<p>Hello,
I have been reading these forums over the last few months and they have really been useful. However, I need some help. My two choices at this point are Wake Forest or Bucknell, and I only have a week left to decide. Bucknell gave me enough FA so that it would be approx. 10,000 a year to go there. Wake Forest tells me monday how much I will recieve. I did an overnight stay at Bucknell and loved it, and I visited Wake in the summer. Both campuses were very nice. I have heard that both schools are also very similar, which only makes my decision harder. I think the main questions I have are this: I am undecided, and my possible interests are computer science, business/management, and engineering. Which school would be better considering I don't know what to major in? How do my above majors compare as far as which school has the better programs for them? Also, as far as the whole "Work Forest" thing goes, would the workload at Wake be significantly harder? I am by no means lazy, but the idea of doing work for its own sake seems silly to me. Finally, how "southern" is Wake Forest? If anyone could help with out with some of these questions, or point me to someone who can, I would greatly appreciate it. Also, any other information comparing the two colleges would be a great help as well.</p>
<p>Interesting choice in that I do feel these 2 schools have a lot in common. I would really wait to see the FA you receive from Wake on Monday - that might make the decision very easy for you - one way or another.</p>
<p>If you knew for sure you wanted engineering - I would recommend Bucknell. For business, I would recommend Wake Forest. Not sure about computer science. Have you considered climate? Unless you love snow, I think most would agree Wake has better weather. </p>
<p>As far as the workload goes - that is so subjective - and it really will vary depending on the courses and professors you have each semester. The students I know at both schools work hard - not sure that Wake’s workload is always harder.</p>
<p>In my opinion, these 2 schools are similar enough that I would pretty much let the FA make the decision - why don’t you post again on Monday after you receive your info from Wake. Why is it so late? Just wondering.</p>
<p>One reason Wake and Bucknell seem very similar is that the same architect designed both campuses! We were told that at the Wake revisit day D attended 4 years ago when she was making the same choice between schools. She graduates from Wake in 3 weeks.</p>
<p>Agree with rockvillemom’s assessment – Wake is not known at all for engineering, and FA sounds like a key decision point. The “Work Forest” and “southern feel” topics have been covered in several previous threads here; you can do a search.</p>
<p>For D the decision ended up being obvious after she made a list of all the positives, for her, of WFU compared to Bucknell, and vice versa.</p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>Bucknell gave me a very similar financial aid package with about 6,000 in loans. However, Bucknell does not include the cost of books, student costs, transportation costs, and they also would charge me 1,800 as a parental contribution. The following from Wake includes all of the above but they do not charge my parents. </p>
<p>WFU Sch to Cap Borrowing $6,000.00
Wake Forest College Sch $32,600.00
Federal Pell Grant $5,550.00
Federal SEOG (grant) $1,500.00
Federal Work-Study Employment $2,000.00
Federal Perkins Loan $4,000.00
Fed Direct Sub Stafford Loan $2,510.00</p>
<p>Total award:
$54,160.00</p>
<p>So in summary, Wake’s financial aid package is better than Bucknell’s by a few thousand. However, one question I have is this: does an outside scolarship reduce my “WFU Sch to Cap Borrowing” first or my workstudy/ loans?
