Mrs. Prugh Visits the Five College Consortium

Who decides to take a trip to Massachusetts in January? That’s what I was thinking before I headed to a conference at Mount Holyoke College, but the weather was actually the same up there as it was back at home! While I attended the conference, I had the chance to tour Mount Holyoke as well as the other four colleges that make up the Five College Consortium. The Five College Consortium is a group of five campuses and 30,000 students in western Massachusetts.   Students who attend Amherst College, Hampshire College, Mount Holyoke, Smith College and the University ofMassachusetts at Amherst are able to take classes across the colleges as well as share use of educational and cultural resources and facilities. There is also an inter-campus transportation system so students can easily hop on a bus to get from one campus to another- none of the campuses are more than 20 minutes apart. The idea of forming a consortium was so that each college could expand both their academic and co-curricular offerings.

All five campuses are very different, especially because the group includes two women’s colleges and one large public university. One of the funniest trends that I noticed on each campus was that each of them had a huge greenhouse! Maybe I never paid attention to the greenhouses on other campuses but that was certainly a prominent aspect and very impressive. Except for UMass, the consortium schools are small liberal arts colleges and have very typical campus environments. Hampshire College is not located right next to a town but the other colleges are within walking distance of traditional (and fun!) college towns with great shopping and tons of different restaurants. We frequently saw the buses that travel between the campuses as we were walking around so it is clearly very easy to get back and forth between the colleges. They even have shuttles that go to the closest airport in Hartford, Connecticut so that it is easy for students to get home for breaks.

Here is a picture of Amherst:

And Smith:

Overall, I was really impressed by the five college system and the fact that students could have access to thousands of different classes and clubs and activities at each school. Each college has its own feel so they are definitely worth visiting if you are in the area!

Published by LP

Walla Walla WHAT? A Visit to Whitman College.

Flying in to Walla Walla, Washington, you can see rivers, forests, mountains and farms all around you as you land. Whitman College could not be set in a more picturesque location! 

 It is not surprising that Whitman students, called Whitties, definitely take advantage of their surroundings through all of the opportunities offered through their Outdoor Programs office. Not many colleges can say that they offer courses in beginning rock climbing and beginning kayaking to their students! This year, each freshman received $150 to spend to participate in a trip to either kayak, climb, ski or more, and most of the freshman class also participated in what they call “Scrambles,” which are freshmen orientation trips to different locales. Besides having a beautiful location and lots of ways to explore the great outdoors, Whitman College is home to students who want an education that engages them inside and outside of the classroom.

Here are some photos from my campus tour:

Whitman College is a small liberal arts college, with about 1,500 students, located in Walla Walla, Washington. Walla Walla is a charming college town with some great restaurants and shops and it is located a few hours from both Seattle and Portland. As a liberal arts college, students are encouraged to explore their academic opportunities in many different subjects. At the foundation of a Whitman education is Encounters, a year-long multi-disciplinary course required of all first year students. All students read the same texts and books but professors from many different disciplines teach sections of no more than 17 students. When I was visiting, author and environmentalist Bill McKibben gave a fascinating talk to all of the students in Encounters, who had read one of his books, called Earth: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet.

Another highlight of the Whitman experience is getting to participate in the Undergraduate Conference. One day every year, students participate in a campus-wide celebration of student academic research. Students give talks, make poster presentations, exhibit their art, and perform original work. Some of these projects grow out of relationships with professors, which students are able to establish since there are no teaching assistants. Some of the most popular majors at Whitman are in the sciences because there is such an emphasis on taking advantage of research opportunities. Whitman even funds 100 summer internship or research projects for students every year.

For students who are looking for an explorative liberal arts experience in a beautiful setting in the Pacific Northwest, Whitman College is the perfect fit. Even though Walla Walla is slightly off the beaten path, it is well worth the trip to check it out!

