Furman University Cost

Colleges and Universities A-Z Furman University
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<p>I can’t answer for you, but I can say this is an easy, “no way” in our situation. My guy has a better ranked school that has offered him a very realistic price for our income and both far more research options and faculty within his desired field (neuroscience). I wasn’t certain that Furman would be worth it if it were less expensive, but I was willing to let him try and see, then make the decision for himself. (I also didn’t think he’d get such a great package from a higher ranked school.)</p>

<p>Furman is a nice school - it made our cut of just 6 places to apply to and was easily in the top 3 for choices. It’s the only LAC my guy applied to because it made the cut and others didn’t. But, in hindsight, I wouldn’t have had him apply. Their new policy is aiming toward a more mediocre level of ability in their freshman class in order to accept more wealthy students (vs higher academic ability with more aid). That’s not our socioeconomic class nor is it one I think my guy would be comfortable in. There are plenty out there who will fill the spots as it will be a terrific fit for them. It’s just not us. </p>

<p>My guy is an “academic nerd” I suppose. He has friends, but his favorite poster (hand made) that he saw while visiting colleges was, “We’re not nerds, we’re academic bad-_sses.” His favorite sport is chess (and he just finished first out of 176 in his division in our state championships last weekend). That’s what he’s looking for in a fit. He loved the small class atmosphere at Furman and might have chosen to go there due to it, but he’s since sat in on a class at UR and is thrilled about going there - esp with their multiple research options available to undergrads even before sophomore year.</p>

<p>You just need to decide what the best fit for your D is and how much you can afford toward it.</p>

<p>Furman is off, off, off for us and is even now off my list of recommended places unless I know the family fits their demographic (rare where we live). If so, then it could be a great fit and fit is what is important. Kids can find friends and get all the ‘other’ college stuff anywhere. I went to large state U and had a great time. Oldest is at a small LAC (affordable with merit and need-based aid) and having a great time. Middle will be at a medium sized research U and I know he will have a great time. Youngest? He’s a sophomore. Time will tell. He’s looking for Botany, so while he loved the gardens and beauty of Furman, they aren’t on his list due to his major (and now their financial change).</p>

<p>Look at your options financially, then look for fit for your D. What is she looking for? Have her sit in on classes at places that are affordable where she’s been accepted. A trip to check out Rollins is less expensive than massive loans for school. Chances are, she’ll like something in the affordable category. Note, that I know NOTHING about Rollins. It never hits our radar up here.</p>

<p>Furman will do fine without us. It’s not like we’re letting them down. They didn’t choose our kids for their school. (Yes, the kids were accepted, but they know fully well that it isn’t affordable.) To me, no school is worth more than 30K in loans TOTAL - not annually - esp for high stat kids.</p>

<p>Don’t be disappointed or dejected. Look for open doors rather than closed doors. Eons ago I went to a large state school over Duke for financial reasons. Twenty-three plus years later hubby and I are still happily married, both using our degrees, and are getting our kids into college. Did going to my 2nd choice school hurt me? No. I’m thankful it happened. I loved it and met my soulmate. There’s a reason for everything. ;)</p>

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<p>“In this economy does it make sense to spend over $125,000 for college?” Not in my book either, though both my daughters went/are going to Furman. It was and is the perfect fit for them. My older daughter was able to compete in Mock trial at Furman. The program is amazing there - they have had at least one team go to nationals 10 years in a row. Her junior year, her team was 5th in the nation. They compete and beat teams from schools like Duke, UVA, Emory, Harvard. She is now in law school, and is still doing mock trial. For her, Furman was the perfect fit. My younger daughter is pre-med. She did not want to go to a large university with hundreds of pre-meds where advising was non-existent. She has already spent a lot of time with the pre-med advisor, and they do a great job of bulding relationships with these kids, helping them get research, volunteer, and internship opportunities, making them a part of the honors pre-med society where they can hear speakers. My daughter has already gotten to know a lot of her professors -one even brought cupcakes to class, which wouldn’t happen in a class of 400. The acceptance rate for 2010 to med school from Furman was 72% overall, 83% for those with competitive MCAT & GPA, compared with 44% nationwide. So for my daughter, Furman is also a perfect fit. But, they were only able to go there because of scholarships. My older daughter recieved about the same amount as posters here, but when she went to Furman it was a lot cheaper. Without the scholarships, they would have gone elsewhere, and I’m sure they would have been successful.</p>

