Although it may seem like a pretty easy decision, it is not so easy for my D. Background info:
Live in New Jersey. Mother, Father, sister, grandfather and uncles all attended Villanova. So my D grew up there and we know the school very well. I have one daughter that is a current Junior at Nova. Yes, Villanova is more difficult to get in to, more impressive and coveted, closer to home (1.5 hours), excellent alumni network in the NY/NJ metro area, basketball, beautiful suburb. It is also, a bit snobby, i.e., very designer brand conscious (Canada Goose, Gucci, etc). My daughter wants greek life. Which is a fairly toxic system at Nova (panhellenic advisor at Nova used that word, not me). I don’t care what anyone says, Nova is definitely more socially challenging if you are not greek and not 21. It was like that 30 years ago when I went and is still that way. Trust me, we are a Wildcat family through and through, but just want the best college experience for my D. Clemson: 12 hours driving or have to fly. Great school spirit, everyone that goes there loves it, excellent greek system, great town, lakes, well rounded students and a new experience for my D. All comments and opinions are welcome…
Where does your daughter want to go? Let her choose.
Can’t speak to Villanova but, DS recently graduated from Clemson. He absolutely loved his time there! Lots to do outside and a very friendly student body. He went through rush and ended up declining a bid. Joined a bunch of clubs instead. We are OOS too with a 14 hour drive. So why did our DS drive past some terrific schools to go to Clemson? Career services and campus culture (academic scholarship didn’t hurt either)
He’s happily employed with an offer that came from the on campus career fair. Good luck and Go Tigers!
2 totally different schools. Visited them both with our D last year. She did not apply Villanova after looking at updated admissions requirements. This is one where, as a parent, stand clear of influence unless you have financial concerns of Nova.
The weather sure is different! Is that a factor?
Is it up to your daughter to choose? Is cost an issue? I don’t see any reason why anyone should pick one over the other if there is a personal preference for one. I’ve known graduates from both schools, and they seem to be doing just fine. Personally, in my neck of the woods in NY, Nova would be more familiar stomping grounds, more kids they would know at Nova and it’s much closer in distance. My son did find that it was a bit disconcerting to be at an OOS school where he knew hardly anyone (cousin was there) when most all of the kids knew clusters of kids from various state functions. THat can be an issue.
What makes the greek life better at Clemson? Just curious
Many kids turn down higher ranked schools for a variety of reasons. Clemson is a very good school. We know many graduates and they are doing very well. Let your daughter choose.
Clemson has improved a lot over the past decade. Even the marching band is excellent.
Loads of kids from my area (DC suburbs) go to Clemson and I have yet to hear of one who didn’t love their time there. I visited with DD and was very impressed. In fact I was kind of disappointed when she chose to attend another more highly ranked school, even though it cost less money.
We’ve only visited a few schools, but it struck me that Clemson has no common requirements freshman year. It struck me as an excellent choice for someone who is very sure of a major, but perhaps less so for someone uncertain of a major. I would check into how easy it is to take classes in other colleges. An exception is the College of Engineering, where freshman year is devoted to learning all about the different engineering disciplines, with professors from each discipline teaching. What does your DC want to study?
I am familiar with both schools. Over the past several decades, Villanova tended to have a significant number of students from the same Catholic high schools. Some shared that it felt as though they really had not left high school. May have changed in the past few years as Villanova now attracts a larger audience.
Clemson because it is a beautiful university in a great town & setting. A change of weather & culture.