Maryville College

Maryville College (visited 10/15-16/23)

There are hundreds of smaller liberal arts schools across the country, some of which I actively recommend for students coming from a distance; they are usually easy to access and/or have a hook that’s worth the travel.

Maryville has both. It’s in an incredible location and is a great college for the students who want a bit of everything. The town of Maryville itself provides plenty for the students within walking distance – ice cream, coffee, shops, restaurants. The real benefit, though, is that they’re directly between Knoxville and Great Smoky Mountain National Park, both about 20 minutes away. “The location can’t be beat.”

The goats that help keep invasive weeds at bay.

Students wanting to study Outdoor Tourism, Sustainability, or anything Environmental (Studies or Science) should seriously consider this school. “We specialize in that: students will have a great experience no matter what, but we have of lot of resources particularly for that.”  There are many reasons why students interested in these areas should look at Maryville:

• Maryville takes advantage of their location as the closest college to Great Smoky Mountains, the crown jewel of the park service (one of the last free National Parks as well as being a UNESCO World Heritage Site and an International Biosphere Reserve).   “From a rec standpoint, in 10 minutes you’re looking over the main ridge of the Smokies. Students regularly get into the foothills and the Smokies.”
• They have an amazing minor in Appalachian Studies.
• The campus, itself, is largely wooded with an extensive trail system and the country’s largest contiguous green space open to the public which includes pear and apple orchards and an old house used for special events and classes (including Wilderness Photography).
• They’ve partnered with the Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont for weekend programs; the 40 student cohort spends the weekend there with no cell phones.
• Students can become certified as Wilderness First Responder.
• They have a lots of sustainability initiatives on campus: compost goes to the nearby hydroponic farm, they have a herd of goats to eat foliage, and they’re starting a food waste campaign.

One of the climbing towers and part of the ropes course.

Maryville gets students into challenges and outdoor education immediately at Orientation; all students complete Mountain Challenge using the permanent facilities on campus: “We call it a Ropes Course on steroids.” They’ve been named Top Adventure College twice: “we just lost to Sewanee, but we’re gonna get it back!” Their facilities are so good that local outside companies bring groups to campus to utilize it. Orientation isn’t a one-and-done activity, though – they offer programs all year that students can opt into; for every 5 that they complete, they can earn a credit. One student (an Outdoor Education Leadership major) leading our early morning walk through the woods has a hefty scholarship because she helps run these challenges throughout the year.

So other than environmental stuff and location, why Maryville? “We’re a real-world college: we bridge theory with practice because we want to make sure kids know how to apply things.” Read on for more:

• There are so many opportunities for growth. Everyone completes a significant experience before graduation: study abroad, work or intern in their field, or research.
• The Maryville College Works Program links students to internships, and has students apply knowledge by integrating the career center into the curriculum.
  • Students start resumes in FYS and build a 5-year plan as sophomores. “We know they aren’t going to follow it, but you know how to do it.” Junior must do some sort of job experience (research, internship, job). “As someone who grew up with 5 brothers on a dairy farm in rural Tennessee, I didn’t even know what was possible.” Seniors do a thesis project: one did headcounts of people using campus trails. “Managing people is hard!”
  • They’ll help create opportunities based on interests, even if they don’t exist yet. For example, they don’t have a music management program, but they set up a student with famous country music stars over the summer and helped him find a job after college. “I appreciate this the most; it’s there even after graduation.”
• The FYS instructor is the advisor for the first semester: they have eyes on the students 3x a week plus individual meetings throughout that time. They have safety nets to catch problems early to refer students to a variety of programs like Trio (Pell Eligible, Documented disability, First Gen), the STEM Success Center, or tutoring.
• “The faculty care about your success. I could go to a dozen people for a rec letter because they all know me well enough,” said one student.
• Getting a Liberal Arts education helps you in the long run, regardless of what you end up doing. They take a holistic approach, helping student be well-rounded. Cases in point:
  • “I took everything from culinary to shop classes to digital design – and I accidentally triple minored because everything I’ve wanted to do is here.
  • A history major (Maryville alum) is now the Maryville’s President’s Chief of Staff
  • A recent graduate I spoke to said, “Even if I don’t go into the FBI, I can do all sorts of other things and apply what I learned to whatever is in front of me.”
  • “The initial English classes we took made sure we were great writers. I knew I could handle any class that came along.”
• They do an amazing job with scholarships (including for diversity, leadership, community service, fine arts/music, STEM, and faith-based (Presbyterian/leading chapel worship). Several of the competitive ones have a 12/1 deadline, including 5 full tuition scholarships (requiring a 3.8GPA and 30 superscore ACT).
• KT projects (on Kin Takahashi Day) provide significant improvement projects on campus and community served around the world.
• They’re Presbyterian affiliated. A service is offered on Tuesdays (and no classes meet at that time), but students never have to attend. There is 1 required religion and ethics class.
• “Maryville is just fun!”

