<p>My son is interested in engineering and he has been accepted at Virginia Tech, University of Virginia, and Princeton University. He is a national merit finalist with a great high school record and has had lots of contacts from UVA and Princeton who seem eager to have him as a student. He is very interested in Virginia Tech, but since his acceptance in February and admission to University Honors in March, we've heard nothing from them. The other schools call, email, and snail mail almost daily. Has anyone else had this experience with VT? Do they just like to play hard-to-get?</p>
<p>I’m guessing it’s not ‘hard to get’ but just sheer numbers. Tech has 6000 undergraduate engineering majors. They’ve probably admitted that many to yield 1500 freshman acceptances.
UVa has only 2200 undergrad engineering majors.
Princeton has under 900 undergrad engineering majors.</p>
<p>Good point about the numbers. D never heard anything from Tech during the college search process - don’t know that they actively market. </p>
<p>What type of engineering is your son interested in? What does he like so much about Tech?</p>
<p>I know quite a few kids that have applied to VT for engineering and many other majors (my son included). I haven’t heard from any of them that VT maintains contact with you after you apply/are admitted, so don’t take it as a slight against your son. I am sure UVA is trying to increase their engineering numbers (and would love a student like your son to go there!) as that particular program isn’t known as one of their strengths.</p>
<p>I agree with mominva that it is a numbers thing, moreso than a playing hard to get thing. Of all of the schools that my s applied to, the University of South Carolina was the only one to call/write. I thought it was a very nice gesture, but it didn’t impress him nearly as much as it did me! :)</p>
<p>One of my favorite people in the entire profession is in the Office of Admission at Tech. I know she has a wonderful staff. I assure you that they care about their students!</p>
<p>I can’t speak with authority about VT admission, but at UVa, we have a relatively small staff compared to our private peers and I know there are publication budgets out there that are much larger than ours. We’re lucky that our engineering school is interested in reaching out to admitted students and is willing to devote some of their budget to that. </p>
<p>If you have questions, I’m sure someone in any admission office would be happy to chat with you. :)</p>
<p>virginiamom2boys, not VT but similiar sch… Five years ago when S1 applied to College of Engineering at NC State, he was accepted and then heard virtually nothing also.<br>
It was his first choice. He went despite the inattention and had a great four years.<br>
If your S likes VT don’t let not hearing from them bother you. </p>
<p>Like KandKsmom, Univ. of South Carolina showered him with attention, phone calls, postcards, brochures,etc.</p>
<p>To heck with them, if they won’t take the time to mail your son a letter very other day! go to Princeton - I have heard it a pretty good school (doesn’t have the mountain views, though.)</p>
<p>My son visited there during Spring break and he received a nice email thanking him for visiting etc. I thought that what nice. He visited a bunch of other schools including UVA but heard nothing from them.</p>
<p>The level of recruiting intensity depends upon the policies and budgets of each university’s
Admissions Department, with which your student will most likely have zero to do once he matriculates. It’s flattering to feel “wanted,” but realize that the people expressing desire are not those with whom your son will be working or studying. An admission is an admission, and he should attend the school that best suits his needs.</p>
<p>In our family, not receiving a bunch of mail/calls/e-mails from a college would be viewed as a positive. My kids take after me in that I don’t like talking on the phone, use the self-check out at the stores to avoid chit chat with a cashier, etc. An occasional mailing (with a free T-shirt or sticker) might be OK, but daily mail would have me thinking they are annoying and wasting money.</p>
<p>(My kids aren’t NMF and wanted that badly anyway. Junior S gets occasional postcards from RPI showing different seasonal campus scenes, which do not impress him.)</p>
<p>Thanks for the insights. Our impression of VT had been incredibly positive up to this point. Our concern is that the apparent lack of interest/communication could be a sign of what we can expect if our son enrolls. (Interestingly enough, we received an email today reminding us about Hokie Focus next weekend. Not personal, but at least it’s something!)</p>
