Trip report: Emory

Parents Forum
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<p>DS & I visited three schools this past June…..this trip report is on Emory. We drove from Nashville after a fantastic Vanderbilt visit to Atlanta…quite a drive, but pretty through the mountains. Traffic around Atlanta can be at best described as awful. Made it to the tour with a few minutes to spare. DS had been emailing a club coach, with whom he spoke via cell while we were waiting for the tour to start (but couldn’t get a face-to-face arranged), and the adcom who had met DS at a college fair some months back, came out prior to the tour to chat & say hi…..I must say I have been very impressed with how well Emory folks reach out & communicate.</p>

<p>The tour was nice, & we had a somewhat nerdy philosophy major take us around. He fit in well with my growing perception of Emory as a very academically oriented place. I was struck by Emory’s architecture…mostly marble buildings with Spanish red-tiled roofs. Was very unique, & we liked it. Buildings were of many styles, ranging from classical columned structures to modern. The place was very well manicured & kept up, probably a symptom of their huge endowment related to Coke. Library and all academic facilities were A+. Emory is a nice size for DS, not too big & not too small. Vibe on strong academics & student focus there was pronounced. Relative to the 2 other schools on this circuit for us (Vanderbilt & Wake Forest), I definitely felt Emory was the most academically focused. Spent some time touring their gym and talking about the intercollegiate (D3) and intramural scenes….I had heard, perhaps wrongly, about general athletic apathy, but I heard on this visit otherwise, with Emory regularly landing in the top 10 of the D3 Sears cup. Didn’t get a chance to wander down to the nearby Emory village, but was told it has some restaurants & shops where students frequent….otherwise, the area is predominantly Atlanta residential, mostly with a suburb feel….very nice though. Biggest take-aways from the info session were (1) Emory is a “demonstrated interest” college (which I had not figured out prior to this visit), meaning they track all of your contacts & they like kids visiting, and (2) SATs are not the end-all…at least they convinced me that they are looking at the whole package & especially at grades & curriculum…..oh, and also that they don’t expect every applicant to be a leader of some huge endeavor or to have cured cancer (yet).</p>

<p>Overall, I really liked Emory, especially valuing the welcoming emails & receptions DS has thus far received, including a recent email from the adcom covering our territory. With the academic emphasis and D3 focus, it felt almost Williams-like. DS liked Emory also & could see himself there….not quite as high up on the list as a few others, but definitely on the list.</p>

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<p>Papa Chicken,
Thanks so much for your trip report on Emory, my D is interested but will be unable to visit until after acceptances are in. We did get their DVD, but it's the typical 'staged' production, so it's hard to get a real feel for the kids and campus. Did you get the impression that many kids actually make it into Atlanta on a regular basis to take advantage of their cultural offerings (concerts, plays, museums, etc.)?
EM</p>

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<p>EM-- yes, we asked that question directly, and it does sound like many kids take advantage of what Atlanta has to offer. Lots going on being such a big city, and I think I remember that transportation into the city wasn't that big of an issue. Suggest your D find out who her territory adcom is, and ask that question via email, #1 to get their perspective & #2 to start a relationship. Here's the Emory contact list to figure out which adcom to contact:
<a href="http://www.emory.edu/ADMISSIONS/admission-aid/staff.htm%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.emory.edu/ADMISSIONS/admission-aid/staff.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

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<p>Entomom: How long for video to arrive?</p>

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<p>Transportation into the city isn't a problem as long as you or a friend have a car!!! Public transportation in Atlanta is just fair. There is no rail line by Emory, so students would need to take the bus or cabs. </p>

<p>All the students I know that have attended Emory have had a car. I would really look into how students get around from some current students. Maybe Emory has some sort of private bus system that takes kids to the MARTA station; I really don't know.</p>

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<p>Thanks Papa C, that's a good idea. I noticed on their application that they specifically ask about the contact you've had with Emory.</p>

<p>smiles, It's been awhile now, but it seems like it took about a week or two. We ordered the Vandy one at the same time since the company that distributes them has several college videos & DVD's.</p>

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<p>My son is a senior at Emory this fall (actually, he's there now, taking a summer class while doing some work with one of his professors) and you are right that the school is very academically focused. A lot of people don't pick up that vibe right away because of the Southern setting, but students at Emory work very, very hard. They like it that way. The students have a good time too, it's just that they always put their work first. There's also the flip side of being on an up-close -and- personal basis with your professors: you don't want to disappoint any of them.</p>

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<p>So funny PapaC, we did the exact same Vanderbilt to Emory trip a year or so ago. Right up over the big mountains in between. </p>

<p>Agree with your assessments--liked Emory a lot, didn't like Atlanta.</p>

<p>Three words of advice about Emory: apply early decision. My son did RD, got waitlisted and then they took like almost noone off the waitlist (doesn't matter, Emory wasn't in his top 3 choices and he got into a school that was). Meanwhile kid from town with lower grades, scores, etc and similar EC's applied EDII after getting rejected somewhere else EDI and got in.</p>

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<p>e-mom-- you may have seen this on their web page, but here's the blurb on demonstrated interest:</p>

<p>"We pay close attention to the contact an applicant has had with the Office of Admission during the application process. It is important that applicants have done their research on Emory, whether through ordering a Video Visit, talking with a representative at a college fair, attending an information session in your city or at your school, or visiting our campus. We also expect a competitive candidate to articulate why Emory is a particularly good match for them."</p>