People sing praises for the new(ish) President who is incredibly personable (it helped that he also had a Baltimore connection and we bonded over a beer before a campus concert). “He’s helped Maryville a lot: the dynamics have changed, the college is more connected to the environment, and he’s promoted the college, bringing in opportunities and resources.” He’s established partnerships like with the Park superintendent to see how they can work together. He’s helped keep the college strong through Covid; they haven’t had to shut down majors like some other small colleges. He’s also secured a massive Title III grant to help institute more opportunities, particularly for Pell Eligible (about half the students qualify) students.

They currently have about 1100 students and are moving back to pre-Covid numbers of 1300 students. Housing is available for everyone who wants it. Just over 1/3 of students commute, and freshman can have cars; “parking could be better,” said a student. They have come a long way in meeting the needs of commuter and non-traditional students. One student was a Commuter Senator who helped grow the resources available: the new commuter lounge is now three times the size with games, a tv, study spaces, a fridge, and more.

The humanities building, decorated for Halloween

Some things to note about academics:

• A new Science Center will be completed within a few years; this will bring most of the sciences under one roof and serve as the Center for Sustainability & Science. Their Environmental Center is run by a wonderful guy with a Wildlife Ecology PhD. “He wrangled about half the black bears in the Park as part of his dissertation.”
• Their Downtown Center, located in a historical 1940s building only a few blocks from campus, will start renovations “hopefully within the week if the permits finally come through.” The new Hospitality & Regional Identity Major will be housed there. “We bring Liberal Arts into where and how we create experiences. This is also where the Fermentation (a minor!) lab will be along with the teaching kitchen for RT lodge!
• They work with other colleges for pathways into some of their programs (bringing 2-year culinary students into the 4-year hospitality program)
• Their Theater Studies major covers Costume Design and Tech in addition to acting.
• They offer an amazing variety of programs like the Global+ certificate, Biopharmaceutical Sciences, ASL-English Interpreting, Ministry and Church Leadership Certificate, and Analytics.

The lobby of the new Arts Center ready for a community event before one of the concerts.

They have 3 first-year dorms, designed specifically to build community. Food is “way better than military” (said a non-traditional vet). Otherwise, it’s hit or miss. “They’re very ambitious and sometimes they hit the mark,” said another student. They have a huge salad bar and the omelet station is amazing. Sunday brunch is open to the public. In the true lunch rush (MWF noon), there’s a line, “but I can get in line at noon and still be done eating at 12:30.”

We visited the DEI office run by an amazing alumna: the office is totally comfy – couches, blankets, tv, tea, snacks, games. There are multiple student-run/planned affinity groups like Sisterhood circle, Autism Group, LGTBQI+, BIOPOC, First Gen (almost 40% of the students identify), etc. There’s a push to bring tactile activities back – “they’re totally into knitting, coloring, pipe cleaner flowers.” There are monthly themes (the month we visited was “Appreciation not Appropriation”) and lunch-talks (a recent was ‘Hair Stories’: Who taught you how to do it? Where do you get your products? What have people told you is ‘professional hair’?). They’re making strides towards racial diversity in the faculty. “When I was a freshman, there wasn’t a single black faculty member. Now we have some.”

The old gym, now a cafe/student lounge.

Maryville’s athletics are special among other DIII schools. “We give them DI level support with physicians, staffing, and access to Mental Performance Coaching” (they pair with UTK for this). “We’re a football school so students get the tradition of Football Saturdays.” They want their experience to be the best it can be: “College is more than sports. We keep practices to weekdays so they’re in their best form on weekends for games AND participation in other traditional social stuff” – and they also have athletes in the community doing service projects. They’ve recently built a new indoor track; combined with the miles of trails on campus, they have an impressive full-year long-distance program. They recently hosted a meet here; other runners said it was challenging. They also have a solid equestrian team.

