candyman92486

lafayette1234,

Only engineers need to take five courses a semester to graduate in four years. As a B.S. Biology major, you'd only need to take four each semester (unless you felt like taking five...I wouldn't recommend it).

Click on this link to view a curriculum planning sheet created by the Biology department at Lafayette: http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~biology/planBS.html. Notice that you'll have adequate opportunities to take electives, and can take upper-level Biology courses in any order.

- Justin

lafayette1234

thanks!!!!!!!

ajack

hi Justin
I'm told as a freshman i have to choose courses online before june 30th. i'm wondering if we can make any changes after we actually begin school?
thx!

Jack

candyman92486

Hey Jack,

Yes, students are allowed to change courses around during the first two weeks of classes. It requires the student to obtain various signatures from professors and advisers, but it is very common practice.

Classes begin on Monday, August 27th. The official deadline for adding/dropping courses without penalty is Friday, September 7th. During that period you may change courses, assuming the course(s) you wish to enroll in have not reached capacity.

Ah, the beauty of course registration!

- Justin

candyman92486

Class of 2011:

The following link will bring you to a complete list of First-Year Seminar (FYS) choices for the upcoming fall semester. While you should still expect a packet of information regarding course registration within the next few weeks, I thought you all might be interested in selecting your top five choices in advance.

Short descriptions of each course will be provided in the registration packet (a few descriptions are listed beginning on page 26 of the College Catalog 2005-07 at http://www.lafayette.edu/academics/catalog/index.html), but I thought that the course names might pique the interest of eager college students.

Here's the link: http://ww2.lafayette.edu/%7Elibrary/fys_roster.html

Happy choosing!

- Justin

pegorden

Justin,
My D. has decided to come to Lafayette! We talked back around Accepted Student Day. My question -
AP scores only come out in July. This makes it complicated for D. She took the AP Psych and AP Spanish exams and her scores may influence her course selection. Suggestions? Thanks

candyman92486

pegorden,

Of course I remember talking to you "way back when"! Your daughter made a wonderful decision in choosing Lafayette, especially since she is considering two of our strongest academic programs (psychology or pre-med).

Regarding the AP Psychology examination: if your daughter receives a 4 or a 5, she will receive an elective credit toward the psychology major. However, she would NOT be granted placement out of the intro psych course (PSYC 110). She should still enroll in PSYC 110 in the fall (go with Professor Shaw for the lecture portion) to work towards the major.

Regarding the AP Spanish examination: whether it was the Spanish Language or Literature exam, if she earns a 4 or a 5, she will place out of Lafayette's foreign culture requirement. If that does not occur, she can take a foreign language placement exam during Orientation before classes begin in August to potentially place out. Is she looking to enroll in an upper-level Spanish literature/culture course, or just hoping to fulfill the requirement? I wouldn't worry about enrolling in a Spanish language course first semester. If it turns out she needs to take a few more language courses to fulfill the requirement, there's always next semester.

Just to summarize my remarks, her scores on those exams should not really affect her course selections. She should take PSYC 110, her First-Year Seminar, maybe a 200 level psych course without prerequisites, and a fourth course to work towards fulfilling the Common Course of Study (math course, humanities/social science course).

- Justin

fsa1

hmmm how come the lafayette forum boards on the webstie dont work. It just says "Sorry, but this board is currently unavailable. Please try again later." i have tried later but it just dont work.

candyman92486

fsa1,

If you are referring to the Accepted Students Forum on the Lafayette website, just know that it was removed due to spammers creating fake accounts.

Could you please provide the location of that link so that I can get it removed from the website?

Thanks,

- Justin

bgirl

Hi again Justin!
Thanks for all your advice to date, everything is working out fine with registration and I've been in touch with a professor for some additional guidance. That was really generous of him and very helpful. I'm just soooo
curious about Lafayette's numbers for admissions this year, and I don't see them posted yet. Any ideas on %accepted, SATs, yield etc? When do they usually post this? I know applications were up a good amount (a lady in admissions told me they went over 6,000?). Not that it is essential info, but I can't help wondering. Thanks.

candyman92486

bgirl,

I'm glad that everything is working out for you. Just out of curiosity, who is the professor you are in contact with? Is he in your prospective major (Environmental Geosciences)?

