The dorms.

Anonymous wrote:I am an alum. I loved:

Size was not too big and not too small
Beautiful campus with places to walk around
Easy to access home. Train and drive 2-3 h.
Small classes past intro level
Professors cared and taught
Good selection of majors and minors
Not too expensive
Good reputation in DC job market
Academics important. People studied.
Just a good mix of everything! Sports, party, academics, job prep, etc.!

DD was admitted and we wanted her to attend but she picked a PA SLAC. Good luck to your son! Really don’t see how you can beat W&M unless you want a special major that isn’t offered.

💯 💯 💯

Anonymous wrote:I'm trying to convince my son to consider William & Mary instead of going out of state. William & Mary is the only in-state school that he applied to. Outside of costs (we'll be in-state) and program/major (data science), what do you love about William & Mary?

My son, in h.s., was not into tradition, not into history, and a tech kid. So, W & M was NOT on his radar. I convinced him to apply last minute during the pandemic when he couldn't visit any colleges. He finally visited in April of his HS grad year and was very surprised by how much he liked it. He visited UMD/VT after he was admitted to both. UMD/VT both had a lot of student competitions (robotics, racing, etc) that he thought would be really fun. But when he asked about research, he could tell it would be hard/unlikely that he could be involved as an undergrad. He would be competing with grad students for the lab positions. When he went to W&M, they were encouraging him to jump into research from Day 1. So to everyone's surprise, he went to W&M to double major in CS and Math.

He only has one semester left, but he has LOVED W&M. The funny part to me is that he is now into tradition and history. I think you can't go to that school without feeling the power of the history and tradition behind it, and it is authentic. A lot of schools try to manufacture a culture, but W&M is surrounded by it.

My son will leave college with research paper publishing creds, which is really cool. He also leaves with an understanding of why people love history. He has said, "Having a professor so passionate about history, make you start to appreciate it too." He is by far more well rounded than my son who went to a tech school to major in CS. I use to think you go to tech schools for CS, but after watching two kids at the different schools I'm a huge fan of the well-roundedness of a W&M education.

The other item we love is that at W&M the curriculum is wide open for electives. So, he really got to explore things he thought might be interesting. My other son at a big tech school didn't have much say in electives. The electives were often you can pick A, B, or C; whereas at W&M, it was pick anything that sounds interesting to you. As he leaves W&M, he feels like he has gotten to try lots of things such that he is now ready to go deep in grad school with his focused passion.

My son loves William & Mary! He's a rising sophomore and couldn't be happier. He’s majoring in data science and is spending the summer working with a professor on a research project in the field. He's not a drinker, and loves to play pick-up basketball and exercise - so partying was not high on his must-haves for college. W&M is constructing a new Data Science facility. The Wall Street Journal recently praised William & Mary for its career preparation, ranking it among the top 20 public universities for high-paying jobs in finance, management consulting, and technology.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a kid there. And honestly Op— if your kid doesn’t want to attend, do him and the WM community a favor and don’t force it. WM works very hard in admissions, and put so much emphasis on demonstrated interest and ED, because it wants to create a cohesive community of kids who love where they are. WM is consistently rated in the top 10 schools in that ion for happiest students, and the kids I know at WM do love being there. And I believe this is because WM considers fit and desire to attend in the admissions process “Who comes here belongs here” is a big deal at W&M. If you kid doesn’t think it’s a good fit, listen to him.

If he’s unsure, that’s natural. Go to DFAS and then let him decide. Because in the end, what makes WM special isn’t the traditions, or the Hogworts Express (a favorite of mine) or the class size, or even the professors. It’s the students. An incredibly kind, accepting, hard working but still looking for fun group of kids. Definitely the peer group I want for my student as the navigate newly minted adulthood making decisions without parents looking over their shoulder for the first time. I just love the personal growth and great decision making I’ve seen from my kid.

OP here - another reason why I want my son to go to William & Mary is because I went there (ions ago - so I am sure things are different now). So there is something endearing in seeing my kid go to the same school that I did. However, if I am being honest, he really wants to go to University of Florida - he wants the big SEC, rah rah college experience; and he wants to get out of Virginia (been here his entire life) where he can meet all new people. While he liked his high school classmates, he just doesn't want college to be a "high school 2.0 experience" (his words not mine). I get where he is coming from, but I can't help but think that he is giving up an excellent school (not to the say that UF is terrible by any means). Also, he thinks that W&M isn't known for data science, but more for its humanities (which I suppose is true). In the end, I understand that it is his choice and we will support him in whatever he chooses. I just wanted him to be able to see how awesome W&M is before he makes his final decision.

