Let's Go Girls!!!!!!!!!!!
Written: Aug 28 '00 (Updated Aug 28 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Great atmosphere, great program, great area!
Cons: None!
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| armywife's Full Review: Meredith College |
Meredith College is a private 4 year liberal arts college exclusively for women. It is located in Raleigh, NC within steps of NC State University, one of the major universities in North Carolina.
Meredith has a relatively small campus like most private colleges. As a result you will not have the same environment that you get at a big university school. You will not get lost or need a map to find your way around.
The campus itself is beautiful. When you first drive in to Meredith you pass by the beautiful chapel on your left and lake on your right. The lake is centered next to the large outside "theater stadium". This is where many events take place at Meredith. Graduation and Cornhuskin' a popular Meredith tradition that takes place in the Fall. (It is similar to Homecoming events at other schools only a lot more fun!)You will also see a lot of Meredith grads coming back here to have their weddings because it does make such a beautiful setting.
The atmosphere you will find at Meredith is one of pride in their school and Meredith girls do have a tendency to stick together. There is a certain camraderie within the students of this school and this shows in the way they assist the lower level students to adjust to the transition of being away from home.
Meredith has programs set up so that each new student has an experienced Meredith student to show her around and keep up with her. This is much like an "older sister" to you. Unlike most big colleges where you are thrown in the mix and must figure things out on your own, Meredith is designed to specifically make you feel at home.
There are many events to get you involved in the college and to make sure that you do not ever feel alone. That is the advantage to a small private school, especially one that is all women.
The dorms are quite nice and the parking lots are situated right beside them so you will never be far from your car. The dorms are set up as suites where you share a bathroom with two other students who are in the room next door. There are laundry rooms at the end of every hall and a big living room type area on the first floor so that any visitors you have (speaking mainly of the male persuasion here!) can come and visit.
That's right ladies...no men allowed upstairs in your rooms except on special occasions when they have open house or of course on moving day. You could always get special permission to have your Dad upstairs though from your resident advisor who is always available to answer your questions and help you out with any problems you might have.
If you have a preference for who you'd like your roommate to be you can both simply request eachother and then you can keep the same roommate throughout your college experience. This was the case many times over at Meredith. My roommate and I transferred into Meredith together. We were longtime friends from highschool and we roomed together from the day we arrived until the day we left.
The dining hall is located next to the dorms and is a very short walk from there. The meals are cafateria style food but I will say they are a step above the rest. There is always a salad bar out at lunch and dinner. They have an area where you can refill your drinks or cereal at your own convenience. You must simply show your ID to get into the dining hall and you can go back for seconds as much as you like.
Several times a year Meredith will either have caterers come in (at Christmas time) to serve a huge delicious meal to their students or they will have waffle days where they make big belgium waffles to your specification complete with whip creams and strawberries if you like.
They make an effort to keep their students happy. You will also find karaoke going on in here a few times a year to keep you entertained while you eat! The dining hall itself from a purely aesthetic point of view feels simialar to a nice restaurant. They did a great job making this a pleasant place to dine.
There are several extracurricular activities that you can become involved in as a student here. They have volunteer organizations set up where you could spend your Spring break working for Habitat for Humanity if you like.
There are various clubs associated with the different majors and a paper/magazine you could volunteer to work for as well. The Student Goverment sponsors most of the events going on throughout the year. They bring bands into the courtyard and the dining hall serve the dinners outside that night. You can sit on the lawn and listen to music. This is also a time you could invite guests to come by. It is always lots of fun. They do this quite often. They also show movies in the student union regularly.
Academics are very important at Meredith and if you do come to this school you will find yourself in an excellent scholastic program. At the time I applied to Meredith the admissions standards were not rigorous. Even if your grades are not the best you will more than likely have very little problem being accepted to this school. However once you are a student there the standard is high. I rather like this about Meredith.
