discussion.”

To be eligible for Honors College admissions, incoming students need a 3.5+GPA and 30+ACT/1360+SAT; test-optional students must have a 3.7+GPA and apply to the Honors College by March 1. Applicants must also turn in an extra essay and 2 rec letters. There are multiple options within Honors: some are general (any major), and some are College-specific such as EPIC Scholars (engineering), McCollough Scholars (Pre-Med), and Blount Scholars (Arts & Sciences). There are also two Business Pathways that streamline/accelerate the pathway to the MBA: Create (for students majoring outside of STEM) and STEM.

There are two types of scholarships: 

• Automatic Merit and Competitive Admissions; these can’t be stacked, but they’ll give students the higher of the two that they’re eligible for.
• Supplemental: these can be stacked. They require a separate app filled out in the student’s portal. “They have to fill this out every year in order to get the most money they’re eligible for since some have restrictions for credits or year in college.”

They have a strong retention rate at 87% (impressive for a school this large where students could otherwise fall between the cracks). Their Capstone Center for Student Success is extensive and includes things like the First Year Experience, learning commons, Alabama REACH, and TRIO. They start off getting students involved right away during orientation – students can attend sessions that run from late May to early August – and which also include Parent/Family and Sibling (rising 9^th grade or higher) orientation!

One of the dorms.

Another way they’re increasing retention is by making housing mandatory in the first year; living on campus increases academic success and likelihood that students will persist to graduation. After freshman year, many students will move off campus, but UA allows students to live on campus all 4 years if they want. It’s important to get a jump-start on housing, though – once students get accepted, they can put in a deposit which opens up both housing and registration for Orientation. Students should plan to apply by February 1 to participate in freshman room selection – but don’t panic if you miss that; you’ll still get housing! At that point, though, you will rank your preferences and Housing will assign your room. About 50% of students bring cars on campus. They’ve done a good job with parking, often under buildings.

 © 2024

Tuskegee University

Tuskegee University (visited 2/18/24)

Tuskegee is an absolute must-see! People walk with a sense of purpose here and there’s a palpable sense of pride. One of the first things our tour guides did was teach us this: “If people yell ‘TU!’, you answer ‘You Know!’” From everything I’ve seen, the pride students have in their school is well-earned. Students feel a real sense of community; they’re proud of their school and its history, and it’s small enough for them to meet and form friendships while being big enough to provide a lot of options for them.

The campus was designed by Robert Taylor, the first African-American to graduate from MIT. One of the tour guides said, “It’s a walking bit of history. It was built by students for students. You can still see the fingerprints in some of the bricks.” Another guide said, “The pride hits a little differently because of the history and legacy. You’re part of something here. It’s a culture for sure!” This sense of community shows in their retention rate. Almost 80% of students return for sophomore year which is better than a lot of HBCUs I’ve visited, but still has some room for improvement.

Lifting the Veil of Ignorance Statue

Tuskegee is the only university to be named by Congress as a National Historic Site. Booker T. Washington was the first president, and he’s buried on campus – as is George Washington Carver. Other parts of the Historic Site include Washington’s home (The Oaks), the Monument called “Lifting the Veil of Ignorance,” and the Carver Museum. The Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site is only a couple miles from campus.

There are about 2400 undergrads at Tuskegee with about half of the population coming from Alabama and Georgia (split almost equally between the two). It’s not surprising that they pull so many from Georgia: they’re not far from the boarder, and Atlanta is only about 90 minutes away. This also makes it easier for students coming from a distance to get to campus. One of our tour guides was from DC and will either get a ride from a friend or will grab one of the shuttles from the Atlanta airport (which is actually closer than Birmingham); the shuttles cost a bit, but it’s reasonable.

Admission is competitive; they accept only about 1/3 of applicants making it one of the most competitive HBCUs in the country along with Florida A&M (which only accepts about 2% more of their applicants. By comparison, Howard accepts about 40%; Spelman just over 50%, NCA&T almost 60%). They provide a lot of financial support, and the rep I spoke to said that they’re always working on improving this, as well.

The students also get a great deal of academic support and access to opportunities, but they aren’t spoon fed. “The opportunities are here. If you take advantage of them, you’re going to do great, but you’re an adult. No one is going to make you do it.” Another guide agreed: “You get a million emails but it’s up to you to go through them. The opportunities really are endless.” There’s an extensive alumni network of people willing to help students which stems back to the pride they feel in their school. The students have a lot to say about the professors here. They love the classes. “You’ll have to work, but the expectations are reasonable.”

The Kellogg Conference Center/Hotel

People here want to see others succeed. Education is the point of being here, and it’s a top-ranking school for social mobility. Although this is a private institution, it was founded as a land-grant so it’s no surprise that they have strong STEM and agricultural programs. They have a great track record with students getting into med, vet, and other post-grad programs. One of the tour guides is off to med school in the fall: “I’ve gotten a lot of help with Med school applications and MCAT prep.”