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<p>marieclare,</p>

<p>To answer your question of whether Furman is worth the money, it is really subjective. If you have a full ride option to Rollins on the table versus $33k a year at Furman than you have to consider cost in the equation. Furman is a better school than Rollins but it is not over $120k over 4 years better. The same would apply to any school.</p>

<p>Creekland is fortunate to have a great offer from a great school in Rochester. Usually that does not happen. Her decision is an easy one. In your case, pick the best “value”, or the best school for the money. If your daughter plans to go on to graduate school, you can use the savings to pay for that. As long as she gets good grades there will be opportunities regardless of the school. Good luck to you!</p>

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<p>marieclare-- I have two children at Rollins and would be happy to answer any questions you may have. We are very happy with the school and location. I don’t want to hijack this thread so if you want you can pm me.</p>

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<p>Thank you so much for everyones input. I know that this will be a difficult decision and I am not denying that “quality of life” is something that will figure greatly into the equation. Of course, I want my daughter to be happy. The right “fit” for school weighs very heavily in that factor. She loved Furman and I know would be well taken care of there. She is majoring in bio/chem engineering so grad school is a strong possibility. I am still struggling with what I am getting for that amount of money. I want her degree to be valuable and I know very little about Furman, it is practically unheard of in my neck of the woods. She also wants to have fun and I know she is worried about Furmans reputation of being all work and no play…ahhh…decisions decisions…</p>

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<p>I hope you don’t mind if I chime in. I am not ready to comment on Furman’s direction re not dispersing merit money in as wide a swath as in the past? because I am not sure I know what I am talking about yet. And I have my own vision of how I think Furman needs to attract top students. </p>

<p>I am clearly baffled if some of you have very markedly low EFCs and are getting mostly loans and not getting more outright grants to help close that gap, but Furman has not advertised I suppose that it can afford a no loans financial aid package. </p>

<p>Our EFC was high and I never presumed that our sons would receive grants. One of our sons did win signature merit scholarship at a couple of colleges in 09. He was also passed over and full price at a couple of schools where he would have liked to have matriculated. And after the recession merit dollars for private education became the dealbreaker. We have good flagship options in VA after all.</p>

<p>We also paid full price for four years at Duke starting in 2005, a more optimistic year for middle aged parents who now see the end point re their potential earnings and home valuations more clearly. Not a path I would recommend in 2012 although it is possible that our son’s peer group at Duke was so amazing that he did get a great boost of growth from merely working side by side with his highly motivated peers. His access to professors never approximated my meaninful and long-term relationships with my Furman professors.</p>

<p>So I will comment on what a Furman education is “worth.” If your son or daughter tends to rise to the top of their specialization, and is likely to ace their major at Furman, there is a secondary value at Furman re professor sponsorships and mentorships that is harder to come by at many other colleges. Chemistry is a particularly renowned department and my class valedictorian is a Provost at one of the top three LACs in the USA now. His Chem major at Furman led to years at Univ of Chicago and Stanford before landing a great teaching position at a top college.<br>
I could go on. Another housemate went to Harvard Med, her boyfriend to Harvard Law, and three of my female housemates are college professors. My Furman classmates have pretty much exceeded what I could have imagined when we were there because they tended to have strong character, strong work ethics, and a longer view re what matters in life. </p>

<p>There are other LACs that offer this secondary extra something besides Furman like Davidson, UR and Wake Forest in the region. And of course many exceptional libera arts colleges in other regions like Maine’s Bowdoin or Minnesota’s Carlton.</p>

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<p>marieclare,</p>

<p>We are also from the New England area and did not know too much about Furman before our first visit. D fell in love at that point but her major is Psychology and Furman has one of the best undergraduate Psych programs in the country.</p>

