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

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

University of Mary Washington, Take 2

Univ. of Mary Washington (visited 12/8/23) (click here for notes and pictures from my previous visit).

Fun fact: this campus is literally on a battlefield; their sports fields are called the Battleground. 

I continue to love what Mary Washington offers. This school hits a sweet spot for a lot of students – it’s large enough to offer students a great “bigger experience” but small enough to limit class sizes, give personalized attention, and not let students fall through the cracks. The students get to be a bigger fish in a smaller pond in a way that’s often not possible in bigger schools. Fredericksburg’s also a draw: it’s an accessible, small city with plenty to do near campus as well as being less than an hour out of DC on the train.

Their badge of honor is that people take care of each other, “and we’re normalizing talking about it. This is a collaborative environment. People help others without expecting anything in return” – and demonstrated at all levels of the school. For example, the president hosts monthly dinners at his house to talk to students, see how they’re doing, and what the school could be doing better.

They aren’t looking to grow past about 4000 students; that’s the right spot for them and what they want to – and can – offer students at a high level of quality. They bring in 800-850 first year students a year, and have a large transfer population (about 300) for a school their size. Much of this aligns with being a public institution and the mission to provide a transfer pathway for students from the state’s community colleges. They’re intentional and holistic in admissions, making sure to bring in students who will thrive in this environment. They even have Faculty Fellows, professors who help to answer applicant’s questions or want connections in specific programs. These Fellows can address the nitty-gritty details and questions.

Admission is truly test-optional. They look at rigor in context of the high school when awarding merit scholarships. They don’t recalculate GPA; they use what’s provided by the high school. They give students the option to interview online for 15-20 minutes; these are used to evaluate applicants for an additional $1000-2000 1-year scholarships. “You’re basically guaranteed at least the $1,000 so there’s no reason not to!”

They wrap their arms around students needing academic support. “The academics aren’t easier; all students complete the same program, but we provide all needed accommodations, helping them advocate and learn how to be a college student.” They’re also increasing racial and ethnic diversity; in the 2022-23 school year, 33% of students overall (and 37% of the incoming class) self-identified as BiPOC. They provide a great deal of support for historically marginalized populations (First in family/First Gen, BiPOC/geographically diverse, and PELL recipients) through cohorts like Presidential Emerging Leaders, IMPACT, Rappahannock Scholars, and the Student Transition Program. They’ve recently received a $4m grant to support students from recruitment through completion. “Students who elect to take part in these programs have a higher graduation rate than the rest of UMW’s population.”

They offer 2 full-ride scholarship programs: Washington Scholars (Virginia residents) and Alvey Scholars (out-of-state residents); to be eligible for these, students must apply to – and be accepted into – the Honors Program. Another Honors benefit is potential access to an Early Selection Program to med school. However, University Honors isn’t the only option for a challenge – most majors also offer Departmental Honors. I met up with a former student; she’s in the process of applying for Biology Honors and recommends that path. “Departmental is worth it! Some friends realized that the university program wasn’t worth it for them.” All Honors students complete a capstone project; many majors also offer it, and non-honors students can opt into it. There’s no separate honors dorm; students are all mixed together (another way to build community).

“The academics here are not as intense as at William & Mary. Students are busy and it’s academically rigorous, but students choose to come here for the balance.” My former student agrees. “It’s challenging. I have definitely have to study, but I have time for a lot of other things, too.” The students we spoke to all had high praise for the professors: “they’re awesome!” UMW keeps classes small. One students said that his Gen Chem lecture section had 60 students, “which isn’t all that unusual for those popular first year classes,” but the group was broken up into 15-person lab sections. On the other end of the spectrum, his smallest class had 4 students in it.

They hold fast their Liberal Arts founding: “Liberal Arts is a practical education. These aren’t in conflict. Students are set up for success.” They’ve started a Life After MW initiative: “We’re conscious in thinking about plans and how to implement those over the 4 years to set students up for success.” They’re heavily focused on opportunities, including a long-term summer research program that’s fully internally funded (including free R&B and a stipend). A $30M alumni gift went both to fund research and to scholarships. “I don’t know of other schools in the country with $50m invested in the student experiences. If you want to do it, we’ll guarantee money to do it.” There’s been so much research that they’re offering more symposia in the fall in addition to the big spring one. 

We got to spend some time in the newly remodeled Comp Sci department, talking to professors and students. Over 300 students major in Comp Sci (Software Development focus) or Cyber Security (software-security focus) – or in the Data Science minor. Classes remain capped at 30 so there’s lots of interaction. “They get access to a larger school while maintaining individualized attention. Faculty focus on undergrad experiences.” The program’s designed so they can graduate in 4 years with no prior background, but AP CS classes can help. They have grad school partnerships with VTech (4+1) and George Mason (3+2); they start grad programs here. There are a ton of internship connections (70% do at least 1), many of which are paid. Grant programs for unpaid internships cover expenses like travel and lunch so they aren’t paying to do the internship. Their FCC connection provides a remote internship opportunity that’s not paid but gives class credit. On-campus activities give them Programming contests/hackathons on and off campus. Partnerships with Commonwealth Cyber Initiative, National Center for Women and Info Tech, EC-Council on Ethical Hacking.

This is a residential – and social – campus. In any given year, 85-89% of freshman live on campus; the rest come from a 30-mile radius (the commuter range). More than half of students overall live on campus. Students tend to get very involved, usually because of the first-year residential requirement. There’s no official Greek Life; a few informal and unsanctioned/unrecognized groups are off campus. One student I spoke with said that his favorite part of the school was being part of the community. “It’s not uncommon to eat meals – even off campus – with professors. Some of us went out to dinner with a Psych Professor recently.” Like all school, there are beloved traditions such as jumping into the fountain at least once before graduation and “Duck It Day” which we got to witness since the counselor event fell on that day. A professor hides mini ducks around campus (with some evil ducks mixed in). At the end of the day, you can adopt a duck.

They get lots of out-of-state recruited athletes (we got to speak to a student from Dallas who came for lacrosse). Lots of international students come for Rugby. They also now have esports teams, varsity equestrian, and club rowing and cheerleading. Their swimming and lax teams are strong, as is men’s soccer (they just lost in the Elite 8 round) and women’s volleyball (they made it to Sweet 16).

