Mary Wash?

<p>If anyone has any info about Mary Washington, I'd really appreciate it. I am highly considering this university. Just looking for some alumni or students who have any insight. Thanks.</p>

<p>Hi- I'm a '96 grad and this was the perfect school for me. I wanted an environment where I would be highly challenged by capable professors, not just a number being taught by a grad student while the professor is off writing a book or doing research. MW professors do that too, but not at a cost to their students. I had all highly accomplished professors who also took the time to get to know me and push me when I needed a greater challenge. This is a very well-rounded academic community. Compared to what I have seen at places like UVA and William and Mary, the academics at Mary Wash are on that level, but the competition between students isn't as fierce/cutthroat.</p>

<p>Socially, there's something for everyone. I was involved in student council, honor council, and a host of other activities during my 4 years as a double major in International Affairs and French. I had no problems gaining acceptance to the grad school of my choice.</p>

<p>If you have specific questions about the school, feel free to email.</p>

<p>Mary Washington, hands down, is one of the top universities in the state of Virginia. It is a hidden gem of strength in every area. The campus is drop dead gorgeous. It is truly a second tier school, just under the power houses of William and Mary and UVA. If a smaller school feel is what you are looking for, with all the prestige............go to UMW, you won't be sorry. It was my second choice under William and Mary (where I am currently a Junior). I have several close friends who go to MDubbs (Mary Wash) and they love it. Fredericksburg is well located............close to Richmond and DC, not to mention that there is a lot do in FBurg for a college student. Good luck!</p>

<p>I recently toured UMW. I definitely got the feeling that if you enter with a lot of college credit through dual enrollement, or APs from HS you will get more out of the school. The reason that I think this, and I could be wrong, is that internships in Wash DC or Richmond take a long train ride. Our tour guide was going to start one in Richmond for this semester. It seems to involve a lighter class load, and then doing the internship for 2 full days out of the week (at least this is what she was doing). This I think would make it a stretch to graduate in 4 years without coming in with some college credits. Many students in VA seem to enter college with quite a bit of dual enrollment credit. If you are OOS and don't have this, the internship experience could become very expensive. Frankly, I see the internship opportunities as a big draw to the school. The immediate surrounding area is a nice place to spend 4 years.</p>

<p>Also, IMO, entering without college credits seems to put you at a disadvantage sophomore year as well (tour guide said this is not an issue for freshmen bc seats are held open for them). You can take your gen eds sophomore year, but I did get the definite feeling that without the extra credits, getting classes you want will be tough as a sophomore. There seems to be a pecking order according to credits earned to choose classes.</p>

<p>Northeastmom, with all due respect............wwwwwttttttfffffff?????? Huh???? My sibling and my cousin both go to Mary Washington. You couldn't be more misinformed. Mary Washington is a small university. It's very easy to get the classes that you want and need. I don't get your point with regards to the info the OP asked.</p>

<p>Peace Out.</p>

<p>Also, as I mentioned...............most students who are accepted to Mary Washington would NEED to have a good amount of AP's in order to be accepted to the school anyway. My sibling needed to do a Summer session.............had plentyof AP's entering, just needed a particular class towards the major. Cousin is doing an internship now in DC.............no problem. </p>

<p>If you are looking for a small, very academic university, with a beautiful campus, in a great location...................go to Mary Washington. You won't be sorry.</p>

<p>pedsox, I say this about the classes only because our tour guide told us that for freshmen seats are held open in classes and there is no problem. For sophomores I was told that getting classes can be difficult. I was also informed that for sophomores with junior standing (this could pertain to your sibling) there is not a problem. There are definitely students from outside VA that did not have "dual enrollment" opportunities. Many VA hs grads come out of HS with these credits and it gives them advanced standing. This does two wonderful things for them: saves money and opens up time to take an internship at UMW with a lighter load for a semester, and it gives them advanced standing when it comes time to pick classes as a sophomore. Junior and seniors don't seem to have much of a problem getting into classes from what I was told. I am only discussing what I was told while on tour. I do see this as a disadvantage for a student who is entering with just 2 APs or 6 or less college credits. I hope that I was misinformed on the tour, but I did feel that our tour guide was very honest. Your are absolutely right that the school is small and is lovely. A small U. does not mean that you will easily get the classes you want though. One nice thing about this school is that classes are small. I do see the internships as a strength.</p>

<p>Thanks everyone so much. I've been reading through older threads and it seems like everyone says the food isn't that great..true? Also, what does everyone consider to be the best dorms on campus.. location..etc...
Its coming down to the wire soon, and I'm trying to make a decision so I can commit for sports. In combination with UMW's great academics and reading so many great things about this school, I really think I'd be happy at mary wash. However, I'm curious to what drawbacks/negatives ppl have?.. as there are for every school of course.</p>