Published by: LP

The Hawk Will Never Die; Our Visit to St. Joseph's University

On our visit to Saint Joseph’s University in Pennsylvania last week, one of our favorite parts of the campus tour was learning about their famous mascot. The Hawk stays in constant motion during every single basketball game by flapping its wings repeatedly, and a few years ago, ESPN used a “flap-o-meter” to estimate that the Hawk flaps over 3,500 times during a game. This important job is held by a student, who receives a full scholarship for their efforts! Home basketball games are huge events for the students and they routinely sell out the on-campus arena.

Their impressive school spirit was one of many great attributes that we learned about the community at Saint Joseph’s. The campus is located in western Philadelphia, only a short distance from the heart of the city and is home to 4,600 undergraduate students. Most students live on campus or within a short walk and we had the chance to see a freshman dorm, Villiger Hall, which had only just opened in the fall. With additional land that they bought in 2008, the campus has been expanding in the recent years and we also toured the Learning Commons, which was built in 2012 to add more high-tech facilities and collaborative learning space to the library.

About half of the students at Saint Joseph’s are enrolled in their Haub School of Business. The school has one of 20 Wall Street trading rooms in the country and a portfolio called the Hawk Fund is used by students to invest real money in various companies. Students in the school have the option of participating in a co-op program where they have the chance to take a year off to work and then return to their studies.

As a Jesuit university, service is an important part of the school’s mission and we learned from our tour guide that over Spring Break, more than 600 students had traveled to Appalachia to work in rural communities and schools.  We met up with Visi alum Shannon Keller ‘12 who had been on the trip and was eager to return again next year! Shannon has loved her first year at Saint Joseph’s and is happy to speak with anyone who is interested in the school so let one of the college counselors know if you would like her contact information.

Thank you to Saint Joseph’s for a wonderful visit and a chance to learn more about the university!

Published by: LP

Midwestern Friendliness at Washington University

When the Director of Admissions tells you that “being nice matters” in the admissions process, you know that you are somewhere special. When I visited Washington University in St. Louis, that emphasis on character and community was abundantly apparent. Everyone on campus says hello to each other and I came away thinking that people in the Midwest had a reputation for being friendly for a reason! Although 65 percent of their students come from more than 500 miles away, you definitely pick up on the welcoming feeling that is created by their environment of passionate and engaged students, faculty and staff.

WashU has 6,400 undergraduate students in five different undergraduate schools. Students apply and are accepted to one of the specific schools, however, students can major and minor across schools and more than 70 percent of students have more than one major. I was particularly impressed to learn that more than 60 percent of the engineering students have a second major or minor, allowing them to explore their other interests. They have a great school of Architecture and Art, which is home to the oldest art museum west of the Mississippi River. We got to see some impressive studio spaces and creativity in action during my visit.

To further emphasize the sense of community, all first year students live on campus in an area that is called the South 40. Students are placed into residential colleges and members of the faculty also live in the residential colleges. After experiencing some of the food from one of the dining halls in the South 40, I was not surprised to learn that WashU is often rated some of the best campus food in the country! We also had the chance to eat some native St. Louis cuisine, including Ted Drewes’ frozen custard and toasted ravioli, both of which I highly recommend.

The university is located in St. Louis and they have a beautiful campus that is located right next to Forest Park, which is one of the largest parks in the country- even bigger than Central Park! Students are only a few miles from downtown St. Louis and they are given a free Metro pass to explore the city to go see the Gateway Arch or Busch Stadium.

With an outstanding academic experience that offers students a focus on collaboration between disciplines as well as opportunities for undergraduate research, it was easy to see why the students at WashU were so happy and welcoming. Thank you to WashU for a great visit to their wonderful campus!

Published by: LP

Scarlet Gowns and Royal Trivia at the University of St. Andrews

Upon arrival in the town of St Andrews, you immediately feel transported back in time. The University that is celebrating its 600^th anniversary this year and there are buildings that have existed for hundreds of years as a part of the campus at the University of St Andrews. Scotland’s first university, St Andrews has the ethos of a liberal arts college but the reality of a research university. I was very lucky to get to spend a few days in Scotland to learn more about this historic university.