© 2024

Shenandoah University

Shenandoah University (visited 12/6/22)

This was my 2^nd time to campus, the last being about 12 years ago; despite not having a full traditional tour this time around, the admission reps were amazing and had a full program ready for me, including a golf cart to get around campus. I got to spend a great deal of time in the Conservatory, the Health Sciences building, and the Virtual Reality lab, seeing facilities and talking to professors and directors of programs. These three areas are just some of what makes this university stand out and worth looking at. It’s absolutely a hidden gem!

“We’re liberal arts with a career focus,” said the rep. “Kids are getting jobs coming out of here.” They enroll almost 4000 students spread out among their 6 departments/schools which hits the sweet spot for many people. They’re technically a medium-sized school and has much more of a university feel than other schools of its size – but it retains all the benefits of a smaller school including the individual attention that comes with a smaller enrollment.

One of the most unusual things I got to see was the Center for Immersive Learning – and I’m totally sold! Their School of Applied Technology is amazing; I want a do-over so I can come here and take classes. They have full immersion Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality labs. I got to talk to two people who run the program and teach classes who were rightfully proud of what they had there, including all cutting-edge, up-to-date equipment. The school houses 6 majors including cybersecurity, data science/applied math, info tech, comp sci — and, most noteworthy, the new engineering program they’re rolling out; the rep was able to share the news is that SU is likely going to start admitting people next year for Engineering. Most of these are also available as minors.

Some of the VR equipment

However, it’s the Virtual Reality Design (major, minor, and certificate programs), Artificial Intelligence (minor), and Game Design & Development (minor) and their certificate programs that makes this school such a standout. I wish several of these were available when I was at college: their History & Immersive Technology is amazing, and students are interning with museums, historical sites – and they’re working with others at the university to create Immersive Reality for the Constitutional Convention Debates!

Some of the VR/IR spaces, green rooms, and recording spaces.

Along the same lines as this is the comprehensive Esports programs that SU offers. This is one of the country’s first eSports academic programs. Students can earn a BS, BBA, minor, or certificate in Esports Management, learning how to deal with events, etc. They can also get an Esports Coaching certificate.

The School of Nursing is separate from the School of Health Professions (which has primarily graduate programs). Their BSN program is Direct-Entry with nursing classes starting in the sophomore year. There are tons of different simulation rooms as well as a cadaver lab in the Health Science building (which opened in 2014). Students do a phenomenal job in this program, and the first-attempt NCLEX pass rate is over 97%, one of the highest in the state.

Inside the Health Sciences building

For students interested in the School of Health Professions Masters/Doctoral degrees, they can complete the pre-program undergraduate track (including an option to do a Pre-Health Professional certificate) with the option of pursing one of the multiple Accelerated and Early Assurance Programs. Each major specifies the GPA, recommendation, and classwork required to be considered for the specific program as well as what’s required in college to remain on track. They’re 1 of 6 that does both athletic training and PT.

• Athletic Training Early Assurance is a 3+2.5 program with 10 seats available.
• Physician Assistant EA is a 4+2.5 program with 5 seats available.
• The 3+3 Doctor of Physical Therapy program sets aside 10 spots per year.
• Occupational Therapy 3+3 OTD program has 10 seats available.
• The Pharmacy Early Assurance/Accelerated has both a 3+4 and 2+4 program, each with 15 spots open each year.
• Public Health offers 10 seats.

The main Conservatory building.

Another area they the university is the Performing Arts which are simply phenomenal here. Shenandoah is known for is its highly renowned Conservatory which enrolls about 525 students, including about 18 for musical theater, 16 for acting, 15 for tech theater, and 16-20 for dance. The Conservatory awards 4 different Bachelors degrees:

One of the Sound Tech rooms.

• BFA: Acting, Dance, Musical Theater, and Theater Design & Production that has 6 emphasis such as stage design, sound, or lighting. Students can complete multiple emphases.
• BA: Collaborative Audio Arts and Dance
• Bachelor of Music Therapy
• Bachelor of Music: Musical Theater Accompanying, Performance, Music Education, Jazz & Commercial Music, Composition, and Music Production & Recording Technology which is 2^nd only Belmont in Nashville. They have Grammy Award-winning faculty on staff, and students get amazing experiential opportunities, including traveling abroad for recording. One even got scuba certification to do recording for Cirque du Soleil.

One of the Set Design workshops.

I spent about 40 minutes touring the relatively new building with the Head of the Dance department who was wonderfully enthusiastic about all the things going on. There was lots of activity from about 4:45-5:30 when I was there: students were setting up for the Holiday Gala, rehearsing for a variety of things, taking classes, using the shops. Many spaces and performances are student-driven and/or student-designed, including a black box theater that students converted from a classroom: “they planned it, priced it out, and supervised installations,” said the professor. “There are also a lot of student-run programs. For example, they perform a new play they’ve written every Thursday at 11pm!” There are hundreds of performances every year including multiple main stage plays each year, musicals, operas, a holiday gala, and lots of music and dance concerts.

This isn’t to say that Shenandoah doesn’t have lots of other things to offer students interested in a more traditional college experience or major – they do! For students interested in business, the arts & sciences, and other things, this is also well worth looking at. They have great programs across the board, including cool programs like Conservation Science and Management, Film Production, Professional.& Popular Writing, Health Communication, Civil War Era Studies, History & Documentary Film, Coaching, and Christian Leadership or Religious Diversity and Leadership in the Professions (including a 3+3 accelerated Master of Divinity).

I pulled onto campus at 4:30 so didn’t have much chance to see campus before it got dark – but I got a great view of the holiday lights; campus was well decorated for the holidays! This is a traditional-looking campus with a lot of brick and even a small stream running along the edge, complete with a couple small footbridges. I like the layout of campus and how accessible things are. Several things looked familiar, but they’ve also made some great changes.

One of the most notable changes is that they’ve bought a couple hotels and converted them into dorms. One is in “Freshman Row” so even some freshman get in-suite bathrooms! The other building is directly across the street from the main entrance to campus and houses sophomores. “It has a pool, so now we have a pool on campus!” said the Rep showing me around. “You can imagine that that’s really popular with students.” Students are only required to live on campus for 2 years, but there’s often housing available for students who want to stay on campus, and nearby off-campus housing is not difficult to find. Campus is easily accessible both from the highway and the town of Winchester. Downtown is maybe a mile away with lots to do that students enjoy. Regardless of where students choose to live, they can get on and off campus easily.

