Happy to provide you with one parent’s thought based on the Spring Blitz back in March. We are located in the N/E about an hour outside of Philadelphia.
2. We found everyone there to be extremely friendly. While I’m sure there are some social cliques, I have talked to numerous parents from the N/E who all say that there kids had no trouble making friends. There is a huge amount of people attending from NJ/NY/PA.
5. Both my son and I thought the campus was great. We walked the whole campus and it is a great setting. Now, if you are looking for a campus in the middle of a city, Clemson is not for you. It is , by N/E standards, in the middle of nowhere which we both really liked.
6. Brand new business school is being built now. I believe it is scheduled to open in January 2020. It is about 2 times the size of the current school. At the tour, we had a chance to meet with both a Finance Professor and an Accounting Professor. The feeling we both got was that you were more than a number at Clemson.
Sorry I couldn’t provide an opinion on your other questions. Hope this helps!
No. Most are not. There are about 5% of classes are over 100. Math and English Freshman classes are capped at 30. My son had one large biology class (non-major), but it had a small lab. His average class size was 20-30.
2- Any idea what it’s like socially for someone from the northeast? Are there a lot of clicks from SC high schools?
We are in-state. I can say that while many kids attend from my son’s high school, they haven’t stayed a clique at all. It’s all about how you get involved on campus, what groups you join, how you invest your time and choose your groups to hang out with.
3-Is sorority rush very competitive and difficult if you don’t know anyone?
I don’t know numbers, but I know many girls, both freshman and sophomores, who have successfully navigated recruitment not knowing anyone, or maybe just knowing a couple and are very happy. That being said, it’s just about 30% of the campus, so there is no pressure to join either.
4- Do the students make use of the lake near campus?
Yes!!
5- Would you say the campus is attractive? It’s hard to tell from google images
We think it’s awesome - follow them on Instagram and other social media. Im sure this is a matter of opinion too.
6-Thoughts on the business school?
We are very pleased with the business school. They are putting a lot into developing it. Look into some of the programs it offers. Very exciting time to be a Tiger!
There are quite a few students from the Northeast. Clemson is a very friendly school with a lot if school spirit. Just a word of caution , applications have gone through the roof over the past several years, especially with OOS applicants.that said, it has gotten quite competitive for admission. Stats for last year’s admission are as follows: 59% of applicants were ranked in the top 10% of their class, 83% in the top 20% , 99% were in the top 50%. Mid range SAT 1230-1390, ACT 27-31. The avg undergrad size is 31.The top 10 states for enrollment are SC, NC, Georgia, NJ,Va, MD, NY,Fla, Penn, Mass and CT. Hope this helps.
@carolinamom2boys It does help. Thanks so much. Sounds like a good fit for D. What caught my eye was that it seems like a reasonable sized school for a state school, and of course the spirit and the wide range of majors, etc. Now we need to find a time to visit. We have been focusing on medium sized private schools. When we drove past UNC Chapel Hill and Penn State my D felt like they were too crowded and hectic. Does Clemson seem less so, because of it’s size?
Another question for anyone who can answer: I was just wondering about sorority recruitment and I saw something about needing a certain gpa, community service hours and a certain amt of credits to rush, but on the other hand it looks like recruitment starts in Aug. So when exactly can girls rush? Thanks again.
Furman University may also be a good match. It’s a smaller private school , about 4,000. They do spring rush. It’s about 45 minutes from Clemson, so technically you could probably visit both on the same trip .
If she likes an urban environment, College of Charleston may be another option. They have an excellent business program too. It’s public with approx 10,000 students.
Definitely no urban environments for D. She wants lots of grass, trees and quads. Some southern schools she has seen and liked are Elon, Richmond and Wake Forest in terms of campus environments. I love Charleston, but I think she wants something different. Nothing too artsy since she is at an arsty HS. Furman might be of interest. I also have a feeling she would like Clemson.
@citymama9 she would probably like Furman. I think they have some videos on YouTube of the campus that y’all may want to view to see if it warrants a visit. It’s located near the mountains which also makes it quite beautiful.
@citymama9 Clemson is actually about 18,500 undergraduate and Furman is about 2,800. Both wonderful schools but very different. There is the size, public vs private colleges, costs and of course the difference in the sports programs.
PSU is about 40,000 way too big for what my DD was looking for. UNC and UVA are both in the 17,000 or so range. UDel is a great place in that size range as well. Worth a look. I have visited all of those places and I really liked the Clemson campus. It is laid in a such a way that it seems to be open and has green space yet it isn’t so big that you can’t get to opposite ends of the campus in about 10 minutes.
Another real bonus IMHO at Clemson is the Calhoun Honors college. About 350 incoming Freshman get accepted and they have their own living community, first dibs on course selection, advisors and some smaller honors classes. Your child gets the benefit of a large public college and at the same time the feel and benefits of a smaller LAC. @Baxter126 has a son who is currently an honors student so he can fill in anything I missed.
Finally they do a decent job giving merit money to OOS students to make it comparable to the home state flagship. With my daughter’s merit award Clemson is basically the same cost to me as if she went to Pitt or PSU. Of course will be the added travel costs…but all things considered we believe she will be getting a great education at the honors college at pretty good bargain at Clemson.
Clemson Calhoun Honors is an excellent program, very competitive to get into with some challenging essays that really make the student think . DS16 was accepted, but chose a different school and program.
@citymama9 Feel free to ask any questions about Furman or Clemson. I live in between both schools and am familiar with the areas surrounding the schools.DS16 applied to and was accepted at both schools. We’ve spent a lot if time on both campuses and have friends who attend both schools.
@burghdad my info came from info provided at Spring Blitz by Clemson in a published brochure. Are part time students not undergrads? Do they not attend classes with full time students ? Not sure why the need to differentiate between the two .