<p>Only a few of the dorms have AC...............my sibling lived in Alvey and it did have AC but was closer to the gym and Science building. The food is not that great. I think what they have is good, it's just the same few things over and over..............but come to think of it, I'm getting pretty sick of the food at William and Mary. The Eagles Nest has great food on campus at Mary Wash.............the fun you will have and the people you will meet will more than make up for food that isn't so great. There is a Quizno's nearby and every resturant you can imagine near Central Park via the Fred. You can walk to historic downtown. The small classes, accessibility to profs, the strong acedemics..................you can't go wrong. Now, all of this pales in comparison to William and Mary (wink), but I've spent many weekends at Mary Washington and always had a lot of fun and met really great people. </p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

<p>I'm obviously still spelling challenged even as a college Junior. Sorry.......</p>

<p>Oh.........one drawback for sure..........no football team.</p>

<p>KC:</p>

<p>I'm a senior at Mary Washington, so if you have anything specific to ask, feel free.</p>

<p>As for the best dorms on campus, as a freshman you will want either Mason or Jefferson. They're both in a good part of campus, they're co-ed, and they usually, for one reason or another, always have friendly and interesting people living there. Alvey is the only freshman dorm on campus that has AC, but it's way on the other end of campus, and no one really likes walking all the way over there to hang out. Russell is not a bad choice either, but it's at the bottom of a hill and not something you really want to deal with when you're walking to your 8AM English 101 class.</p>

<p>The food on campus is just OK. There's nothing terrible about it, just nothing great either. It has all the basics (soup, salad, sandwiches, pizza, hamburgers, pasta etc.) and on weekend mornings they have brunch with scrambled eggs, pancakes etc. that is always pretty decent.</p>

<p>Some of the negatives to Mary Wash:
- Cars/Parking: As a freshman, you won't be allowed to bring your car, and even as a sophomore/junior the parking situation isn't great. The school recently built a new parking garage to open up more spots, but it's hardly used because...you guessed it...it's on that far side of campus where Alvey is.
- The Fred: The Fred is the local bus service, and the school plays it up as a great way to get around as a freshman. Don't believe them. The bus is pretty unreliable, it rarely shows up on time, and sometimes it won't even show up at all. A lot of students end up getting stranded at the mall or downtown that way.
- Class Registration: To be fair, UMW is trying to hire more professors to meet demand, but it can sometimes be difficult to get the class you want, especially if it's a popular 101 course or a class in a popular major like political science or international affairs.</p>

<p>In spite of a couple of gripes, I like this school a lot and will be sad to leave it when I graduate in a few months. I came here because I wanted a smaller school with quality academics where I wouldn't just be another face in the crowd. I'm on a first-name basis with a lot of my profs, and have had a lot of fun making friends here. We're not a more conventional college like Tech or JMU (we totally need a football team), but if the above is appealing to you, you could do a lot worse than Mary Washington.</p>

<p>Patriarch, that you for posting. I do have a few questions because my son really liked UMW. As far as class registration, can not getting into classes for your major delay your graduating on time? Also, to take advantage of internships, do you really need to come in with a substantial number of college credits to take on an internship in Richmond or Wash DC and graduate on time? Also, is a student with less college credits coming in as a freshman going to experience more trouble getting into needed or wanted classses? Thanks. BTW, I agree it is s gorgeous campus. As far as the Fred, if it is unrealiable, can an out of state student get away without a car, or is it pretty essential? Last question, are you able to have a balanced life at this school, or is are classes really grueling?Thanks.</p>

<p>Northeastmom:</p>

<p>1) I wouldn't sweat course registration for your son. All the department chairs are really good about getting upperclassmen (mainly seniors) those overbooked major-required courses that they need to graduate. The real frustration comes from registering for intro 101 courses for popular majors like political science/international affairs (almost certainly the biggest major at UMW) and certain niche classes that are required but have small class sizes. The bottom line is that there will be some frustration sometime down the line when you can't get the class that you want for a semester or two, but I've never heard of anyone at UMW delaying graduation because they couldn't get a course they needed. Just make sure that your son plans his courses out carefully and he'll be fine.</p>

<p>2) College credits never hurt. UMW is pretty generous with AP scores, so you can get a lot of prerequisite and gen ed courses out of the way before freshman year even begins if you come in with a lot of them. Generally, without them it would be very difficult to do an internship. Keep in mind, only a small minority of students actually even do internships during the semester. UMW likes to play up the whole internship aspect, but it takes a very focused (and well financed) student to be able to balance their schoolwork with a part-time internship, and even driving or taking the train to DC or Richmond takes a lot of time and money for a (mostly) unpaid job. With that said, my roommate interned for a lobbying firm in DC last year and pulled it off, and several of my other friends have done it too.</p>

<p>3) Even if a student came in with no college courses, he could still very easily graduate on time, as long as he is careful with his course planning. Like I said earlier, if there are any courses left that he can't get into as a senior, chances are very good that the department chair would force-add him in. By the time he becomes a senior this might not be an issue anyway, as the school is trying to hire more professors.</p>

