George Mason University - What's it like?

[Anonymous]

I assume that once people get in and start having the George Mason experience, they stop talking about their stats, so could people please answer OP's question instead of arguing about selectivity?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The SCHEV guy can say anything he wants but the numbers don’t lie. EIGHTY FIVE percent of NOVA applicants get in! That’s not everybody but it’s getting awfully close.

Yes everyone will certain stats. So, again, it matters the stats of those who apply.

yes. and stats =/= a 30 act.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DS has a 3.6 and 28 ACT and his GC suggested GMU as a match. He was accepted, as was everyone else he knows with those stats. You do NOT need a 30 from NOVA to get in.

[Anonymous]

Honestly I kind of regret it. I probably would have been happier elsewhere. Lack of school spirit and social life makes it a pretty miserable place. Awful money-sucking administration makes it even worse.

But, I've got to say the academics are pretty solid and the location made it easy to get a couple internships. I think GMU is the college you go to not necessarily to have a whole “college experience” but to build yourself professionally. I don’t see myself being able to do that at many other schools in the state.

Hopefully my time at Mason actually pays off career wise when I graduate. Then and only then will I say coming here was worth it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Honestly I kind of regret it. I probably would have been happier elsewhere. Lack of school spirit and social life makes it a pretty miserable place. Awful money-sucking administration makes it even worse.

But, I've got to say the academics are pretty solid and the location made it easy to get a couple internships. I think GMU is the college you go to not necessarily to have a whole “college experience” but to build yourself professionally. I don’t see myself being able to do that at many other schools in the state.

Hopefully my time at Mason actually pays off career wise when I graduate. Then and only then will I say coming here was worth it.

What year did you graduate? (This past year has been dreadful for the class of 2020 in terms of getting positions in their desired field due to COViD, no access to career placement office, and job prospects drying up). Usually students are picked up by Dulles corridor or I-270 firms before graduation but that depends of course upon the major. Our DS graduated in 2018 and has been employed by the top game design company in the US but that was his major. Good luck to you finding what you want.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly I kind of regret it. I probably would have been happier elsewhere. Lack of school spirit and social life makes it a pretty miserable place. Awful money-sucking administration makes it even worse.

But, I've got to say the academics are pretty solid and the location made it easy to get a couple internships. I think GMU is the college you go to not necessarily to have a whole “college experience” but to build yourself professionally. I don’t see myself being able to do that at many other schools in the state.

Hopefully my time at Mason actually pays off career wise when I graduate. Then and only then will I say coming here was worth it.

What year did you graduate? (This past year has been dreadful for the class of 2020 in terms of getting positions in their desired field due to COViD, no access to career placement office, and job prospects drying up). Usually students are picked up by Dulles corridor or I-270 firms before graduation but that depends of course upon the major. Our DS graduated in 2018 and has been employed by the top game design company in the US but that was his major. Good luck to you finding what you want.

Last PP: I've seen you post a couple of times and I'm really interested to know more about this major and career. I don't want to derail this thread, so could you please post in another thread and tell me more about game design majors and jobs? I will start a thread on it. Thx.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly I kind of regret it. I probably would have been happier elsewhere. Lack of school spirit and social life makes it a pretty miserable place. Awful money-sucking administration makes it even worse.

But, I've got to say the academics are pretty solid and the location made it easy to get a couple internships. I think GMU is the college you go to not necessarily to have a whole “college experience” but to build yourself professionally. I don’t see myself being able to do that at many other schools in the state.

Hopefully my time at Mason actually pays off career wise when I graduate. Then and only then will I say coming here was worth it.

What year did you graduate? (This past year has been dreadful for the class of 2020 in terms of getting positions in their desired field due to COViD, no access to career placement office, and job prospects drying up). Usually students are picked up by Dulles corridor or I-270 firms before graduation but that depends of course upon the major. Our DS graduated in 2018 and has

been employed by the top game design company in the US but that was his major. Good luck to you finding what you want.

Last PP: I've seen you post a couple of times and I'm really interested to know more about this major and career. I don't want to derail this thread, so could you please post in another thread and tell me more about game design majors and jobs? I will start a thread on it. Thx.