The town of St Andrews is about an hour and a half from Edinburgh and is filled with history. My hotel was right on the golf course at St Andrews, which is where the game of golf was started. That would have probably been even more exciting if I actually golfed! The quiet town has about 20,000 residents and it felt like a college town since students make up such a large portion of the population.

Here is a picture of the town:

St Andrews is an extremely diverse university with students from all over the world. Out of the 6,000 undergraduate students, approximately 43 percent hail from overseas and 16 percent are from the United States. Slightly different from other universities in the United Kingdom, students start off studying three subjects and then can graduate focusing on either one or two subjects. You can apply to a particular major and then change your mind when you get to St Andrews. I heard from professors from the departments of Spanish, chemistry and sustainable development and I found the professors to be extremely engaging and focused on helping their students figure out their passions and interests. A few years ago, St Andrews began offering a joint degree program with the College of William and Mary, where students get to spend two years at each of the universities studying international relations and it sounds like a great opportunity for students who would be interested in studying at both schools.

Traditions abound at St Andrews and I thought their traditions were some of the most unique aspects of the university. My tour guide, Victoria, who hailed from Germany, introduced us to the tradition of the scarlet gown. Since 1640, undergraduate students have worn red gowns for special occasions and the wearing of the gown denotes seniority depending on how far off the shoulder the gown is worn.  On Sundays after chapel, the students walk down a pier in their red gowns and it must be an amazing sight to see! Another fun tradition is that students are often part of an “academic family.” First year students get “adopted” by upperclassmen who help guide them through life at St Andrews and often have dinner parties with the extended members of their academic family.

Here is a picture of our tour group and our guide in her red gown:

And the pier:

One of the highlights of my visit was getting to catch up with Visi alum Lizzy Wells, who graduated in 2009. Lizzy is a fourth year at St Andrews and will be heading to London after graduation to attend graduate school in security studies. Lizzy has absolutely loved her time at the university and said that she is happy to speak with anyone interested in St Andrews so ask your college counselor for her contact information if you are interested in getting in touch with her!

Besides being excited to see St. Salvator’s Hall, which is where Prince William and Kate Middleton met and fell in love when they were students at St Andrews, I came away feeling like any student would be lucky to study at such a historic university with a true focus on a top notch academic experience. Thank you to the admissions staff at St Andrews for such a great visit!

Published by: LG

Mrs. Prugh's Visit to the Embassy of Canada

Canada, eh? A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to attend an event at the Embassy of Canada to learn more about a few Canadian universities. The first thing that I learned is that in Canada, the word “college” is used for what we would call a community college so the schools that offer bachelor’s degrees and master’s degrees are referred to just as “universities.” There are around 90 universities in Canada and I was able to learn about five specific universities.

According to a report done in 2012, there are over 10,000 Americans earning undergraduate and graduate degrees in Canada and it is becoming a more popular option because even with the extra fees for international students, the universities in Canada often cost less than private universities in the United States. The Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada found that annual tuition costs for international students in Canada ranged from about $14,000 to $26,000 last year.

I heard from admission representatives from Concordia University, Queen’s University, the University of Toronto, the University of St. Thomas and Dalhousie University. Here are some brief facts about the five universities:

Concordia University

·         Located in Montreal, Quebec

·         Over 45,000 students that are involved in 500 different academic programs

·         Students can participate in a co-op program where they gain a year of work experience before completing their undergraduate degrees

·         They have four faculties of study- arts and sciences, business, engineering and fine arts

·         There are two main campuses that are three miles apart near downtown Montreal

·         For admissions, they do not require the SAT or ACT

 

Queen’s University

·         Located in Kingston, Ontario

·         They have 15,000 undergraduate students

·         They have the following faculties of study- arts and sciences, commerce, computing, fine art, music, nursing and engineering

·         Study abroad (beyond Canada!) is very popular- they have 180 programs in 45 different countries

·         Their second campus is a castle in England and students are offered the option to spend a summer, semester or even a year living in the castle

·         The province of Ontario has one application for all universities in Ontario and applicants can apply to three different programs at one university and be offered admission to all three

·         Seven percent of their student body are international students and over half of those are American

 