<p>Older son graduated last year from UVa , younger son is currently a freshman at VT. Never concerned with lack of contact from the schools before they enrolled. Pleased with their experiences at both schools after enrollment. Advising at VT has been fine. Just glad we have such great Virginia schools and happy to be accepted. They (UVa,VT)just do not need to do major recruiting as there are MANY families that view these schools positively and as first choices. As a taxpayer in Virginia, I would not be happy to think lots of dollars would be going to entice students to attend (which is not necessary). Sons , because of SAT’s, got tons of stuff from many colleges (mostly out of state publics and many privates ) implying how great they must be and imploring them to consider their schools. Somewhat flattering,especially all of the Ivy League and very selective privates with older son, but meaningless in the long run. They ended up with the best fits, academically and financially.</p>
<p>virginiamom2boys, I don’t know if this is your first heading off the college, but if so you may be shocked at the reduction in communication both from him and from his school as compared to what you had with a high schooler. I know I was. From being pretty aware of what was going on in my son’s life- both with school/academically and socially- to relying on him to share because we aren’t privy to it, it was a real eye opener. But, that is how it is supposed to be. Just took a bit of time for this mom to adjust 
</p>
<p>If he does end up at VT, they do allow you to sign up for a daily email from the school to kind of see what is going on as well as a periodic newsletter for families letting you know about dates, events, etc. Of course you will also get info from the bursar’s office ($$!) during the course of the year, but after that your son will get everything relating to what he needs, not you all. </p>
<p>We haven’t heard any complaints about the communication/information that our son receives from his department/professors/housing, etc. Being a large school, I think they do a pretty great job. I have actually been pretty shocked (but really pleased) by the individual attention that he has received from his department. He has had no problem setting up meetings with professors, advisors, etc., but he is in a smaller major than engineering so that may help. </p>
<p>If your guy can get to Hokie Focus, as well as UVA’s and Princeton’s admitted students day, he should. I think spending time on each of the campuses that he is trying to decide upon really will help. A computer website, brochures, etc. aren’t enough. A kid can really feel what it would be like to be a student by walking around, seeing the engineering facilities, where he will eat, etc. Best of luck to him…he has great options and will do fine no matter where he ends up I am sure!</p>
<p>I would like to echo sevmom. Do not let this come into your decision at all! Once your student is in school their contact will be with their professors. Be concerned with how your student feels about the campus, the size, the student body, the research facilities, what he plans to study, all of these things matter… not the ‘love and attention’ from the admissions office (to the exclusion of Dean J! I belive we’d be doing a happy dance to hear from her, but that’s legend!). I have a son who is a Jr. and is looking at both UVA & VATech. They take a different approach. One may fit your son better. Depending on the field your son is entering, one school may be involved in research that interests him more (ie. UVA aerospace is involved in the scramjet, VATech the Mars Rover). These are the things that should drive your decision. Both schools are outstanding and your son will received plenty of attention. The key is finding the one that is right for him. Good luck and congratulations on the admissions!!!</p>
<p>D’s been very happy at UVA as an engineering major. The communication from both the University and SEAS has been fantastic. We receive regular updates from the e-school that are extremely informative as well as the UVA Today bulletin. We had great communication with professors and students when she was making her decision. As blueiguana’s noted, the schools have very different “feels” and areas of research going on; D wants to major in BME and that wouldn’t be possible at Tech. </p>
<p>I don’t think your son can go wrong with any of his choices. Good luck!</p>
<p>Just returned from a fantastic visit to UVA’s “Day on the Lawn.” Our son is interested in chemical engineering, rated similarly at UVA and VT, and his interest in biochem or biomed may lean him toward UVA. He’s been invited into the Rodman scholars program at UVA which seems to have distinct advantages in course scheduling and housing. VT’s University Honors does not seem to offer similar advantages to incoming freshmen. We will attend Hokie Focus next weekend.</p>
<p>Thanks again for all of the helpful comments.</p>
<p>You may have met my daughter today, then virginiamom2boys. She’s a current Rodman. Glad you enjoyed today’s visit!</p>