Visit Report by Amwidkle (Member since February 10 2007 with 26 posts) Visit Date - March 2007
Visit to Davidson College in March 2007 by Amwidkle (Student, HS Class of 2008)
Visit Activities:
Campus Tour:
No - We gave ourselves a campus tour. I don't think this was too much of a setback because one can walk down one side of campus and back up the other side in roughly ten minutes.
Davidson College Campus:
Friendliness/Courtesy of Students: 3 - Good -
Students on the whole seemed to give us the cold shoulder. My mom struck up a conversation with a student as we left, however.
Friendliness/Courtesy of Staff: -
We didn't meet any staff.
Appearance of Campus: 5 - Excellent -
We all agreed that the campus got a 12/10 on the cuteness scale.
Building/Facilities Maintenance/Cleanliness: 5 - Excellent -
Facilities looked remarkably well-maintained. Some students had left things lying around, but this seemed like more of a testament to the honor code than to a lack of maintenance.
Dormitories: 4 - Very Good -
We only saw the outside of the dormitories, but they looked as good as any.
Security/Safety: 5 - Excellent -
Careful! You might get hit by a tree swing. Or a falling acorn. Actually, dying of boredom is probably the biggest threat at Davidson.
Overall Campus Impression: 3 - Good -
I thought the campus was much too small to live at for four years, but admittedly it was quite lovely to visit.
Off-Campus:
Area Immediately Around Campus: 4 - Very Good -
Davidson is a small town just east of Lake Norman. It struck me as a better place to retire than to spend one's college years.
City/Town/Community: 5 - Excellent -
Davidson is 20 miles north of Charlotte. 'Nuff said.
Campus Visit Notes for Davidson College:
Visit Description:
Davidson College is only 1,700 undergraduates (about 600 students smaller than my high school), with no graduate students. Davidson is also the most homogeneous college I have ever visited - I saw only one black student and a couple asians out of the ~150 students that I saw. Finally, a large chunk of the already tiny campus is devoted to athletics. All three of these factors turned me off of Davidson in a pretty big hurry.
Charlotte, however, is hands-down the biggest upside to Davidson. Many, many companies have their headquarters there, and the internship possibilities are endless. We visited Charlotte during the afternoon and it seemed to offer all the advantages of a big southern city like Atlanta (sports, restaurants, weather, skyline) with none of the drawbacks (crime). I am sure that Charlotte has rough parts like any other city, but these seem to be far removed from downtown.
Hotel/Lodging Recommendations or Comments:
Just passing through on the way to Duke...
Dining/Restaurant Recommendations or Comments:
In Charlotte there are beaucoup restaurants, all of them excellent. I'm not as sure about dining within Davidson proper, though.
Other Comments (Transportation, local attractions, parking, etc.):
I'd recommend a car, as I saw no shuttle service. You will probably die of boredom unless you can get to Charlotte on weekends. Also invest in a bike to explore the Lake Norman area.
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Students on the whole seemed to give us the cold shoulder. My mom struck up a conversation with a student as we left, however.
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We didn't meet any staff.
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We all agreed that the campus got a 12/10 on the cuteness scale.
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We only saw the outside of the dormitories, but they looked as good as any.