<p>If your D is looking to major in Bio/Chem Engineering, keep in mind that Furman does not have an Engineering program. Their Chemistry department is exceptional, however. Biology is strong but not in the same league as their Chemistry program. That may help you make a decision. National versus regional recognition may also be a consideration for you. Furman is very well known throughout the South but is not as well known nationally. </p>

<p>Just out of curiousity, did you look at Union College? Outstanding LAC for Chemical Engineering.</p>

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<p>Psychology at Furman is a nationally recognized program that has produced a large number of people with doctorates working all over the USA.</p>

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<p>thank you again so much for your input. I have found these posts to be invaluable and I really do believe it “takes a village” to raise a child. My D is bio/chem with more an emphasis on biology pre med. She is either headed to dental school or scientific research focusing on genetics, so med school is a possibility. She has always been a math science girl but wants a strong LAC education. She is a great student, but by no means the top student in her class. What impressed me about Furman is that I get the impression that they treat the child “holistically” and there is an opportunity for large personal growth, not just academically. I really do believe that college is much more than the “book” education and I don’t think it should be taken lightly all the other aspects that make you a self sufficient well adjusted adult. We are aslo considering Univ of Richmond, but applied regulard decision so we haven’t heard yet. If you asked my D, she would choose Furman over UR, just based on recent visit to Furman. It really is a beautiful campus. Can someone comment on the “fun” factor?</p>

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<p>Faline2,</p>

<p>Furman is the only campus we visited where the students winced when you told them you were going to major in Psychology. It is a very hard program, as my D is finding out. Their research and internship programs really set them apart.</p>

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<p>Psych at Furman is taught as a hard science with many research and lab components more in keeping with the father of behavioral psych, Watkins. The lab skills that psych majors master puts them in a strong position for grad school in medical and clinical pathways. Glad to hear that your daughter has found a worthwhile academic focus at Furman, BobbyCT.</p>

<p>Re Fun. Alcohol is legal for those over 21 (finally) but I think the sorority/frat scene is less important than it is at UR, a school where I know many VA students. UR has that access to DC that comes with location while Furman is located in a surprisingly economically lively city in the Uplands of SC. The access Furman enjoys to Atlanta, Charlotte, Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Athens GA, Charleston and to Florida cities comes with the territory of its historic alum group. Even in VA we tend to not realize how vibrant life is for these cities on interstate 85. Greenville’s location close to the beauty of the NC Pisgah Forest and foothills of the mountains in resort towns just up the road add a Zen factor to campus living. Furman students have to work hard to make decent grades but same is true at UR of course. Both colleges significantly invested in state of the art science facilities in the last decade. </p>

<p>marieclaire, you are correct that Furman is really a place where each student is viewed with respect and an education is viewed holistically. Professors are very focused on the student and are accessible and tend to love the region themselves. </p>

<p>My sons went to Duke and Vanderbilt where the tip of the balance goes just a bit toward learning from your peers more than tons of time with professors just due to size at 6000 undergrads although they certainly do provide aspects of a liberal arts education. </p>

<p>Furman and UR are nice sizes for LAC’s…not claustrophobic and too small. Fun at Furman has a lot to do with where you choose to spend your extra time but the great weather is a huge plus…fall is glorious followed by spring which is early, long and gorgeous in South Carolina. I spent a lot of time doing things with my professors and still see them, although I have been attending some funerals this year. :(</p>

<p>I still see all of my Furman friends several times a year which says a lot about longevity of ties there. And I live in VA. They are all professionals: writers of novels, newspaper writers, college professionals, dentists, doctors, lawyers, CIA career analysts, music conductors, 3 clinical psychologists and on and on. I am sure you can say the same 30 years later as a graduate of many other colleges but most of my Furman friends got graduate degrees. </p>

<p>Students today are serious at both UR and Furman. Greek life is a bit more visible in the life of UR but I try not to get too heavy on that subject. One of my sons went Greek so personally, I think any student should be ready to make that decision and live with it no matter where they matriculate.</p>

