<p>I am looking for a school with superb alumni connections, international recognition and great academics. I want to stay in the south but my best bet is to shoot for a "southern" ivy. Would you say that Vanderbilt fits the three I listed?</p>
<p>ecnerwalc3321:</p>
<p>so as far as AP classes are concerned, if I got a 5 on Physics B, Calc AB, and US History, and a 4 on US Gov't and I'm taking Physics C, Eng Lit, and Chem this year as well as Dual enrollment in college for Calc. II and III, I could potentially shave off about 36-45 (assuming they are 4 and/or 5 credit hours per class) if I get at least a 4 on the AP tests I haven't taken yet? I know some colleges comparable to Vandy don't give credits but just allow you to start at a higher level...</p>
<p>Also, will you be around Nashville the first week of January? Alright, thanks! :-)</p>
<p>RubenB84, the answer is yes...</p>
<p>I don't know about 36-45 hours since it seems that the credits you are using are a little different than what vandy is using. Physics B doens't get you out of anything for engineering. You might want to check the dual enrollment policy that vanderbilt has. I did that in high school and wasn't able to get credit for it (don't know exactly why). But if you do, you will be far far ahead of most people, freshman, that is. ARe you thinking about BME? premed?</p>
<p>I won't be there first week of jan.</p>
<p>I'm thinking about BME, as far as premed goes, I don't know yet...I probably will either get a PhD in BME (if I stick with it...) or go on to med school...dunno yet, but then again, I have a few years to decide.</p>
<p>Well, I'll be there, again, the first week of January (my dad lives in Nashville)</p>
<p>jrock...</p>
<p>You won't get any credit for Physics B. For Phy C, you can get 4 hours if you get a 4/5 on either exam (8 for both), history will get you 6 hours as well as take care of some of your social science credit (and "advanced" hours required for engineers), English Lit would get you 6 hours for a 4/5 I think. Chem would be a good class to place out of, but you need a 5 to get credit (a 4 only allows you to move to a higher level class). I placed out of chem and was relieved. I doubt you'd get credit for the dual enrollement. If you do well enough, you might be looking at 30 hours.</p>
<p>thanks...but as far as the dual enrollment is concerned, I really don't want to take Calc. II and III again. I can place out of them, right? It's not really dual enrollment as is it post secondary. I do NOT need these math credits to graduate, so they don't really count in my HS transcript. Why wouldn't they count for something like math where either you can do that calculation or you can't?</p>
<p>gman, are you a current student too?</p>
<p>well, look at it this way: taking cal III again wouldn't be as bad as taking cal 1 and 2. Not a lot of people get out of taking cal III. you can try talking to the freshman people to see whether the credits for cal III will transfer.</p>
<p>I am taking a dual-enrollment writing class in HS now from Syracuse University. It's Syracuse's standard freshman writing seminar. Do you think I will get to exempt out of Vandy's freshman writing seminar or at least get humanities credit for it? Syracuse claims that most colleges give 6 credits for it.</p>
<p>To RubenB84,</p>
<p>You have previously posted about Hopkins, Rice and Vanderbilt. All are excellent schools and there is certainly not a bad choice among them. However, I believe that the schools have different personalities and will offer different undergraduate experiences. Can you provide any more insight into what industry/career you are contemplating and what type of undergraduate experience you are looking for?</p>
<p>well I want to major in economics and then pursue a masters degree in either international relations, government or an MPA. I either would like to work for the World Bank, IMF, or as an analyst for a consulting firm like Mckinsey & Company, Booz Allen Hamilton, Price Waterhouse Cooper, etc. I am still leaning towards Vandy, but am wondering if Vandy has those kind of connections. Would it help boost my resume if I chose to take it overseas or it the school well connected to take me where I want to go in life. Thats what I look for in a school.</p>
<p>Ruben,
IMO, you’re overrating the impact that your chosen school will have on your ability to succeed in your career path. Many high profile employers, eg, investment banks (which I know intimately), consulting firms, etc, use the most selective schools as pre-screeners and interview almost exclusively at these schools, particularly at the graduate level. However, for the schools that you have previously referenced, including Vanderbilt, you won’t have great difficulty getting an interview if you approach the process in the right way. But the fact is that while the school might help you get the audience, it definitely won’t close the deal for you. YOU will have to do that and that is true whether you are coming from Vanderbilt or any other elite university (and I include HYPSM in that statement). </p>
<p>If you want to take some practical steps at this point, do some more research on the schools that you are considering as well as some of the possible employers. For the schools, check with the respective Office of Career Planning and Placement and see which companies/organizations recruit at the school and how many students have received offers and how many have actually gone to work there. Also, ask how many of those students were Economics or Business majors (or something related to the field that you pursuing). I think you will find that many top employers are willing to hire outside of the dedicated fields of study. They just want smart kids as they are going to teach them what they want them to learn. So pursue your academic interest because you like it and not because you feel obligated to do it. If you achieve excellence in your field of study, this has much greater interview value than a more modest level of achievement in the “right” field of study. In addition, you can ask the respective Alumni Affairs offices of these schools if they can provide some contacts in the employers/industries that you are looking into. If you are so inclined, call some of these folks. Your due diligence will be noted (and probably admired) and this may give you some good contacts for later on. </p>
<p>Having said that about the schools, I think you will find some schools have greater access and familiarity with various industries or employers, eg, I would expect a Georgetown grad to have better access to a position in the UN or IMF than a student from Vanderbilt or Rice. However, many employers like having a broad geographic and collegiate workforce, so it is certainly possible that an approach from a non-traditional school might be seen as unique and could differentiate you. The difficulty is that you will have to drive much of the process as the school’s familiarity with these institutions is likely to be limited. The upside is that this gives you, the individual, the opportunity to shine as you do your own work and act as your own advocate. </p>
