Right now, GMU is my high school junior’s top choice. He wants to major in biology and then eventually earn a PhD in some sort of bio-related field.
One huge advantage of a smaller school is getting to know the professors really well, and being able to do research with them. This then leads to great letters of recommendation for grad school. This is obviously harder to do at a bigger institution.
How hard is it at Mason to connect with the full time biology faculty, especially for doing research? I’m also trying to find out what percentage of bio students go on to grad school (not medical related fields, but Ph.D., research based education).
Thank you!
Have you looked at the GMU website? If not I would highly recommend it because there is a wealth of information available on there. http://oscar.gmu.edu/?_ga=1.165491583.1332466864.1463594777
There are tons of research opportunities at GMU especially for a science major.
Apply Early Action and if he has a good academic record apply to the honors college.
Many people make an assumption about GMU but those who attend and make use of the opportunities there really appreciate all that is available to them. You get out of college what you put into it. There are lots of very smart and very academic oriented students at GMU. Many choose to attend GMU because of affordability but get an excellent education while they are there. If you make the effort to get to know your teachers and explore all that the college offers I am sure a student will find many opportunities available for them.
If you haven’t already I would recommend taking a tour of the campus and meeting with faculty and students. You will be pleasantly surprised by all GMU has to offer.
GMU offers very competitive programs to high school students who are interested in research opportunities with their faculty. http://assip.cos.gmu.edu/
Thank you so much for these links! We have been on Mason’s web site frequently, but have never come across these pages, so thank you.
We have done the campus tour and that’s where my son fell in love with the school. However, when you compare it with the smaller schools, where it’s impossible to “hide” and it’s far easier to engage with professors, I just wonder how easy it is to connect with the faculty, get to know them, and have them get to know the student.
He is very strong academically, which is why he has his eye on graduate school already. But he is quite the introvert, which has this mama kind of concerned about how much he will push himself to approach the profs. Guess there is no way to predict that, and it certainly is an area of personal growth for him.
Thank you for your feedback. We’ll make it down there again to hopefully talk directly with some biology faculty.
The faculty here are very focused on undergraduate teaching. They are available for office hours. In honors college (program) you get the small school feel because the classes are small. Some classes are as small as 20 students plus in honors you get priority registration. First two years are weed out classes but as you progress the classes become much smaller. Talk with the admissions office regarding having your student sit in on some classes or getting in contact with a professor in the dept he is interested in. Maybe he can shadow a student for a day who happens to also be majoring in biology. No matter which school he attends he will have to be proactive in going to office hours or emailing the teacher when he has questions. By being proactive he is showing interest in going beyond attending class.
https://www2.gmu.edu/research/health-and-biomedical
I agree with Raclut, if he is strong academically, he has a good chance of making the Honors College, which feels more like a small college within a larger university. GMU has won awards for undergraduate research opportunities: https://www2.gmu.edu/news/22896. Internship opportunities also abound in the Northern VA/DC area. My son went to GMU for undergrad, worked on research with a professor during his last year or two, had their work published and presented at an international conference, and as a result had several offers from top PhD programs, one of which he begins this fall.
Thank you so much, @bookmouse ! My son is academically strong, so I think he has a good shot at the HC. Your son’s story is exactly what I need to read. This is the sort of experience we are looking for.