Why choose W&M

<p>Hello everyone, I am an upcoming senior in high school, and have been looking at W&M, Boston College, Rochester, Hamilton College, Colgate and Richmond. I am interested in studying Business/Economics (depending on which school I attend). I am just wondering what puts W&M ahead of these schools, or if it is not ahead of them why? In addition, besides the education, why you would prefer one school over another. Also, cost is not relevant, as my parents will be paying full price at any of these schools (out of state and doesn't qualify for aid). Thank you in advance for the input.</p>

<p>you should not go to Richmond because they are the evil Spiders and stole the football game from us last year.</p>

<p>W&M is better than BC and Rochester because in Williamsburg it does not get to -50 degrees.</p>

<p>really though, W&M has a very strong economics department, as well as business. The business school just got a brand new top quality building. W&M also offers lots of opportunities in DC through the school.</p>

<p>For me, W&M was the perfect size. It’s small enough that you will often pass someone you know between classes, but large enough that there are always more people to meet. There are tons of student organizations. W&M is very focused on undergrad education, and the professors are there to teach.</p>

<p>my roommate for 3 years was from Ohio. (I know this is not relevant, but I felt I should share. lol)</p>

<p>thanks soccer, I too like the small size of W&M and the location is perfect as well in terms of weather, it’s not too hot but not too cold at the same time. Also, I like the fact there is a new building.</p>

<p>The only other college on your list that I applied to was Richmond… and I honestly know nothing about it. It was a safety school that I applied to because my parents told me I should… and pretty much the only thing I know about it is that the mascot is a spider… which I’m not really a fan of.</p>

<p>The schools I ended up seriously choosing between were W&M, Wake Forest, and UNC Chapel Hill. UNC felt too big when I visited, and it was more of a party school than I was looking for, though I really liked the school spirit. I really liked Wake Forest when I visited, but after visiting W&M it was clear that that was the right choice for me. W&M is small but not too small, warm but not too warm, and has many clubs and activities despite its small size.</p>

<p>Of course, I’m an incoming freshman, so I can’t be sure that it was a good choice just yet… but from the visits I went on and the research I did online, W&M definitely seems like the best school for me.</p>

<p>That’s why I chose W&M :)</p>

<p>Thank you tribe, those are the same reasons why I like W&M the most.</p>

<p>ohioman, I am a grad of Richmond, my brother is a WM alum. Pretty familiar with and genuinely respect both schools for their excellent academics. UR and WM have great business schools, but I would say that it is probably considered to be one of Richmond’s most reputable majors. Really strong. Richmond is a smaller school than WM and has a more compact campus, but both campuses are drop dead gorgeous. I think UR may get the nod for having more overall school spirit; it is getting to be really great for such a small LAC. You can’t go wrong with either one, really. </p>

<p>Being a state school, you obviously will find more in state kids at WM. UR has a large Northeast presence in its student body; WM is capped in their number of OOS kids. I used to think UR was too homogeneous, but they are getting better with their diversity. WM seems to have a more eclectic student body. They are alike in many ways, but it would do you well to visit during the school year and see what you like/dislike about each. Richmond is very, very expensive, but they do well (by some) for FA. Best of luck to you.</p>

<p>Thank you KandK!!</p>

<p>W&M does a great job combining business with liberal arts so you get to have a breadth of experience with your courses. At W&M, you don’t apply to the business school until the end of your sophomore year and you enter it as a junior and once you’re in it, you still take classes outside of it and that makes our program unique. Additionally, business has a brand new, gorgeous, state-of-the-art facility in Miller Hall which is a great selling point for our business program. We just listened to a presentation today by the director of the undergraduate business program and he talked about W&M’s business program so philosophically (in terms of sustainability, globalization, and creativity) and it would make those not interested in business interested in studying business at W&M.</p>

<p>W&M is 35% out-of-state which is a minority but among public schools, it’s a really high percentage of out-of-state students so you certainly won’t feel like the odd man out and W&M is by no means a suitcase campus.</p>

<p>The size and location are ideal and draw many students to W&M. Definitely come visit for an info session and tour (and if you’re a rising senior and can come to campus this summer, do an interview with a current W&M senior).</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

<p>W&M Admission:
My son is still in school and will be taking a college course this summer that isn’t over until after August 13. Will it adversely affect him to visit late in the summer and not interview?</p>

<p>-history (2nd oldest university)
-size (not too big, not too small)
-campus (gorgeous)
-students are very bright/passionate
-new library, rec center, business building, dorms, soon a career center
-cheaper than a private (even if out of state)
-always is improving (construction, etc)
-sunken garden=amazing!
-very personal
-faculty- no TA’s, small class sizes, professors get good reviews
-colonial williamsburg is a really nice and charming town (busch gardens nearby as well)
-weather is perfect (have seasons but no extremes)
-transportation easy (amtrack station, airports, etc)
-amazing reputation
-business school has 97% placement rate (one of the top)
-clubs and sports are very popular-lots of choices!
-greek life there, but not in your face
-most students live in dorms all four years</p>

<p>i could go on…</p>

<p>Thanks! I think I am going to officially make it my first choice for college.</p>

<p>college4three, interviews are entirely optional and we interview only about 15% of our applicants. We do offer summer tours only through August 19 however. If you are able to visit the week of August 16 you may want to contact Dean Livingston <a href=“mailto:wcbegl@wm.edu”>wcbegl@wm.edu</a> to see if there’s an opportunity to interview that week.</p>

<p>^thank you. There really is now way to come before the 20th actually. When do tours resume?</p>

<p>The fall tour schedule will be posted by August 1. Generally tours resume the last week of August or first week of September</p>

<p>Thank you. It is really helpful to have an actual admissions officer on here answering questions!</p>

<p>History of Harvard, Education of Amherst, Prestige of Georgetown, Price of Va Tech. There is no other school like William & Mary. It may be the perfect school if they keep beating ACC schools in football and basketball like last year.</p>

<p>^swish, agree with all except the price comparison…VT will cost in state residents (TRB) +/- $15,748 next year (unless you are like us and add $370 more per semester for arch students- boy is that proving to be an expensive major!) and WM will be (TRB) $23,538 for a difference of almost…gulp… $7800. </p>

<p>While I think WM is well worth its cost for any admitted student, it is getting to be more expensive than what I, as the funding parent, would like, unfortunately.</p>

<p>For tuition, room and board, and fees, W&M will be $20,872 next year. Of course book and miscellaneous expenses are not part of that dollar amount but $23,000 is a bit high.</p>

<p>Just a minor correction, the way I read it, VT’s COA doesn’t include books, travel, and incidentals, while W&M’s COA allocates $2,750 a year for those expenses. Using the same criteria as VT’s, W&M’s COA would be $20788 vs. $15,748 for VT.</p>

<p>Not that either figure isn’t daunting …</p>

<p>I appreciate the information, however as an out of state applicant who will not qualify for financial aid, the price will not be a determining factor. Having said that, the price for an out of state applicant, even without any aid, is 10-15k less than some similar and major uiniversities.</p>