College Tour, Part 2: Carolinas on My Mind–University of North Carolina and Clemson University

The underlying purpose for our spring break trip should now be revealing itself.  We arrived at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in time for our 1p scheduled admissions meeting and tour.  OUR FIRST REAL COLLEGE VISIT!! The initial session was very interesting and helpful.  Some assorted topics mentioned which were important for me to hear were that 78% of the classes have fewer than 40 students.  There are also hundreds of study abroad programs. (When I was in college, I spent a year in Southampton, England. I really hope that my kids can take advantage of some international experience, as well, during their studies.)  The students overall seemed very involved and engaged.

As expected, there was a lot of information provided regarding applications, deadlines, and other numbers.  (I am not going to review that for any of the universities. I don’t believe that this is the best site for obtaining that type of school specific information.)  The hardest thing to hear, though, was that there is only approximately a 14% acceptance rate for out of state students. We were not surprised. It simply wasn’t encouraging.   Not surprisingly, the group making decisions regarding admission are attempting to get a picture of the entire student. They are looking to see the students’ “authentic selves.”  Of course, grades, test scores, and rigor of curriculum are important. Essays and letters of recommendations are reviewed as well. There is no specific formula for admission. Several factors are evaluated.  (This seemed to be a common but not unexpected theme among the universities we visited over the week.) One of the differences between the various universities was the policy regarding admission to specific programs within the university.  At UNC, students are admitted to the College of Arts and Sciences. Later they can apply to specific schools such as the business school. There is of course risk involved with that. If a student wants to go into business or nursing, for example, that student may be admitted to the university but may not be admitted to the specific college of interest within the university.   Some areas are more competitive than others. At other universities, students may apply directly to a specific school (e.g. business, engineering, social work, etc).

After hearing from a staff member from the admissions office, a crowd of VERY EXCITED student tour guides ran into the room and introduced themselves.  They would lead smaller groups on the campus tours. I admit that I was not too excited when I learned that our student tour guide was a freshman. I could not have been more wrong–SHE WAS GREAT!!!  Not only did she show us around campus but also did a fantastic job discussing and explaining topics related to housing, meal plans, transportation, social activities and student life, academic support, educational resources, study abroad, class experience, school traditions, personal stories, and more.  We had similar great experiences with student tour guides on the other campuses as well. These students are very well chosen and trained for the job! I could never do what they do! They either have unusually large amounts of energy and/or they drink a lot of coffee. (One tour guide at a different university told us about her love of coffee!).  Having a student guide was extremely beneficial. I believe that we got much more out of our campus visit because of it. Had we just walked around on our own, we would not have gotten nearly as comprehensive of a picture of the student experience as we did. There was also the benefit of hearing questions from other students, as well as the answers.

Overall, my family had a very good feeling about the University of North Carolina.  (My son had a big smile on his face most of the day.) He does plan to apply! Although this school may be more of a “reach school,” hopefully he will be even more inspired to “raise his game” for the rest of the school year as opposed to being discouraged.  Just getting a glimpse at college is inspirational! I am cautiously optimistic that when he gets tired of homework, he can try to visualize his college goals and get reinvigorated! (I am hoping for this scenario.)

If you want more information about the university programs, admissions, etc, I recommend that you contact the school, check the website, and/or visit.  (Choosing a college is too important of a decision to use someone’s personal blog as a major resource. ) Nevertheless, if you just want some fun facts (such as the answer to the question, “What is a Tar Heel?”), click this link and enjoy!

As an aside, I apologize for the lack of campus photos. While listening and touring, I went old school and took lots of notes with a pen and notepad. Hands were too occupied to try to take photos. Plus, the kids really discouraged me from doing so. It wasn’t worth a debate.