University of Toronto

·         Located in Toronto, Ontario

·         Canada’s largest university- they have over 33,000 undergraduate students

·         They have three different campuses and students can choose which campus they want based on what they want to study and the type of environment they want

·         The largest campus is the St. George campus, which is located in downtown Toronto

·         The other two campuses- Mississauga and Scarborough- are both about 30 minutes away and house a smaller number of undergraduate students

·         Their largest faculty is the faculty of arts and sciences but they also have computer science, life sciences, architecture, engineering, music and kinesiology

·         Students can apply using the universal application for all universities in Ontario

 

University of St. Thomas

·         Located in Fredericton, New Brunswick (about two hours north of Maine)

·         They are an exclusively liberal arts university with only 2,400 students

·         They offer over 30 majors and specialize in interdisciplinary studies

·         Some of their more unique majors are human rights and journalism

·         They do not require the SAT or ACT but they do require an essay

 

Dalhousie University

·         Located in Halifax, Nova Scotia

·         They have over 18,000 students and approximately 13,000 are undergraduate students

·         They have twelve different faculties, including a new faculty in agriculture that offers a pre-veterinary program

·         They have a very popular environmental sustainability program and have a large focus on undergraduate research opportunities

·         They have a very international student body and students hail from 110 different countries

·         Applicants can apply to three different academic programs at one time

 

Many of the universities offer scholarships for American students and Americans studying in Canada are eligible for U.S. Federal Student Aid. These universities sounded like a great option for students who want to experience a world-class education at what could be a slightly lower cost. There are great universities in each of Canada’s provinces and many of them are not located too far from home! There are several members of the Class of 2013 who have applied to (and been accepted by) Candian universitites. If you are a junior who is interested in learning more about Candadian universities, talk to your college counselor!

Published by: LP

 

Colorado College Recap

Last fall, Mrs. Prugh wrote a post about our visit to Colorado College and we neglected to hit the Publish button (it must have been all those November 1 applications we were working on!)

Here is a long overdue recap of our visit to Colorado College back in September!

On our way to Colorado Springs to visit Colorado College, we drove past snow that had dusted the ground the night before and were impressed by the spectacular views on the way out of the city. It is also an easy trip from Denver, as the school is about an hour and a half from the Denver airport. Upon our arrival at Cutler Hall,  which houses Colorado College's admissions office, we happened to run into Roberto Garcia, the Director of admissions, who was kind enough to show us some of the highlights of the campus.

 Colorado College is a small liberal arts college that is known for its innovative Block Plan. Students take one course at a time for three and a half weeks, typically completing four blocks each semester and eight blocks each year. Students are in class from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., making campus quiet during our visit but it is clear to see the amazing opportunities that are offered at CC, which is what the students call the school. We were able to see new construction in their athletic facilities and the amazing view of Pikes’ Peak from the football field. The CC mascot is a Bengal tiger who is just waiting to be named by a creative student!

 We toured the Cornerstone Arts Center, which was built in 2008 and not only houses a 450 seat theatre modeled after a classical amphitheater but also serves as a living performance space, with public catwalks and video projection systems. One of my favorite parts of the Arts Center was a chalkboard with words and phrases coined by Shakespeare- who knew that he came up with “Knock, knock! Who’s there?”

 The beautiful campus itself is an easy walk to downtown Colorado Springs. There is also a shuttle from campus that runs to the downtown area making it very easy for students to explore.

Here are a few pictures from our tour:

The poetry wall in the performing arts center

Downtown Colorado Springs (walking distance from campus)

 

Imagine attending a soccer game with that kind of view!

 

Published by: LP

Fox Day @ Rollins College

FOX DAY @ Rollins College

Winter Park, Florida

Fox Day at Rollins College happens once a year when a statue of a fox appears quite mysteriously and without warning on the center of a perfectly manicured green in the middle of campus. The appearance of the fox kicks off a day of celebration. Classes are cancelled for the day, no tests or assignments due. Moonbounces come to life and special feasts appear. Fox Day, hmmm.... a wonderful surprise, but so was my entire visit to Rollins.

