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[quote=Anonymous]My DD goes there now.  Like many colleges/universities, you have to take active steps to get engaged in anything.

The upsides are:
1.  Small classes.  Almost all classes have 25 students or less.  There are a few lectures that have 60 students and then they break up into smaller sections for labs (or there aren't any labs).  But the vast majority of classes are 25 or less students.

2.  That means your professors (and they ARE professors, not grad students who don't really want to teach) -- your professors know you.  This can be helpful when you need a recommendation for a job or you want to apply to grad school.

3.  Smaller schools where professors know you can be more flexible with students when there are glitches.  First semester of finals (as a freshman), my DD misunderstood when the Biology final was to be given.  She showed up at the normal class time on the right day.  Turns out, the final was scheduled for 3 hrs earlier.  In a large university where there are 100 students in the lecture, the prof wouldn't know you from Adam.  But this professor knew my kid, knew that she ALWAYS showed up for class.  Knew that my kid wasn't the kind to try to scam the system and get the test questions from people who took the exam at the right time.  So, the prof. set an alternative date for her to take the final exam... and all turned out well.  It's this kind of trust that still works at a small university where kids aren't scamming the system and teachers aren't jaded.

As an aside, my other kid took a Chem class at NVCC and the teacher was SUPER rigid and strict.  Clearly the NVCC teacher was used to kids trying to cheat or break rules and she wasn't going to give anyone a break for even a small thing.

4.  This is perhaps not unique to UMW, but small schools in general are easier to navigate.  When it's time to move in or move out, or if you need a place to park while you are visiting... it's just very easy and there are less enforcement actions trying to catch you and charge you a fine.  It's more relaxed in that way.  When my DD was throwing up in a classroom bldg about .5 miles from her dorm, and couldn't walk back, I was able to call the campus police, and they picked her up and took her back to her dorm.

Downsides:
1.  The biggest downside has been the limited scheduling of classes.  There is often only ONE section of any class (more for the 100-level classes)... and they have a great way of scheduling classes to conflict with other classes that a student might need.  For example, a student taking BIOL 102 is very likely also taking CHEM 102.... so why do they set the schedules so that four out of five sections of CHEM 102 conflict with BIOL 102????  Or they only offer certain required classes in the spring, not the fall.  Or they normally offer a class every fall, but --- oops! -- not this year!  Etc, etc.  It is a semi-annual frustration to see the schedule of classes come out and you are limited in what you can take more than you would be at a larger university where they offer multiple sections and required classes are offered in fall AND spring semesters.  Plan wisely, and assume that you will have to make concessions.

Overall, UMW was a good option for my student who will graduate with a double major  in two semesters![/quote]

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