Palmetto Tour: First Stop - Furman!

The first stop on my three day tour of South Carolina colleges was Furman University. I took a direct flight from DCA (warning for airplane phobes like myself - it was a small plane) to Greenville, SC and it was a quick trip. Flight time was about an hour and the small and friendly Greenville airport (where you have to call a taxi if you need one- the first sign that you're not in the big city anymore) was a nice change of pace from the hustle and bustle of Washington area airports.

Our hotel was in downtown Greenville, about 10-15 minutes from Furman's campus and I was glad I had the opportunity to take a walk around the area. Most Visitation girls want a college that's located in an area with lots to do and this little town has everything you need - boutiques, coffees shops, restaurants, multiple gelato shops, and more than a few places that look like really fun places for college students to meet up. The next morning we took a tour of Furman's campus and met with students and admissions officers. I was VERY impressed!
Here are some notes I took during my time on campus:

• Currently Furman has 2700 undergraduates and they are growing to 3000.
• The campus is 100% residential. Yep, 100%! That is very unusual and means that the sense of community is very strong!
• Unusual for a school its size, Furman has Division I athletics, including a football team.
• Nearly the entire campus has been renovated over the last ten years - truly, this is one of the most beautiful and impressive campuses I have ever visited!
• 77% of students study "away" (they use this term as opposed to study abroad because some of the places students study are in the U.S.)
• Furman is ranked #4 in the country for undergraduate research; the top 3 are Stanford, MIT, and Michigan. WOW.
• Furman is test optional and their college president gave one of the best talks I have ever heard about why they adopted a  test optional philosophy. I wanted to give him a standing ovation.
• The housing is nice - VERY nice. Especially for juniors and seniors.

Unfortunately I did not take any pictures of lovely Greenville and Furman's stunning campus. But there are lots of pictures on their website. Even better, go see it in person. You will be glad you did!

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Catching Up

Between spring break and a college tour, I have not been at my desk since April 4th! I have just returned from visiting five colleges in South Carolina and I can't wait to post the highlights here. But first I have to attend to my overflowing inbox (the physical one on my desk and the very scary gmail one as well).

Seniors, we want to hear your college decisions so keep us posted.

Juniors, we want to hear about your Spring Break visits so keep us posted. If you haven't turned in a draft of your college essay, we know you you are and would like to invited you to submit a draft before the end of the year. YOU WILL BE GLAD YOU DID. I promise.

Serious highlights from my South Carolina trip are coming up, but here are a few silly highlights:

Number of colleges visited: 5
Number of hours on the bus: 8
Duration of a direct flight from DCA to Greenville, SC - About 1 hour
Number of chicken biscuits consumed by yours truly - (hangs head in shame) 3
Number of glasses of sweet tea consumed - too many to count
Number of colleges that gave us tours in golf carts - 2 (Furman and Wofford)
Number of shops I would have loved to visit in Charleston if I had more time - too many to count
Number of times I have texted the image of my name in lights at Clemson - 12 (how's that for a teaser?)
Number of flat tires on aforementioned golf carts - 1
Number of dorms I toured that were nicer than my current house - 1 (Wofford!)
Number of dorms I toured that were nicer than any place I lived in college - 5

More details to come!
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SMITTEN!

I have watched the video introducing four month old Jack Junior to the Georgetown community at least a dozen times! How cute is this puppy???? I think I will join what will no doubt be a huge crowd on April 13th in Healy Circle to meet the newest member of the Hoya family. To make this whole story even more charming, I love the story in the Washington Post about the plan for Jack senior to "mentor" Jack junior.
When I was an admission officer at Georgetown, one of my favorite jobs was planning the GAAP Open House programs each spring for admitted students. It was extremely rewarding to meet excited students and parents after months of isolation reading files, and the best part was inviting Jack the Bulldog to attend Open House events. I always made sure to volunteer to hold his leash and introduce him to folks and there were even a few times I was brave enough to sneak him into the admissions office after hours. He would take a nap in my office and I would bask in how much fun it was to pretend that I was an Official Jack the Bulldog Handler. Welcome Jack Junior!

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