Certainly. Happy to. I’ll watch for it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly I kind of regret it. I probably would have been happier elsewhere. Lack of school spirit and social life makes it a pretty miserable place. Awful money-sucking administration makes it even worse.

But, I've got to say the academics are pretty solid and the location made it easy to get a couple internships. I think GMU is the college you go to not necessarily to have a whole “college experience” but to build yourself professionally. I don’t see myself being able to do that at many other schools in the state.

Hopefully my time at Mason actually pays off career wise when I graduate. Then and only then will I say coming here was worth it.

What year did you graduate? (This past year has been dreadful for the class of 2020 in terms of getting positions in their desired field due to COViD, no access to career placement office, and job prospects drying up). Usually students are picked up by Dulles corridor or I-270 firms before graduation but that depends of course upon the major. Our DS graduated in 2018 and has been employed by the top game design company in the US but that was his major. Good luck to you finding what you want.

I'm graduating in 2022.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly I kind of regret it. I probably would have been happier elsewhere. Lack of school spirit and social life makes it a pretty miserable place. Awful money-sucking administration makes it even worse.

But, I've got to say the academics are pretty solid and the location made it easy to get a couple internships. I think GMU is the college you go to not necessarily to have a whole “college experience” but to build yourself professionally. I don’t see myself being able to do that at many other schools in the state.

Hopefully my time at Mason actually pays off career wise when I graduate. Then and only then will I say coming here was worth it.

What year did you graduate? (This past year has been dreadful for the class of 2020 in terms of getting positions in their desired field due to COViD, no access to career placement office, and job prospects drying up). Usually students are picked up by Dulles corridor or I-270 firms before graduation but that depends of course upon the major. Our DS graduated in 2018 and has been employed by the top game design company in the US but that was his major. Good luck to you finding what you want.

I'm graduating in 2022.

Did you live in the dorms. My kid did for five years (needed the extra for SN reasons) in a LLC so had a nice network of friends. That may have made a difference. Are you off campus or commuting? What
Major? Some majors have great clubs. Too late to change major?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DS has a 3.6 and 28 ACT and his GC suggested GMU as a match. He was accepted, as was everyone else he knows with those stats. You do NOT need a 30 from NOVA to get in.

But your counselor has access to Naviance. The first thing your counselor should be doing is comparing your student against the other students in his class. Naviance is the most powerful tool at your disposal because your high school is unique - GMU will receive from your high school a student profile every year. From that profile, GMU can see the number of AP courses offered by your high school, the highest GPA, the median, - etc etc etc. Also you didn't say if you are public or private, which makes a difference. Also you didn't say if the counselor could check of the "Most Rigorous" or "Very Rigorous" boxes. And you didn't mention ECs or quality of letters of recommendation. So it indeed may be true from your school that a 3.6 will do it. You didn't even say if that's weighted or not.

But for the AVERAGE student, i.e., not one from your particularly high school - the 75th percentile for GMU remains a 3.9 for students who actually showed up last fall and a 30 ACT.
Your high school counselor should have shown you the SCHEV stats. because your son is slightly above the median for ACT and slightly below it for ACT. If not, they are not doing their job.

Remember SCHEV reports the stats of the students who actually showed up. Many with higher GPAs and scores use it as a safety and went elsewhere. https://research.schev.edu//enrollment/B10_FreshmenProfile.asp

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DS has a 3.6 and 28 ACT and his GC suggested GMU as a match. He was accepted, as was everyone else he knows with those stats. You do NOT need a 30 from NOVA to get in.

But your counselor has access to Naviance. The first thing your counselor should be doing is comparing your student against the other students in his class. Naviance is the most powerful tool at your disposal because your high school is unique - GMU will receive from your high school a student profile every year. From that profile, GMU can see the number of AP courses offered by your high school, the highest GPA, the median, - etc etc etc. Also you didn't say if you are public or private, which makes a difference. Also you didn't say if the counselor could check of the "Most Rigorous" or "Very Rigorous" boxes. And you didn't mention ECs or quality of letters of recommendation. So it indeed may be true from your school that a 3.6 will do it. You didn't even say if that's weighted or not.

