Ask A Centre Student!!

Centregirl08 · 06-01-2005, 09:57 PM

I'm Collegemom08's daughter, and I've been requested to come answer some questions anyone might have. I'm a part of Colonel Corps (the admissions office group) so I have no problem taking the time to do this; I love it! So ask away...

SplashMom · 06-01-2005, 10:40 PM

Hello Centregirl08 and welcome to the CC board! We're so happy (and I think I speak for all of us who visit the Centre page) that you and your mom have found your way to us! My DD and her best friend absolutely loved Centre when we visited. I would be perfectly happy if she decided to go there. She's currently away at Girls State and then heads to Governor's School from there, but she'll be home mid July and I know she would love to speak with you about Centre. Did you apply early or regular? Did you interview? Would you mind to share some of your stats with us i.e. high school g.p.a., test scores, extra curriculars, etc.? That information seems to help us folks here on the CC board when it comes to finding a good "fit". Also, if it's not too personal, would you mind sharing any scholarship information? Thank you!

SplashMom · 06-01-2005, 11:17 PM

I just realized your mom answered the scholarship question on the other thread, but would still like to have your input on the other questions. Thanks!

curmudgeon · 06-02-2005, 12:49 AM

Glad, to meet you. You are a brave soul to offer yourself up to this bunch. Take a stab at Iderochi's concern about frats/sororities that appears on the other thread, if you would.

On one of our two visits to Centre, my D had the great pleasure of watching some of the frat boys playing some invented game with a large orange ball with what must have been some rules that shifted depending on who could yell the loudest. LOL. It was hilarious. Two of the boys were wearing those knitted hats with earflap and strings with balls on the end of them, do you know the grotesque things I'm talking about? The sorority girls watched the whole "game" from their upstairs windows in those cute little sorority houses directly across from those cute little frat houses . How convenient (and cute!). Needless to say D wasn't that intimidated by the frat/sorority scene after that but it remains a minor concern.

A far larger concern is the large number of Kentucky kids and what that means on the weekends. Adcom Jeff said in D's interview that the campus did clear out on Mother's day, and maybe another weekend. We also noticed that the cafeteria didn't do much business on a Saturday night. The cashier told D a lot of kids were in Lexington. That bothered D a little as she may not have a car first year

or any friends

or any money

, and would really prefer to think folks hung around campus and made their really cheap car-less fun there. The Warehouse (?), looked like a pretty cool place to us.

SplashMom · 06-02-2005, 07:10 AM

Curmudgeon, if my D is there, your D will have a friend

with a car

, but no money

. Oh well, who says money buys happiness, huh? Believe me, I had a blast in college and I was a penny pincher ... of course I had only a few pennies to pinch, but I had fun playing tennis, basketball, running, going to football games and just hanging out with friends, etc. I agree that the Warehouse looks like a fun place to hang.

fireflyscout · 06-02-2005, 07:23 AM

Welcome Centregirl (and your mother too)! Have you decided on a major?

doddsdad · 06-02-2005, 09:48 AM

Welcome Centregirl! You are very brave and we admire you for it.

Do you have family in Louisville since it's like a second home?

Curmudgeon and Splashmom, I don't know if your daughters want a guy around, but if they all attend Centre, DS will be looking for friends too

I know he's only a guy but maybe they'll take him on as a project

I think he's trainable.

Centregirl08 · 06-02-2005, 07:40 PM

I, personally, don't know which game you're referencing only beacuse there are SO many that the frats make up! They're always doing crazy things like that and there are always girls around to watch them act dumb.:-)

With your concern about not liking a school with a 40% Greek population: Don't worry about it. I did not go Greek for many reasons and I've had a blast. Honestly, the only things that are restricted from you if you're not Greek are formals and meetings. Everything else that the Greek system does you're allowed to participate in or at least attend. I have friends in all of the different fraternities and sororities. I am able to attend whatever party I'd like to (minus Crushes and Formals) and attend them with whomever I'd like to. Concerning the Crushes and Formals, I can even go to those if I'm someone's date; you're not excluded.

During 'rush' time it's a little more painstakingly obvious that you're not part of the Greek system, but it's over in a month or so. Your freshman year will be the 'hardest' I guess, only because a lot of your friends may become Greek. After you get through that initial frenzy of Rush and the following weeks, everything pretty much returns to normal. Don't worry about not going Greek. If you'd like to be Greek, that's great, but if not, it doesn't matter either. All parties are open, so never worry about not being allowed into something or having a lacking social life because you don't join a fraternity or sorority.

lderochi · 06-02-2005, 07:45 PM

Thanks CG08. I really want S to at least keep Centre on his list for now, and your comments will at least (hopefully) keep an open mind about the Centre Greek thing.

