<p>why is this board so freakin quiet??</p>
<p>helloooo!</p>
<p>my D got in, what do you think of it? She is a theatre major</p>
<p>I got in too. I really want to go, I'm just hoping for more finaid. I'm a polisci or gov't major. I don't remember, but they only had one. They wrote a personal note on my admissions letter about one of my essays. It made me feel special =).</p>
<p>I love it here, I transferred to Drew in September from Washington and Lee University in VA. I know we have a very strong theater program, and I have two friends who are majoring in something in tat feild. I also believe we have a lot of poli sci majors. I think the best way to decide if Drew is right for you is to STAY OVERNIGHT. After my experiences as a prospective student twice, I would advise all prospectives to never decide to attend a college until they're had an overnight visit. Otherwise, it is completely impossible to get a real feel for the campus and community. Any specific questions?</p>
<p>Thanks here we go. I am trying to convince my D to do so. She has her heart set on a bfa program but also loved Drew so she might be seeing you!</p>
<p>My son never liked overnights, didn't think you really got a good idea in one visit, you could hit a quiet night, a noisy night, a horrible dorm, student, etc. but he did like staying the entire day/evening. At Drew he did it twice and he told me he didn't have any surprises when he came. He really enjoyed his first visit because it was a nice day, the student showing him around only had 2 class's and he took him to see all the things "off the tour" as he put it.
He talked to other students at lunch and they honestly answered questions on finances, clubs, etc. but also said he would have to interview a lot of people to get a feel on everything.
I'm not putting down overnights, they aren't for everyone though.</p>
<p>hi, i'm really interested in drew and i'll be visiting towards the end of april...i was wondering if you could tell me a little about the campus and what their art history program is like?</p>
<p>I can't tell you anything about the art history program but the campus is beautiful. Lots of trees and fabulous buildings, in a small town but a short train ride away from NYC. Definitely worth a visit!</p>
<p>I absolutely love the campus. It's not too big but there are tons of trees, and its just gorgeous in the fall/summer. Everything is pretty spread out though, which is nice. Freshman dorms are grouped together, and there are several other dorms/living situations spread throughout campus.</p>
<p>Debruns: i definitely don't think overnights will tell you EVERYTHING about a college, but i think it is nearly impossible to get a decent feel for the student body by just going on an houlong tour, or only walking around with your parents. At Drew, becoming an ambassador (someone who hosts overnight visits) requires an interview process, etc, so the program is made up of people who are really excited to host prospective students; thus, i think it is rare for someone to get paired up with an unenthusiastic or not nice host. Also, i think its key to try to stay with someone interested in your extracurricular activities. The admissions office tries to match up hosts/prospectives based on their possible major, but I think its better to stay with kids who play the same sports you do or are part of clubs you'd like to join, because those are more likely to be the people you'll end up being friends with. (I'm not friends with a bunch of history majors, lol)</p>
<p>My D will probably do an April overnight. I think it would be very helpful. She is a theater person and hopefully will get a good picture of the program from the overnight. Do you know anything about that program?</p>
<p>Travelinghopefully, I think it will be easy to match her up with someone in the theatre program and since they are so busy, tend to be a "tight group" on campus, but not inclusive. As I said, I don't put down overnights, but the 9pm-8am stretch that he didn't stay he didn't feel would of mattered. We were close by at the time though, so it was easier. And although Drew might have great ambassadors, MANY colleges have had students that have influenced prospectives to go elsewhere by their bad behavior, etc. My friends daughter became one at Holy Cross in part because hers was so horrible...she wanted to improve it. If she hadn't gone to visit a few times and known someone there, she wouldn't of gone after that overnight. At Wheaton, MA, a female student told me that they LOVED their overnight, everyone was great, but hated the fit later, the upperclassman that showed them around weren't there to help them in the fall and they realized the enthusiasm from the overnight attention made them apply. You have to be realistic, maybe the young lady thought they were "ready made friends". I not putting overnights down, a tour shows NOTHING, but staying the whole day like my son did was fine for him. He's not a drinker and if he was in a dorm filled with that, it would of made him feel differently maybe (this happens to students at a lot of schools) </p>
<p>Drew though is a small school and the students are very friendly. I'm sure you're daughter will have a nice time and if she is with a theatre major, they will fill her in on all the ins and outs of the class's, professors, etc. Although everyones "bubble" is different, my son didn't have many surprises and felt the honesty of the students was refreshing.</p>
<p>Thanks, Debruns. We are looking forward to seeing Drew again!</p>
<p>HereWeGo...any thoughts on why Drew has such poor freshmen retention and graduation rates? There was a recent editorial in the Acorn attributing the low retention rate to a crack down on socializing on campus, leaving the school not that much fun to attend. Any thoughts on that? Also, what's the level of academic stress? Is the work load very heavy? light? Finally, how do grads do with graduate school placement, if you know? Thanks</p>
<p>As far as retention go, I find the issue perplexing, since I, along with most of the students I am good friends with, transferred IN to Drew. I know a few freshman who are considering transferring to another school and as far as I see, the biggest reasons seems to be that they thought the party life would be different, or they've changed their major and Drew doesn't offer what they now want to do. I transferred to Drew because it was a very low-key relaxed campus, but a lot of people aren't looking for that. I think the school has to focus on organizing more eciting campus-wide events, which they've been trying to do this year. The first annual "Mr.Drew Pageant" attracted over 350 students, I believe, and everyone I know who went had a great time. I think more events like that would really help to unite the student body, and give us something to look forward to besides crowded parties in the suites. </p>
<p>Okayyy, gotta run now. More on this later, perhaps...</p>
<p>I asked my son about the retention rate and he said it probably is changing majors and money. Sometimes, although they work with you a lot, a scholarship could be lost, (some students party them away) but other times things were very tight to begin with and they decided maybe to go to a state school and save a bit. He sees a good share of partying, but doesn't drink yet himself. Students might want more leverage, but even at UConn students complain about not having enough variety to party and they are a BIG party school! It's all perspective. Drew is low-key and although you have the administration trying to tighten it up a bit, I can see why they would and hope that other activities can be as much fun and the students will keep some balance.
There are a lot of activities but you have to look. One surprise for me was my son telling me that he only saw 1 trip to the city as a school activity. I think with the train right there, it would fun to try to plan a trip to a play or something else one weekend. You can do it yourself, but it's fun (and sometimes cheaper) to do it in a group. I hope as HereWeGo said, more and more activities are planned. The president had meetings in all the dorms and seems to want to concentrate on renovations and more events.
The academics are probably a mixed bag, depending on major and what you bring to the table. My son is doing well and only thought his English class was easy, the rest of his class's were interesting and small which he wanted. Largest was under 50, while Intro class's at his friends schools sometimes numbered over 100. Depends what you want, but that was a plus for him.
Have you visited yet?</p>