Their application is free (and essays are optional), but they are NOT on the Common App; they’re not likely to move to CA in the near future; “Ours allows us to see who is truly interested.” They guarantee a $8-20K scholarship. They’ll reassess the amount with additional grades or scores: “Engage with us; the more you do, the more we can help you!”

© 2023

University of Tennessee (Knoxville)

University of Tennessee (visited 10/16/23)

I’ve visited enough schools at this point to say that there’s often very little difference between most large flagships – students are going to get the large rah-rah spirit along with a ton of academic, social, and athletic options at any of them. At the end of the day, a few manage to stand out in terms of how they deal with students, doing a much better job at this than others. Tennessee is not one of them. Even their info session was a bit disorganized, and they lost registrations for at least 5 of us (the response when I showed my confirmation email was, “Huh.” No effort to apologize or figure out what to do about it). Although they paired up tour guides for each of the 3 groups, the tours were way too big to be effective (and I was with the last group out which, while already a decent size, also incorporated all of us whose registrations were lost) – there was a lot of walking and not much info. Credit where credit is due, though, the guides were incredibly enthusiastic, excited about their school, and very well trained – but I walked away after 2.5 hours not really knowing anything not readily found on the website (which speaks to what they were told to talk about, not about the tour guides themselves). I talked with another tour guide who was from my home state – I said this to her when she asked how the tour was; her response: “Yep. Sounds about right, unfortunately.”

That being said, Knoxville is a pretty amazing college town. The university is integrated into the city with a lot of amenities right around campus; students are totally catered to. Uber even has a “closed door policy” in which they’ll watch students until they enter the building and the door shuts behind them. “It feels safe here. Things are well lit. We’re in a city, but it’s not a problem.” The campus is very walkable (it’s about 15 minutes end to end) with a central walkway cutting through the center. Everyone can bring a car and there are multiple garages around campus: “the cost to use them with a parking pass comes out to about $1 a day.” There’s also the T bus which loops around campus and this side of Cumberland Ave. 

The checkered tower

There is a lot of passion here! They have a ton of fun things like Oreo of the Month club, a Grilling and Chilling club, and “a nationally renowned quidditch club – we’ve won 2; ‘Bama has won 0.” The tour guide also made a huge deal about pointing out the Checkerboard on the towers on one of the original buildings. When their football team had started, the coach had told the team to “Charge the Checkers” – as things grew and the new stadium went in, they couldn’t see the tower anymore, so they put the checkers onto the end zone. “We’re the first to put anything other than a mascot or a name on the endzone. One of the other nearby states **cough cough Kentucky** will tell you that they were the first. We will set them straight any day of the week.”

In Fall 2023, they brought in 3715 in-state and just over 3200 out-of-state/international students. “We like that this is the closest to 50/50 we’ve ever been” (usually they’re closer to 75/25) — “But don’t be intimidated by the numbers! You can make a big school small; you can’t make a small college big.” The info session was run by a senior who told us, “My high school had 375 students. Here, one of my 1^st year lectures had 350 students. You will absolutely have big lectures but they’re paired with a discussion session. They do a good job making it a personalized experience. If you want to sit in the back of the room and be a number, you can. If you want to get to know the professor on a first name basis, you can.” He did tell us that English and Foreign Language classes are capped at 30.

Academically, this place isn’t going to challenge the high-flyers, but the solid B student plugging along will probably do fine. They tout Research, Internships, and Practicums as their “Big 3 things that make us us.” I’m not sold. Almost every place offers these things. The student running the info session and both tour guides with our group made a big deal about this being a Research 1 Institution (the highest “grade”/rank a school can get) – and “because we’re R1, you will have to write a research paper here.” I asked for clarification thinking that they meant a Capstone or major senior thesis. Nope! A regular research paper. One of the tour guides said, “You might even have to write more than 1. Mine was about dinosaurs and why the T Rex is better than Pterodactyls. My roommate’s was about Oreos.” This absolutely does not distinguish them … I didn’t have the heart to tell them that most of our students report writing multiple research and other papers at college.

The only things of note that I picked up on in relation to Academics is that Construction Science & Management is their fastest growing major, and the College of Music and the School of Public Policy & Public Affairs had previously been under the College of Liberal Arts but have now been separated out into their own entities. You will find the vast range of majors that you’ll find at just about all other land-grant flagships, including all the agricultural majors.