© 2023

Roanoke College (Take 2)

Roanoke College (visited 12/5/22) (Click here for notes and pictures from my first visit on 11/2/16).

“You can go to college and be a tourist, or you can be an explorer. Our kids tend to be the explorers.” I love this description!

Roanoke has a new President who’s personable, has a wonderful sense of humor, and gets it (plus he has a phenomenal dog; what’s not to love?). He and his wife hosted the counselors for dinner on our first night on campus. We talked to him about the college and his vision moving forward: “We meet students where they are. We’ll work with them to get them to wherever they need and want to be. We have everyone from the high-flyers to the late bloomers who need people to see their potential. I was that kid; if you told people who knew me in high school that I’d end up a college president, no one would’ve believed you. I understand how transformative a place like this can be.” He’s all about college access, bringing middle schoolers to campus to see what’s possible and building bridges with programs that’ll bring a more diverse study body.

A few of Main Street from campus.

The College sits in the Blue Ridge Mountains in Salem, not Roanoke itself. Salem is cute; downtown is right off campus. The senior I spoke to enjoys it; “it’s walkable and there’s plenty to do to keep busy.” Mill Coffee is the hotspot for students and adults alike; students like studying there: “They know us. It’s like coming home.” I asked whether students often go into the city of Roanoke (downtown is 15 minutes away). She said that it’s more common to go there on the weekends, particularly if they’re 21+. “There’s a lot to do there, but mostly we stick close during the week. We’re not hurting for activities. There’s no need to get out of Salem for the most part.”

The football field (they have amazing athletics at Roanoke!) with 2 of the newest dorms across the way (Honors students live in one of these).

Roanoke enrolls just under 2000 students with most coming from the Eastern seaboard. The college wants to slowly grow enrollment to 2500 (by 2030) while maintaining standards. They guarantee housing on campus and plan to redo some dorms in the coming years. When they reach their target enrollment, they’ll likely allow seniors to move off campus.

They’ve made some changes to their academic offerings since my last visit in 2016, deliberately continuing to improve and stay relevant. “We want to make a more impactful experience for students. It’s already a pretty good place, and students are happy, but we always want to do better.” They’re aggressive about adding new majors: in just the last few years, they’ve created 18 majors including education professional studies, data analysis, and engineering studies. They also offer an array of minors and concentrations to enable students to more easily tailor their education to interests and goals. They’ve added at least 6 new minors and concentrations such as Disability Studies (one of 32 programs in the country!), Medicinal Chemistry, Materials & Nanoscience, Publishing & Editing, and Sports Analytics.

A view of the chapel (we didn’t get inside this time) – Roanoke is only loosely connected to the founding church at this point.

They’re also becoming more interdisciplinary. They’ve started a new Explorations program which clusters classes around common themes like History of the Americas, Race & Ethnicity, World of Greece and Rome, or Environmental Studies. This is similar to a minor but explores themes across disciplines rather sticking within a single discipline where classes may not have connections or relevancy to each other. Their Core Curriculum has also become more innovative, moving away from “Intro to…” classes; instead, students take topic-based courses built around interests. They get the same theory as the more traditional classes, but they apply it to areas of interest. For example, instead of an Intro to Stats class, students may take a Statistics & Sports or Statistics & Weather. Freshmen take 2 seminars (with Honors levels for students in that program): 1^st semester focuses on Writing and Seminar Style learning; 2^nd semester is Ethics and Verbal communication. Some of the classes offered include:

• What a Waste which studies the ethics of pollution (including what gets lost if it’s banned)
• Forensic Science on Trial: how do we use the science? There’s a lot of issues with it!
• Sex, Drugs, and Rock & Roll that looks at rebellion.

“Faculty come here to teach,” said one professor. “We do this because we want to work with students.” For example, Screen Studies (currently a concentration but they’re looking at developing it into a major) now has a professor who worked on The Simpsons and Family Guy: he left Hollywood and moved his family back here to teach. Students across departments get the benefit of working with professors with industry experience and who can help get them connected to opportunities. Students are guaranteed hands-on experiences; they complete an average of 5 experiences in some combination of research, creative works, study away, community service, and internships. This has helped catapult Roanoke into being one of the top producers of Academic Scholars (Fulbright, Gilman, Goldwater, Truman).

PLACE, the Career+ center

The hands-on experiences start pretty much from day one: during orientation, new students build a house instead of doing more traditional orientation activities. “Working on a common goal – and having such a cool outcome to point to – tends to bond students better than anything else we’ve seen. It also sets the stage for and opens doors to more and more community service going forward.” This year, they’ve completed their 15^th house for a local neighborhood.

On the flip side of this as students look towards life after college, they turn to PLACE (Purpose, Life, and Career Exploration), the Career Center with the tagline “Live on Purpose.” This is an expanded view of career center which helps students find their place. They take Strength Finders, get personal advising, and can connect with mentors: they maintain a database with more than 100 alums and others willing to work with students. In recent surveys, 84% of Roanoke’s graduates feel that their job is important (compared to 77% nationally).

Approximately 45 students come into their Honors Program each year; usually 30-35 of those will stay in through graduation. There’s no major that tends to dominate (but they see trends year-to-year). Most students enter as freshman but can apply once they get here – but it does take two years to complete the program. Honors requirements run parallel to the Gen Ed Program so they don’t need to complete both; however, Honors students do need proficiency through a 4^th semester of a language (rather than a 3^rd) but can test out like other students. They also must maintain a 3.2 GPA to continue. There isn’t any merit aid tied to remaining in the program so students don’t feel like they have to continue for the money – but those in Honors already are earning the highest level of merit (and get a $500 grant just for being named to Honors). Instead of money being the incentive, the university adds amenities, special events such as Adventure Trips, speakers and other enrichment on campus, and a Distinction Project (a 1-year project done with the guidance of a professor). Honors students can live together on 2 floors of the newest dorm on campus; this isn’t required, but freshman and sophomores tend to like living in the community. In the past, things like this had been more restrictive, but there’s been a push to make the program more flexible and open – for example, if they have a non-honors roommate they want to bring in, they can if there’s space!

Milo, a therapy dog who comes to work with one of the athletic trainers.