The campus is picturesque, Lake Virginia is out the back door, and the front of the school spills into the main boulevard of Winter Park, which is rife with outdoor cafes and hip shops. The buildings have a Spanish flair, with everything a student could wish for, the library even has a "pillow room" in case you need a quick rest! The fitness center has a full offering of classes at all hours and great equipment, and I have NEVER tasted college cafeteria food quite like at Rollins; I have to wonder how many schools offer grilled Mahi Mahi salad. The campus pool overlooks Lake Virginia and really beautiful. Future constructions plans include a state of the art science center and an inn right on campus to house visitors.

As I toured the campus I questioned how students could maintain their focus with all these distractions, not to mention the spectacular weather. While my surroundings had impressed me, it was the performance of the Rollins students during class that made the greatest impact and left a lasting impression. The first class I attended was about U.S.-Mexican relations.In a class of eleven students, typical for Rollins, each student was engaged, prepared, and passionate about the primary document (the Monroe Doctrine) that they were assessing. This level of enthusiasm and involvement is typical for the small liberal arts classes at Rollins. It is no wonder they have created a campus of active and involved learners who reach out into the community and take full advantage of one of numerous study abroad opportunities.

Thank you to Rollins for a wonderful visit!

Published by: SKC

 

 

Our (Chilly) Visit to UC Boulder!

While attending the annual NACAC conference in Denver a few weeks back (the Superbowl of the College Admissions and Counseling world) we took some time to rent a car and visit both the University of Colorado in Boulder and Colorado College in Colorado Springs. Our colleagues from the College Counseling Department at two other local independent schools joined us for our mini college roadtrip. You can see how chilly the October weather was in the mountains of Boulder in the picture above. It was hard to believe that we left 80 degree temperatures in Washington and there was snow on the ground out west!

Here is Ms. Carter's write up of our visit to UC Boulder:

What was there not to love? I did post a photo on my Face book page with the caption, “If I had to do it all over again!”

Right off the bat, “CU” as the students fondly refer to their beloved UC, Boulder is an easy 30 minute drive from the Denver airport. If the ease of getting there leaves you unimpressed, the backdrop of the Rocky Mountains will not. We visited the school on an odd overcast dreary day, but even so the campus sold itself. The Tuscany style buildings with the backdrop of the mountains left you wondering if this was a school or a resort (side note: a brand new outdoor pool over looking said mountain range being built). But make no mistake, this top rated university and its students take their academics seriously. The flagship university of Colorado, CU boasts loads of majors but is especially proud of its science departments. The university just received word that David Wineland, a professor in Physics just received the Nobel Prize (the 5^th time a CU professor has been named a Nobel winner); in addition, they have just received a 1.4 million dollar grant from the National Science Foundation to study climate change.

But when you need time away from the books, there is plenty to do on campus. The football stadium sits smack in the center. There is always a pep rally before games complete with a marching band and a mascot (any guesses about who the CU mascot is?)The campus has its own museum and its performing arts calendar is packed with student performances as well as big name entertainment coming to Boulder. And if all that is not enough, you can always take to the slopes or go for a hike.
Getting around campus is easy with a bus system, but most students we saw were walking, on bikes, or skateboards! After our tour, we spent some time in downtown Boulder and it was like walking around a Sundance catalog. There are loads of shops and restaurants and the preferred "uniform" seems to be jeans and boots. If you have any questions about UC Boulder (or would like to see more of our photographs), talk to your college counselor.
A report of our visit to Colorado College will be up later this week!

Published by: TSM and SKC

Thinking About Attending College in New Orleans?

Last week your college counselors were down in New Orleans for the NACAC Conference - try to imagine 6,000 college counselors and college admissions officers talking about the exciting world of college admissions. It's actually a very interesting conference and a great opportunity for us to learn about colleges. We made a point to slip out of the convention center and round the clock meetings to visit the wonderful students and admissions officers at Loyola and Tulane.

