<p>I've been accepted, but right now W&M is near the bottom of my list. I would appreciate some insight from current students, parents of current students and those who chose W&M ED as to why I should pick W&M over the other schools I applied to.</p>
<p>Basically, why did YOU pick W&M???</p>
<p>you shouldn't, you should let me get in from the waiting list. ;-)</p>
<p>what is your intended major? and what other colleges did you choose?</p>
<p>you should choose W&M because it was my dream in fifth grade to work in Williamsburg. Ahh, how things have changed!</p>
<p>It depends on what you want out of a college and what you want to study. </p>
<p>I am extremely interested in American History. W and M is arguably the best place to study this discipline. Williamsburg, Jamestown, and Yorktown are all very close to campus and the 18th century estates of William Byrd and Robert "King" Carter also share an amazing propinquity to W and M. The relationships between the college and the associations performing archaeological digs occuring in the area are very advantageous for anyone remotely interested in partaking. </p>
<p>Basically, you need to figure out what exactly you want from your college and what you are interested in. Only then can you move W and M up or down on your list.</p>
<p>It might not be for you. If you are a student that wants to be in an urban, big-time sports environment, it would be a bad fit. If you are an engineering student or want frat parties on Tuesday -Sun. If you need lots of bars to entertain yourself. If you want to go to school with a lot of kids that are very conformist, it might be a bad fit. If you think W is the best President ever or wish that you could smoke pot in class and grades dont matter, then it might not be a good fit for you.</p>
<p>If you are a mature student that wants a gorgeous, residential campus with top flight faculty who love to teach; if you want a prestigious diploma that cost 30% less that private schools; if you want unpretentious non-conformist classmates; if you want to walk in the footsteps of Marshall,Clay, & Jefferson; founding chapter of Phi Beta Kappa and the first Honor Code; if you want a Liberal arts experience that teaches you to read, write and speak logically and clearly so you can succeed not in a job but in life; finally if you want to have an experience that could put you on a path of intellectual growth that never ends and you leave a better friend, child, citizen and person that when you arrived, then W&M could be for you.</p>
<p>Congrats and Good Luck</p>
<p>Well said DoctorB!!!</p>
<p>I also concur with GChris07, especially about the archaeological excavations available to interested students of any major. W&M is one of the few universities (that I know of) that have excavations right ON campus. For example, they held an 8-week dig in front of the Sir Christopher Wren building this past summer to find the remnants of the original 17th/18th century formal garden and were VERY successful. They unexpectedly found artifacts such as intact cannon balls and grapeshot from the Civil War period when the Wren Building was used as both a hospital and a barricade. [A side note: the Wren Building has a very interesting and graphic history.] I am almost positive they will continue again at this same location this summer...and with the Jamestown 2007 Celebration, I bet this will be an interesting attraction. They also hold excavations in CW and despite the massive recreation of this living museum, a small percentage of CW has actually been excavated by current archaeological methods - so there are many more years of opportunities to come! There are also sites in the surrounding counties (James City, York, Fairfield, etc.) that have gained the wide-spread attraction of archaeology and history students looking for independent study topics and volunteer opportunities. Professors also take students with them overseas to dig (ex. Barbados and Ireland) and to conduct anthropological research. W&M is an excellent university for those wanting to study prehistorical/historical archaeology (especially Native American, Colonial America, and Caribbean). </p>
<p>If you haven't already guessed, this is my area of study. :)</p>
<p>I would turn this question back at you. As a current student, I want to know why W&M is on the bottom of your list? Maybe you have a poor perception of the school, and current students could point out your flaws.</p>
<p>Or, maybe you have an accurate representation of the school, and you don't think you would like it here. There is nothing wrong with that. There are definitely people who would not be happy at W&M, and if you are one of those people, there is no reason to attend. You should go where you feel right.</p>
<p>I'd rather not try to convince you to come to W&M, but rather give you the best information I can, so you can make the decision for yourself.</p>
<p>okay i'm also struggling between W&M, VCU Biomedical Engineering, and probably UVa which does not accept me yet! W&M is the third choice after the latter two. I'm going to be a premed.</p>
<p>the wrong perceptions I may have are:
1. the grading is harder than UVa and VCU and this may kill the GPA.
2. there are no or little research/volunteer opportunities.