Another choice for highly motivated students is the Fellows Program. There are 12 areas of focus to which students can apply, but they must pick 1 or 2 (no more) on their application. Topics are far-ranging, including Global Engagement, Campus Ministries, Inclusion, Campus Rec, Marketing & Communications, Information Tech, and Research. The application varies slightly between topics: it may involve some writing, a portfolio, resume, etc. Interviews are granted based on the application. Admissions encourages doing the interview during a Visit Day, especially if they haven’t seen campus. If they’re offered an interview, they’re considered a finalist and are given a $500 Fellows Grant, regardless of if they get the Fellowship.  

All students also get a $1000 campus visit grant. Students interested in continuing to participate in the Fine Arts can get up to $2,500 per year. They do what they can to help make school affordable for a range of income levels. Socio-economic diversity is fairly decent and they tend to see a range of income levels; just over 25% of students are Pell-Eligible.

In terms of other diversity on campus, a student told me that Roanoke “does LGBTQ+ really well. We could do better with racial diversity.” I talked a bit to a rep about this over lunch: they’re working towards linking students up with mentors of color as well as some other initiatives to help recruit and retain underrepresented students, including now having 20 affinity groups which are active. They now have housing space for Multicultural Affairs and a Global Village for international students (they’re looking to double the international population within the next year or so).

© 2023

James Madison University

One of the many underpasses on campus that help students get around quickly and safely.

James Madison University (visited 12/5/22)

JMU is a large public institution integrated into Harrisonburg. Route 81 bisects campus into West/“Old” and East campuses with tunnels under the highway connecting them. I hadn’t been to campus in almost 13 years; the last time I was there, we got a fairly comprehensive tour from the cousin of a student in the group; this time, I did the formal info session and tour (this time, we only toured West Campus). I’d like to go back and the East Campus tour. A few fun facts about West Campus include:

Wilson Hall on the Main Quad

• There’s a tunnel under the main quad, a holdover from the days when the females were graded in classes partly on appearance. This helped keep them out of the elements when going from class to class.
• There’s a rock outcropping on the quad called Kissing Rock, so named because it was out of sight of the headmistress from one of the buildings that used to be a dorm.
• The Alumnae House is named as nod to JMU’s start as the State Normal and Industrial College for Women. Although they’ve been coed since the 1940s, enrollment is still heavily skewed female (58%), more so than we normally see at schools this size.
• Wilson Hall, named after the President, is the iconic building seen in pictures of the university.  From the top floors, you can see Staunton, Wilson’s birthplace. The bell tower plays the fight song at 5pm and the Alma Mater at noon. There’s a class held up in the clock tower; the tour guide thought it held about 10 students.

Kissing Rock

As expected from a large university, classes (particularly in the first year or two) can be big, but they told us that only 11% of classes have 50+ students. That being said, though, they can be significantly bigger than 50: our tour guide had a couple classes with 200+ students in her first year. The university is still doing a lot right, though. They have a 90% retention rate going into sophomore year and a 82% 6-year graduation rate, both well above the national average. They also have the highest post-grad employment rate in the state.

Unlike many universities that allow students to wait until the end of sophomore year to declare a major, JMU has students declare by the beginning of sophomore year – “but you can change it,” said the tour guide. They offer the standard range of majors that you’d find at a school this size. They seem to do particularly well with STEM fields. Health Science and Nursing are the top 2 majors by enrollment. Some others worth noting are: Biophysical Chemistry, Architectural Design, Hospitality Management, Intelligence Analysis, Quantitative Finance, Sport and Recreation Management, and their visual/performing arts, including Musical Theater and Dance. They offer BFA degrees including a concentration in Integrated 3D art! JMU has been working hard on providing interdisciplinary learning and has instituted X-lab with some great equipment and technology, including an app to put things into 3D. JMU allows qualified, motivated students to become Independent Scholars which allows them to create their own major.

They offer a wider range of unusual offerings for Minors, including Latino Community Engagement, Nonprofit Studies, Telecommunications, Environmental Humanities, Youth Justice, and Book Arts.

For Admissions, applicants don’t have to submit an essay or rec letters although these are encouraged. JMU is also test-optional. Something to pay attention to if you’re interested in Merit Scholarships (and who isn’t?) – JMU is not great at being transparent about students needing to do their own leg work. In the info session, the Madison Scholarship Hub was mentioned, and families were told to look on the website for this. At most schools, online scholarship “hubs” (in whatever form it takes at a particular school) list additional, stackable scholarships above and beyond merit aid offered during the admissions process; I had to really press the admission rep after the session to get clarification that it’s the student’s responsibility to look at this and apply for what they want. I was told that there’s an email that goes out – but my guess is that this often gets lost in a lot of the huge number of college emails that get blasted out to students.

The Honors House on West Campus (used as a gathering place/lounge/study space).

Their Honors College emphasizes creativity, global studies (with special study abroad opportunities), research, and leadership. Students apply to the program directly as incoming freshman. It is a separate online application with a deadline 2 weeks after the admissions application. There’s Honors housing with space for about 300 students on East campus in the Honors Living/Learning Community in Shenandoah Hall.

Study abroad is well-supported here; about 1400 students go abroad every year. JMU hosts 4 semester-long study abroad programs in Antwerp, Florence, Salamanca, and London. They also run many short-term programs over the summer that are more geographically diverse. Most of these are class-specific such as Culture of the Japanese Alps, Russian in Lithuania, Taiwan History and Political Science, or internships in Hospitality, Kinesiology, or Sports & Rec Management in Australia.

Food delivery waiting to be picked up outside the library.

A food delivery bot on its way to a student!

There’s a one-year residency requirement with dorms on both sides of campus. “It can be a 20 minute walk from the freshman dorms on East Campus to classes on West/Main Campus, but the dorms are nicer and newer over there.”  There are plenty of retail food options like Shake-n-Steak and Chik-fil-A in addition to 2 buffet-style, all-you-can-eat dining halls. The tour guide rated the food as “a solid 8 or 9 for quality. It’s highly rated, like 7^th or 8^th in the US.” I asked about how bad things got during the busy/rush times like at lunch between classes. “It’s actually pretty quick most of the time. If it’s a pre-made thing like the burgers, you can get something in a couple minutes, but it might be 5 or 10 minutes for the made to order meals like the stir-fries.” She said that the longest lines tended to be at the retail options; “those can be a solid 15 minutes, sometimes more.” This is the 2nd university I’ve seen (University of Houston being the other) that has “Food Delivery Bots” running around campus; students use apps on their phones to order food which gets placed inside and then scoots off using GPS and will wait outside the building until the students enter a code to open the lid and retrieve their food.