But for the AVERAGE student, i.e., not one from your particularly high school - the 75th percentile for GMU remains a 3.9 for students who actually showed up last fall and a 30 ACT.
Your high school counselor should have shown you the SCHEV stats. because your son is slightly above the median for ACT and slightly below it for ACT. If not, they are not doing their job.

Remember SCHEV reports the stats of the students who actually showed up. Many with higher GPAs and scores use it as a safety and went elsewhere. https://research.schev.edu//enrollment/B10_FreshmenProfile.asp

Oh my god this poster is maddening. TWO-THIRDS of GMU undergraduate students are from NOVA. This, too, is on SCHEV. It is mathematically impossible for their average test scores to be in the 75 percentile of the entering class unless the entire rest of the class from anywhere outside of NOVA is in the 10th percentile! He uses the SCHEV numbers when they suit him, and he ignores them when they don’t.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DS has a 3.6 and 28 ACT and his GC suggested GMU as a match. He was accepted, as was everyone else he knows with those stats. You do NOT need a 30 from NOVA to get in.

But your counselor has access to Naviance. The first thing your counselor should be doing is comparing your student against the other students in his class. Naviance is the most powerful tool at your disposal because your high school is unique - GMU will receive from your high school a student profile every year. From that profile, GMU can see the number of AP courses offered by your high school, the highest GPA, the median, - etc etc etc. Also you didn't say if you are public or private, which makes a difference. Also you didn't say if the counselor could check of the "Most Rigorous" or "Very Rigorous" boxes. And you didn't mention ECs or quality of letters of recommendation. So it indeed may be true from your school that a 3.6 will do it. You didn't even say if that's weighted or not.

But for the AVERAGE student, i.e., not one from your particularly high school - the 75th percentile for GMU remains a 3.9 for students who actually showed up last fall and a 30 ACT.
Your high school counselor should have shown you the SCHEV stats. because your son is slightly above the median for ACT and slightly below it for ACT. If not, they are not doing their job.

Remember SCHEV reports the stats of the students who actually showed up. Many with higher GPAs and scores use it as a safety and went elsewhere. https://research.schev.edu//enrollment/B10_FreshmenProfile.asp

Oh my god this poster is maddening. TWO-THIRDS of GMU undergraduate students are from NOVA. This, too, is on SCHEV. It is mathematically impossible for their average test scores to be in the 75 percentile of the entering class unless the entire rest of the class from anywhere outside of NOVA is in the 10th percentile! He uses the SCHEV numbers when they suit him, and he ignores them when they don’t.

That's not true, but even assuming it is, why would that be? OH THE TRANSFER STUDENTS! One of the missions of the public university system. GMU takes 2,733 transfer from NVCC alone and 2,971 from Virginia. And they need only a 3.0 plus the requisite courses completed to get in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DS has a 3.6 and 28 ACT and his GC suggested GMU as a match. He was accepted, as was everyone else he knows with those stats. You do NOT need a 30 from NOVA to get in.

But your counselor has access to Naviance. The first thing your counselor should be doing is comparing your student against the other students in his class. Naviance is the most powerful tool at your disposal because your high school is unique - GMU will receive from your high school a student profile every year. From that profile, GMU can see the number of AP courses offered by your high school, the highest GPA, the median, - etc etc etc. Also you didn't say if you are public or private, which makes a difference. Also you didn't say if the counselor could check of the "Most Rigorous" or "Very Rigorous" boxes. And you didn't mention ECs or quality of letters of recommendation. So it indeed may be true from your school that a 3.6 will do it. You didn't even say if that's weighted or not.

But for the AVERAGE student, i.e., not one from your particularly high school - the 75th percentile for GMU remains a 3.9 for students who actually showed up last fall and a 30 ACT.
Your high school counselor should have shown you the SCHEV stats. because your son is slightly above the median for ACT and slightly below it for ACT. If not, they are not doing their job.