They have a Holistic Admissions Review process. Testing IS required based on state policy, but rec letters are optional. Students must fill out the SRAR; they only take the transcript after graduation. Architecture & Design, Music, Nursing, and Engineering majors will go through an additional review: students may be admitted to UT but not to that particular school due to size/number of seats in the programs. They highly recommend selecting the college aligning with their first major choice if that’s really what they want to do: it’s a lot easier to transfer out than in.

Applicants must apply by 11/1 for full considered for competitive scholarships and the University Honors programs (with required documents – SRAR and Test Scores – in by 11/15). Decisions get released in mid-December. For merit scholarships, students need the posted GPA and the test score to receive the award. There’s no wiggle room with that. Their Regular Decision deadline is 12/15 with required materials must be in by 1/19. Those decisions get released by the end of February.

Some of the dorms

Housing is required and guaranteed for the 1^st year. However, they’ve already been overenrolling for the last couple years; add that to the fact that they accidentally pulled way more people off last year’s wait list than they intended do, and they’ve caused a bit of “a housing catastrophe” as one person put it. There are 13 res halls, 2 of which are exclusively upperclassmen – but the majority of students move off after the first year. The tour guides said it was fairly easy to get housing off campus. There is Greek Housing (almost 30% of students go Greek); student can move into that housing starting sophomore year.

Their Fall 2022 retention rate WAS the highest in university history at about 90% so something is going right on that front – but their grad rate leaves a lot to be desired with just over 56% of students graduating in 4 years; the 6-year rate jumps up to just over 72%. While certainly not horrible, many other state flagships are 15-20% above those numbers.

© 2023

Tusculum University

Tusculum University (visited 10/15/23)

Although this is a very pretty, very traditional campus that a lot of students might be drawn to, it’s also VERY much a suitcase school! I wasn’t able to take a full tour, but I was nearby and wanted to see the college so I stopped to look around. In cases like this, I’m almost always able to find some students to talk to – I’ll go by the library and student center; there are often students working at help desks or in other places, and many of them are happy to talk about their school when I introduce myself.

This was not the case at Tusculum. No one was around at 2pm on a Sunday; it was a ghost town. By that time of day on a nice day in the fall, there are people around on the quad, in the student center, studying in the library – something! Initially, there wasn’t a soul to be seen; it took about 10 minutes of wandering around the quad (which is pretty) to find the library, figuring I could talk to someone working the desk: the sign on the door with the fall hours said that it was closed all day Saturday and didn’t open until 4pm on Sunday. That kind of told me everything I needed to know!

The library

Next stop was the Student Center: I did see 2 people walking together out of the building. If they hadn’t been deep in conversation, I would’ve stopped to ask them some questions. Inside the building, I wandered through and found a total of 1 person sitting in a lounge area on the phone so I couldn’t talk to her, either.

I did finally see some other students walking at a distance and one group of about 8 students in athletic gear: my impression was that athletes tended to do well here and would stick around on weekend. Later, at the counselor event I was heading for, I talked to several other counselors local to Tusculum; they had sent some students there or otherwise knew of family or friends with experience there: they confirmed that the school does a great job with athletes and the students tend to enjoy their experiences at the university – but they were not surprised that there wasn’t anyone around on the weekend. This is also a very religious school so people much have to be ready for that atmosphere; people here really walk the walk. If that’s what a student is looking for, they’ll be happy – otherwise, they should look elsewhere.

The other counselors told me that students were fairly happy there, but it does tend more towards catering to athletics versus keeping up with facilities. There was a beautiful new building near the athletic fields (I looked it up – it’s the Meen Center for Science and Math), but the dorms routinely get bad reviews because they need updating. I’d be very worried about sending students there – and can’t find any draw for a student coming from a distance. I’m definitely worried about the fact that only 2/3 of students return for sophomore year. There are plenty of other, more active/engaging, more easily accessible schools (for students from a distance) that I think would take better care of the students.

© 2023

Sewanee: The University of the South

Sewanee (12/3/18)

The quad with the chapel in the background

With nicknames like “The Domain” and “The Mountain,” I expected campus to feel more mountainous than it does – but Sewanee sits on flat on top of the Cumberland Plateau, its 13,000 acres making it the 2^nd largest college campus in the country.

“This isn’t a place where students are absorbed into the surrounding city. They’re really here. They need to be a good classmate, teammate, reliable lab partner.” The “town” of Sewanee is only about 2 blocks long but has basic essentials (store, post office, etc). We asked the students panelists what they would say to people who are afraid they’ll be isolated on a mountaintop:

• 

  The town of Sewanee

  “Valid point! If you are really afraid, this might not be the place for you – but they do keep us incredibly busy! And Chattanooga is 45 minutes away.” (Nashville is just over an hour; Atlanta is 3).