Most juniors and seniors are off campus. I talked to the student working the desk at the Admissions Office who lives off now; she told me that there’s plenty of student housing options off campus. “It was a breeze to find something.” I asked if cars were necessary: “Really not. They’re nice, but everything around is walkable, and city buses and shuttles run every 20-30 minutes. They’re super reliable and convenient.” Freshman typically don’t have cars. In terms of parking (which costs $300 a year), she said it’s “Ok. You can find spots, but you’ll probably have to walk 5-10 minutes.” I was impressed when I drove to campus about how clear parking signage was as well as the garages having signs telling how many spots are left. She was not from Virginia, so I also asked about how students who might have to fly would get to and from airports: “Super easy!! Buses from campus run to Reagan and Dulles at least once a day and cost $20.”

The football stadium is right on campus.

Social life on campus is what you’d expect from a larger DI school; athletics are a fairly big deal, and they have a decent Rah-rah feel. They just changed Conferences, so “Now the rival is Coastal. JMU students kind of think of VTech as our rival, but I’m not sure that VTech thinks about us at all!” Students get free tickets to games but need to reserve them online. However, if they want early access to tics, they can pay a nominal fee to get first dibs. One of the tour guide’s favorite traditions is the streamers thrown after touchdowns at football games. Other than that, Greek life is big here. “It’s not needed but it’s a great opportunity. If you don’t want to join, though, you’re not going to get left out of things. There are so many things happening and lots of other clubs and stuff.” Sororities have on-campus housing for sophomores (but not beyond that!). Frats are off campus but affiliated with campus. There’s also a movie theater on campus as well as about any other thing they may want to do or get involved in, and there are plenty of things within walking distance of campus.

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Virginia Military Institute

Virginia Military Institute (visited 12/6/22)

Fun Fact: Stonewall Jackson was a professor here.

The sign at the entry to VMI’s main campus; you can see the more traditional red brick of W&L’s campus to the left.

This is also one of the smallest DI schools (based on enrollment) in the country – and they have a varsity Rifle team. Sports are a fairly big thing which makes sense given the physical training that all the cadets have to do.

I was surprised at how attractive the campus was: VMI’s Main Campus, known as “The Post,” is filled with yellow brick buildings circling their Parade Ground. Central Campus has even been named a National Historic Landmark District. Once on campus, you would never know that it sits smack dab next to Washington and Lee University, sharing a border with that campus which has a very different feel. VMI also owns several other properties including an observatory, the Jackson House observatory, and parks with hiking trails.

Established in the 1830s, this is the country’s oldest state-sponsored military institute in the country. As a Virginia public school, they try to bring in at least 55% Virginia residents. Despite accepting public funds, they had to be sued in 1996 to admit women; even then, they almost went private to avoid having to comply. The first women were admitted in 1997, but they’re still heavily skewed male: less than 15% of the students are female. There are still a lot of hold-overs to being all male, such as calling fellow members of the cohort “Brother Rats.” I wasn’t able to talk to a female cadet to hear about what it was like being a woman on campus, unfortunately.

Cadets coming out of class

“This place isn’t for everyone – you need to want to live this lifestyle and want the physical and military aspect of it. It’s challenging, definitely, and it’s a huge adjustment, but if you are looking for this, this is a great place! Just make sure you know what you’re getting into,” said one student. Another said that he really loved the academics. “They’re prepping us for whatever we want. We’re going to get jobs when we graduate.” I was surprised to learn that VMI ranks higher than the US Merchant Marine Academy and the US Coast Guard Academy (but behind West Point, Annapolis, and the AF Academy) when looking at service academies. There are a few significant differences between VMI and a Service Academy: first, students do not need nominations to attend VMI, and second, upon graduation, they have the option of accepting a commission or moving into civilian life. I heard statistics ranging from 40-50% of students accepting commissions.

VMI’s mission has always revolved around leadership, service, character, and education – and remains true to their mission to this day. They only enroll cadets, and all students must complete the ROTC program with all branches represented on campus. Almost half the cadets choose Army ROTC (and there have been more Generals who have graduated from VMI’s AROTC program than any other in the country). Despite hosting all the military branches, the school’s motto is “One Corps, One VMI.” Students will be placed in a battalion and a company for their time at college. First Years begin in the “Rat Line” which teaches the discipline, traditions, and other things the new students need to know. Students say this is probably the most difficult time, often compared to Plebe Summer or boot camp. When they finally “Breakout” of the Rat Line, they officially become Cadets.

One of the main buildings along the Parade Ground.

All Cadets live together in a 5-story barracks, and there’s one dining hall on campus. The foods change every day, but it’s a limited menu compared to what you’d find on other campuses. “This mimics more what’d you get in the military. You kind of get whatever is served,” said the tour guide.

Half of their students study in STEM fields, including Health Sciences. About 25% study social sciences. 97% of graduates are employed, serving in active military, or in grad school within 6 months of graduation. They offer a fairly limited number of majors but do offer some unusual minors and concentrations within those areas. For example they only offer majors in English, History, and Modern Languages/Cultures in their Arts and Humanities school – but students can earn minors or concentrations in Rhetoric & Writing, Art History & Visual Culture, Military History, Middle Eastern Studies, and Arabic. Within Engineering, the main focuses are Civil/Environmental, Electrical/Computer, and Mechanical with Aerospace, Nuclear, Geotechnical, Hydrology and Water Resources, Fluid Mechanics, and Construction Management as subdisciplines. Within their Information and Social Sciences, students can concentrate in  National Security, Asian Studies (both under the International Studies umbrella), Financial Analytics, Global Business (in Economics and Business) and Cybersecurity (in Computer Science).

A courtyard behind the chapel/museum and academic buildings

Cadets are allowed to study abroad either for a semester or over the summers after their first year; they’re allowed only one full semester away from VMI but can go abroad for as many summers as they’d like. They can also do an exchange at other military academies.

The chapel

There are two recognition/merit programs to be aware of. The first is the Institute Scholars which is awarded to applicants coming in from high school with at least a 3.75 GPA in a rigorous academic prep program. Students meeting these criteria are invited to interview; decisions are made after that. Students interested in this should apply to VMI no later than 2/1 (but earlier is better). Awards range from $5000 to full tuition/R&B. If selected, students are automatically also put into the Honors Program. Cadets with a 3.5GPA can apply for this (although incoming cadets can apply based on their high school record if it’s sufficiently strong enough).  

