<p>Does anyone have any input on how Davidson's reputation fares? I always found it odd that Davidson gets ranked so high in US News yet still has so little name recognition. Do grad schools/people in politics (that's what i wanna go into) know Davidson?</p>
<p>I have found that the average bear does not tend to know Davidson…even residents of Charlotte. But grad schools and politicians are smarter than the average bear, fortunately for us.
Davidson tends to be very well recognized by grad schools. They mostly note the rigor of our curriculum and cut us some slack on our GPAs. For example…at most places, you almost need a 4.0 to get into med school. At Davidson, 95-100% of all graduating premed students get into med school (most of 'em get into their first choice med school), and not one of them has had a 4.0 in over twenty years. Most of them probably have at best a 3.5. Med Schools simply recognize that Davidson students are extremely well prepared for the grueling work they will face in the years to come. </p>
<p>In politics, Davidson is pretty well known. Davidson produces a lot of people that end up in Washington…not necessarily in public office on the national level…but congressional aides, congressional workers, county/city offices, mayors, judicial, etc.</p>
<p>In the political world, it is decently well known that Davidson was so hard that even Woodrow Wilson had to settle for an easier school (Princeton) instead! :)</p>
<p>Haha, I’ve always thought that was a fun little fact :)</p>
<p>I would have to say that it depends. If you’ve noticed, most people on the Davidson discussion board think of Davidson very highly, and I feel that some people can be a little misled by the one-sidedness of the general opinion. To give you another more straightforward opinion, I’d say that Davidson has a really good regional reputation for grad school, especially among UNC and Duke (I think… at least I know several people going to either for grad school). As for their understanding that Davidson is harder and giving you a break, I get the impression that’s generally not true. I went to a law school panel held at Davidson, and numerous people posed that very question to the law school reps at George Washington, UVa, and Duke. I remember that the Duke Law rep basically said that they’ll compare you against other Davidson students… I can’t remember what the UVa rep said, but I do remember that the GWU rep was very straightforward in saying that you really do need good grades (regardless of the reputation of the school) to get in. Furthermore, I’m applying to law school this coming year, and as far as law school goes, I’m starting to get the impression that it doesn’t matter where you went to undergrad at all… your GPA is really the first thing they consider. You’ll have to understand that at Davidson, the GPA distribution is probably different than at other schools (less than 10% of the students have over a 3.75/4.00!!). I’d say it’s not super hard to get decent grades (3.0-3.5), but you definitely have to put in some work to get over a 3.6. I’d say if you’re willing to put in the hours, Davidson can work out great for almost anyone; though I will say that from what I’ve seen, Davidson alumni (including those who are pre-med and pre-law) usually don’t end up at the best of the best schools (aka Harvard, Yale, Stanford etc…), unless they go to business school (in which case I believe work experience matters more than anything). If you’re shooting for Harvard, Yale, Stanford, etc. for grad school then I might consider going elsewhere. But if not, I think you should be fine. </p>
<p>I’ve been bashed on these forums before for not speaking highly of Davidson, but my only intention here is to present my own candid viewpoint. I’m not really trying to convince anyone to attend or not attend, I’m just trying to be as truthful as I can be.</p>
<p>I have to chime in here and say I disagree with ohsix. I’m a recent Davidson alum and have found that Davidson is thought of very highly in graduate school admissions. </p>
<p>I know for a fact that there are three Davidson alums from 09 going to Harvard for grad school (one for law, one for public policy, and one for the sciences) and a fourth was accepted but chose another school. Several others are going to/were admitted to highly prestigious grad schools (Berkeley, Cornell, WashU, NYU, UCLA, etc.) and I am sure all would say that Davidson is a prime reason they were admitted to those schools.</p>
<p>Grades certainly matter, but I think schools tend to know of Davidson and will be sure to give Davidson students an extra look. That’s just my opinion, but at as an alum who is currently a grad student at an ivy league school ranked in the top 3 for my field, I’d say Davidson students are exceptionally well-regarded and certainly considered contenders for the top schools. </p>
<p>My experience also was that the teaching and mentoring at Davidson are fabulous and proved invaluable to me in my application and admission to top-notch grad schools. Don’t downplay the importance of exceptional faculty who can help you in achieving your goals and who are actively involved in their students lives.</p>
<p>i can’t give personal experiences like these two about this, but i have seen figures. the admit rate for med school from davidson is astoundingly high, even without a near 4.0. that says something.</p>
<p>Don’t have time for a long post right now but Davidson is Very Well Known by almost every Grad School. If you can get in to Davidson, do well, and have the needed recomendations than you can just about write your own ticket…</p>
<p>What are the best majors at Davidson? (I could only find the percentage of students in certain majors online.) When I ask people what the best majors at their schools are, the general reply is that they are all good, but I’d really like to know what programs or majors Davidson offers that are particularly excellent or renowned.</p>
<p>not 100% positive. i have heard, only from one person though, that physics and engineering arent the best at davidson (the 3/2 engineering). but physics classes are extremely tiny, which doesn’t come off as bad to me. biology is a big department i think, and ive heard good things about it. the philosophy department (what i plan on majoring in) won an award last year for its great teachers (from the american philosophical association i think). also i hear the economics department is really good but really hard. cant hurt that charlotte (big banking city) is near by</p>