<p>My D just got off the waitlist at richmond. What are the differences in terms of students, academics? Study abroad posibilities?
She wants to major in environmental science, languages (italian, russian maybe, already speaks french and spanish). Of course she already put the deposit at Dickinson and we are so far very happy and she likes it, so its not as if she was settling or anything.</p>
<p>I happen to like both schools. Many schools are pushing their environmental science programs so it’s very hard to know the truth behind the boasts. What is clear is that study abroad is a real strength at Dickinson and one they have focused on for a long time. With that focus comes strong language programs. </p>
<p>I think Richmond is stronger in more programs than Dickinson. The issue then becomes is your daughter potentially giving up a real good fit for programs she won’t be taking just to be a bit up the “prestige” rung? </p>
<p>Both have beautiful campuses and interesting students. Sure, Richmond has the rep for ‘girls with pearls’ and there are a bunch of kids from families with money but there are interesting kids at both schools so … does it matter?</p>
<p>If it were Business studies it would be a no-brainer to go to Richmond but it’s really about the fit for your daughter and little else. That said, what is the financial differences between offers?</p>
<p>Thanks!
She is also interested in somehow combining environmental science with business. She is very down to earth, and she doesn’t care about prestige at all.
Both FA packages are very similar, I have to go home and compare but out of pocket seems pretty much the same.
Richmond is 6 hrs and Dickinson is 2.5 hrs away.
Let me see if I understand this: Richmond is a liberal arts college but called a university? It seems to be structured more like a University with schools…how open or flexible is the curriculum? How easy is it to major/minor or double major?</p>
<p>You would be better off posting on the University of Richmond board for specifics. However, my limited understanding is that the Business School is a separate admission as it is a separate ‘school.’ So, taking b-school classes if admitted to the Liberal Arts College … I wouldn’t hope for too much flexibility. Their B-school is a top 10 undergraduate program and there is no way they would have the seats for liberal arts majors. Heck, they might not even want them there. </p>
<p>My understanding is that a university technically should offer a PH.D. in (at least) certain majors so … that’s not Richmond. I guess because they have different ‘colleges’ they have borrowed the word ‘university’ to cover multiple colleges within. No bid deal to me. </p>
<p>Has your daughter visited and attended classes at both schools?</p>
<p>We will visit next week and ask to sit in a class. Richmond was a last minute addition to her list, and there were no tours/official visits back in December. Then we decided to wait till she was accepted and when she was put on the waitlist didn’t visit. So here we are, but she is seriously considering the school.</p>
<p>I have a very good friend who made this exact decision. She chose Dickinson–pretty much, she liked it better.</p>
<p>But I hear Richmond is unbelievably beautiful. I would personally pick Richmond, but I’m basing it on hearsay, and my friend picked after a lot of effort to learn about both schools.</p>
<p>I visited both schools last week but I’m only a Junior. My personal opinion was that while I really didn’t like Dickinson as much, I adored Richmond. The campus is absolutely amazingly gorgeous and all the students I met were very kind.</p>
<p>Thanks! there is a complication in that she was just told she can’t do an overnight stay or sit in class because semester is pretty much over. What did you like about Richmond?</p>
<p>That’s a shame. I would not attend a college that I did not sit in multiple classes in things that interest me. But, that’s just me.</p>
<p>IT’d be a tough decision for me, since Dickinson is so much more convenient to home. But the University of Richmond is an idyllic environment and the students and professors are very friendly, approachable and unpretentious. Richmond is more selective and ranked more highly than Dickinson, but that may or may not be an issue for you and your daughter. It has almost uniformly small classes and an incredible student-teacher ratio (something like 8:1 I think). </p>
<p>Even though it’s essentially a liberal-arts school, I guess it calls itself a university because it also has constituent professional schools, e.g. law and business. And graduate work (master’s programs) is offered in many fields. </p>
<p>Now, what would I not like so much? The place is not really an academic pressure-cooker. Even in Virginia, it’s overshadowed by William & Mary, Washington and Lee, and the University of Virginia. Then, it does seem to have a lot of comfortably affluent students. If I were a poverty-stricken hyper-intellectual I might feel out of place at Richmond. </p>
<p>Hope this helps!</p>