Prebusiness/law interest… what are the considerations?
Have you visited? Are both schools affordable?
Have you looked at what Clemson Honors offers ? Is it of interest to you ? All Honors colleges are different. You should join one for the enrichment jr opportunities it gives if it aligns with your desires. For my kids, some did. Some didn’t.
Neither b school is direct admit but Clemson’s seems more attainable.
Clemson is rural with a lake. UNC suburban.
Cost may be an issue? Surely they don’t cost the same.
For law school, they are equivalent.
If you don’t go to law, both are great but UNC might (not definitely) open a few more doors.
If you read about Clemson Honors and you are jazzed by it, then that’s great.
Best of luck.
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UNC is a top school and a degree from there can help in a lot of ways. Mine chose UNC (no honors) over NC State (honors) in a heartbeat. Personally, I don’t think the honors college does much other than give a kid who is at the top end of a school a place to push themselves. At UNC, that won’t be an issue. Classes are tough. Kids are working their butts off. Feel free to ask me other things about UNC if it will be helpful!
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When reading about the honors experience at Clemson, I noticed that honors students get free tickets to the Brooks Center for the Performing Arts. Is that something that is of interest?
Clemson seems to provide honors students with travel grants for study abroad.To my knowledge UNC does not, however any FA received also applies to study abroad.
Clemson honors has a variety of research positions, small group learning with profs, and research grants. UNC has this as well, for all students.
Students from both schools are accepted to law school, but I have not looked at where.
Non-honors students at UNC are invited to present at conferences, they are invited to profs homes for dinner, invites to travel with profs for research purposes etc.
I would visit if possible and decide which one you like better. I would also ask about research and potential funding cuts, if you plan to participate in research.
Can you speak with business students at both schools? I would ask about their experiences.
You might also want to compare costs, as law school is expensive. There are scholarships depending on the school.
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I would likely choose UNC for business although I went to Clemson and overall loved it. I’m not sure anyone cares about Clemson Honors college in the professional world. Granted my opinions are from 20 years ago so hopefully things have improved. I completed both general and department honors for finance at Clemson and it was overall a negative experience. I had no interest in the honors dorm although I think that building has changed. My first problem with general honors were the lack of course choices. You are trying to 1) get general ed and entry level business classes out of the way while squeezing in these honors classes to get to the next set of honors classes. 2) I came in with 21 hours from APs so many of the basic honors classes I had already completed. I was left taking things like upper level English honors which was torture and resulted in a B - thanks a lot. Something I would have never taken otherwise. 2) there was no special relationship or meaningful projects or even an advisor 3) once I got to departmental honors the real fun started. Honors for finance was a joke. There was no research or mentoring. Nothing unique. It was busy work or harder tests for the sake of being honors that resulted in a few more B’s that could have been A’s. Most of my finance honors classes were actually in the same class as the regular section but the honors kids were given a project with no direction.
It was not worth it to me. It limited what I wanted to explore as electives. It lowered my gpa with nothing in return.
I have a junior and senior and always look into exactly what students are getting and not getting in an honors program.
Things are likely better but I would look into this. For reference I was valedictorian of my high school and went on to investment banking so it’s not like I struggled as a student. It was just a waste of time to me. Maybe general honors is worth it. IDK.
Congrats! You are going to be awesome no matter what and Clemson honors might be great now. Just look into it.
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I would too, but I thought I would present information about both. UNC is truly an unbelievable school.
But…I know Clemson grads who are very successful now, and for them it was the right fit.
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Totally. My comment replied to you but I really meant to make a comment that was general. Mine was obviously specific to Clemson. As someone who has worked in finance, UNC would be a stronger choice but if cost is a factor, one has to weigh that!
Interestingly the director of the honors college at Clemson randomly reached out to me about a year ago as we have a mutual friend. They were asking for feedback from alumni and their experiences with the honors college. I’m guessing it is much improved now.
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This is likely the same in most cases anywhere.
But that’s why students should see what Honors offers - and whether or not those offers and enrichment fit them specifically. One should do Honors because it’s great for them, not for a job. In some cases, Honors is a great fit for a student’s needs.
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My daughter is a senior finance major in the Clemson honors college. She absolutely loves it, loves her classes, loves her advisors (3). She has great relationships with her professors. She has a 4.0 and is actually the top business student in her class (I think the fact that she has 30 extra credits than what she needs for graduation pushed her there). She’s a math minor but actually her focus is actuarial science (she organized a Q &A for finance students at her advisor’s request, to drum up more interest).
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That’s great to hear. Clearly things have improved for the better!! As others have said, it’s always important to research what these programs offer and if it’s a fit. My experience from 20 years ago is likely irrelevant at this point but does serve as an overall example that honors programs can vary and not always be a fit. Congrats to your daughter!
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Visited as a junior - making return visits now to admitted days. Cost not a factor for UG or law.
Congrats!! Hopefully the visits will add clarity to the decision making process.
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There are scholarships you can apply for when studying abroad. I am not sure how easy they are to get, but mine plans to do so next year.
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If I’m remembering correctly UNC KF admits based on a holistic approach. There’s no guarantee you’ll get into the business school. You might have to pick an adjacent major like Econ.
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Correct - 45% to 50% admit rate to KF… with an expectation of more seats to come as a new building is about to be completed. It’s a key factor for a prebusiness major to consider.
Does your student have a plan B or C if they attend UNC? Law schools accept all type of majors.
Clemson is a fine school but UNC is a public Ivy. That would be my vote unless your student prefers Clemson. Good luck.
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My daughter is class of 26 at UNC OOS and we just visited Clemson with our son. If the honors thing is important, my daughter applied to Honors Carolina at the end of her freshman year and was accepted. Having said that, UNC is a very special place. I don’t think my daughter could be happier.
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Just wanted to close the loop - DD25 chose UNC.
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