• “They don’t put a group of 18-22 year olds on the top of a mountain and hope they figure it out because that’s terrifying. There’s so much to do here. It’s not an issue.”
• “This is an academically rigorous place. We spend a lot of time doing work. Those students you saw in the library earlier weren’t staged: they’re really in there studying. Plus, you can leave. You can have cars. That’s how we meet people. Upperclassmen will yell down the hall, “Freshmen, we’re going to Walmart! Get in the car!””

• 

  Patio with a fire pit outside the dining hall

  “I found it refreshing. I think college should challenge you. I never had a problem getting off campus, but I find there’s so much to do that you may not get anywhere else. You just have to look a little more sometimes.”

• “It creates a stronger community to go after what you’re passionate about instead of looking elsewhere and not connecting to people here or spending time with people who love the same things. My friends at other schools say that they don’t have the freedom to go after what they love.”

Sewanee has a reputation for being preppy. In large part, it lives up to that – but that’s not the whole story. “Understanding our brand can be a barrier. Students have to buy into being on a mountain. There’s a large outdoorsy contingent [the Outing Program runs over 200 trips a year], and many of our students are Pell-eligible,” said a rep. “Our students of color often come from a city [including 10 Posse students a year from the DMV]. Things like food or barbers/beauticians that signify comfort aren’t as readily available. We need to provide access to that especially if they don’t have a car. We have zipcars; if they don’t drive, people will teach them.”

“Spaces are important. They evolve each year. If there’s something we aren’t doing, we own up to it and change. There’s now a Q&A House for LGBTQ+ students.” Students agreed that the college has become more responsive in the past several years. “Students feel empowered.” They even have an amazing music room tucked into the 2^nd floor of the library. Inside is a top-of-the-line speaker system, amazing acoustics, and an archive of 25000 vinyl records! Students can come in to research or just listen to music. There’s a large construction project going on that will incorporate the Wellness Initiative with the Student Commons. “Right now they have the green spaces, but you also need indoor space.”

Campus is gorgeous: the buildings are made of (mostly) locally-sourced stone. The chapel which normally seats 500 (1000 at the holidays when they reconfigure the space) is the focal point of campus; the Rose Window is inspired by Notre Dame in Paris. Sewanee is the only Episcopalian supported campus. Historically, this was a draw but is less so in recent years, although about 1/3 of the students self-identify as Episcopalian. They have an interfaith house and Jewish and Muslim associations. There’s a Theology School, but there is little other religious influence other than that. Nothing is mandated, but services are offered. The chapel is used for large campus events such as signing the honor code, “gowning,” and graduation.

One of the biggest surprises is the Tennessee Williams Center: upon his death, Williams bequeathed the bulk of his estate to Sewanee to honor his grandfather, an Episcopal priest and alumni; his grandparents “kept him alive – he almost sold his typewriter three times to pay for food. They’d send him money.” The gift from about 20 years ago came “out of nowhere,” said the center’s Director. They renovated the old gym into a spectacular new center, and royalties from his plays bring in $1.2m a year. “We’re running a mini-conservatory. Students do everything: act, sew, direct, do lighting, and even learn how to sweep a floor properly.” The 8 graduates from 2018 are all working in the business. Students can do their own productions – they pitch ideas to the Student Production Board, secure the rights to the play, do the PR, tickets, everything. Cabaret sold out so quickly that they added more shows.

The music room in the library

We asked the student panelists about what surprised them at Sewanee and what they wished people knew:

• “I wish people knew that it’s as big or as small as you want it to be. People think they need this huge school to make friends, but there are only so many people you can be friends with.”
• “I wish people realized that Sewanee students are competitive in the real world. It’s so much more than a name. We’re intellectual.”
• “A lot of people don’t know about Class Dress – we don’t wear sweatpants to class. It’s an unspoken ‘dress nicely’ policy. We don’t do the ‘rolled out of bed look’ but don’t be worried about it. It’s not a huge deal!”
• “I wish people knew how much we love Sewanee. I want to do 4 more years here!”
• “There a large Greek life here (70% participation) but the wonderful thing is how inclusive it is. Events are open to everyone. You never have to be a member to do something. It’s just like another club.” Another panelist agreed: “I get to have as much fun without paying any of the dues.”