I hear ya OP, and I'm a big WM fan too (my oldest went there and had a great experience). But it sounds like he'd be happier at Florida, and his arguments do make sense.

BUT, one caveat, my niece went to UF (OOS) and ended up having to take 5 years for her STEM degree because she couldn't get into the classes she needed. Just something for you to ask about.

Agree though that he should visit before making his final decision.

Anonymous wrote:I hated W&M and transferred to a big state school. I thought W&M was too small, not enough options for socializing, and Williamsburg is not a good college town. I applied early admission and loved the school before I actually attended. Don’t force it on your kid. It’s not for everyone.

What was your experience like at the big state school?

Were you part of Greek life?

I hated W&M and transferred to a big state school. I thought W&M was too small, not enough options for socializing, and Williamsburg is not a good college town. I applied early admission and loved the school before I actually attended. Don’t force it on your kid. It’s not for everyone.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Stop trying to sell him on w&M, OP. Those are two very different schools and if he thinks he wants the UoF vibe then W&M definitely is not the right spot for him.

- alum from eons ago too who also hopes DC1 will go there (but that is up to DC).

This poster is correct.

Your son is not you.

Let him be who he is.

DP: I love W&M and would definitely choose it over UF for educational quality (and yes for data science not just humanities), but he's the one who is going. I think if OOS$ is a significant issue, you can make an argument for in-state tuition, but if $ is just sort of 'it would be nicer not to spend it' -- maybe you can ask him to contribute more (e.g., from his own pt job savings, gifts or future student loans) if he wants to go OOS.

The shocking part is that UF would actually be a little less than W&M for OOS. Normally, it would be about the same, but because of a small scholarship that we got for UF, the cost would be about $38k a year vs. $43k at W&M.

I do agree with everyone indicating that the final decision needs to be with my son; that has always been the plan. I just wanted him to see the pluses of W&M before he completely shuts the school out of consideration. I am trying to get him to go to DFAS on April 13th, but honestly he is dragging his feet on it. However, I told him that if he goes, I will never bring up W&M again and we will 100% be on board with UF. Also, regarding the sports at UF - I believe that they haven't won a football championship since 2008 (the Tim Tebow days), but the student body doesn't seem to be too bothered that the team keeps losing. Their anthem is "we won't back down." Surprisingly, a lot of students seem to support non-football sports too - such as their gymnastics team. Although, I cannot see my son watching a gymnastics competition.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Stop trying to sell him on w&M, OP. Those are two very different schools and if he thinks he wants the UoF vibe then W&M definitely is not the right spot for him.

- alum from eons ago too who also hopes DC1 will go there (but that is up to DC).

This poster is correct.

Your son is not you.

Let him be who he is.

DP: I love W&M and would definitely choose it over UF for educational quality (and yes for data science not just humanities), but he's the one who is going. I think if OOS$ is a significant issue, you can make an argument for in-state tuition, but if $ is just sort of 'it would be nicer not to spend it' -- maybe you can ask him to contribute more (e.g., from his own pt job savings, gifts or future student loans) if he wants to go OOS.

I love that those who come there belong there. But, maybe that isn’t your kid. Which is fine.

That said, I think the “WM is for humanities” perception is way off base. I have a TJ grad and know Science and CS grads who are having amazing experiences at WM doing interesting and innovative things. And WM is pouring resources into data sciences. On the academic side, he should probably talk to current students in his area of interest. Like kids at SLACs, WM kids aren’t fighting grad students for professors time and attention and for research opportunities.

On the social side— that depends on what your kid wants. WM sport are fine. But rah rah, everyone tailgates, the school revolves around them, massive crowds at games, SEC enthusiasm, WM is not. Which you know as an alum. My kids are both musicians and I was genuinely shocked my band kid could walk in a straight line while playing when he started marching band. So, I don’t get (and my kids don’t get) the desire to attend school based on the strength of a sport they don’t even play. But then again, they did choose colleges based on music programs, even though neither was a major. And the ability to play in WM’s orchestra as a non-major was a big part of her decision to attend WM. So, I don’t have to understand the attraction of big sports in choosing a college. I just have to accept that for some kids it’s an important part of the college experience.