You will find that your professors do care about each student individually and you will NOT be a number here. You will not be able to hide in the back of the classroom and go unnoticed as you might at a large university. They will notice when you're there and they will notice when you're not!
I double majored in English and Psychology. Both departments were terrific. It is a lot of fun once you get into your major because you tend to attend the same classes with the same students over and over again. You get to know eachother and the professors and this is in a lot of ways like a club unto itself.
The Psychology program is scientifically based. You will find yourself taking statistics and experimental psychology along with neuropsychology or some other biology based class. You are required to write a thesis and have an oral presentation before you graduate within the Experimental class. Everyone has to do it ! It is nerve wracking but you will really appreciate the experience later on !
You have the opportunity to become involved in an internship program while you are there. I would highly recommend this. Since the degrees here are mostly in the liberal arts (and this tends to be a hard field to break into) you need that experience in a specific area.
Now on to the most important aspect of your college life....your SOCIAL life!! I saved this for last because I know it is probably the number one thing people think about when choosing a college.
If you are worried that you will miss out on the big excitement of attending a large university..you can worry no more. Meredith is practically across the street from NC State the major university in Raleigh.
They are home to the Wolfpack, a fantastic football team. Attending Meredith is much like belonging to a large sorority. You still will become involved in everything going on at NC State and all you do is simply cross over on to their campus and you can become a part of that scene as well.
If you still want the opportunity to attend fraternity parties and other events going on there like football games etc. you can do it with no problem. As a matter of fact in the fall after Cornhuskin' is over Meredith actually has buses running until very late at night to bus students back and forth to the various parties going on at NC State. After that you'll have to drive your car but the point is that Meredith and NC State students definately socialize together!! I defy you to spend 4 years at Meredith without dating a student from NC State.
There are also many churches in the area that cater to the college students that live there. You will find ministries within the churches catering to the college students and this is another place you can go to meet other students who attend Meredith and NC State.
There is one particular church, Forest Hills, which is extremely close to the campus of Meredith and they offer weekly activities along with missions trips and even a summer program if you stick around in the summer! They offer car pools if you call the offices when you arrive and you will have someone there to pick you up.
If you prefer the type of activities offered within this atmosphere you will love it as well. Don't miss their Fall Square Dance the first week back at school. That is when all the new students arrive and you will get to meet other students like yourself and make lots of new friends. Soon after they sponsor a beach trip to one of the beautiful beaches in North Carolina which you won't want to miss.
Meredith and NC State are located in Raleigh which of course was rated the number one place to live in the mid 90's. There is a reason for that. There are tons of things to do there. Anything you could want in a place to live...parks, shopping, theatre, downtown...you have it all.
Meredith is also just a short distance away from Durham where Duke is so again you have another major university close by. There is also University of Chapel Hill not far away and many students attend events there as well.
You have the best of both worlds in this school. You can get the experiences that large universities offer without having to actually attend one yourself. It is nice to be able to come back to your homey campus at night and know that you are part of a smaller, more intimate college community without having to sacrifice the things you would like about a large university.
North Carolina itself is a beautiful state. If you're not entirely careful you may end up making it your home after graduation!!! They have tons of career opportunities there and so it is very possible you will find a job right there in the "Research Triangle" as it is called (Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill). You are close by to the beaches of North Carolina as well which are always acclaimed as some of the most beautiful.
Those who graduate from Meredith feel a close affinity with the school as one of its alumni. This is evident in the number of alumni's children who attend Meredith. This might even be defined as one of Meredith's traditions. It has been over 5 years since I graduated from Meredith and I am now married with 2 little girls of my own. I have to admit that even though neither one of them has even started kindergarten yet....I can't help wondering if one of these days I may find myself back on that campus moving them in to the dorms...
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
armywife
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Location: White Sands Missile Range, NM
Reviews written: 35
Trusted by: 9 members
About Me:
Army wife, Stay at home Mom and Graduate student in Professional Counseling.
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