<p>4) I'm an out-of-state student and I got by fine with no car for a year. Everything you really need is within walking distance (there is a shopping center across the street from campus with a grocery store, Blockbuster, Quizno's, barber shop etc.) and the old downtown has coffee shops and some nice restaurants. For the most part though people just hang out on campus, and don't find a lot of reasons to go off campus unless it's to go shopping, see a movie, go home for the weekend etc. I'm not really the type that goes out a lot anyway, so that suited me fine for freshman year.</p>

<p>5) It's real easy to balance a social life with classes, at least for me. Obviously it's going to depend on what major your son is going into. If he's going into a physical science or computer science, he'll be spending a lot more time studying than kids in business, econ, poli sci etc. Sad, but true. But overall, the work at Mary Wash is challenging, but not impossible. If you work hard on weekdays it's very easy to have your weekends completely free, and a lot of people take that route. Of course, it wouldn't be college if you didn't put your work off until Sunday night occasionally as well. =P</p>

<p>Patriarch, Thanks that is very helpful. Our tour guide was going to do an internship (I believe she said paid, but don't recall for sure). I was definitely under the impression that most students due the internships with a lighter course load, and I know from my other son who attends another Va public that many VA students have lots of college credit from taking dual enrollment classes through their high schools. Our hs does not offer much in the way of such classes. You have been very helpful! Thanks.</p>

<p>Patriarch86</p>

<p>Thanks for all the inside info. Nothing like hearing from a student! Was wondering if you know anything about the art/art history department in terms of strength and profs? I assume the historic preservation dept is strong as it is one of the few undergrad programs in the country.</p>

<p>My child's private OOS school, while rigorous does not label anything AP. Does this hurt in housing lottery as well as class registration? Does UMW accept summer credits from community college so we could get a head start in the summer and hopefully be able to take advantage of a internship?</p>

<p>Also wondering how competetive OOS addmisions are?</p>

<p>Thank you.</p>

<p>ApplicantMum:</p>

<p>I don't know much about art history department unfortunately (I am a history/geography double major, so I don't venture out to the fine arts building much). I do have a couple friends who are art history/studio art though, and they really seem to enjoy their classes, for what it's worth.</p>

<p>As for AP credits, your child MIGHT be at a disadvantage for getting classes. The way registration works is that a certain range of credit hours (i.e. 0-30) categorize the student as a freshman, while 31-60 credit hours make them a sophomore and so on. It's not uncommon for a lot of kids to come in with 5 or 6 AP courses under their belt, giving them 15-20 credit hours before they even set foot inside a classroom. As you can guess, that gives them a BIG advantage come class registration time when the more credits you have, the earlier you can sign up.</p>

<p>Community college credits may be accepted, I know for certain UMW has a deal in place with the northern Virginia community college system to accept credits, but as an OOSer it might be tricky. I would recommend calling up the admissions department and asking them directly.</p>

<p>OOS admissions...who knows what goes on in the heads of admissions officers. :) UMW is a public school, and its first and foremost goal is to cater to Virginia students, so if all things were equal between a VA applicant and an OOS applicant, they would (I assume) take the Virginian. But if I remember correctly, us OOSers make up about 1/3rd of the student body, so we're not exactly a rarity either. They also love our tuition money since we pay about two times as much as an in-state student. I would say the biggest indicator of your son/daughter's chances is not their grades and GPA (if they meet or exceed the school's average admissions stats you already have a decent chance), but rather their gender. Unfortunately for the ladies, the skewed gender ratio means that it is significantly easier for guys to get in, whereas it is pretty competitive for the girls. I don't know if it helps you since the numbers are almost four years out of date, but when I applied, most guys who came in had a 3.0 or better GPA and an 1100 or better on the old SAT, whereas pretty much every girl came out of high school with at least a 3.5 and a 1250. I can only assume the averages have gone up from there.</p>

<p>Patriarah86</p>

<p>Thank you for all the info. I will call addmissions and ask about the credit acceptance policy. Seems like alot to like about UMW, even at OOS prices. They gave an info session in NY, which we attended, so assume they are looking for OOS students.</p>

<p>Are there vegetarian food options? Anything else you wish you had known before attending?</p>

<p>Thanks again. Good luck with your last semester!</p>

<p>applicantmum, I am curious. Are you from NY (in particular Long Island)? I ask because when we visited there were a lot of students from NY state looking and the admissions counselor who met with us did recently get back from visiting NY. I guess they are looking for some students from NY. In that group there were more OOS students from NY than from any other state.</p>

<p>UMW does have a lot to offer. My son, really loved the school. We liked it a lot for him too. My only reservation was getting into classes as an OOS with perhaps less college credits than a student from VA, and how that would effect internships. I did not realize that there many students who do not do the internships that are available (our tour guide was doing one).</p>

<p>Northeastmom,</p>

<p>Guilty. We went to the UMW session at the Uniondale Marriott. Only 4 families showed up, so we wondered about OOS admisions. We have not visited yet, but will definately make the trip if she is admitted.</p>