Remember SCHEV reports the stats of the students who actually showed up. Many with higher GPAs and scores use it as a safety and went elsewhere. https://research.schev.edu//enrollment/B10_FreshmenProfile.asp

My DC is only a high school freshman so have not accessed Naviance. Does it break stats down by male v female, ED v RD, etc.?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not sure why I come on here to find useful information. The folks posting on the College threads are such smug, judgmental dicks. Can't have a thread without someone putting a school, or those who choose it, down.

Don't leave out sentencing your kids to a lifetime of minimum wage work if they are B students.

Disagree. My husband graduated from GMU, B student, works for the Government and makes 250K. Would not call that minimum wage!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Like any college, it is what you make it. I grew up in Arlington and went to Mason. I lived on campus for 2 years and then got a townhouse within walking distance with friends. It was no different than being anywhere else. I joined a sorority, went to frat parties, was a tour guide, was in the dance company, on a club sport team, and I loved it.

An introvert can struggle on any college campus as easily as an extrovert can thrive on any college campus. GMU has everything any other large college does except for football tailgates. Students don’t really come together over the sports like they do at big 10 or SEC schools.

This! GMU was a great experience for our DD who lived in the dorms all four years. GMU has an xlnt computer science program (off the top of my head the best known are: engineering; animation; serious game design; economics and computer science, but it is huge so there is something for everyone. She had no interest in greek but made friends in her major and dorm. All of her friends lived on campus except one whose parents leased a townhouse near campus (it can be expensive). There are a lot of graduate students on campus, as well. It is getting more difficult to get in, year by year. I know several Nova families who were disappointed. 75th percentile for enrolled students last year had a 3.9; the median was a 3.7, and the bottom 25th percentile had a 3.4. ACT was 30 at 75th percentile, which is where you need to be if applying from Nova. Check out the Honors program if you qualify. It provides distinct perks. One of the nice things about GMU is that the Commonwealth keeps pumping money into it to grow so DD's dorms were like hotel rooms. The computer department was state of the art. The downside is that she experienced never-ending construction while she was there.

Baloney. Mason accepted 84 percent of FCPS applicants last year and 86 percent of Arlington applicants. No way these kids all had a 30 on the ACT!

Apparently you are new at this. This is SCHEV. State Council of Higher Education. Here is the link to GMU with the 30 mentioned at the 75th percentile. My DC had a 32. You should also know that the percentage of acceptances in Virginia are inflated due to the fact that the public high school counselors (paid by the state and have a reputation to consider with these institutions) guides the Virginia students to the most appropriate Virginia school. They will not be encouraging if you have a B+ student. They will not file a satisfactory letter of recommendation (and yes they do write one). And they certainly will not sign off on the most rigorous box. It is their job to match public high school students with the best public universities if that is the route the parents choose.

Insert any private or public four year institution and you can see last year's incoming stats of students who actually arrived. It is a very useful tool for parents in Virginia. https://research.schev.edu/enrollment/B10_FreshmenProfile.asp

I've seen your posts before. Many times. I'm also well aware of SCHEV, and I've put four kids through NOVA high schools.

You assert time and time again, without any foundation to support it, that NOVA kids need to be in the SCHEV 75th percentile to get into a VA state school. It's simply untrue. Every single one of my NOVA kids got into VA state schools -- be it UVA, William & Mary, Tech, VCU, and JMU -- with with SAT scores below the 75th percentile of the entering classes. Every single one of my kids. Granted, none of my kids applied to GMU because it's local, but I can't imagine it would be any different. In fact, if anything it's likely to be less likely that you need to be in the 75th percentile to get into GMU from NOVA for a very obvious reason: GMU has more kids from NOVA then any other VA state school, because it is IN Nova. If all of those kids are in the 75th percentile or above, there aren't enough spaces mathematically for the below the 75th percentile students! Not everybody can be above average.

Also, in my kids' NOVA public high school experience, guidance counselors were not nearly as involved in "steering" them only to colleges where they thought they'd get in. If that were the case, there wouldn't have been so many rejections between them over the years.

Finally, that your kid got a 32 is great, congratulations, but that doesn't mean that everybody else who applied to GMU from NOVA did.

PP, what is your race or your kids race? Without that data point the 75% or median or 25% cutoffs for NoVA students are meaningless.