<p>Regarding that last point, I recall the advice at the info session was to really explain how Emory fit into one's future via an essay.</p>

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<p>Regarding demonstrated interest/ED, I think preferring applicants who demonstrate a clear interest in attending makes for a better all-around campus environment. </p>

<p>It's better to have classmates with perhaps slightly lower grades and test scores who are happy to be there than to have to live, work and play with people who are upset that they had to settle for what may have been to them a safety school that they didn't spend much time investigating. When you start off thinking something is second rate, there is a tendency to find fault at every opportunity. </p>

<p>If you've had your heart set on HPYS all through high school, and you find yourself somewhere else, you may not be a very happy camper. OTOH, if the "somewhere else" was your first or second choice and you got in, you are a happy camper. Happy campers make better campers than unhappy campers. Higher grades and test scores out of high school can't fix that. </p>

<p>There are still plenty of happy students at schools like Emory who had originally hoped for and applied to but didn't get into HPYS-type schools. They were most likely the kids who demonstrated that they had investigated and chose to apply to Emory for reasons other than it's position in the rankings.</p>

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<p>This is my first post. My daughter and I visited Emory earlier this summer. We had two great tour guides. They were very enthusiastic and gave different perspectives of Emory (he was in a fraternity, she wasn't, etc.) The young woman was also involved in club gymnastics -- instant bond with my daughter, who is also a gymnast. My daughter really loved Emory -- the campus, the city of Atlanta. </p>

<p>My stepson graduated from Emory about six years ago. He had a great time there but is a very different person than my daughter. He does not see her there. He was very social and he thought the school was filled with rich, white kids. My daughter is very quiet, not into the party scene and pretty down to earth. She has disdain for alchohol and drug use. Her idea of fun is getting together with friends to cook, play games and watch movies.</p>

<p>I worry that even though she loves Emory, it may not be a good fit. I guess she will have to spend a weekend there to feel it out.</p>

<p>We also visited Kenyon this summer. She also loved it there. The campus is beautiful and isolated (which is appealing to her). </p>

<p>We will look at Hamilton in a few weeks -- maybe Colgate too. She is getting a little burned out with the college search, though and I don't want to overdo it. I think the next college visit will be our last before she sends out her applications.</p>

<p>Here are her stats: SATI: CR: 790; M: 690; W: 610. SATII's: BIO: 710; US HIS: 630. ACT: 32</p>

<p>She has had AP Physics in her Junior year. Got a 4 on the exam, B in the class. She has had all Honors classes in H.S. so far. All A's, one B. She will take 3 or 4 APs in her senior year. Wants to drop AP English Lit for Honors. </p>

<p>Not involved in many clubs at school. Gymnastics takes up her time. She competes but is not a high level gymnast. Does a lot of volunteering, community service, etc. </p>

<p>Any thoughts on other schools for her? We also visiting Conn. Coll., Skidmore, Dickinson, Wheaton (MA), Clark, Hampshire, the Claremont schools (too far for me -- we live in PA), Muhlenberg. Thanks for the help.</p>

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<p>114rmr-- welcome to CC (at least making your 1st post....looks like you've been here for a while!)....as you will not receive very much traffic on this thread, I suggest you start a new one with your query about what other schools to visit, to include the background you've provided. That thread could either be here in the Parents forum (a more mature audience), or the College Search forum. Goodluck & keep posting.</p>

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<p>I'm from Atlanta - just wanted to point out that Emory students might enjoy catching a bus to the city of Decatur (all of about 5 minutes away) - Decatur has a lot more restaurants, sometimes concerts, shops, public library, post office, high priced condos, access to MARTA rail line, and more. Agnes Scott (women's college) is within walking distance to the square (Decatur "square" as they call it) - a lot of young people hand out there and it is fairly safe.
Emory's village is a very small strip of sidewalk with only a couple of restaurants; not nearly as big as downtown Decatur. Although, I've read recently that Emory plans to expand development in their area with more shops/restaurants/condos and expanded Emory shuttles to those areas.</p>

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<p>You MUST do an overnight at Emory. I loved the school the first time I visited it, didnt like it as much the second time, then I went for an overnight. I really did not enjoy my experience. I went back from another overnight and it was even worse. Please Please do an overnight there if you are considering it. Myself and other students from different schools who I have come into contact with who come from different backgrounds and have very different personalities all had this same experience and decided not to go to Emory because of it. I hope, however, that your child will have a better experience on an overnight than myself and others have.</p>

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<p>What did you not like about it?</p>

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<p>If there are any Emory students out there, then I apologize now. I am sure you are lovely people. </p>

<p>I found the students to be either, very snobby and felt they were better than you because they had gotten into Emory, or, on the other end of the spectrum, lamenting that they were of Ivy quality and had to "settle" for Emory.</p>

<p>There were also some issues with drugs. The hall I stayed on was one half boys and the other half girls. And the boys were having a pot party. I was told by students not partaking in the party, that this was fairly common practice across campus.</p>

<p>Honestly, it was the students that turned me personally off from the school. But I'm sure many people attend Emory and love it. You really just need to let your child spend some time there by his/herself and get a feel for the kids.</p>

<p>I am also a college junior so things might have changed in 2 years.
On the plus side, Emory does have very strong programs and is a beautiful campus. And the dorms aren't too bad.</p>