Academically, Sewanee may be best known for their English Programs and The Sewanee Review, the oldest continuously published literary review. Students work as Interns where they actively review submissions and pass on opinions to the editors. They bring on Pulitzer and Nobel Prize winners (such as Arthur Miller and Anne Patchett) to work with students in the Summer Writer Conference. Students can minor in Shakespeare Studies and earn a certificate in Creative Writing.

The college seal – don’t walk on it if you want to graduate on time!

Sewanee offers multiple certificates, electives, and minors that they don’t make into full-blown majors (the most unusual of which is Southern Appalachian Studies). The Babson Center for Global Commerce is the “house of business,” working itself into liberal arts in interesting ways. “It’s more horizontal in nature than vertical. Employers need the critical thinking and persuasive skills from a Liberal Arts degree.” They only offer a minor (the largest one on campus with 10% of students completing it) to provide students a comprehensive education, combining passion with practicalities. “My job [Director of the program] is to expose them to what it means to go to work.” They bring in speakers like Delta’s CEO to talk about the company culture, a newspaper CEO to talk about digital transition, women in STEM, etc. Carey Fellows (29 honors students are selected each year) take 2 extra classes and a semester-long internship in junior year.

The Dining Hall

As I walked around campus, I passed a class entering some of the wooded areas across from the quad; I watched for awhile as they did measurements, testing, and more. Not surprisingly, the Earth and Environmental Systems department is strong, and their academic building is amazing! “It’s like home,” said the Director of the program. “Maybe too much so!” They offer a certificate in Watershed Science and majors in several other areas (including Forestry and Geology).

Campus is steeped in traditions, creating a distinctive Sewanee culture:

• Lessons and Carols, based after King’s College in Cambridge, is a big deal on campus and in the community. The University Choir sang for us for a few minutes; the director told us how students can earn a music minor through choir membership. A world-famous opera singer (the winner of the Pavarotti Competition) is teaching students as an Artist-in-residence. They also bring in adjuncts for any instrumental lessons “even bassoon.”
• Honor Society/ Getting “gowned”: Students earning Honor Status for 2 straight semesters earn their Academic Gown and the right to wear it around campus to class and other events. Professors also often wear their gowns to teach.
• The Sewanee Angels: the tradition says that angels live in the Domain to protect its beauty and the people who live there. They become people’s guardian angels; as students and staff leave the gates, they tap the roof of the car to let the angels know they’re leaving so they’ll have an angel who will always guide them back.
• As with lots of other colleges, Sewanee has a “Don’t walk on the seal” tradition. “If you do it by accident, you can streak the quad to reverse the curse,” said our tour guide.
• Hiking the Perimeter Trail, a 20 mile loop around campus. “It’s a right of passage. It’s an all day trip that often starts and ends at Shenanigans (basically the only pub in town).”

© 2018

University of Memphis

UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS (visited 4/23/13)

One of the many tigers statues from campus placed prominently in front of the new Union.

For a medium-sized, urban, public school, this was surprisingly attractive (and safe! They’re ranked as the #1 safest metro school in TN [they’re proud that they beat Vandy] and Campus Security patrols campus and a two-block radius around campus, which is where much of the off-campus housing is). The campus is designated as a Level-2 Arboretum with more than 60 types of trees, and there’s lots of open space on campus. Prominent in the middle of campus is the impressive new 3-story union which opened in 2010. The middle is open with grand staircases all the way up to the top floor, and much of the social life goes on there. Not only are there various offices, but they have several food options, both to-go (such as Dunkin Donuts) and their own sit-down restaurant fashioned like a Chili’s that’s open for lunch (the nachos are a big thing there). There’s a full-sized theater on the second floor that shows recent movies and gives out free popcorn and soda. The Post Office is here – something that surprised me (and I’ve never seen on another campus) is that students have to rent a PO Box if they want one, even if they’re residential students!

An academic building

I visited on a Tuesday morning; because there was only 1 family and I visiting that morning, the admissions staff sent me out on my own with two tour guides so I could really pick their brains. One of the tour guides came to Memphis for the nursing program and the Greek life; it didn’t hurt that her parents both came here. The other one was from Memphis, had gone to another school first, and then transferred back. He couldn’t be happier. Both are currently commuter students, but say that they don’t see this as any disadvantage at all. There are lots of ways to get involved, and because there are so many people who commute, they’re not left out of campus life. There are plenty of places to study and hang out between classes, so it’s easy – and because they’re so involved, they’re on campus most of the day by choice. Off-campus housing is easy to get either through the Greek system or the rentals (which are plentiful right off campus). The tour guides said that the Greek kids tend to be the most involved in campus live in general. Girls rush the second week of classes, the guys are summer recruits: “it tends to be a lot of who you know.”