Although this college tour spring break trip was more of a “working vacation” than a pleasure trip, we did have some fun, “non-academic” moments along the way.  After University of North Carolina, the next school on our agenda was Clemson University. This provided us with a bonus opportunity–my husband’s cousin and her family live at the halfway point between the schools.  The last time we saw them, the cousin and her husband were just dating, and they didn’t have kids. That was about 11 years ago; it has been a while. Although our visit was short, it was meaningful. They had both attended UNC, so, although things have changed, they could share their “two cents” with us.  Additionally, her husband works in the area of sports broadcasting, something of interest to my son. As my kids gets older, I do enjoy watching how they interact with other adults. They are growing up! We made the most of our short visit. Hopefully we will get the chance to see each other again sooner rather than later.  We don’t want to wait another decade.

Being that we often make last minute hotel plans, we literally were looking for and reserved a hotel room from our car after leaving the house. Nothing like “going with the flow!” We were not expecting to have much trouble finding a room on a weeknight during the school year right after the school’s spring break.   We took advantage of earned hotel points and booked a room at a Comfort Inn in Clemson. We arrived after midnight. The hotel suited our needs for the night. We had a clean room in which to sleep, and the kids could make themselves waffles for breakfast in the morning.  We do enjoy the free breakfasts included at many hotels. Waffles and pancakes for breakfast while travelling has become a morning staple for our kids! I, on the other hand, tend to eat a lot more eggs than usual. I also try to manage my consumption of biscuits at these breakfast buffets, but they really are good, especially when warm and slathered with butter.  I promised myself to have more fruits and vegetables at the subsequent lunch.

We arrived at Clemson University about an hour and half before our scheduled meeting and tour, so we had time to walk around.    We did see the work in progress for the new business school. Once completed next year, it should be an amazing facility.   Being that my son hopes to attend a business school, this was of interest. (Back in my day, I earned a bachelor’s degree in biological chemistry   I didn’t care at all about a new business school. That was then. Now we are talking about my first born and his education! Business schools matter so much more to me now!  I need to know that he will be able to care for me when I am old.) At first it seemed very quiet. Aha–they were in class! That is always a good sign. During the initial admissions meeting, we again learned about the application process, what is evaluated in a student’s application, the Honors College, study abroad possibilities, and other basics.  (Although the same topics are discussed at all schools, the details, of course, vary.) Once again, it was very exciting and inspiring to learn about the academic and social resources and opportunities available for students. Just like the previous tour, we had a fantastic, very energetic and knowledgeable student tour guide who showed our group the campus, provided useful information, and answered all of our questions.  One of the most important things she mentioned was that one of the reasons she chose to attend Clemson was that she could be part of a great student environment in which the students want to enjoy themselves but also put a high value on their education and take it seriously.

At this point, we were two for two.  We could see my son as a potential Tar Heel or Tiger.  This was a good start!

We finished our day eating at a local restaurant.  After hotel breakfasts and a few more chain restaurants than I would like, we stopped just off campus for “lunch” (not sure you would call it that exactly–it was 3 in the afternoon) and a little place called Mayberry’s. (We had the whole place to ourselves, so we did not embarrass ourselves taking photos of food.  The middle of the afternoon is not a peak time for restaurants.) It was the perfect place to stop, rest, and enjoy a meal.  My husband and son shared a Filet Dip and Sweet Apple Bacon sandwich, my daughter had a delicious tomato basil soup, and I enjoyed a vegetarian sandwich called Kitchen Sink (there was a lot on this sandwich!). So good! Of course, we were in the south and saw the homemade desserts, so we succumbed to temptation. We were convinced–despite being full, we also shared a slice of baked peanut butter pie with walnuts and a cheesecake brownie.  It is a good thing that the next stop was back in the car, because we were too full to do much else after eating! If interested, you can find the full menu here.

We were ready for the shortest leg of the trip–we were headed to Athens, Georgia, approximately 1.5 hours away.  Away we went! Two schools down, three to go!

Addendum:

If you want to jump around or look ahead, here are the links to all 5 of the college tour posts.

College Tour, Part 1: From Home to Chapel Hill, North Carolina

College Tour, Part 2: Carolinas on My Mind–University of North Carolina and Clemson University

College Tour, Part 3: Peachy Keen–Visiting the University of Georgia

College Tour, Part 4: Time for Tennessee

College Tour, Part 5: Last Stop–University of Louisville