<p>My D also applied to Elon and Wake, as well as a lot of the same schools that kids interested in these two schools tend to gravitate toward. In the end, she was accepted to both (I was a little surprised,as Wake was a “reach,” and she didn’t submit SAT or ACT scores), but after her second visit to each school, which was after she had been accepted at Elon, but had not yet heard back from Wake, she knew she wanted to be at Elon. It was just her “gut” decision. She felt at home there. I knew as soon as I toured my undergrad school that it was the place for me, and it was a wonderful four years. Never underestimate the importance of the ever intangible instinct!</p>
<p>Funny, dollydelta, but my son used the same words about Elon – “felt at home.” He liked Wake, but not as much as Elon. He is only a junior so we are still looking. FMI, what other schools do kids who like those schools tend to gravitate? Our GC is marginally helpful at best in terms of recommendations. Son has decent stats, but not stellar: 3.6U/4.15W GPA with all honors core classes and 5 APS, 30ACT (in Sept-- taking again) and solid long-term EC’s – including theatre (all major roles), model un, JV/V tennis and service ). Wake would clearly be a stretch for him anyway, but looking for other options if Elon doesn’t work out. What would you suggest? Money is a consideration. </p>
<p>momother, you might check out Gettysburg. The campus is similarly beautiful and I think there are really good professor/student relations. Also, much less well known, is Allegheny College in W. Penn. Both of my sons were awarded Trustee Scholarships ($20,000/year) with similar stats to your son. When my second son interviewed there, the admissions rep said that they are similar to Elon in the type of students they have, and, again, their profs are very involved with their students. Son 1 chose to attend there, but son 2 is deciding among Gettysburg, Allegheny and Elon (and a few others).</p>
<p>slmx38, thanks so much. Not familiar with either of those schools, but will certainly check them out. </p>
<p>Oops. I meant to say that Son 1 chose NOT to attend Allegheny. He really liked it, but ended up feeling more at home at the polar opposite of any of these schools, George Washington. So, yes, instead of small, rural/suburban, he went for big and city. But, Son 2 still has Allegheny, G’burg and Elon on his list.</p>
<p>My son (Elon senior now) also seriously considered Allegheny College. They gave pretty good financial aid but they are also expensive so it evened out. Allegheny seemed like a good school . The weather is not great if you really dislike cold and snow. </p>
<p>Agree with Geo. Additionally, ask your child that if they decided after one semester that med school wasn’t for them, where would they want to be.</p>
My Daughter is a 2nd year student at Elon. She also wants to go to Med school. She was accepted at UNC but choose Elon because she felt it was a better fit. She has no regrets. She loves everything about Elon. The classes are challenging but the class sizes are great. You really get to know the professors and have great interaction with them. Elon actually is one of the few undergrad schools in the country that have their own cadaver labs. She has already gotten many opportunities that she would never have gotten at a larger school. Just my opinion.
Hi Rockville Mom,
I read a few of your posts on this website and am so happy to hear the praise for Elon University. My son was just accepted “ED” and we’re thrilled. My husband and I don’t know a lot about this school, but my son fell in love with it. What can you tell me about the freshmen dorms…is there one in particular that he should request?
Thanks!
For what it’s worth…my son had a very hard time deciding between Gettysburg and Elon. He was just accepted ED at
Elon. The one problem I had with Gettysburg was the price…it’s $64K this year and the average increase is 3.5% per year. I think the education is comparable, but Elon is a much better price (if that’s a consideration).
Congratulations! My son lived in Colonnades freshman year and was very happy with the arrangement. Two double rooms - each had a sink - shared a bathroom with toilet and shower. Nicer and cleaner than a large hall bathroom shared by a dozen or more. The new Global dorms are also very popular.
I’m sure you have already made your deposit - ED students generally do get their first choice in housing. Attend the accepted student program in March - you can take a tour of the various dorms.
@happymom6 - congratulations! Your S has made an excellent choice. Both of my kids were accepted to Elon ED, and both got their first choice of dorms. I want to echo what RVM said above - make sure he gets to one of the accepted student week-ends, and do all the dorm tours (there are separate ones for each neighborhood.) Ask the tour guides a lot of questions about pros and cons of each location. The newer dorms are very nice, but Historic neighborhood is also a great choice for freshman. Both my S and D went that route, and they loved it. D is a current freshman and we just had a conversation yesterday where she was gushing about living in Historic. She has an odd room location with annoying pipe placements, hard to regulate heat, and no common area, and she wouldn’t trade it for the world! We did a tour of the new global neighborhood dorms and the tour guide went on and on about all the advantages of living there, which was where she lived. When the tour concluded, we asked her what she thought about Historic neighborhood, and she said “honestly, I wish I had lived there for my freshman year.” So your S should do some due diligence and decide what is most important to him as a freshman.
Congratulations!! Our daughter is a junior and we are still in love with Elon. She chose to live in Historic Neighborhood as a freshman and absolutely loved it. Her floor was very social and became very close. There were no common areas, but that meant that students had their doors open a lot and they just hung out in their rooms. They still have floor reunions. She loved being on that “old” part of campus with the big trees and historic buildings and the proximity to most of her classes. Global was not built yet her freshman year but her friends who have lived there the last2 years have loved that too. That’s closer to the main cafeteria and the sporting events. The dorms at Elon are really beautiful. I don’t think you can go wrong. You’ll have a better sense of what you like once you get a chance to tour them.