Fees here are a little higher than at many other schools because of uniforms and some other military-type expenditures (including haircuts – yes, there’s a fee for that!). However, cost-of-attendance for Virginia residents is reasonable, coming in in the mid-20s range. Add about $30k more for out-of-state tuition – but that’s still less than many private schools. Most students get some form of aid.

© 2023

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (VTech)

Virginia Tech (visited 3/27-28/22)

VTech is doing something right. Students love the place and alumni sing its praises well beyond graduation – and the fact that 93% of students return for sophomore year speaks volumes. “VTech is a life changer. It’s big enough to get the experience but small enough to let people find their place and their voice,” said an alum. A current student told me, “This is a competitive school in the best possible way. It isn’t cutthroat. Students help each other rather than trying to withhold information.” The school spirit isn’t just a vague thing, either: People get so enthusiastic during Enter Sandman (a major deal before football games) that it’s registered 3 times on the Richter scale!

Campus is stunning; for such a large institution with what seems like never-ending growth and construction, they’ve done an excellent job keeping a coherent feel. Most of their building are made from stones from a local quarry, and they’ve trademarked it as “Hokie Stone.” It’s also the only school whose colors are orange and maroon.

The Parade Ground

VTech is 1 of 6 Senior Military Colleges in the US; the others are Texas A&M and University of North Georgia in addition to more expected universities such as Norwich University, VMI, and The Citadel. To be considered an SMC, they must offer a Corps of Cadets beyond ROTC in which students live a constant military lifestyle and maintain standards similar to the Service Academies (including being subject to military discipline). VTech’s Corps has existed since the University’s founding, and their Parade Ground is front-and-center on campus. Currently, they have 1,400 Cadets in addition to a robust ROTC program.

Part of campus from the hill; you can see the cohesion of the building styles

In the early 2020s, the university saw a massive surge in applications: a single-year increase of 13,000 applications brought them to about 45K apps a year! However, they have to keep enrollment steady because they’re bound by State directives and town zoning laws. Enrollment must be comprised of at least 68% Virginia residents (but there’s some talk that they may be able to edge down to 65% in the future). They’re aiming to have at least 40% of their students from underrepresented/under-served communities. They have a First-Gen student success office, Generation One LLC (connecting students to first-gen grad students and faculty), and provide advocacy and support including for students with Food Insecurity, family issues, and housing.

The mascot

Admissions recently changed their process to include a holistic review of applications. The personal review counts for about 30% of the decision. Part of this review includes the 4 short answer questions. Each answer gets rated on a 0-3 scale by 2 readers who have no information about the writer (no name, grades, etc). If the 2 readers differ by more than 4 points, a 3^rd reader comes in. The scores are averaged.

As of early 2022, we were told that it’s highly likely that they’re going to extend the test-optional policy for at least 3 more admission cycles. “We’re feeling comfortable talking about it; the proposal is in front of the faculty senate at this point.”

Some scholarships (Premier, Honors) are granted through the admissions office. However, something we as counselors find frustrating on behalf of students/families is that many more are decentralized: students have to troll through a long list to figure out which they are eligible for and how to apply. These are listed by college here.

Students are admitted to majors (about half of which are restricted) which have different admissions criteria dictated by seats available, number of students wanting those seats, and enrollment goals broken down by residency. They expect rigor in high school classes but have no preference for AP, IB, or dual enrollment. In engineering (the most competitive major), they love to see the “trifecta” of AP Calc, Physics, and Chem. Once matriculated, everyone stays put for the first semester. After that, it’s not impossible to switch, although it can be difficult depending on the major and seats available. “Don’t try coming through the back door to a competitive major!” Architecture, for example, has a high retention rate so only about 5 seats open up a in a typical year. In other majors such as business, students can take many of the required classes the first year and then switch if they have the GPA (around a 3.0).

We had the opportunity to talk to representatives from most Colleges during our visit:

• University Studies: historically the university’s largest exploratory major. “We used to be the go-to but we’re not the only show in town anymore. Most colleges now have exploratory options.” However, they’re at least as competitive as engineering, despite there being more options. There’s an LLC dedicated to exploratory majors, and they offer Transitional Advising for student considering changing their minds, offering services as early as orientation. Last fall, they saw over 700 students in this situation.
• Architecture and Urban Studies: “This is a highly experiential school, learning by designing and doing, taking field trips and engaging with people. We’re makers, planners, artists, architects. We solve real world problems and issues.” This is the school that houses programs like performing and visual arts, creative technologies, industrial or interior design, and landscape architecture. No portfolios are accepted or reviewed in admission because of equity in access, and everyone starts at the same level regardless of talent or level. They offer an Undecided option (Explore CAUS) during which students take several classes before declaring a major. In order to graduate in 4 years, they often take the major-specific design studio over the summer.
• Business: This is a restricted college; students must be admitted to the college to take classes. Students can apply to transfer in once they matriculate at VTech, but it’s harder to get in. Some of their stand-out programs include Real Estate; Hospitality and Tourism Management; Business Information Technology; and Finance, Insurance, and Business Law.
• Engineering: although students must list a major on their application, all students are admitted into General Engineering. In the first year, they take typical core classes before applying into their major of choice. Computer Science (they have the highest number of seats available) and Mining/Minerals (far fewer students choose this) tend to be the most accessible. Aerospace and Ocean Engo is the most competitive because of the limited number of seats due to lab space needs.
• Liberal Arts and Sciences: with 42 majors, there’s plenty of flexibility to pursue multiple areas of interest. “They’re not studying something to be something. They’re developing skills to solve 21^st century issues.” They’re adding 5 new education majors to prepare students for licensure (with a 5-year masters option). A couple unusual programs worth noting are: National Security and Foreign Affairs, Residential Environments and Design, and Humanities for Public Service.
• Natural Resources and Environment: This mostly STEM-focused college is VTech’s smallest with 950-1000 students. It’s also the only natural resources school in Virginia, consistently ranking in the Top 10. With class sizes averaging 25, students get hands-on, outdoor-based opportunities. Some more unusual majors include Sustainable Biomaterials, Environmental Data Science, and Fish Conservation.
• Sciences: “This is much more than the traditional sciences. It includes Economics, Systems Biology, psychology, geosciences, computational modeling and data analytics, and nanoscience/nanomedicine. Several of these line up with business or engineering.
• Agricultural and Life Sciences: “We focus on anything that lives, breaths, and grows on the planet” such as Dairy Sciences, Food Sci and Tech, and “a bunch of neat majors that they don’t expect” including Plant Pathology, Physiology, and Weed Science and  Agricultural Technology, the only 2-year degree at VTech. More than 60% go onto grad school, many in health sciences (PA, PT, pharm, vet, medical).