The lounge and kitchen area of the Honors Dorm

Currently, only 3000 of the 16000 undergrads live on campus. The university is trying to get more residential students as well as deal with the “parking convenience” issue (there is parking, but it’s sometimes far away which the students say can be difficult and requires that they get to campus earlier to give them time to park and walk to class). They’ve recently built Honors Dorms which are fabulous! The rooms are traditional doubles, but the bathrooms, although located in the hall, are private (you can close and lock the doors); each bathroom is a complete unit (sink, toilet, shower). In the rooms, the “dressers” are two stackable components of two drawers each that can either be separated and go under the bed or stacked to be a more traditional dresser. The halls are set up in circles, and there are kitchens and lounges on each floor. It’s a clean, comfortable set-up.

I asked the tour guides about diversity on campus; it’s clear from just walking around campus that there’s a lot of racial diversity that reflects the nature of Memphis, but they said that there’s a lot of political and religious diversity as well. They have “Religion Row” which houses buildings dedicated to all sorts of different religions, so everyone has a home. I also asked them what sort of student tends to fit in and which tend to leave. Neither one of the guides knew more than a couple people who have left; they said that the students who don’t fit in tend to be close-minded or they don’t like the city. They also agreed that students who transfer tend to go to smaller schools.

They have carts that they use to take people on part of the tour. This was fun, but not entirely necessary since the campus isn’t that big. However, despite that fact, they do run shuttles around campus fairly continuously – but this seems to be a response more to the commuter population and people needing to park farther away sometimes. There’s even an app that tells student where each shuttle is, which the students find particularly useful in bad weather.

The lobby of the library

They have quite a few majors and academic programs to brag about. They’re #1 in the state for nursing, and their other med programs such as Pre-Dental and Pre-Med are also strong; Memphis has a lot of hospitals (many of which are close to the university) which provides a vast range of clinical experiences for students, so they graduate with a lot of different types of hands-on experience rather than just 1 or 2. Their Business program is solid (and they have particularly strong links to FedEx so students do a lot of internships with them, as well). There’s a music conservatory which requires an audition for admittance. Psychology is their most popular major and gets the most funding (and the psych lecture hall is the biggest on campus with 450 seats, although most classes cap at 300 with break-out sessions). The ROTC program is large, and they’ve just started an Asian Studies Program, as well. As a college, they’re ranked #7 in the country for internship experience (as defined as participation as part of a credit-bearing course), and their job-placement rate is high because so many of their students graduate with real-life, practical experience.

The Administration building where Admissions is located

To be considered for admission, they use the following formula: (GPA x 30) + ACT score. If the student has a 95, the rest of the application will be looked at. The only time they will look at letters is if they’re denied and people feel that the application needs to be reviewed. They don’t superscore either the SAT or the ACT, and applicants need at least a subscore of 16 in English on the ACT. There are several scholarships available, and Non-Resident scholarships are stackable with the other scholarships which are dependent on GPA and ACT scores (23 ACT and a 3.0 gets you $8000 a year; 25ACT and a 3.25 = $11,000; 30ACT and 3.25 = $13,000). Two of their scholarships need separate applications and the deadline is moving up next year, probably to 12/1. The TOEFL is required of all international students, even those graduating from a US high school.

(c) 2013

Rhodes College

RHODES COLLEGE (visited 4/22/13)

I was impressed with Rhodes; it lived up to all the things I’ve come to expect from a Colleges That Change Lives school. Not only is it a beautiful campus (it falls into the small group of colleges, along with places like Bryn Mawr and WashU, with lots of gothic stone buildings), but they’re also rightfully proud of their “focus on the 4-Rs: Rigorous academics in the Real world on a Residential campus showing proven Results,” as one of the admissions rep puts it. They boast a high retention rate and an impressive 91-100% acceptance rate to grad school over the last 10 years, so they’re doing something right.