Centregirl08 · 06-02-2005, 08:08 PM

I applied through Early Action. My app was due by December 1st, I think, and I was notified by Christmas. I really liked the idea of early action because I knew early who had accepted me and who hadn't. I was able to spend more time deciding which school was truly right for me. I did go up to Centre my junior year over Martin Luther King Day and I interviewed with Ned Frazier. It was snowing and I also didn't get that initial "omg I love this campus" feel. After talking to Ned and going to a class and meeting some of the students, I really fell in love. I visited again in March for an athletic recruitment trip and REALLY fell in love. I loved the campus, the people, the professors, the classes, and everything else about the school.

In high school, my unweighted GPA was a 3.89, I believe, and I had a 27 ACT score. I had lots of different extracurricular activites including student council, president of prom committee, Beta Club, other various volunteer clubs, Girl Scouts, Hs Volleyball team, and a Junior Olympic Volleyball team. I was named a Centre Fellow, which guaruntees at least $6000 a year in scholarship. Regarding scholarships, even if you don't meet ALL of the requirements, go ahead and apply for it because you never know what'll you get. I didn't have the 28 ACT score that was required of Centre Fellows, but I got a pleasant surprise with my acceptance letter.

Centregirl08 · 06-02-2005, 08:25 PM

Granted there are a lot of students from Kentucky, but practically no one goes home on the weekends! I lived 3.5 hours from home and I only went home when the school kicked us out for holidays and breaks. I never had a problem finding people to hang out with on weekends. As far as Cowan (the cafeteria) is concerned, no, not as many people eat there on the weekends, but there are some good reasons. First off, I ate at Cowan a lot on weekends and so did my friends. Secondly, many people DO go out to other places or restraunts, but that's because they have the time to relax and leave campus and their meal plans probably don't cover every meal on a weekend. I have the average 13 meals a week meal plan. This only leaves 3 meals on the weekend. A lot of time we would go to dinner elsewhere on a Saturday to cover a meal lost on the weekend. The Warehouse is a popular place too to go eat on the weekends. Your student will receive 'flex' dollars with any meal plan which is simply money on a card that your student can go anywhere on campus and use to buy food.

Lexington is a place where we can go to get away from campus!! It's the closest place that is TRUE civilization apart from Danville. Even if you don't have a car, don't worry. I actually had quite a few friends that didn't have cars, including my roommate. If your student doesn't have a car, there's always someone going somewhere. We always took people places. If I was going to Walmart, I'd call people I knew didn't have a car and asked if they needed anything or would like to join me. We're all friendly on campus and your student will get a ride. They'll even get out to Lexington because I'm sure they'll go with friends at some point.

No money? No problem. You pay for a meal plan, use it! I was responsible for paying for everything I did during the school year, so you can be sure I pinched pennies. It takes a little self-control, but your student will soon learn the meaning of being that typical 'poor college student'.. we all do at some point I'm sure!

Centregirl08 · 06-02-2005, 08:29 PM

I haven't officially declared yet, but I'm going to major in Psychology and minor in Religion.

Centregirl08 · 06-02-2005, 08:32 PM

Why is Louisville like a second home?

A majority of my Centre friends come from Louisville and surrounding areas. I also have a boyfriend that lives there, but he goes to school in Indiana. Being that I'm from TN, I travel to Louisville a fair amount. Needless to say, I've gotten to know Lousiville very well! It's a great city with some really great people in it!!

SplashMom · 06-02-2005, 10:55 PM

Thanks for all the great info, Centregirl08. I look forward to D reading this page.

Doddsdad, not to worry ... if our kids did end up at the same school, I'm sure they would all get along famously. With fabulous parents such as ourselves, who wouldn't want to hang with them?

doddsdad · 06-28-2005, 05:49 AM

I wanted to add a message to our Centre board so we wouldn't get the "No messages in 30 days."

I have a question for Centregirl too. I think your mom (maybe you) mentioned that Centre has tests in June for incoming students. I assume these tests are to help with scheduling and class placements. Are the tests mandatory and how does it work? Can you avoid some requirements if you do well enough on a test? Or do you end up in an upper level course?