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<p>marieclare,</p>

<p>My D also considered Richmond, did the visit and sit in on class process. It is a great LAC but it was not for her. She said it seemed that everyone was from the Northeast and she was looking for a different feel. Furman has more of a traditional “Southern” feel and hospitality and attracts primarily students from the Southeast, although that is changing. Furman is not a big party atmosphere, in part because of the workload, but parties can be found. It is just not the central culture of the school. Greek life is becoming bigger at Furman, particualry Sororities. My D joined a Sorority, something she swore she would never do, and loves it. The “fun factor” is subjective but, in general it is less of a party school than most.</p>

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<p>I will admit, that I know nothing about Southern Schools. Born and bred in New England. All of my parents, siblings, etc went to New England Schools, some Ivy’s in the bunch. When my daughter declared that Dartmouth, BC, Northeastern, etc. were not for her, and that she wanted to go to a “red” state (she is a rare high school republican) with less hippies and with warm weather and sunshine etc. etc, it came as a crushing blow. I just always assumed my children would want to stay within a few hours of where we live and where there are some of the best schools in the country. My D feels that she will have the best of both worlds, winter in the south and summer in the North. She’s a snowbird already!! hahahaha.</p>

<p>It is difficult knowing nothing about these schools and I have tried to educate myself as much as I can doing countless hours of research. We have visited 13 schools (wake, UR, William Mary, Washingon Lee, Davidson, Elon, CofC, Rollins, etc. ). richmond, Furman and rollins are her 3 top choices and to be honest she can’t decide. She likes them all for different reasons, but as a parent, I saw a different look on her face at Furman. She seemed very “content” and relaxed, like she fit in easily and felt at a true sense of home… It’s hard to understand. All the campuses were pretty, but Furman really does have something special in the beauty department… I just need to figure out if it’s worth $125,000.00. The only reason why Rollins is in her top three is because of the “fun” factor. Students bring boats, a thriving area, lots of parties, etc. etc. but No football is a problem as she wants to tailgate. Richmond has football so it is much more like apples/apples. She also did not like Blackwell…</p>

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<p>The Furman faculty is always delighted to get a student from a region that is under-represented. Although I will be going to Yale this spring to visit a Furman grad who has spent his life there after doing grad school there. So there is no monolithic “she will never come back”…she may shift to the NE for grad school. </p>

<p>For her to feel good about her three top schools is exactly where you should be in March and April. Respecting your match colleges ($ fiscal match and selectivity match makes a match college) is the key to modeling rational thinking for your son or daughter. Reach colleges can also be reaches financially…this way of thinking was harder to be “real” about pre recession for us. Second son came of age in a sobering year.</p>

<p>I would encourage all of you parents to wait till all your decisions are in…to appeal if there are grounds for appeal at the two favorites, to wait out till end of April to make final acceptances as things shake out. To go to at least two accepted student days. Our Duke son didn’t even feel good about Duke so he went back twice in April…he never thought he would be admitted but was rejected at Dartmouth and in at Bowdoin. Vandy son told me Vandy was at the “bottom” of his list for weeks due to his feeling about sterotypes there and Greek life there. What a difference April visits can make.</p>

<p>Although money talks in this economy, return to your favorite campuses and let things sink in and process and let your son or daughter participate in the final “letting go” of any college. It is part of the maturing process and for those of you who will have multiple acceptances, it is a time to savor in your lives as parents. Teaching them fiscal realities in the mix is still part of your job. But also just enjoying the privilege of the open doors should be a happy time. The faculty of most of these colleges are top drawer people who want to make a difference and to make an impact. America still has such riches in its public and private colleges.</p>

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<p>Another thought I have (since we also have a low EFC due to the economy at the time), are you sure you will qualify for that much in loans? I know we don’t. It doesn’t matter what the school suggests in parent loans if you can’t qualify for them.</p>

<p>Remember that many posting on here are in a far better financial position than we are at the moment and can afford full pay (or close to it) at their school(s) of choice. That doesn’t happen for many of us. I’m having a hard time fathoming anyone suggesting any school being worth more than 100K in loans - esp with potential grad school looming. But even if you decide to agree with their arguments, are you sure you would qualify for the loans? I’m a little doubtful knowing our EFC is small (mid 4 digits) and knowing we don’t. If you were to qualify for one year, would you qualify for all 4 or would she need to transfer?</p>

