Would my daughter be crazy not to go to UNC-CH? She has been accepted at NCSU, USC Columbia, ECU, ASU, UNCW all with Honor College admissions. And she was accepted at UNC (no HC). We both really like the idea of community of an Honors College, much more than being general population at UNC-CH, but it is Chapel Hill…
Any thoughts?
Depends on her major…
Depends on the money…
My son got into NC State, ASU instate both instate with honors. He got into Chapel Hill (non honors) like your daughter. He decided on Chapel Hill. Even though he did not get honors at UNC the education he will get for his major at Chapel Hill is the best. His major is Political Science. I guess it depends on your daughter’s major?
Her Major will be Nursing. Because of the nursing it seems to come down to UNC or ECU, all the others (except NCSU) have nursing, but these two seem to be the best picks for nursing.
Money is all about the same, she will have in-state at USC. ECU will give her free tuition plus possible guarantee for grad school.
That’s a hard one. I don’t believe she needs the best college for nursing though. I am a Nurse and It all comes down to passing the NCLEX. She might not want to go to the same school for undergraduate and grad school. Where does she see herself? Free tuition is always good!!
@college67 I agree she might not want to do grad school at same school. I think UNC-CH is very good from nursing-admin, but they are all so competitive that I worry. But then my daughter is so driven that I worry ECU will be too easy. We just returned from selection Sunday at ECU and she loved it and all the people she met, I guess I am just having trouble (I come from a long line of UNC grads)
What a great position for your daughter to be in - congratulations! My first thought is - really consider ECU. I have a daughter at Chapel Hill, and she absolutely loves it (political science/psych major); the school is a great “fit” for her…my younger daughter is considering nursing and the programs vary greatly, especially when looking at “direct entry” vs. declaring, doing 2 years, and applying for admission into the nursing program…some are super competitive and, if your daughter didn’t get into the nursing program, then she would have to consider either transferring or switching majors and pursue nursing at a later time. I’m not sure if UNC is “direct entry” or a latter application and, if so, how competitive it is to get into the actual UNC nursing school (we’re out of state, and my younger daughter is not considering UNC but may consider ECU), but I can say numerous girls from my daughters school have gone to ECU for a variety of future medical careers, pharmacy and nursing included, and the programs are great and, from what I’ve heard, all the girls (in recent years, as my daughters are class of 2014 and 2016, so I’m only familiar with the past few years of graduates/choices) have been able to get into their respective programs, whether it be nursing or post-graduate, like pharmacy or PT, etc. My daughters go to a small, all girls school and last year girls were accepted to and chose many schools with great “names”, Wake F, UVA, Vanderbilt, W & M, Wash. U, Miami, many great VA schools, as well as ECU, and honestly, while ECU may not have the “name” that other schools have, I have only heard very, very positive things about ECU and I have never gotten the impression that anyone was not happy with their education and choice of ECU. Your daughter should visit and get a feel for the “personality” of the school, and where she would feel confident and consider how stressful it may be for the opportunity of a nursing program. I understand your thoughts of “…but it is Chapel Hill…”, but for nursing (and really, any program), choose the school that will give her the most confidence and the best chance at her goals, and she will be fine…don’t choose the school just for it’s name and reputation; give ECU the consideration that it may deserve. If in the end your daughter absolutely loves Chapel Hill, and not ECU, then of course, that “love”, combined with “…but it is Chapel Hill…”, will make for an easy decision!
A full tuition scholarship to the Honors College at ECU with direct admission to the nursing program? Are you kidding me. The choice should be blatantly obvious. She’s going to be competing against people who went to community college and UNCC for Nursing so the Honors College at ECU will look stellar when she is applying to jobs.
Depends on fit and quality of program.
She can apply to the honors program after Freshman year. Even if she is not in honors, she can still take honors courses. The Honors program at UNC is run differently than some schools. It is not like a separate school/community like some schools. Most honor students take 1-2 honors courses a semester. Not all honor students get to live in the honors dorm. There is no priority registration (except maybe for honor courses). The program is set up to give students more challenging courses and some additional opportunities. It is not really set up to create a special exclusive community.
I agree about the CH Honors program being different, that is what I hear from parents who have children in it, it really doesn’t compare with the other HC’s that my child is considering.
ITBGirl - were in the same boat as you. Accepted to Carolina -no honors, full tuition scholarship to Alabama. Alabama has many more options for him, he’s having a hard time giving up UNC.
@NCEdwards4- UNC-CH is the holy grail around here. 
And even though my daughter could have her pick of schools, there was really no guarantee that she would get in CH, so now that we have it we are struggling.
I want to clarify my comments about UNC Honors. It has made a significant difference for my daughter. I just wanted to mention that it is not exclusive and that honors courses are open to all students but I believe honor students have priority. There is no special Honor’s library, cafeteria, study rooms (except in Koury), etc. They do seem to have a fair amount of activities (lectures, seminars) for honor students.
If you want to be in courses with a lot of honor students, pick the harder courses. My daughter usually finds honor students in most of her classes. She does tend to pick the more challenging courses.
Bottom line, I would not take UNC off the list just because she didn’t get into honors. As I posted above, what school is the best fit for her personality, interests and financially. UNC-CH is a great school but only if it fits.
I am a graduate of UNC-CH and I would say no, she is not crazy to not go there. Go to the school that feels most comfortable for her and is most affordable. UNC does not produce “better nurses” than the other programs. As long as she passes that test, she will be employable.
it’s hard to say no to UNC, though, as it truly offers a remarkable experience - amazing academics, top-notch athletics, and is in the quintessential college town. i think she should pick UNC as it’s one of, if not, the best values in education.
Similar situation - daughter accepted to UGA and U of Maryland with merit scholarships/HC. It has been an easy decision for her. Chapel Hill is Chapel Hill - UNC is UNC - its all still greater than merit/HC opportunities elsewhere. Bottom line is that it comes down to where she is most comfortable.
“Chapel Hill is Chapel Hill - UNC is UNC” but is it still?
Don’t get me wrong, I went there, parents went there, we all loved it, dyed in the wool fans here, but on our tour it didn’t really feel the same as it did a few years ago. Honesty it was my daughters worst tour, (bad guide, bad program). We kind of had the feeling that they didn’t have to sell it b/c “they are UNC”, but she worries that her time there she will be treated like she is lucky to be there. Maybe that was a sign. She is due to go back to visit the nursing school soon, maybe that will go better, and we have a handful of UNC students staying with us this Friday on their way out of town for spring break medical brigade trip, maybe they can sway her, but right now she is leaning towards the schools that are wooing her.
@ITBgirl My daughter had the same experience on her tour of UNC a couple of years ago. They did not sell the school very well at all. Both the Admissions officer and the tour guide were underwhelming. But that was probably our bad luck. With the crush of visitors, they may not be able to give a good experience to everyone. I would say that you have the right idea in visiting the nursing school. Talking to current students and professors should yield far more valuable information than a generic campus tour.
I agree the first time we went there for a college visit my son did not get the “vibe” that this was his school. So I planned another visit about 6 months after that. Not sure what changed but we had a great tour, so many people outside with different club stuff going on and he loved it! He will be a Tar Heel this fall! We are going to Explore Carolina in April. Maybe your daughter should go to Explore Carolina. She might get a different feeling.