Overnight stay & interview-Feedback welcome

BobbyCT
Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:35:25 +0000

I think our Wednesday visit might have been a classic example of where you set your expectations prior to the visit. My D had low expectations and was pleasantly surprised. On the other hand, I had set very high expectations that were probably impossible to meet. I thought it was a very good school but not quite what I was expecting. D really liked it though and that is all that matters.

Part of the problem may have been our tour guide. She never smiled once, looked like she just woke up and just read from a script. Every college has that one unenthusiastic tour guide and I guess it was our luck of the draw. The other thing that stood out was how often the tour guide brought up the large percentage of Jewish students and all the clubs and activities for Jewish students. One of the parents on the tour asked me if Muhlenberg was a Jewish school since he thought it was Lutheran related. I fully appreciate religious diversity but this was a little overwhelming.

The campus was very nice and seemed a little larger than it actually was, a very good use of space. D loved her classes and the highlight of the trip for her was when one of the dance students volunteered to show her the dance studios. It was also nice to see a campus that appeared to be “clique” free. The students were some of the friendliest we have seen on any campus. Another nice surprise was the Physical Activity Center, a very modern facility with a large cardio mezzanine and weight room as well as olympic size pool.

Another plus is that the general education requirements are not so harsh and time consuming as many of the LAC’s we have seen. It allows for easy double majors or minors. The classes D attended were small and had some discussion based element to them. Her interview went extremely well. I honestly thought D would not like the college because of the campus size and tour guide (which unfortunately sets the tone for her, we have never been to a college with a bad tour guide that she showed any interest in after the visit). However, proving that I should never try to predict what a teenage girl is thinking, she really liked the school. It was also nice that it is the only school she is considering that is a reasonable drive from home. I am not sure if she will want to change her application to ED status right now since she never seems to want to share that information with her parents. God forbid we were to actually know what she thinks. However, the trip exceeded her expectations.

The Wingate was a great recommendation, very nice hotel with friendly staff. As far as smoking smell, I thought I saw a sign in the lobby that said the hotel was 100% smoking free. Thanks to everyone for their feedback and recommendations!