3. i have not visited the college yet but the image in my mind is that students are not very amicable. what i mean is not party or sports but i am thinking if they are a little bit aloof, reserved? I know a few people got into W&M and they are VERY reserved, and cool, to the extent that I find them rude. I am reserved too but I am just shy. </p>
<p>thanks for explaining. I will definitely go to a visit to understand that further but i now want some insights.</p>
<p>From my experiences with W&M, UVA, and VCU, and this experiences spans more than 20 years as had classmates at all three, later sons graduated from UVA and daughter has applied to each and visited all the campuses, some more than once. UVA is way more aloof, in my opinion. Not as many serious academic students at UVA and W&M had the best mix of intellligence AND personality. Actually one son was in a graduate program at W&M and loved the life in Williamsburg.</p>
<p>I have to agree with momray. We found the opposite to be true at W&M, students were very friendly when we were taking our tour and when visiting the campus at other times. Volunteering opportunities seem to be everywhere. I understand that the service spring breaks get filled up very quickly. The kids at W&M seem to be more accepting of quirkiness in their peers.</p>
<p>IhateCR,
I believe there is some truth to concern no. 1. The grading at W&M is probably "harder" than at UVA or VCU. Most grad schools, however, know and understand this fact and would account for it when considering you for admission. If you are one to shy away from a school with tough grading because you want to have a 4.0 GPA as opposed to a 3.8, then you probably don't belong at W&M. Most of the kids care about learning for the sake of learning; very few play the numbers game. </p>
<p>I can't respond to your question about pre-med internships; I can imagine, though, that with the proximity of Richmond and Norfolk, good relationships can be developed with W&M students and medical/pharmaceutical/biomedical companies. </p>
<p>Having visited the campus myself for 3 weeks, I can tell you without reservation that W&M students and faculty are some of the friendliest around. Actually, only at Washington and Lee University have I found a community more outgoing and welcoming than that of W&M.</p>
<p>Bad1017, Williamsburg is a very historical locale, if that appeals to you. W&M also has the reputation of being very challenging and it's not easy to get A's there. It is an honors college in and of itself. It's also not as large as UVA, so that might have an attraction for you. Also, from what I've heard first-hand from a 2006 W&M graduate who loved it there, it's a very liberal-minded campus. So, a lot depends on what you want to get out of your educational experience, your own personality, and perhaps financial considerations.</p>
<p>IhateCR, VCU is a good choice for some majors. You might even get merit $ to pursue the biomedical engineering. VCU, because of their programs, attracts some very bright and capable students who could have gone anywhere. I know a 2006 hs graduate who got a full, inclusive ride to VCU (pre-med) and this kid got into W&M, UVA, and an Ivy. He chose VCU and he's very happy there. So, again, a lot depends on what you want out of your college experience and where you feel you will excel.</p>
<p>
[quote]
1. the grading is harder than UVa and VCU and this may kill the GPA.
[/quote]
The first part of this, is likely true. The second part, is not. If you work hard you will do fine. </p>
<p>
[quote]
2. there are no or little research/volunteer opportunities.
[/quote]
this, is wrong. W&M has good relations with places in the area, including down towards VA Beach and the other way towards Richmond. I know people that do research on campus, and people who volunteer in the local hospital. I also know someone who is doing [paid] research at a NASA facility 2 days a week. And I know virtually nothing about the science research/internship stuff. If you are looking for this, I'm sure there is tons.</p>
<p>
[quote]
3. i have not visited the college yet but the image in my mind is that students are not very amicable. what i mean is not party or sports but i am thinking if they are a little bit aloof, reserved? I know a few people got into W&M and they are VERY reserved, and cool, to the extent that I find them rude. I am reserved too but I am just shy.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>I have found almost everyone at W&M to be very nice and friendly, very down to earth. You would be hard pressed to find someone spouting off about a grade they got, a grad school they got into, a job they got, or things like that. Many students at W&M are very very involved. Three new student organizations that have come around in the last few years that are doing really good things include 1 in 4 (more chapters starting to spring up across the country), Building Tomorrow (started by a WM student), and Students Helping Honduras (has maybe 5 chapters in the country), and I'm sure there are more.</p>
<p>Maybe you could expand differently on the perception you have, but the way I understand it, I don't think it is an accurate representaiton of the school at all.</p>
<p>~Sigh~
I am struggling too. So many people tell me that they are suprised that I would consider UVa over W&M, considering that I am very scholarly. I just feel like I would be trapped in Williamsburg in such a small school. I have also heard that the atmosphere there can be depressing.
But then, I hear things about UVa that I don't like too, like its preppy, aloofness. I am not interested at all in the greek life or anything resembling it.
Wish it wasn't this hard to pick from great schools.</p>
<p>alright so can't really think of a way to say this without sounding mean but..
you really don't have a problem
you have an amzing opportunity to choose between some amazing schools, sure it may be difficult to decide, but sooooo many people would kill to be in your situation
you are lucky that you live in a state with such awesome schools, not everyone has that (for example if you live in NH, sorry i'm a little bitter)</p>
<p>I really don't think anyone else is going to be able to answer this for you, but my advice would be to visit and revisit the schools, try to meet some students and faculty
personally when i visited a school I knew pretty quickly whether or not it would fit me
good luck with your decisions and congrats!</p>
<p>Yes, thank you.
It may all be moot if I get into G'town</p>
<p>chrisyt: Where else have you applied/admitted? There are other great schools out there, too. Not everyone who gets into W&M and UVA choose to go to either school. Remember that. Maybe you need to be patient until you hear from all the schools to which you applied. You might be pleasantly surprised and get a scholarship from another college! Good luck to you! I'm sure you'll make the decision that's best for you.</p>
<p>let's hope</p>
<p>I got into W&M, JMU, and Boston U</p>
<p>Waiting on UVa (got the likely letter), G'town, and Notre Dame</p>
<p>Georgetown is my favorite, but I want to see the cost first. </p>
<p>I feel like i have too many good choices, not too few.</p>
<p>chrisyt</p>
<p>the academics are more or less the same, so I would throw that out. Visit both, if you haven't. If you have, visit again. The schools are fairly different and you will probably feel better at one than the other. You may not be able to describe it or put your finger on it, but one will probably feel better than the other, and that's the one you should choose, IMO.</p>
<p>And if nothing else can convince you... J.D. and Turk went to W&M. :-)</p>