We were charmed by New Orleans from the very beginning! We stayed at the Marriott on Canal Street in the French Quarter and  had a wonderful time exploring the boutiques and amazing restaurants in the French Quarter. To get to Tulane and Loyola (located in uptown New Orleans in the gorgeous Garden District), we hopped on the San Francisco style streetcar to take a 15 minute ride to the universities. There were several families on the streetcar who were headed to these campuses to take the admissions tour so it was fun to chat with them about their college process. Obviously we just love to talk about college admissions!

We hopped off the streetcar and were standing directly in front of Loyola's main entrance. Loyola and Tulane are located right next door to each other, and both boast stately main entrances that face  the main thoroughfare and offer a big southern welcome. Directly across the street from both campuses is an enormous park, full of green space for exercising and socializing. There were lots of joggers out and about, and the moderate weather means lots of outdoor time year round.

We visited both campuses at a very early hour on Saturday morning so there weren't many students walking around either campus, but we certainly felt the Jesuit influence and wonderful spirit of Loyola in architecture, art, and statues around campus. It is certainly a special place! The beautiful green campuses of both universities flow seamlessly into one another. In the midst of  walking around one campus, you can easily find yourself on the other campus. As one Tulane student said, “the new dining hall at Loyola is amazing with floor to ceiling glass and the food is so fantastic that we eat there regularly.” The two schools share more than eating quarters as you can take classes at Tulane and have them transfer to Loyola and vice versa.  Speaking of dining halls… it was not lost on us that in Tulane’s student center features not only fantastic dining options and Frank Lloyd Wright style indoor waterfalls, but also an Aveda salon! Where were these things when we were in college?!

We also took a tour of Tulane's athletic center, which is an amazing facility that has something for everyone. They offer everything from Zumba to squash, and to reward yourself for finding the fitness center on a Saturday morning there is a smoothie bar in the lobby.

Here are a few pictures from our visits:

Loyola:

The Aveda salon in Tulane's student center:

Computer lab in Loyola's library:

Tulane:

Fun times in the French Quarter:

Published by:SKC and TSM

Kenyon College Travel Grant Application

Are you interested in Kenyon but cannot afford the cost of a visit to campus? Kenyon offers a Trustee Opportunity Travel Grant for qualifying first-generation and American students of color that will cover up to 90% of their costs to fly to Columbus Ohio, where the nice folks from Kenyon will pick you up and transport you to campus in Gambier (about an hour from the airport).

If you are interested in applying for this travel grant, please see your college counselor!

Kenyon's mailing to us gave a one sentence summary of the college which I love: We are a traditional college with a twist - embracing American Studies as well as American History, offering a neuroscience course team-taught by a philosopher and a scientist, celebrating the intersections of fields of knowledge in every course.

You might also be interested in knowing that Kenyon's acceptance rate last year was about 33% and their middle 50% SAT scores were as follows: CR 640-740, Math 610-690, Writing 640-730. Middle 50% for the ACT composite was 28-32.

When we receive opportunities like this, we list advertise them on the Family Connections website under Updates. This site is updated daily as we clear out our inboxes so check it frequently!

Published by TSM

UNC Wilmington - great location, great programs!