Anonymous wrote:Stop trying to sell him on w&M, OP. Those are two very different schools and if he thinks he wants the UoF vibe then W&M definitely is not the right spot for him.

- alum from eons ago too who also hopes DC1 will go there (but that is up to DC).

This poster is correct.

Your son is not you.

Let him be who he is.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a kid there. And honestly Op— if your kid doesn’t want to attend, do him and the WM community a favor and don’t force it. WM works very hard in admissions, and put so much emphasis on demonstrated interest and ED, because it wants to create a cohesive community of kids who love where they are. WM is consistently rated in the top 10 schools in that ion for happiest students, and the kids I know at WM do love being there. And I believe this is because WM considers fit and desire to attend in the admissions process “Who comes here belongs here” is a big deal at W&M. If you kid doesn’t think it’s a good fit, listen to him.

If he’s unsure, that’s natural. Go to DFAS and then let him decide. Because in the end, what makes WM special isn’t the traditions, or the Hogworts Express (a favorite of mine) or the class size, or even the professors. It’s the students. An incredibly kind, accepting, hard working but still looking for fun group of kids. Definitely the peer group I want for my student as the navigate newly minted adulthood making decisions without parents looking over their shoulder for the first time. I just love the personal growth and great decision making I’ve seen from my kid.

OP here - another reason why I want my son to go to William & Mary is because I went there (ions ago - so I am sure things are different now). So there is something endearing in seeing my kid go to the same school that I did. However, if I am being honest, he really wants to go to University of Florida - he wants the big SEC, rah rah college experience; and he wants to get out of Virginia (been here his entire life) where he can meet all new people. While he liked his high school classmates, he just doesn't want college to be a "high school 2.0 experience" (his words not mine). I get where he is coming from, but I can't help but think that he is giving up an excellent school (not to the say that UF is terrible by any means). Also, he thinks that W&M isn't known for data science, but more for its humanities (which I suppose is true). In the end, I understand that it is his choice and we will support him in whatever he chooses. I just wanted him to be able to see how awesome W&M is before he makes his final decision.

PP here, and I think you have your answer then. I worries about HS 2.0 at WM are overblown. My kid met kids she knew from NOVA a couple times first semester for a meal, but by Christmas, she had a completely different group of friends. But the wanting to leave the State thing is normal.

If we, as parents, have had a great experience, of course we want our kids to have that great experience too. But maybe your kid’s version of your WM experience happens at FL. I’m a huge believer in fit— academic and social. I’m sure you know that you’ve had your chance to craft the college experience you wanted. Now, it’s your kids turn to craft his.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m a huge WM fan. But not to the point of militantly insisting it is the one right college for every kid. Nope. It’s the right college for one of my kids. the idea that one college can be everything to every kid is ridiculous. My kids each love their colleges and I 100% believe they made great choices for them. DS was admitted to WM, instinctively disliked it, went elsewhere and thrived. DD was admitted to DS’s college, spent a weekend visiting her sibling, was not a fan, loved WM on sight and is living her best life there.

I also think it’s important to give kids ownership of their college choice. Because a decision that they alone made is a decision they will fight to make successful. They are a lot less likely to push when the going gets tough if they can say “I told you this wasn’t right for me. See, I was right”.

So maybe rather than fighting to show him why WM is great, take a step back and let him show you why UF is great?

I wouldn’t force it, OP. It sounds like what he really wants from his college experience doesn’t match with W&M, and that’s ok. But barring $ issues, what the kid wants should really be the driver for a college decision.

Be careful about choosing a school for the sports. NIL has changed so much, ask Nick Saban, the former Alabama football coach. He left the best collegiate football franchise because the rules of the recruiting game have changed so much. Student athletes are changing schools so quickly that player development over time and a deep bench is disappearing. If a great coach leaves a school, a leading program can be decimated for years - or for far longer than your son’s 4 years.

- signed by a parent whose kid attended a state U for sports only to never attend a game of currently lackluster teams