I went to Oxford of Emory before transferring because Emory didn’t offer my major or any closely related analogue (the head of the environmental science department at the school even told me I should transfer). I still keep in contact with many of my friends I made at Oxford, most of whom either graduated this year or are rising seniors. Most agree that Oxford’s coursework was at least as rigorous as that of the Main campus. Admissions may have been easier but the expectations of professors did not reflect this.
The social atmosphere of Oxford is completely different than that of the Main campus. I’ve compared the atmosphere to an incestuous, workaholic, alcoholic family. Almost everyone at Oxford knows almost everyone else, and they’ve probably drank with half the school. Since it’s a small liberal arts college they’ve also probably pulled all nighters with half the student body as they struggled through a problem set, philosophy exam, or major paper. If such an intimate atmosphere sounds appealing, then Oxford may be a better fit than starting out at Emory’s Druid Hills campus. If not, don’t bother going to the school. You’ll likely be miserable.
@whenhen thank you this has been the most informative answer of all. If you don’t mind me asking, where did you transfer and how would you compare it to your experience at oxford?
Regardless of your intentions, you do come across as arrogant (and ignorant). And it’s not other people’s fault either; you can control what you write and how you write it.
Both students graduate from Emory proper, so both have completed junior/senior level requirements for whatever their major is at Emory proper. Would you say that this is insufficient to indicate whether an Emory graduate is worthy for whatever post-graduation activity to the extent that college, major, courses, and grades matter?
It depends on the environment you seek. Some students want a big university where they can get lost in the crowd and meet new people every day, where sports matter a lot, etc. Some students want small, discussion-based classes and few friends they know well. Their choices with regards to Oxford-Emory vs. Emory University will reflect that - not their test scores or accomplishments.
It makes no difference in the end: regardless of what campus you choose, you are admitted to Emory and you graduate from Emory.
I graduated from both Oxford and Emory. I think a good way to think about Oxford is rather like how you might look at an honors dorm program at a large university. All of the students at Oxford are highly competitive in terms of grades/scores and the smaller environment encourages a tightly knit community - a situation that is beneficial for college students that are seeking this type of fit. Another thing to know is that because the class sizes are small, many classes feel more like upper level seminars where group discussions of the subject material are encouraged and each student has a voice in the discussion. My professors were excellent and, because I had an actual academic relationship with them, they were the ones I asked for graduate school recommendations. Oxford is not for everyone, but if you are the type of student that is looking for a smaller supportive environment to start with and you also want to later experience studying at a larger university then you might consider it a good choice.
@marvin100, Oxford-Emory is likely as or more selective than almost all honors college at the big unis that have them. In that sense, it’s an apt comparison.
@PurpleTitan - More selective than some, less selective than others. The thing with honors colleges, though, is that they are designed to attract high-achieving students that the non-honors portion of the school can’t attract. That is not the case at Emory-Oxford. The only real similarity is that they’re small subsets of a larger school, although even that analogy breaks down: Emory-Oxford is physically separate from Emory proper by something like 40 miles.
I didn’t see the comparison similar to an honors dorm, but more like Boston University’s College of General Studies program. Both stress a liberal arts foundation for two years before blending into the main university curriculum. One main difference is BU integrates the students into campus life while Oxford is a separate campus, as other have stated, about 40 miles away.
@marvin100, really, the best way to look at Oxford College is as a small LAC that feeds in to a larger university.
Let’s not make out the differences between Emory proper and Oxford@Emory to be bigger than they are, however. Emory isn’t Harvard and Oxford isn’t a community college. The acceptance rate of one is 20+% while the acceptance rate of the other is 30+%. Once Oxford students get to Emory, my understanding is that on average they get higher GPA’s than the kids who started out at Emory as freshmen.
Sure–none of what I’ve written is to disparage E-O at all. I like and respect the school and the system. Just taking issue with what I feel was a pretty forced analogy. Carry on.