The original campus; the VT on the ground are the largest ones on campus. Students take pictures on these in groups.

VTech prides itself on being forward thinking and deliberate about student life and building community. For example, they’re moving to all-inclusive bathrooms in the dorms ahead of the rest of the university. Just over 10,000 students (1/3 of the undergrads) live on campus. This year, they’re upending the housing system because “the traditional model isn’t working with this generation. They’re incredibly connected and incredibly alone. We do a great job scooping them out of the river when they’re in distress, but we’re reacting. We’re now going upstream and keeping them out of the river. We’re making communities smaller. Research shows you can know 150 people in a community setting.”

One of the LLCs

Part of this initiative is expanding Living Learning Communities: “We’re working on an ‘opt-out’ rather than ‘opt-in’ mentality,” said the Director of Res Life. In 2022, 40% of residential students live in 1 of 20 LLCS; the goal 67%. They’re adding options each year including a Data Analytics community this fall. “We encourage students to opt in because we know it’s good for them. From the first day, they have things in common; they tend to have higher GPAs; they tend to make better decisions.” Retention is higher because they’re engaged and connected to each other, faculty, the university. “Thirty thousand students can be overwhelming. LLCs provide the best of both: a smaller community where they’re known AND all the perks of a larger university.” Most allow students to stay all 4 years if they want; three of them have students agree to a 2-year contract right off the bat.

Some of the dorms

If you just looked at the res halls, they’d be the 9^th largest town in Virginia. All incoming students are required to live on campus unless they’re active military, 21, married, or living with a close relative in the Blacksburg area. Students fill out housing contracts as soon as they matriculate because room assignments are first come-first served. Most rooms are double occupancy; students can pick their own rooms using whichever roommate’s lottery number is better. There are some triples, particularly among Corp of Cadets (the commandant picks their rooms) but only 20 single rooms for undergrads: it’s important to submit documentation early if they need a single. There are 19 Greek houses off campus. (As a side note: about 20% students go Greek. “It’s there if they want it but not at all needed for a social life,” said a tour guide.”) Most upperclassmen who live on campus are athletes or Cadets, but this is changing as space is added.

They’re building an Innovation Campus (scheduled to open in 2024) which will be the most diverse tech campus in the country. Located in NoVA near National airport and the new Amazon HQ (and a new metro stop next door), they’ll offer a Master of Engineering – “sort of the MBA of Engineering” – with several admission pathways including direct-admit. It will provide strong project-based education. “Companies will pay $50K to have groups solve problems.”

© 2022

Mary Baldwin University

Mary Baldwin University (visited 5/23/22)

I was surprised to learn just how diverse MBU is – it’s among the nation’s most ethnically diverse campuses with 58% of students self-identifying as BIPOC. Approximately 40% are First Gen. The university has strong support systems in place for these students with First Gen faculty and mentors. About 15% of their students are international representing 6 countries this year.

This is a great option for students who are looking for a smaller environment, particularly those people trying to find their footing or gain confidence. Students find their voices here, and they offer a lot of opportunities for them. They offer something for everyone here – from Anime and D-n-D clubs to outdoor activities to military training.

Campus is hilly – and is actually divided into Upper and Lower campus (basically uphill and downhill!). Once on campus, it’s not difficult to get around; campus itself is fairly compact and most places are walkable within 5-10 minutes. However, it’s hard to navigate to campus and find Admissions/other places if you aren’t familiar with the town or campus, mostly due to some inaccessible roads and bad signage “but its high on our priorities for the summer to fix this. We run into this problem with a lot of our tours.” It’s located right in Staunton, Virginia which has been voted Top 20 Best Small Towns in America and voted one of America’s Best Main Streets. “If you like outdoorsy stuff, this is a great place.”

Even on a rainy day, this is a pretty campus!

This had been a single-gender (female) college for a long time; men were admitted to graduate programs and evening classes in the 1970s. They finally went fully coed in 2017 but are still hovering around 70% female and consider themselves a “female-centered institution.” Some all-female programs:

• Mary Baldwin College for Women. This is a one-of-a-kind program within the coed university umbrella. It focuses on prepping women to be leaders by focusing on specific programming relevant to current events and leadership development.
• Ida B Wells Living Learning Community for women of African descent who want to explore culture, identity, leadership, and civic engagement as the foundation for their participation in the college community. (They also have a program for males of African descent called PERSIST – Promoting Excellence and Reinforcing Success in Student Transitions).
• Program for the Exceptionally Gifted: an immersive academic experience for girls as young as 13. Live in a supervised, boarding school like environment, supporting by their team that specialized in gifted education.
• Virginia Women’s Institute for Leadership which is the US’s only women-only corps of cadets.

A fire pit overlooking town

They offer 50 Majors/Minors with average class sizes of 17. The students raved about the professors and said they were invested and accessible. “The Gen Ed classes will fill up, but they cap at 35.” Capstone experiences are required. Some have Junior Seminars to help students prepare for research and narrowing topics. “It’s kind of fun because you have freedom to do what you want to do. As long as there’s some depth, you can do it.” Academics worth noting are:

• Clinical Lab Sciences
• Autism Studies and Applied Behavior Analysis
• Shakespeare and Performance 5-year BA/MLitt
• Health Informatics and Information Management
• Arts Management
• Applied Math/Engineering 5-year BS/MS with UVA
• Education is really popular here with 100% of grads working in their areas of concentration.

Admissions is rolling, and it’s free to apply. “The typical student has mostly As and Bs. We’re test-optional unless the high school GPA is lower than 2.6 at which point we require students to send scores in.” The mid 50% range is 945-1160 SAT/20-26ACT. The essay is also optional. Their admission rate sits in the high 80s which makes it accessible to most students.