The admissions rep gave a very enthusiastic, quick overview of the school before splitting up the group among the 3 tour guides: “It’s their job to show you their home.” There were four college counselors touring Rhodes on the day I went, so they sent us out with our own guide. Rob was a fantastic, dynamic senior from Texas majoring in International Urban Politics; he said that we’ve probably never heard of it before since “I made it up.” Before leaving the office, one of the tour guides put a large map up to show us where we would be going. This was a great idea and helped us get a sense of campus; I don’t know why more schools don’t do this.

The Star Room in the library.

Much of the campus has a wooded feel; I drove up to the admissions office under a canopy of trees, so I wasn’t surprised to learn that the campus is a federal arboretum. When Rhodes built the new library, they had to cut down a few trees, but they incorporated the lumber into the building. Their library is now ranked among the top 25 most beautiful libraries in the world, and is one of two earthquake-proof buildings in the state, designed to “split in half.” On the first floor is “Middle Ground,” the 24 hour section of the library. Rob told us that it’s “where people go to pretend to study. You hear all sorts of typing, but people are really on facebook.” The rest of the library is where the real work gets done, and the floors get progressively quieter on the higher levels. The Star Room on the second floor was co-designed by the art students and the astronomy students. The ceiling has as astrological chart of the way the school looked on the night the university opened.

About three-quarters of the students live on campus all four years. The freshman dorm we toured was great! It even smelled good. Rob had sent pictures to his friends back home who were at the state flagship university, and they were definitely jealous, comparing his large suite with stained-glass to their little cinder-block rooms. They just finished building a Junior dorm that acts as a “bridge” between the freshman and sophomore dorms and the Senior apartments (which have 6-8 rooms connected with 2 bathrooms and a common room). The junior dorm is a little more independent, has some kitchen options, etc. For students who want to move off campus, it’s easy to find housing. Rob rents a house from a prof with six other students. There are also housing options listed online in the Marketplace section of the website. There are no Greek residences, even though about 50% of students get involved in Greek life. The groups are inclusive with most activities open to anyone. Rush happens during the second week of classes.

Statue of the Lynx, the school mascot

Newsweek ranked Rhodes as the #1 Most Service-Minded school; students are active on and off campus. Like any campus, there’s a lot to do on campus, and the city of Memphis is easily accessible (downtown is about 10 minutes away). On campus, one of Rob’s favorite traditions is Rites of Spring in which there are concerts, parties, and other events. There are several unofficial “To-Do-Before-Graduation” things including jumping in the fountain, climbing the sphere (which was created during a contest between the physics and the chemistry departments – Physics won and then placed it outside the Chem department to brag), and riding the statue of the lynx (their mascot). Rob finds it funny that the lynx is in a fighting stance since real lynxes will initially curl up and try to roll away from danger. Rhodes’ fight song includes the line “Roll Roll Roll” which is like saying “Run away!!” . . . “kind of like what our football team does, so I guess it’s appropriate!”

Honor Code

Rhodes has a completely student-run Honor Code (1 of only 17 in the country). If there are violations, students get called in front of the council which deals with the entire investigation. Students could get expelled, but he doesn’t know if that actually has happened since everything that happens is confidential.

Rob appreciates having such easy access to professors and other adults around campus. The president gets rave reviews by the students, and I can see why. Although we didn’t know who he was at the time, he came out of an office as we were walking by, and he stopped to say hi. He talked to us for a few minutes and bragged about Rob: “I bet he didn’t tell you he’s already got a job for right after graduation, did he?” After he walked away, Rob said, “That was President Troutt. That’s pretty much what he’s always like. He talks to everyone!”

Science Center

In the presentation at the beginning of the morning, the admissions officer told us that the average class size is 14, so we asked Rob what the reality of that was. He is currently in an individual study (so a class of 1) but of the regularly scheduled classes he’s taken, the smallest has been 3 (he’s had several classes with fewer than 10 students); his largest has been in the high 20s. He said that people here who succeed are engaged in class; students can’t get away with NOT be engaged in a school this size. “We’re all big fish in a small pond.” He knew two people who transferred: one wanted a specialized medical field not offered at Rhodes, and one was disillusioned by the size; his parents had pushed him to Rhodes when he was choosing between Rhodes and LSU. He likes that the students can utilize the resources of Memphis for internships and for research as part of classes. There are nine Fortune-500 companies in the area including FedEx, Auto Zone, and International Paper. St. Jude’s Research Hospital is nearby, and Rhodes is the only undergrad institution allowed to send students to work there.

(c) 2013