<p>I think we are FINALLY getting somewhere. ((Other than Texas A and M, and Texas Tech for instate public tuition and great med opportunities...altho DS wants to go to a smaller LAC...if the money makes sense.)) He has come to the above LAC list.</p>
<p>Not TERRIBLY interested in adding more to the list unless you think we are blind! But these seem to suite him pretty well.</p>
<p>DS = 33 ACT, 4.1 weighted GPA, southern conservative guy. Not a frat rat partier, but not a geek! MOST interested in where he can go, have fun, get a great education to prepare him for med school ACCEPTANCES!!</p>
<p>What are you thoughts, as to several aspects.</p>
<p>Bio dept and pre med track, pre professional advising, grading policies (impossible to get an A with due diligence), party/drug scene, town community feel of area and campus, Conservative/Liberal bend, MERIT AID opportunities, happiness of students....</p>
<p>Furman and Wofford are fairly close together so easy to visit both. Furman is larger and while both have greek life, I know more people who went to Furman and didn’t pledge than at Wofford. Greenville (Furman) is a very cool town although Furman is not in town it’s only about 10 minutes away. Spartanburg (Wofford) not so much and it doesn’t seem like the school really tries to be a part of the town. Both have good premed. I think both are maybe considered conservative, but plenty of opportunities whatever your opinion.</p>
<p>Both have 4 year on campus housing, which I like as a parent - especially when you are from OOS. Wofford has particularly nice upperclassmen apartments. Woffords alumni network is very strong. You really need to visit to check out vibe. My Ds didn’t like Spartanburg or Wofford in particular, but a lot of kids from here go to Wofford and that may have been a negative for mine. However kids who go there seem to love it.</p>
<p>Sc mom, so u are in sc I presume?i do think we will visit both, as they are so near and have the med school track. I do like the housing situation at both, and seems worth taking a look. Greek is not critical…he said he’d be happy either way, but I’d rather not add more complications than we have too. So good to hear it possibly less Greek at furman. What vibe might I expect? You seem to stress visiting. Pm if u need! An Atlantan I spoke with didn’t think much of it academically, as compared to Furman. Idk…</p>
<p>Trinity is a great school that is building a new sciences center, (it actually sends quite a few people into Grad school each year). He would most likely get a bunch of Merit aid if he applies EA.</p>
<p>Happy to help you with Furman questions. Our daughter is a new graduate and actually started out on the pre-med track before deciding to go a different direction. The science department is very strong and there is a pre-health advisor (in addition to your regular advisor) who helps the students plan for their med school applications as soon as they arrive on campus. And the track record is good. The year I went to the pre-health info session, Furman’s most recent class had a 67% acceptance rate into med schools with an average Furman GPA of 3.77 and average MCAT score of 32.2. </p>
<p>Furman has always had a reputation for grade deflation although I’m not sure the data bears it out. You can find all kinds of grade distribution tables on the school website and you will find that plenty of As are earned. Understand that grading is on a +/- scale so all As are not created equally. Academics are rigorous but it is definitely possible to earn a strong GPA and still have fun. </p>
<p>One of my own doctors has a daughter who is a junior at Furman and wants to go to med school. Before she decided on Furman, he checked with a colleague who is very involved with the med school in South Carolina. That doctor reported that Furman grads are very highly regarded and the med school recognizes the strength of Furman’s program.</p>
<p>My daughter was in a sorority which she enjoyed very much. It is not necessary however to go Greek in order to be happy at the school. There are no sorority houses and not all the fraternities have houses so it is a different kind of Greek experience compared to larger schools. Students are required to live on campus and the fraternity houses are off campus so they are used mostly for weekend parties.</p>