<p>Re the employers, you can probably find out where they recruit (be sure to figure out where they go for undergraduate recruiting, not graduate recruiting) and what types of jobs they typically offer to undergraduates. I think you will be surprised as the breadth of undergraduate schools that get quality positions (ie, no back office or clerical work) at the premier employers. However, this is less true at the graduate level as the recruiters tend to have a much narrower base of schools that they target. </p>
<p>Finally, I want to reiterate my earlier comments on other threads about fit. Whatever you do, don’t go to an institution-any institution-because of prestige. You can be successful at a wide variety of schools. Go where you will learn, where you will be challenged, where you can explore new sides of yourself, where you can achieve and most of all, where you will be happy. You only get one chance at college (hopefully :) ) so don’t forget to enjoy it.</p>
<p>So basically you're telling me that I can major in something like History or Poli Sci and apply for a job working for a firm like Mckinsey or BCG? As long as I pull some punches, like extracuriculars, stellar GPA and an internship here or there it would be just as great as majoring in something like business or econ?</p>
<p>Bascially what can I do at a top 20 school (cus I am going to one) that can help me get my foot through the door at places like the these?</p>
<p>hey, wats the most well thought of frat? Which throws the best parties?</p>
<p>frats are really subjective by person. not everyone enjoys greek life at vanderbilt... i didnt rush my freshman year, but did decide to rush in my sophomore year. each frat has their good and their bad... i think its really a toss up on which are the best or throw the best parties. </p>
<p>I'll offer my input, but really this is just based on my experience. It's really tough consensus because for instance, many guys from the south would probably say SAE and KA are the best/throw the best parties, because those are southern fraternities. But in my experience, the best parties have been at or held by (meaning a downtown party, or something off campus): Sigma Chi, Sigma Nu (new this year but their parties have been killer so far!), ATO, and ZBT. </p>
<p>That being said, in the past 3 years I've been at Vanderbilt, I've seen plenty of good parties and stuff at other frats, but these frats listed above have been most consistent and are generally thought well of. Reputation wise, Sigma Chi, Beta, and SAE probably have the strongest reps. Sigma Nu's rep is developing good, too , but again, they're just being reinstated on campus this year.</p>
<p>Why did you originally not join a frat? and then why did you decide to join one?</p>
<p>Also, I can see from the statistics that it is easier to get in to Vandy by applying to Peabody, but I am wondering if that means, once you get in, that the work (especially in the HOD classes) is also easier than A&S?</p>
<p>What is a typical weekend like at Vandy? do ya'll go out downtown or just go to frat parties and stay on campus?</p>
<p>hopinV - to answer your first question, i didn't orginally join a frat because i didnt think it was my scene. i was really close to a lot of ppl that lived in my freshman hall.. and when rush time came around (we have deferred rush here), i didnt feel the "need" to rush. </p>
<p>however... when i was a sophomore, a lot of the kids in my new dorm were in a frat and i started hanging out with them and decided that it was a good group of guys and a good opportunity... so i joined their frat. being on both sides of it, i loved being non-greek as much as i do now as a frat brother... just know what you want out of whatever you choose to do in college, regarding any extracurriculars, not just greek life. </p>
<p>regarding your 2nd question on applying to vandy.... statistics might say it's easier to get into vanderiblt if you apply to peabody, but let me mention 2 things about that -- peabody is the entire school of education here (all majors, not just HOD), and on top of that, HOD is the most popular major at Vanderbilt. they are capping the amount of students they admit as freshman as and intra-university transfers into HOD because the classes fill up quickly. there are HOD courses that are "easier" than A&S classes, but i can also speak on both sides of this coin -- i came into Vanderbilt freshman year undecided in A&S. By the end of my freshman year, i transferred over to HOD after taking an intro course in it and really liking the material and engaging classes. that being said, 3 years in, i still take plenty of classes in A&S (i have 2 A&S minors), and id say there's a fair trade-off between difficulty of classes between the 2 schools. some of my A&S classes are much easier than some of the HOD ones, and same vice versa, it really depends on the level of the course, the professor and material. Most HOD courses will also require you to work well in groups if you want a good grade... this will be instrumental to you if you take classes in A&S; my A&S group projects are a joke compared to the HOD ones.</p>
<hr>
<p>souterncharm: Typical weekends at Vanderbilt are tough to sum up. There is a good crowd of ppl that "just go to frat parties/Towers suites/Mayfields(upperclassmen parties, some freshman go)", but there is also a good crowd that goes downtown. On the weeknights... tues & thurs are popular nights for many students to go downtown to bars and clubs. most are 18+ on these nights, so thats good news for the freshmen...on the weekends, 21+ crowd generally only goes to frat parties if they are in a frat/ have friends in a frat... otherwise they tend to go downtown or hang out in private suites. </p>
<p>As a freshman, if you like the greek scene, you will probably be by the frats a lot, but chances are you'll go downtown as well on thursday nights, maybe tuesday. Monday night is another big bar night for the 21+ crowd.</p>
<p>i know that kinda sounds like a round-about answer, but its honest -- some of my friends NEVER go to frat parties, others are there every weekend... really depends what you enjoy. downtown is easily accessible tho and the cabs are cheap (and you can pay for them with coupons that you purchase with your vanderbilt card).</p>
<p>hope this helps!</p>
<p>lmao ... NO there are no tractors or corn fields on campus. if you've seen pictures or heard stories about things like "ranch parties" or "field parties", typically sororities hold those because they are only allowed to have off-campus parties, but those are very rare. campus is like a park... no joke, lot of grass and trees and quads.</p>