As you probably already know, the stats for the Class of 2010 are posted here: http://www.lafayette.edu/admissions/requirements.html.

My little brother, who is currently a junior in high school, just so happened to receive the brochure from Lafayette about a week ago, which has the updated Class of 2011 stats. I'll try my best to type it out!

Gender /// Applied /// Accepted /// Enrolled
Male /// 3,483 /// 1,121 /// 294
Female /// 2,880 ///1,082 /// 264
TOTAL /// 6,363 /// 2,203 /// 558
(as of May 9, 2007...some waitlist candidate decisions pending)

As you can see, applications went up from 5,875 to 6,363 (about 8.4% increase). Admissions officers were shooting for an enrollment of about 595, but ended up waitlisting too many applicants. After a mad dash to call waitlisted candidates and inform them of their acceptances, I'm sure that 558 number is currently somewhere near the 595 mark.

Accepted Students Stats
Class Rank: 80% in top tenth, 97% in top fourth
SAT: middle 50% range was 610-700 in Critical Reading and 640-730 in Math
ACT: middle 50% range was 27-32

Enrolled Students Stats
Class Rank: 67% in top tenth, 93% in top fourth
SAT: middle 50% range was 580-680 in Critical Reading and 610-710 in Math
ACT: middle 50% range was 26-30

Just some quick facts about geographic representation and ethnic representation. 25.6% of the Class of 2011 are from New Jersey, 18.6% are from New York, and 19.7% are from Pennsylvania. 73.1% are Caucasian, 5.9% are African American, 4.8% are Asian American, and 6.8% are International Students.

As soon as I learn more, I'll let you know.

- Justin

candyman92486

oddsmaker90,

Economics & Business (E&B) majors are heavily recruited by employers. In fact, Career Services seems to cater extensively to E&B majors with major-specific career fairs, alumni dinner panels, networking nights in NYC, and amazing internship opportunities with members of our dedicated alumni network.

I actually know a few students who recently graduated and went directly into posh full-time investment banking positions in New York City. It really is amazing how respected our E&B program is by outside corporations, which may explain why 15% of students decide to major in E&B at Lafayette.

As for job placement, I can only provide statistics which reflect students of all majors in any given graduating class. For the Class of 2006, for instance, 61% went on to full-time employment, while about 25% went on to higher education.

Just to summarize, E&B is one of Lafayette's strongest academic departments (second behind Engineering).

The brand-new Policy Studies program seems very interesting. While its focus remains squarely on E&B, it goes beyond the typical E&B topics with its different themes of concentration. For more information on our Policy Studies program, check out http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~policystudies/ and also feel free to contact the Program Chair, Professor William M. Crain, at crainm@lafayette.edu with questions.

Our International Affairs major is a combination of E&B, History, Government & Law, and a foreign language. We also offer a major which focuses on E&B and foreign language called "International Economics & Commerce" that you might be interested in. Our I.A. major is quite popular with those looking for a broad-based education.

Placement into higher education is something Lafayette is very proud to boast about! Let's examine placement into medical school as a representative example. Over the past ten years, those students with 3.6+ GPAs and competitive MCAT scores were accepted at a 93% rate. Those with GPAs in the range 3.2-3.6 were accepted at a 75% rate. Nationwide in 2006, only 48% of applicants were accepted by medical schools. Lafayette students applying to medical schools were accepted at a 75% rate in 2006.

Among applicants to law school in 2006, nationwide 64% of candidates were accepted. Of the Lafayette students applying to law school in 2006, 86% were accepted. I believe these numbers speak for themselves! Also be aware that Lafayette offers on-campus LSAT workshops and testing, as well as professional advising through our Office of Preprofessional Advising (more information here: http://www.lafayette.edu/academics/d...dies/proadvis/).