The new chapel with no 90 degree angles

• Additionally, 75% of black veterinarians are Tuskegee grads! A lot of these students major in Animal, Poultry, and Vet Sciences (although there are plenty of other options, too). Within the major, they have some niche programs such as Wildlife Science, Companion & Lifestyle Animals, and a Business option.
• Their Aerospace Science Engineering is particularly strong – and has been around awhile. In partnership with the US Army Air Corps, the university helped launch the Tuskegee Airmen who took classes in this department and trained at the airfield. Students still interested in the military can do ROTC here, as well (and their AFROTC branch is known as “The New Tuskegee Airmen”). Tuskegee graduates the highest number of African American aerospace engineers in the country.
• They also offer the full BArch degree.
• This is the only HBCU (and 1 of only 11 universities) authorized to run a Kellogg Foundation Hotel and Conference Center. (The only others in the US are at Michigan State, Gallaudet, and Cal Poly Pomona). Students majoring in Hospitality or in Dietetics can get hands-on experience here.

Some of the dorms

They have a mix of building styles on campus:

• The original chapel burnt down in the 1950s; they think the cause was a lightning strike. The new one has no 90-degree angles because it’s thought that lighting won’t strike that. “If it does, I guess we’ll find out that they’re wrong.” Convocation, part of orientation, and the pin ceremony are all done in the chapel.
• Housing seems to be the biggest issue; many of the buildings could use upgrades, and it seems like the school is slowly getting around to doing this as funds allow. There are some off-campus options as well as some owned by the university. Freshman can’t have cars but there are shuttles to stores several times a month. Food is okay “but there’s room for improvement.”
• The Carver museum is under renovations right now; I’d like to go back someday so I can see it!

The town is cute but isn’t huge (just under 10,000 people). There are some things around, but generally, there’s not a ton for students to do. Auburn is about 20 minutes away, but the nearest city (Montgomery) is about an hour. This makes is a little more difficult for students to get to from a distance. However, there’s a ton to do on campus, and students stick around. Greek Life is a big deal here.

© 2024

Samford University

Sanford University (visited 2/20-21/2024)

Samford is often overlooked – but there’s a lot to be said about this place! They’re known for quality and excellence, ranking #10 nationally (WSJ) for career prep. However, students choosing Samford need to be highly invested in their Christian faith (in whatever form that comes in for them) AND be looking for a community-focused and academic environment. “You don’t have to be Christian to come here, but it’s hard not to see the hand of the lord everything going on here,” said a faculty member we spoke to. “The way we operate is that Samford sets the table, but it’s up to the students to pull up the chair.”

Here are a few key points that people shared with us immediately during our counselor visit:

1. “It’s big enough! If anything, students tend to be overinvolved.” From an academic standpoint, there’s breadth and depth with enough to choose from and plenty of ways to get plugged in for professional development. From a social standpoint, they’re DI, have an active Greek life, and campus is on the outskirts of a city – “and really the whole world is open to them with amazing study abroad. We even have our own house in London.”
2. The next person said, “It’s also small enough! How can it be both big and small? It’s the beauty of Samford: students won’t fall through the cracks. The average class size is 19. There’s intentionality, relationships, and hands-on experiences. They can say that they want to do a detailed, specific thing – and professors probably know how to hook them up with that.”
3. They’re absolutely committed to their calling as a faith-based institution, grounded in the hope found in faith, looking at how to integrate this with learning. “Christian faith is core to everything we do. We want students to grow in faith through worship and by integrating Christ into all we do.” They purposefully build time into the week for group study and worship when classes don’t meet: on Tuesdays, there’s large-group worship; on Thursdays, there’s time for small groups, cadres, and bible study.
   1. Students have to earn 60 “Jesus Credits” (convocations). The Tuesday chapel service is optional; students attend because they want to. They COULD get all the credits done in a semester if they really wanted to, but if they do 8 per semester, they’re in good shape (but they encourage students to try to do it in the first 2 years so they don’t run into problems with internships, clinical hours, study abroad, etc.)
   1. They’re historically Southern Baptist. The relationship is strong, but technically they’re now independent. They don’t get funds, but every Board member is Baptist. They have become increasingly Ecumenical and do draw from broad array of orthodox Christianity. There are some scholarships for dependents of ordained ministers. All faculty members go through a vetting process including 2 essays about their own faith journey (how do they practice it, etc) and how their Christian faith informs their role as a faculty member.

They enroll just under 4000 undergraduates (and want to grow by about 3% a year for a while). “Don’t come here if you want to be invisible. Professors will know you and love you,” said one student. They have grad programs, but the emphasis is on the undergrads.

They’ve had to scramble to add buildings. Currently, 62% of students live on campus, but a new dorm is going up which will get the number closer to 75% – “That feels more like a community to me. We’re doubling down on this being a residential community because that’s so much at the core of who we are,” said the President. Students say that food has gotten a lot better lately. Freshmen get 19 meal swipes a week; they have the option of reducing this as they get older.

