Our S19 is putting the finishing touches on his college list. We think he’s all set but I’d like to maybe find one more safe-ish option for him. We live in the Midwest and, while S19 is somewhat liberal, he’d like a place that is not screaming social activism and also not uber-conservative. We are not a religious family.
While visiting some schools in NC this spring, he’s realized that a warmer climate might just be nice for four years. We’ve ruled out Richmond and Wake. He’s definitely applying to Davidson. He’s looking almost exclusively at LACs.
I’ve read some threads that say that Furman, while not very diverse, isn’t hyper-conservative and that all views are welcome. But then, I picked up our Fiske guide and read this - “If you’re Southern, white, and conservative, you’re likely to feel like a member” (referring to Furman being the “country club of the south”). This sentence alone makes me pause.
Anyone out there with some recent reviews of what life would be like for a non-Southern student at Furman? Please be honest!
@wisteria100 Ruled out Richmond because it just seemed too buttoned up and pre-professional. He wants strong academics and a liberal arts feeling to the school. He’s not interested in being an undergrad business major but, otherwise, he’s undecided. Could be social sciences, pure science, math, or even English. As a reference, he loved William and Mary and Davidson. I will look at Rhoades but I think it’s pretty urban. He wants green with trails to run on!
I would not rule out Furman based on Fisk. There are a lot of Southeastern kids there but I do not think it has an “exclusively Southern” attitude. There are kids from all over the country. It seems to have a more conservative student body but as far as I have seen, all views are welcome. I sat in on a poli sci class when my daughter visited and the views expressed by the students were definitely diverse and everyone was civil. The students do seem more focused on academics and intellectual exploration without being militant either way. If your son liked Davidson, Furman is probably worth a visit. If he wants green with trails, Furman has those in abundance.
Have you looked at Elon? Fabulous school in tiny town in NC, but it isn’t too far from fun towns. Excellent price point and really a lot of bang for your buck. Campus is top notch with roughly 6k ugrad. We are very liberal and Furman is looking like first choice for D. Davidson is more moderate, but hard to get into. Other D (twins) would love Elon, but it is too close to home.
My two cents about Elon - we just finished a tour including both Elon and Furman. I think they are very dissimilar. Elon is a large LAC and Furman and Davidson are considerably smaller. Our whole family had an immediate dislike for Elon and I think OP will find the vibe similar to Richmond in the “buttoned-up” area. We felt like the whole presentation was about their sports teams/new sports arena and about them trying to seem on par with Wake Forest/Duke. I think who you chose to put in front of your admission session says a lot about the school. The guy who gave the admission talk was so stiff and unpersonable compare with the guy who gave the Furman talk who was down to earth and very witty. The Furman guy seemed like someone you wanted to go to lunch with and the Elon guy seemed like that full of himself guy in your office who you desperately avoid. Maybe it was an off session and tour, but we couldn’t wait to leave Elon.
Elon is high on my D19’s list but we have yet to visit Furman and Richmond. I get the idea that Elon is working very hard to improve its ranking and I like where it seems to be going. I do wish that they had more on-campus housing for upperclassmen, though…
As far as Furman is concerned, I’ve heard there isn’t a hard lean toward being liberal or conservative. Most are very open to others’ viewpoints.
Both of my daughters graduated from Furman - D1 '10, D2 '15 - and were/are very liberal. They able to find like-minded people at Furman, but also get to know students with political & religious viewpoints across the spectrum. Furman has diverse offerings in organizations, classes, and cultural life program topics.
Furman definitely isn’t overwhelmingly conservative- the CLPs that are offered show viewpoints from cross the spectrum. I’m a student in the Political Science department and every opinion is welcomed. Classes tend to have really good discussion as the diversity of thought allows for good discourse.
I’d discount the Fiske guide. Clearly a loaded quote by them. I know an alumni who had a wonderful experience at Furman. She isn’t political in the least. Juts a smart, good person.
Our educational consultant recommended Furman for our son but cautioned us since she said it was conservative and preppy. She said that people dressed up - slacks, bow ties, dresses for sporting events. Is this true? We had taken it off the list but it is working its way back on our list. Just trying to gauge the “preppy” factor… my sons default is casual! Lol
The only students, and the only time, anyone dresses up for a sporting event are the frats/sororities at football games. It’s a southern thing - if you look at the student sections at Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, etc. - they do the same thing. During the day, you’ll see as many kids in jeans/sweats as you will see in khakis. While Furman was generally conservative when I went there (in early 90’s), now (according to my son who is a sophomore) there is a wide variety of opinions. However, unlike other campuses, it’s ok to agree to disagree with each other at Furman.
As conservative as Auburn is supposed to be my son and his friends are left leaning independents and they all say the students are far more openminded that the conservatives would like you to believe and they are mostly respectful of other opinions.