© 2022

University of Richmond

University of Richmond (visited 1/28-29)

“Are you ready to get over self-congratulations? Are you ready to be self-reflective and reckon with yourself and your strengths? Are you ready to deal with history and with people who aren’t just like you?” asked the President Emeritus. “You can isolate yourself – but it’s really hard here!” Richmond is “becoming cooler by the minute.”

Richmond reinvented itself in the last 50 years. “We’re a progressive institution in a city that people don’t associate with that. The city doesn’t even know what to make of us.” For a long time, they were very much a regional, (somewhat) struggling school, pulling about 85% of their students from Virginia. When VCU (the public school in Richmond) opened in 1969, they competed heavily for students, particularly local ones. UR came close to closing, but they received a $50m donation that year. “Now we don’t compete with them for anything except for basketball. They don’t have law; we don’t have things they have.” Currently, about 80% of students come from outside Virginia, and the university is highly ranked on several of lists.

Much of the University’s story is bound up in its religious history (but don’t let that scare you – it’s now secular so keep reading!). Baptists came to the area for freedom of worship. “Religious freedom for themselves and others is in their DNA,” said one of the deans. They started a seminary which then grew; with the donation 1969, the university separated itself “in a growing up sort of way” from its Baptist roots. Now secular, they have 16 student groups on campus representing 5 global religions.

The Chapel

It’s rare for a (non-religious) college to have two Religious Life representatives talk to Counselors during a visit; both impressed me. “To be a fully educated human, you have to be able to understand and engage with faith traditions other than your own,” said the campus rabbi. Every year, they run a large Forum on Faith, Ethics, and Global Society. Students who choose to self-report religion include: 33% Catholic, 33% Protestants, 20% unaffiliated/unknown, 8% Jewish, 1-2% each of Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, and others. They offer three yearly Pilgrimage programs a year to places like Poland, New Mexico, Israel, Indonesia, and Camino de Santiago.

The interior of the Business building

There’s a sense of care and concern on this campus. UR looks out for the whole person, and they attract students who want to be here and engage productively with others. This manifests in several ways:

 

• 1200 students took a Community Based Education class, many organized through Bonner Scholars and the Center for Civic Engagement. They’re more concerned with the depth of what students do and what they do than the number of hours they complete. “In fact, you won’t ever see a list of how many hours we completed.”
• All students have to take Wellness Classes: Alcohol Education and Sexual Assault Prevention (1^st year); Every Choice Bystander Education (online, refresher in the 2^nd Year); and two classes focused on a dimension of Wellness (ie: spiritual, physical, financial, emotional) before graduation.
• The new strategic plan talks about inclusivity, not diversity! “Twelve years ago, we were homogenous. We purposefully made inroads wherever we could. Today, we’re 30% domestic self-reported students of color. One in seven students are First-Gen and 17% are Pell Eligible. We aren’t done, but we’re actively looking for ways to be equitable and inclusive.”
• “We’re creating communities. It’s deliberate, intentional look at the larger good. It’s always about ‘with’,” said one of the speakers. They want students to have things work together.
• They now have a downtown campus. “It’s important for the students to be somewhere where they feel like they matter and make a difference.” They use this building for community outreach: law students provide legal clinics, business students do tax prep.

They also take care of students intellectually. “If you have smart students, we have a place where we’ll pay attention to them and open doors for them.” It’s a great size (about 5000 undergrads) with great resources.

• They guarantee funding up to $4,000 for internships or research to make these available to all students.
• Arts and Sciences Next was created because the career path “isn’t as clear as in something like accounting.” Students look at real case studies and problems alongside professors in that field. What’s the role of art in a city? How is biotechnology used? They go into Richmond to study things like the revitalization of downtown or how they demolish a coliseum to build a new arts arena and housing.
• Integrated Inclusive Sciences is a multi-component, multi-year program starting with “URise” a 2.5-week pre-freshman year experience. IQS (Integrated Quantitative Science), an accelerated first year course that looks at bio, chem., physics, CS, and math around the theme; this year it’s on Climate Change.
• In 1989, Richmond developed the country’s first Leadership Studies undergrad curriculum within liberal arts. Students apply as sophomores after taking 1 of 2 Gateway Courses (Leadership in the Humanities or Social Sciences); this is a key component in their acceptance to the program.
• PPEL (Philosophy, Politics, Economics, and Law) is a popular program, and the law school faculty often teach undergrads, including FYS.
• About 300 of the incoming 800 freshman declare a major or minor in business; 40% will also major or minor in another field. They all take Econ, Calc, and Accounting in their first year (“It’s like the theory, language, and practical sides of business”). They need a 2.7 (B-) or better in those and 12 more units before they can declare. They send 160 students abroad (and bring several students in) to 52 partner schools in 22 countries. “Our classes are a little bigger in the Business Department – but the average is still 23.”
• International Education is a big focus. 60% of students go abroad, and languages are a big deal here, including Arabic. They have an impressive International Center. There’s a international café (they serve things like sushi and espresso) and they hold a soiree one a month.

UR shuttles

Campus is about 6 miles from downtown Richmond; UR runs shuttles into town every 15 minutes, and students get a free metro bus pass. One of the students said that she’d love to see a better shuttle system shuttles to incentivize exploring off campus. However, there’s plenty within walking distance and there are running trails along the river.

The lake and the Campus Center

The lake is the geographic and historical center of campus. Technically, there are 2 “coordinate/separate” campuses under the UR umbrella – Richmond College for men and Westhampton for women with separate deans, student governments, etc. Students attend separate convocation chapels upon entering. Gender non-binary students can affiliate with either or neither. Counselors raised some questions about why this was necessary and if it caused a division among the student body, but most of the students felt positively or were neutral. “It’s there, but it’s not like it really affects the day-to-day life for the most part.” Another said that she liked it: “it just provides more ways to get involved and have leadership opportunities.”

The international Center quad

“Politics lean slightly left,” said one of the students. “This is a pretty involved study body,” said our tour guide. The largest gathering space on campus is the 700 seat Chapel. “It’s completely filled when speakers come.”

The students said that housing can be a little bit crammed, but the food is really good. There are Greek Life cottages for social activities, but not for living. About half the women and ½ of men join Greek life. The majority of campus parties are run by Athletic or Greek groups but are open to everyone. The Richmond Endeavor is an optional LLC (of which there are many) that started in 2018.

© 2019