They’re also building an expanded rec/wellness center and adding 2 new sororities: they’ve grown and need to catch up with themselves. Samford has some of the best Greek housing I’ve seen for a school this size (and even bigger places). “Some of the best memories have come from living in my sorority house. There’s a lot of convenience in being in the house. I can just walk downstairs and have things to do.” They have 3 of the Divine 9 chapters and want to double this. They’re also looking to expand beyond their current 6 fraternities and 6 sororities. Almost 60% of students get involved in Greek Life: “It’s more of a cultural southern thing. It’s also a sense of belonging and community. We preach and teach leadership.”

We had 40 minutes to talk to students on a panel during our counselor event. Some of the questions we asked were:

Why Sanford?

• I was originally looking at the large SCCs, but this is a better environment. Do you really want to base your decision on maybe 5 or 6 game games at 5 or 6 hours a shot? You’re looking at maybe 30 hours a year. That’s a tiny bit of your experience at college and shouldn’t define the rest of it.
• Teachers here recognize aptitude and won’t hesitate to reach out. They approach classes as a way to serve others. I knew I’d be known here; other schools seemed to lack that. There are plenty of ways to get involved.
• They’ll work with people who need accommodations.

What’s been the most fun you’ve had at Sanford?

• After freshman year, we jumped in the fountain after an evening of studying. We were splashing and having the best time. [Another student said that it’s not uncommon to see someone floating in the fountain on nice days.]
• I love being Connections [freshman weekend] Leader.
• Getting popsicles at the president’s house. He’s always having events there. Also, faculty bring snacks to the library during finals week!
• Participating in some of the traditions like Beeson Ball [a dance], Pancakes with the President, or Lighting of the Way when the President reads a story and then lights the Christmas tree.
• Participating in Step Sing which is a large singing/dancing competition. This is its 75^th year and is largely student run. It’s a philanthropic event, and scholarships are given out.

Can you describe the spiritual life on campus?

• Churches come to campus every fall to connect with the students – you encounter them and have direct access. [As a separate note, one of the counselors asked a chaplain about the LGBTQ community; we were told that they will NOT allow churches that are more welcoming to the LGBTQ community to “table” on campus, but don’t stop students from attending them if they choose to go – they just don’t encourage it.]
• I got to make my faith my own. We can see how you’re supposed to live out the gospel. It can come with challenges, but it’s been a blessing to not do that alone.
• My roommate first year was an atheist and we had a lot of profound discussions. I feel like I learned a lot. [Note: there are very few atheists here; most people agree that this is not a comfortable environment for those students, but they are around].

What was your favorite – or hardest – class?

• Philosophy class where we had to dress up as different philosophers and act out different speeches or other things about them.
• Broadcast storytelling. It’s making me more competitive in my comm degree; I’m learning what it takes to write a script.
• Advanced Spanish linguistics and Syntax was the hardest; we had to listen to tapes or videos and be able to tell what country the speakers were from.
• Economics was tough. It was a very different way of thinking than I’m used to, but now I’m interested in my MBA.

Academically, there are a lot of options.

One of the art studio spaces for seniors

• They have a phenomenal Fine and Performing Arts center and lots of majors to choose from, including BFA programs (in Graphic Design, Interior Design, Musical Theater, Studio Art, and Theater for Youth: Performance & Teaching Artistry) and Music, Game Design, Worship Leadership, and more.
  • Birmingham is a hot spot for design and architecture. They have an 88% placement rate for interior design. Right now, there’s no portfolio requirement for these, but that may change if it gets way more popular. They’re looking to bring in about 25 people in each, but they don’t have a cop on numbers which is great.
  • The 5-year BS/MArch Program is an amazing opportunity that gets students a BS in Architecture along with the Masters in the same time as getting the BArch at most other schools, saving a lot of time and money.
  • They do offer an arts scholarship which does require that students submit a portfolio.
• Health Sciences – these are housed in one of the most beautiful buildings I’ve ever seen with lots of stone and a stream that runs through the lobby! It had been owned by Southern Living.
• Fast Tracks: students can “Double dip” in senior year and pay for the first year of grad school with senior year scholarships.
  • The most popular program is the 3+2 Social Work.
  • Other options include 3+3 law, 3+2 Public Health, 3+3 Divinity, a 5^th year MBA, and programs in Physical Therapy, Speech-Language Pathology, and more.
• Other majors/concentrations worth noting are: Language & World Trade (combining language and business), Interdisciplinary Neuroscience, and Culinary & Wellness Nutrition Management.

The lobby/interior courtyard of the Health Sciences building.

Ideal applicants to the University Fellows (Honors) program show curiosity and willing to discuss ideas, even with those they don’t agree with. Students who qualify (with a required 3.5 GPA and 28 ACT/1310 SAT) would be invited to come to campus for interviews and a mock class where they discuss a reading. The program seeks to educate students holistically, focusing on their spiritual, intellectual, and moral formation. They engage with some of the greatest minds in the Western, Christian intellectual tradition and grapple with perennial questions: the essence of the self/soul, the universe and humanity’s place in it, how best to live harmoniously with others, and the nature of the relationship between humans and the Divine. Within the program, they take 4 semesters of the Western Intellectual Tradition, get paired in Learning Communities of 10-15 students, and must take 2 semesters of Moral Philosophy and a semester of Calc. They also got an academic enrichment experience in Italy.

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