Our last stop in North Carolina was UNC-Wilmington. While we were hoping for the warm beach weather that Wilmington is known for, it was unfortunately an unseasonably cool day. Despite the cooler weather, you could still see sand on campus, students biking to and from classes, and shorts and flip flops as far as the eye could see. There was that low-key vibe that goes along with a beach town and the relaxing pace was a lovely break from the frenetic pace of DC. Here are some highlights... The Watson School of Education is housed in a unique building with state of the art technology. When you walk in, a Maya Angelou quote is predominantly displayed: "Nothing will work unless you do." A few cool features - The Media Production Lab, distance learning classroom that connects UNCW with others around the world, and assistive technology classroom with technologies for teaching students with disabilities. This is one of the most impressive Education buildings we have ever seen on a college campus. The Cameron School of Business has a Financial Trading Markets Room that allows students to follow the NY Stock Exhange. Another unique feature is the Cameron Executive Network (CEN) which matches motivated undergraduates with retired and active senior executives. Mentors come from a variety of professional backgrounds, including firms such as AT&T, Screen Gems Studios and Lockheed Martin. CEN mentors work one-on-one with students to help them develop a stronger understanding of the business world and polish their professional networking and interviewing skills. The mentoring program is very successful because many CEO's own property and/or retire in communities near the Wilmington beaches. Who knew?Since Wilmington is the third-largest film production center in the U.S., which is home to EUE/Screen Gems Studios, the largest film studio outside of Hollywood, the Film Studies Department offers a lot of great opportunities to budding filmmakers. You may have seen the campus in WB favorites - Dawson's Creek and One Tree Hill since both shows filmed on campus. Some students we ate lunch with told us that "The Rock" had been on campus recently filming an upcoming movie - and students are often asked to be extras in movies! This is an extraordinary place to study film. As we listened to the Chair of the Creative Writing Department describe the curriculum, Mrs. Maglio began filling out her application to their graduate program. The inspirational description about having the opportunity to "make something out of nothing" had us all ready to sign up! Before you panic - she's not going anywhere. Whenever we visit colleges, it seems like a really good idea to go back to school. Do you know how lucky you are to have the college experience AHEAD of you?!

UNC Wilmington is also known for it's strong program in Marine Sciences. If I had known I could "study" by traveling to the Galapogus Islands - I would have checked out these majors too! Majors include marine biotechnology, biodiversity, oceanography, coral reef ecology, fisheries biology, coastal ecology, and marine mammals.

We hope our highlights of our whirlwind tour of three UNC schools will encourage some of you to look at these schools. All three could be a great fit for the right Visi girl.

Published by KMH and TSM

Team Fennessey in St. Louis

The blog has been quiet this week because Team Fennessey is in St. Louis. We are here for NACAC - a national conference for college admissions officers and counselors. We have been attending sessions and meeting and greeting college reps from all over the country. It's also great to hear what other high schools are doing. Best of all, we squeezed in two college tours during our stay! While the DC area has been drenched in rain, it's been 70 degrees and sunny here and we are loving the friendliness and laid back feel of the the schools we visited -Washington University and St. Louis University. Both of these schools could be a fantastic fit for Visitation girls.

Highlights from our SLU tour:

1) Vampire Weekend is performing on campus this weekend!

2) There is a gorgeous state of the art fitness center and a beautiful outdoor pool with a beach volleyball court and palm trees. Who knew?

3) SLU is like Visitation - it is a beautiful, self contained, green campus in the middle of the city. So many Visi girls want a campus like this. If you are looking at schools like St. Joe's, Loyola-Chicago, Fordham, Loyola-Maryland, or John Carroll, than you should be checking out SLU!

4) We learned about their unusual school mascot, the Billiken, and other fun traditions on campus. Walking around, it was clear that this is a school with a lot of character and spirit. And it's really beautiful. Here's one more picture!

Highlights from our Wash U visit:

1) When we were in college, we felt lucky to have Burger King and Taco Bell available to us in the Student Union. At Wash U, you seem to pass another amazing dining opportunity every five minutes - including the chance to enjoy a three course, sit down, dining extravaganza. And you are not eating in a standard cafeteria with a plastic tray - you could be seated in an outdoor pavilion or an oak paneled lounge with flat screen TVs on the wall.

2) We had gotten turned around on campus as we were looking for the fitness center and a very friendly student stopped to help us out. She pointed out not one, but two, athletic facilities - and then sent us on our way to the South Forty which resembled Main Street in Disney World. While Wash U is a little further away from downtown St. Louis than SLU, they have made sure all the modern conveniences of living in the city are just a few steps from your dorm. You can drop off your laundry to be washed and folded, get in your work out and get your hair and nails done at the salon with ease!

3) These students are smart, smart, smart! The library was full, students were on their laptops in the quad and they did not seem to be facebooking. This is not to say that campus was quiet, there was a buzz of activity, discussions, and intellectual energy all around.

It's been a busy week! We are excited to board the plane back to DC with bags full of college brochures and business cards - as well as some new SLU hoodies!

Published by TSM and KMH