<p>I cautioned my guy back when he was applying not to fall in love with any one school and only to apply to those he liked as he was most likely going to have to go where the best finances were. We carefully searched out schools known for good aid (or so we thought) and good in his desired major (he was choosing from two majors at the time). Why did your D apply to Rollins if she wasn’t ok going there? It seems to be a better financial decision unless something better comes along.</p>

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<p>She applied to Rollins as a “safety” school, as we were advised to apply to a few of those just in case she didn’t get into to any of her target schools, or reach schools. She would be happy at Rollins, other than the lack of football, and it’s very small size, she really likes it. I am concerned about the academics. Rollins is not ranked as high academically at Furman and I want her to degree to have weight when applying to grad school, or for her career placement. I am not interested in her just having “fun” for four years and sitting by the pool. I really don’t know much about it, just what I have read and researched. I know I would not qualify for any loans, but I am very fortunate to have very generous grandparents in the picture that have said, whatever we can’t come up with on our own, they will fill the rest of the need. I just want to make sure that I don’t spend their money foolishly. </p>

<p>I think accepted students days are a wonderful idea. I think it will give her a good feel for the students that she will be amongst, etc. etc. You have all given me great advice…</p>

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<p>To comment on the “fun factor” - my daughter was also dead set against joining a sorority, until she got there. Furman has delayed rush, so sometimes girls meet people and decide that it would be fun to be in a sorority after all. She goes out with her friends on Friday and Saturday nights. They do go to parties, but they also go into Greenville, which has agreat downtown area, she has been to Ashville, and there is a lot to do on campus. But she also studies a lot, spending hours on end in the beautiful science library, and she has made excellent grades though it is tough. As for Blackwell - both of my daughters ended up there! My younger daughter was horrified, and was having second thoughts about going to Furman after getting her room assignment, but it has been great. The girls on her hall are close, and she has formed friendships with two girls especially who I think will be lifelong friends. Oddly enough, those that end up in Blackwell actually end up loving it because of the close bonds you make with your hallmates.</p>

<p>I think Faline gave great advice about making a good objective decision about college. It broke my heart to watch my daughter sit on the couch and cry when she got her financial aid letters from Emory & Wake, realizing they meant she could not attend either school. She was well aware that she would not be able to go without substantial scholarships, but wanted to apply to see what would happen. I would never have discouraged her from applying, because you never know. She chose Furman over the a state university honors college because she really wanted a smaller LAC. She wasn’t thrilled at first, because she also didn’t like following in her sister’s footsteps. But she could not be happier, and is so glad she is there. I believe that will happen with the parents posting here. Your children will attend schools that will work out well, and they will never look back.</p>

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<p>We got the same letter regarding “you didn’t get a scholarship” letter. My son is 2nd in class, 1450+ SAT 34 ACT, Eagle scout, Black Belt, Palmetto Fellow, performed almost 200 hours community service in past 3 years, and wrote 7 excellent essays, and still didn’t make the finals. We checked w/ our admissions counselor and “this” scholarship was all of the big ones. </p>

<p>Here’s the kicker… Furman’s 2012-2013 tuition and fees are HIGHER than Harvard, another college who actively recruited my son, even coming down to interview him locally. That is simply ridiculus. and the $52,270 is about a 5% increase over last years. If that is to be expected, then at the end of 4 years, tuition may easily be over $60K. Amazing.</p>

<p>Students like ours with high grades, proven community involvement and commitment to long term goals should be awarded some credit over the heavy sales pitch of “no test scores required” that we heard quite a bit this year from Furman. </p>

<p>very disappointing.</p>

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<p>Ah, ok, that makes sense then. I was seriously wondering why anyone would consider > 100K in loans for any college when they had better financial offers. If you can be full pay (or close to it), that definitely puts you in a different boat and explains a ton.</p>

<p>Accepted student days sound like a good plan - or making trips again yourself and talking with profs + sitting in on classes. See if you can locate alumni from each in the desired major and get their opinion. Most alumni of colleges loved their experience and are more than willing to talk about their schools.</p>

