CNU vs UMW
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Anonymous
| ^ re 22:42 |
Anonymous
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OP here. Thank you for all of the replies.
I’m not being obnoxious, so please read knowing this. Her scores are just below 1500 SAT and above 4.0 gpa. CNU and UMW are her safeties, and we really like both. She really wants a solid education where she can grow. She’s a quiet child, introverted, loves to read, with a great group of friends. I liked CNU because it’s got that newish feeling, super clean, close to the beach (I know-but I’m being honest), and has the Oxford opportunity. I liked UMW because it’s got that traditional look, is in Fburg, and is closer to home (again, I’m just being honest). We will definitely have her go back for student acceptance day (when are those?) so she can get a better feel. |
Anonymous
| She’ll probably get into WM. Don’t worry about these two unless /until she doesn’t get in there. |
Anonymous
| I think OP seems interested in merit and W&M is not cheap. |
Anonymous
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Anonymous
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CNU and UMW were my daughter's top 2 picks last year. She chose UMW and has been very happy. To be honest, both schools are very similar in size, student body makeup, etc, so she's likely to be happy with either. UMW perhaps has more emphasis on traditional liberal arts, while CNU really emphasizes its business and public policy offerings. UMW tends to draw more from the Northern Virginia and outer suburbs, while CNU has more students from the Tidewater region. That, and the fact that the CNU president (who is very high profile at the school) is a former Republican senator means that the school skews slightly conservative. UMW seems fairly apolitical. One disappointment has been that many UMW students go home on weekends, which makes the weekends a bit dull, even for my non-partier kid.
I would totally leave it up to your kid, since she's likely to get an equivalent education at either. Your daughter's scores actually seem a bit higher than the typical UMW/CNU student. Is she looking at W&M as well? |
Anonymous
Her grades and scores are not competetive for W&M, especially a female from NOVA. |
Anonymous
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Anonymous
| OP - this is their first big decision as an adult. Let them wrestle with it. This is a great opportunity for them to mature: this is all on them. That's the lesson. Coming to terms with that lesson is far more important than whether they ultimately choose UMW or CNU (of any other 2 schools) Owning this decision, they will want to work hard to prove that they made a good decision |
Anonymous
DD, with a 4.15 Gpa, and 1400 was just admitted Ed2 to w&m |
Anonymous
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OP she will likely get into W&M. DD with lower score (think low 1300s) was waitlisted which I was surprised by. However she did explain that she didn't study for the SAT and only took it once due to her time-consuming extracurricular etc.
That said, DS will be going to CNU and I agree that your DD will probably lean toward UMW given what I've seen of personalities at each school. |
Anonymous
| DD applied to other schools as well-but these were her EA schools and safeties. DD has high stats for these schools, I know. But she’s been offered incredible scholarships at both. She visited WM and applied RD as well as to other more selective schools in the MA region. However, this post wasn’t about other schools - rather looking for some 1st hand knowledge of both schools listed. Thanks. |
Anonymous
They’re both great schools. I agree with the idea to visit both again. Schools have a different feel when you know you’re accepted, and these two are very different. That being said, they’re both big enough that she can find people like her at either one. |
Anonymous
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10:22 poster from above. A few more notes on UMW, based solely on our experience thus far. YMMV greatly.
Pros to UMW: 1. Small classes. All of daughter's classes have been 35 kids or less, even at the introductory level. This has meant more interesting assignments and projects than just tests and exams. 2. Friendly, down to earth student body. I'd describe most of them as being the "nice" kids in high school. 3. Lots of supports for kids who might need a little extra help. 4. Freshman seminar! Small mandatory class with a huge variety of options--horror theatre, Jane Austen, Beatles, immigration, game theory, etc. Really helped build community and was a very positive experience. (I will note that these are filled first-come, first-served, so if she decides to enroll, go ahead and pay the deposit early so she gets her preference) 5. Professors, even at the introductory level, have been very interesting and engaged with their students. 6. Daughter loves the library, oddly enough. Nice seating areas for study and relaxing, good collection, friendly staff. 7. Daughter enjoys walking to downtown Fredericksburg, which has a peaceful vibe and interesting shops. There's also an area called Central Park which is an easy bus ride away that has literally every big-box store imaginable, plus a trampoline park. Even when campus is dull, there's still a lot to do in the area. Cons: 1. On my parents FB page, there were lots of complaints about kids having a hard time registering for their preferred classes in second semester. (My daughter didn't encounter these problems, but she's taking a somewhat esoteric group of classes by choice) 2. Residence Life Department has been disappointing on several levels. Very few hall bonding activities, RA has not been engaged with students, dorms have unaddressed moisture problems, many of the initial roommate assignments seemed arbitrary and ill-chosen and Residence Life has been unresponsive in helping address them. 3. More of a suitcase school than my daughter anticipated. Many students go home on weekends. 4. Many of the promised clubs and extracurricular activities seem poorly organized and meet sporadically. I would leave this totally up to your student--they are so very similar in many ways. |
Anonymous
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Admitted Students Day:
UMW March 21 April 18 CNU April 4 (with option of staying overnight on April 3) April 18 (with option of staying overnight on April 17) |