As for your question regarding Indian students, I really can't provide an exact percentage of Indian students on campus. However, I do know many international students who are from India. While I wouldn't say there are "a lot" of Indians on campus, I wouldn't say that they are a scare minority, either. If you would like to speak with an Indian student personally to hear what they think, just let me know.

All the best,

- Justin

want2bIvy

How prominent is greek life at Lafayette? I can't seem to find statistics showing what percent of students are involved. Are there many opportunities for students that are not involved in greek life? How does the social scene of Lafayette compare with that of Lehigh? Thanks!!

candyman92486

want2bIvy,

Allow me to direct you to one of my previous posts referencing the subject. FYI, about a third of eligible students participate in Greek life at Lafayette.

Response from post #508 in the "I'll Answer Your Lafayette Questions!" thread to CC user yanksman25 on 4/7/07:

<<< Yes, Greek life does play an important role in the residential community and in the social life of the college. However, I believe the user lafalum84 sums it up nicely in a recent post when she says that Greek life no longer dominates the social scene. One definitely does NOT have to belong to a fraternity or sorority to "fit in" or make friends.

I've found that you don't need to be directly involved in Greek life to "socially network", if you will. You might consider joining an athletic team (varsity, club, or intramural), joining multiple student organizations (religious, student governance, performance groups, shared interests, etc.), or even getting a campus job. I am friends with students in my classes and in my majors, with my fellow tour guides, fellow RAs, and those who live in my residence hall.

However, the option of participating in Greek life remains. Take me as an example. Even though I have no intention of joining a fraternity, I still take part in all the campus-wide events sponsored by our fraternities. I also hang out with girls in sororities after meeting them through my various commitments around campus.

I was pleasantly surprised with how positively Greek life contributes to Lafayette's sense of community. All the Greek houses (6 fraternities, 6 sororities) are located on campus, so they can't isolate themselves or "do their own thing." The administration does a great job of holding Greek life accountable for creating safe and inviting atmospheres. All prospective Greek events (with or without alcohol) must first be submitted in writing to the College for approval to ensure they abide by all laws and college regulations. Many of their sponsored events attract a great deal of non-Greek students (barbecues on the Quad, for instance).

Believe it or not, Greek life has a reputation that is largely unearned (at least at Lafayette). While they do hold parties on the weekends, they are safe and provide great opportunities to meet students outside your typical group of friends. If alcohol is available, there is never any pressure to consume. I guess you could say that alcohol can be used as a "social lubricant" for those students who feel awkward in social situations.

Referring back to your original question, you are provided with a multitude of alternate options if Greek life just doesn't seem appealing. Visit the Student Life webpage for a listing of student clubs/organizations: http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~studlife/. Also note that we offer apartment style and suite-style living options for upperclass students. If you make a few good friends, you might consider rooming with them in a more independent environment.

I hope, however, that you keep an open mind. The majority of students who "go Greek" initially have no intention of pledging, but once they begin to make friends with students in the Greek houses, they begin to see the benefits of the system. For more info on Greek Life, you should probably check out the webpage: http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~reslife/fr...es_sororities/. It is under construction at the moment, but what does work paints a fairly accurate picture of Greek life and its place in our "residential community." Also keep in mind that you could still participate in most Greek-sponsored events without having to officially be a member.

While I have nothing against Greek housing, I prefer the traditional residence hall environment. Both foster supportive communities, but I just enjoy the diversity of students who choose to live in traditional housing. >>>

As for the latter part of your question, want2bIvy, I would recommend speaking with a current Lehigh student to hear what their thoughts are about Greek life on campus. To be totally honest, I have a few friends at Lehigh who say that Greek life is slowly losing influence (due to the administration "cracking down"), but that the houses (19 fraternities and 8 sororities) still dominate the social scene. Again, this information comes from friends, but they have no reason to lie to me. From what I have been told, I believe it is safe to say that Lafayette students are less reliant on the Greek houses for fun and entertainment. The College is always sponsoring campus-wide events (guest speakers, comedians, concerts, theater programs, etc.) that cater to all students.

- Justin

want2bIvy

thanks justin!