<p>DGMom - Read the link given above. Furman is no longer after the high stat kids unless they can afford the school (supposedly with a few exceptions, but evidently, not any who post on here). They prefer full pay or close to it. This has been a recent change that many of us weren’t aware of when we had our kids apply. Do be certain your guidance office is aware of the change, so they know they are after a different demographic for the future. The one at the school where I work appreciated the info even though essentially none from here apply to Furman anyway. It’s not a well-known school in our area. I’ve only met one person who had already known about it before my guy applied and S had to drive half an hour away to meet his alumni interviewer (with the interviewer driving a similar distance).</p>

<p>This is a classic case to relate when reminding people to apply to several options and to stay open about where they would like to go. Spring can bring surprises both positive and negative.</p>

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<p>I apologize for the length of this “mini-tome”. It has brought up old feelings from four years ago as I read the disappointment and sadness families are experiencing around the aid packages. Although my older, high stats, National Merit finalist kid did not apply to Furman, she did apply and was accepted at a number of US New’s “top 20”. Her experience with the aid packages at these great schools reminded me that financially, what is happening at Furman with money is not unusual. There are a lot of outstanding kids out there! And there are a lot of outstanding kids with families that will pay the full fee. The top schools also serve deserving low-income kids. I like the philosophy of helping bright poor kids. The school is their portal to a middle class life ) As my daughter notes, she is in a financial minority at her school (middle class). The low income kids are well-represented as are the extremely wealthy. </p>

<p>The top LACs don’t have to offer much money. They will get great kids anyway. I imagine that Furman has moved in this direction as a result of the increase in prestige it has enjoyed. I live in a very academic community (there were 60+ kids with national merit or commended status in my daughter’s HS class out of 470 to give an example). About half of these 60 kids ended up at our flagship. With the rest, there were a few full pays to Brown, Yale, Duke, Stanford, Hopkins etc, a couple of first generation kids that got full rides to great privates and the rest were offered token scholarships (one NMF finalist, top of his class who was an All-American was recruited for swimming at Williams. The admissions offer came with a 5K scholarship and loans). My daughter chose Grinnell in part because, out of the wonderful schools she was offered admissions to, it was the highest ranked of the ones that offered her the most money (I hate US news-it really warps kids attitudes about great schools). </p>

<p>Going to private schools with slightly lower GPA/SAT stats and state school flagships do not hurt outcomes. Of my daughter’s group, many graduates took good packages from lesser known LACs and, presently, the acceptances from outstanding grad schools are pouring in for these students. Some of her pre-med peers intentionally chose lesser known LACs with great financial packages. It hasn’t hurt them and may have helped them in terms of med schools and the GPA formulas they use.</p>

<p>I emphasize with you who are experiencing this for the first time. Four years ago, my daughter sat and sobbed over the financial packages offered from the top-ranked east coast LACs she was accepted to. She was bitter at first-“All this work brought me nothing”. How wrong she was! It brought her a great education at a school we could manage (even then we were left with 25K her first two years-which is where out EFC was at that time). As an aside, if you have younger siblings in college at the same time, the FAFSA amount roughly splits between the two kids. The last two years of her education have been no more than our flagship as the 34+ EFC is divided between the two. Schools often give more scholarship money to kids they want to keep. My daughter got additional named scholarship monies at Grinnell after her second year. When the music department at my son’s school heard of his applications for transfer, the chair offered to raise his scholarship.</p>

<p>My final thoughts-if you have a hard-working, bright kid, they will succeed at the less well known but good schools. My son’s little known school puts out the occasional Fulbright and routinely has kids going to med school at great schools. I was amazed when I looked at the stats at this little school when we toured. Yes, your peer group isn’t all brilliant (one of the things he found annoying as a freshman), but it gets better. The weaker students transfer or fail out after freshman year (thus lower retention rates at these schools-they take more risks). The top students find each other and form very close friendships. So, for Marie-I suggest looking at Rollins and, as Faline suggested, do an overnight. The overnight was what sold both of my kids on their schools.</p>

<p>A final. Why then is my son applying to transfer? Furman has great music and, like many young people, he wants a better known “brand”. Music is very connection dependent and Furman has faculty that matriculated at grad schools he is interested in.</p>