@inquiry101 My D has returned from her visit from BOTH schools and is leaning heavily towards Furman, which may very well be the right fit.
I am wondering if we can connect offline to give her the pros/cons from what I call a realistic job preview? She may still choose Furman, and I am okay with that, but I want for her to make her decision based on information and experience and she can benefit from that. I thought about reaching out sooner, but I did not want to taint her visit. She is a health sciences career pursuit - PA, medical school or research are her areas of interest. I have strong connections in that arena too but she needs to hear from others.
Hey, all! Desperate prospective student here!
Does anyone have any insight on how Furman treats its transgender students? I’ve looked around and searched in vain, and with decision deadlines coming up, I’m desperate for any information from current students/alumni aside from the cookie cutter statements on the university website. Help!!
@novemby Prob best to reach out directly. Do they have a nice affinity group for gay, bi, questioning, transgender?
My daughter will be a freshman at Furman next year so we have only spent two weekends on campus. That being said, everyone seemed very welcoming and very genuine. My daughter has HS friends who are LGBT and fully expects it to be the same in college as it will be throughout life. I can understand your concern, but I hope the Furman students and staff will be welcoming and inclusive. Things have changed so much with this group of kids.
Thanks a lot for your insights into Furman, @pineapple1203. I’m curious what aspects would you say definitely don’t make it for everyone specifically, and how can one tell themselves if these are applicable to them?
Just started thinking about Furman for our D21. A lot of the comments here talk about how small the school is and how there’s not much to do. Our son is at Bowdoin and I’m guessing Furman is not different than Bowdoin (or most of the small rural LACs). Why does it seem like so many posters here are complaining about that? It’s not specific to Furman, right? I assume there are speakers who come to campus, and movies, and music, and parties. Is there a town walkable from campus? Even if it’s just a few stores and a few restaurants, that wouldn’t be any different than many LACs.
Perhaps the posters on this thread worried about “not having enough to do” didn’t consider any other LACs so don’t know that’s how most LACs are? And the one poster who complained about how much work there is to do? Every student I know at a LAC is being very challenged at school. That’s not a downside.
I’d love to hear from someone who visited Furman and other LACs. How does it compare? (Not Elon or USC or Clemson which seem to be mentioned in this thread." How is it compared to Davidson? Washington and Lee?
Any info is appreciated! Oh, and what is a Furman scholar? Sounds like that’s for high schoolers?
From what we have seen, Furman offers a lot for students as far as things to do. We looked at several other smaller colleges (Davidson, Samford, UAB) and it seems pretty much in line with the others. UAB obviously has more to do since it’s smack in the middle of a big city. However, that was a big concern for our senior. She preferred the feel of Furman not being so spread out “in the city”. Hope that helps a little bit!
Furman Scholars is for HS juniors. My Daughter was a scholar. It waves their application fee, and they also are given some scholarship money. I also found that it helped “flag” her when she went to visit the campus after the applied. Several professors obviously knew she was a scholar and talked with her about some opportunities for scholarships in their departments.
@Bandmama2 Thanks! We are looking at Furman as a safer option for D21 and she likes LACs. I assume Furman Scholars is just for kids in South Carolina? Is your D a freshman?
Furman scholars isn’t just for SC residents. It’s on the Furman website but here’s the summary- you need: 3.5 GPA, 1360 on SAT or 29 ACT plus some ECs/leadership. I can’t remember that exact language. The way it works at my kids’ school is that you ask your GC to recommend/nominate you in the spring of junior year, and the GC can recommend a couple kids. DS20 got a letter over the summer saying he was a named Furman scholar so he’ll get guaranteed $20k/year for 4 years. There is no need component. It’s a great award to know about early.
Greenville is such a neat place! We visited (and I’m from SC) but I can’t remember exactly how close and easy it is to get to Greenville. It wasn’t a huge concern for us. I highly recommend visiting.
@SCgirl1 Interesting! So, if you’re a Furman Scholar after junior year then you’re pretty much guaranteed admission since they’ve already decided your merit award? That’s unusual but I like it!
@homerdog I just went and got the letter to see the exact language
“As a Furman scholar you will receive at least $20,000 per year in institutional scholarships (from any source) if admitted to Furman.”
It isn’t just for SC residents. We live in Georgia.
My D will be an entering freshman in the fall.
It isn’t guaranteed admittance (It says that in my child’s Scholar letter) , but they will tell you it is rare scholars aren’t admitted. The scholarship money isn’t stackable, and it’s often replaced with higher merit awards once admitted.