Well, not anything. I’ll answer questions that I am able to, there are many specifics about different programs and other stuff that I know nothing about.
My daughter applied on 9/18 and listed James Madison as a preference. We are worried since she hasn’t received her acceptance yet that she may not get into James Madison. Do we have to worry about it getting filled up before we hear from the school
DaltonMom, I too applied for JMC/MSU back in August. From what I understand, admission decisions are made anywhere between eight to twelve weeks once all the transcripts and test scores are received. I called MSU Admissions three weeks ago and they told me that they had just started mailing acceptance letters. Again, as I understand it, MSU should e-mail you or your daughter that they have made their decision, and she should receive the letter within the following weeks. I wouldn’t worry too much until mid/late November when the timeline runs out; I assume they’re waiting until after November 1st to make their decision.
PneumaticCow, what is the initial coursework like? Do you like your professors and to they seem engaging? What is your intended path? Does James Madison offer good internships, and are your counselors willing to help you apply for them?
@DaltonMom I would not worry about getting in to JMC. I applied to MSU in late December, got my acceptance in April, and switched my major to JMC in April. There are plenty of spots available.
@RustyM92 I am majoring in International Relations, and I am also getting a second degree in Finance through the Broad College of Business. I would definitely recommend pursuing a second degree if you are not hard-set on either going to grad school or law school. It is definitely possible to get a job with just a JMC degree, but those jobs are often very competitive and not as high-paying. I didn’t want to back myself into a corner when I graduate and a Finance degree is a great supplement to my IR degree. This will probably mean that I will have to spent an extra semester or two at MSU, depending on any summer coursework or other factors.
As far as JMC, I am enjoying the two freshman JMC courses so far. If you don’t know, all JMC freshmen take the same four courses their freshmen year, two semesters of Introduction to Public Affairs (MC201 and 202), and your JMC English course (MC111 and 112). I really like the discussion aspects in both of those classes. The structure kinda feels like high school, which I like. I really enjoy the people in my 111 class as well as my professor, we all have a good time and know each other fairly well. The discussions are enriching and I feel like I’m learning a lot. They are a lot of work however. Each week between my 201 and 111 class I probably have close to 80 pages of reading, most of which is text that requires slow reading and note-taking. I also have written several essays. I’m currently averaging a 3.5 in both classes, so they’re not incredibly difficult, but they do require a lot of work.
I can’t say much in terms of internships, since I haven’t been looking into them too much at the moment. I know that JMC does host organizations and companies often, such as the CIA and State Department, but these opportunities are mostly for upperclassmen. MSU does a good job creating a future-oriented culture. They host a lot of job fairs and have a large career advising office.
What’s the Honors College like?
@MidwestIsBest The Honors College is nice. It isn’t very comprehensive like other honors colleges are. Basically you just take eight honors courses or honors options and get your honors degree. There are a few perks like honors housing and early enrollment and activities like meeting faculty, but there isn’t much to it really.
@PneumaticCow @MidwestIsBest - I disagree about the Honors College. We have visited 19 colleges with our three sons over the last four years, and the MSU Honors College is one of the top HCs. It is 60-years old and is likely the first HC. An HC member is free of all general education requirements. Most course prerequisites are also waived, so if you want to take that 300 level course without the 200 level prerequisite, have at it (not recommended for engineering). Also, HC membership opens the door for some pretty nice scholarships, right up to full-rides. http://honorscollege.msu.edu/scholarships-incoming-freshmen and research opportunities.
@Beaudreau The MSU Honors College definitely does not waive all general education requirements. You still have to take the gen eds, but you have more freedom with your classes. There called Honors For example, instead of taking a physical science class with a lab, like you have to at MSU (or a biological sciences class with a lab) you can take a Geology or Geography class, as long as the substitute is approved by the Honors College. I did forget to mention the scholarships with the Honors College, though. There are very good scholarships with the Honors College. I myself am a recipient of the STATE Scholarship, which is a $20,000 scholarship. I also know someone that went to my high school that got a full-ride scholarship, and I know that at least some of it was through the Honors College.
@PneumaticCow Good clarification!
My son just got his HC acceptance letter today. We are OOS. With his 33 on the ACT, he qualifies for in-state tuition, Professorial Assistantship ($3000/year for two years), and $5,000 one time study-abroad scholarship. He will be invited to compete in February for the full-ride Alumni Distinguished Scholarships. Those are long shots, but what the heck.
It’s not Honors College related, but as an OOS legacy, he also qualifies for the $3000/year Red Cedar Scholarship.
My D got accepted to Lyman Briggs, no scholarship invites. She wants to get into medicine, should she have applied to the Honors college instead?
@ITMom56 - A student can be a member of both Lyman Briggs and the Honors College. There is no separate application for the Honors College:
"A completed application for MSU admission serves as the application for Honors College membership; there is no separate application process. Invitations are extended approximately six weeks after the MSU admission to high school students who:
Rank in the top 5 percent of their high school graduating class (GPA will be used for students at schools that do not rank)
Have an ACT composite score of at least 30 or an SAT score of at least 1360 (Critical Reading plus Math sections only)."
In some cases students who are not admitted initially may write an additional essay: http://honorscollege.msu.edu/admissions
I got a 30 on the act, but a 17/36 on the writing(is my writing really bad??)
3.68 unweighted GPA -3 AP classes , taking 2 more senior year
HOSA (2 years), NHS (2 years), photography (1), Spanish (1), key (3)
Chances ??
@blue13 I have very little knowledge of exactly how the Honors College admissions process works, but I do know that your stats are below the average of HC students.
I got my acceptance into the James Madison College but how do i find out about honors college decision? is it online somewhere?
Do you need at least a 30 ACT score to be admitted into the honors college?
My D just got admitted to Michigan State last week to the Poly Sci. Dept. She is nervous about switching to James Madison because what happens if she doesn’t like it the first year? Will she feel uncomfortable at Case Hall with everyone in the program if she drops out? She thinks it’s a great program, but wonders about the atmosphere if she completely changes her major.
@AcceptableName I believe the average ACT of HC students is approx. 32.
@3mamagirls She is worrying about the completely wrong thing. There are a lot of non JMC students in Case, it might be almost 50%. Nobody will care if you switch out of JMC, it’s your decision and you won’t be ostracized or anything. What she should worry about is getting behind on credits after the first year of JMC. You won’t get behind if you switch out after the first semester, but you might be a class or two behind after the second semester, which really isn’t that bad. But in any case, switching out of JMC is pretty rare because most students really enjoy it, so that shouldn’t be too much of a concern either, unless you have major reservations about it.