I really like Wake for its better weather and southern feel, as well as the FA. However, I believe that Bucknell is better academically for being undecided… help!</p>
<p>Great pkg - glad Wake came through for you. Please call Wake’s fin aid dept. for an accurate answer to your question about an outside scholarship - every school will be different - I’d want to get the answer directly from the source. As far as Bucknell being better for undecided major - not sure about that. At Wake, you are taking divisional requirements, freshman seminar, etc., during freshman year - so you have ample opportunity to gain exposure to various departments. Unless you are pretty sure you want to do engineering, I would suggest Wake is the better choice, given the FA pkg and the weather. I’m not in any way knocking Bucknell, but I do feel Wake is a very friendly place, with a beautiful campus and great academics. If you like sports - either to play intermurals/club level - or as a spectator at football or basketball games - it is a great place for that. I personally think there is more to do in the Winston-Salem area than in the area surrounding Bucknell. So, I wish you luck with your choice - but you really can’t go wrong with either school.</p>
<p>rockvillemom is correct that Wake will give you plenty of opportunity to explore disciplines. And you have been offered a wonderful financial aid package. Wake is a great school and you won’t go wrong choosing it.</p>
<p>You didn’t mention whether you have AP/IB/CLEP credits, and even if you do you may not care about using them to shorten college, lighten your load, or exempt basic courses. But if this is something that’s important to you, you may want to compare the two. As I understand it, Wake does not allow APs to count toward divisional requirements, only as electives. I have no idea how Bucknell treats APs. Might be helpful to consider if you’re still in doubt.</p>
<p>zman82, </p>
<p>First, congratulations on your financial aid package. Normally, I feel that Wake’s financial aid is subpar, but your’s definitely very fair. </p>
<p>Just a note – Wake is good for the undecided students. Many students, including myself, came in not knowing that they wanted to study. The divisionals I have taken the last year have let me explore different disiplines and communicate with different professors. It sure has helped me decide on what I am passionate for ! Trust me, Wake is not a school just full of business majors and pre-meds (and even if they come in with that mentality, a lot of them decide to change rather quickly!)</p>
<p>Bucknell AP info here:</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.bucknell.edu/x2902.xml[/url]”>http://www.bucknell.edu/x2902.xml</a> and
<a href=“http://www.bucknell.edu/Documents/Admissions/BucknellAdvancedPlacement.pdf[/url]”>http://www.bucknell.edu/Documents/Admissions/BucknellAdvancedPlacement.pdf</a></p>
<p>WFU AP info here:</p>
<p>[WFU</a> | Undergraduate School of Arts and Sciences | Advanced Placement Policy](<a href=“http://www.wfu.edu/registrar/appolicy.html]WFU”>http://www.wfu.edu/registrar/appolicy.html)</p>
<p>I only visited (and obviously go to) Wake, but my brother, who is a junior in high school, has visited both. He likes Wake better and is unsure if he will apply, but he hated Bucknell (which is weird because we all thought he’d love it). His main complaints were the outside town (apparently it’s pretty quiet) and that the students were too dressed down (to be fair, at Wake he thinks they dress up too much). On his tour, he saw students walking around in pajama pants and thought it was inappropriate. He also hates the cold. </p>
<p>To be fair, he also doesn’t really love Wake, but he likes it better than Bucknell. Wake doesn’t have engineering, though, so that might be an important thing to consider if you’re serious about it (my brother is also looking into engineering, which is why he might not even consider applying to Wake).</p>
<p>How do the two schools’ study abroad programs compare? I want to go to Italy for a semester or summer. I know Wake has a house in Venice, and they have a 5 week program in which you travel throughout Europe, so thats very nice.</p>
<p>I cannot imagine that any school has a better study abroad program than Wake. In addition to the houses (in London, Venice, and Vienna) and the other semester-long programs (where you live with a host family), it’s pretty easy to work out going abroad with another school’s program. I’ve never known of someone who wanted to go somewhere who wasn’t able to find a program that Wake allowed them to do.</p>
<p>Over 50% of Wake students study abroad at some time, which is one of the highest rates in the country. And it’s almost always a wonderful experience for them. I wouldn’t give up my semester abroad (in the Venice house) for anything.</p>
<p>thanks for the input! I am leaning towards wake right now. I really like the southern location and feel of wake, and engineering is not a very big deal to me. Plus, there study abroad programs are great. anyone know someone in the Calloway business school? is it really difficult?</p>
<p>@zman82</p>
<p>you may want to check out pinkcupcake14’s thread called student answering questions…there are loads of information regarding Calloway. From what I gathered, there are 200 spots (which may or may not be true because of wake’s website and people’s experience), you apply in your sophmore year, the requirements to get in are Econ 111 (i think) and accounting 111 or a bit higher…and another that i forgot…once you get in, they say that the workload is kinda heavier</p>
<p>p.s. i’m also applying to Calloway</p>
<p>Calloway has a great reputation and there has been a lot of discussion on the other thread. The website does say 200 spots are available each year - so it is competitive to gain entry. Course requirements are Math 111 (calculus), Econ 150 (Intro) and ACC 111 (Accounting). The first 2 you typically take freshman year and most take the accounting course fall of sophomore year. You need a minimum GPA of 2.7 for admission. They also look heavily at the grades you rcvd in these 3 classes. You take a 4th required class in the spring of sophomore year - there are a few choices. You also write an essay for admission. Check out the Calloway section of the website for more details.</p>
<p>Calloway isn’t too difficult but it is more time consuming than many other majors (mainly due to inefficient group work). </p>
<p>Don’t worry about getting into Calloway. Maybe they keep it on the DL, but I never met someone who wanted to get into Calloway and didn’t. People who don’t get accepted initially can get in provisionally and get officially accepted by doing well in their classes. If they don’t do well in their classes, they realize they don’t want to be BUS majors and do something else.</p>