<p>Im in the heat of my junior year, I live in NY but have a parent in VA and due to financial issues and the fact that I have a twin brother also needing to attend college, instate is what I'm going to have to do, I've looked at a lot of the SUNY's, Bing and Geneseo are what I'm aiming for but there are also a lot of good schools in VA and I'm strongly considering JMU</p>
<p>-As of now my Unweighted GPA is a 3.6 on a 4.0 Scale
-Im taking my first SAT in May, based on PSAT's it should be circling 1850/1900
-I will have taken 6 AP's by the end of HS, and probably 4 honors classes, i started my science classes in MS so in ahead on all of those
-EC's, nothing too impressive by the end of HS I will have been Pres. of a club for 3 years, was VP for another club for one, I'll be in National Honor Society, outside of school I have like 400 Comm. Service Hours</p>
<p>Assuming that I could get in( and if you want you can answer that one), I have a lot of questions about JMU....</p>
<p>1) There are mixed reviews on the reputation, I know its not as good as VA schools like UVA, Georgetown, and American but considering those are so expensive they aren't even thought. A lot of people say its a party school but how are its academics, my sister went to UMW so how does it compare to that</p>
<p>2)How is the F.A. program at JMU, I obviously could use some help in that department</p>
<p>You’re trying to compare apples to oranges when you compare JMU to American or Georgetown – one’s a large state school, while the other two are smaller and private. Also, American is no more rigorous than JMU (I know this because I did some grad work at American and saw undergrads and their classes there, and my S is currently at JMU). JMU has great academics, really the only thing UVA has over it is wealthier students and a fancier reputation and history. JMU actually pays more attention to undergrads than UVA (doesn’t use TA’s to teach undergrads at all, while about 20% of undergrad classes at UVA do so) JMU is aware that it is often a back-up for UVA (not so much to Tech – there’s more of an even split between kids desiring Tech and JMU), so they work really hard to make freshman happy and deliver a high quality overall experience, so that the students won’t want to transfer. They are pretty successful, because they have an 82% 6-year graduation rate, which is in the top 10 nationally for public universities (third only to UVA and W&M in the state of VA, and just ahead of UMW and Tech). They have a low transfer-out rate, which means that kids are satisfied there, despite that many of them originally wanted UVA. JMU is more down-to-earth than UVA and more undergrad focused. UMW is a great school, too – just very different from JMU. Again, apples to oranges. UMW is known for excellent teaching, personalized education, small classes, and a strong sense of community. JMU is also known for high academic quality but your classes there will be a bit larger. JMU has a very high quality student body, with an average gpa of 3.8 for entering freshmen. UMW is not far behind that. JMU is very rah-rah with a ton of school spirit. The kids there are very outgoing and friendly on the whole, and it is noticeable soon after you arrive on campus. My son is not a huge, wild partier. Am not saying he doesn’t imbibe on occasion but that he’s not into wild, raucous, out-of-control partying; and he finds plenty to do at JMU without that. He is really involved in the UREC (recreation program ) which is excellent and well-developed there – both in their outdoors program (camping, hiking, rock climbing) and through intramural sports. His friends are in club sports, music ensembles (there are tons there, and they are all amazing), and religious groups. So there is something for everyone there. His girlfriend is at UMW and involved in intramural activities and music. She loves the sense of community and how she knows a ton of people when she walks around campus (which is gorgeous). Most colleges have a party scene, except maybe Brigham Young or Liberty U. So don’t fixate on that – just go by what size you want, whether you want really small classes or not, how many students live on campus, and what type of community. Of course there should be some academic offerings you are interested in. Virginia has many excellent schools, and one of the best parts of our system here is that we have lots of choices and great variety in size, type, location, and level of competitiveness. It’s really about finding the best fit, and we are fortunate to have something for everyone in this state.</p>