KarenNC Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Does anyone have any experience with liberal arts at NC State? I know it's known as a big engineering/science/math school, but my daughter is potentially interested in their English/creative writing program, which was recommended to her. Knowing that many, many kids change majors during college, I've advised her to look at the other majors she may find interesting as well (women's/gender/sexuality studies, psych, history, at the moment). I'm actually hopeful that wanting to go for something other than math/science might make her a bit more competitive if they are looking for a somewhat more diverse class. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckymama Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I don't have experience with that particular school or department, but I do want to share how we compare departments at different schools. You may already do all these things, in which case this will help others reading along :) We use the department website to read professor bios, check prof research topics to see if anything sounds interesting to dd, look for information on the size of the department (both faculty and students in that major), compare the list of courses with the courses actually offered that semester/year (can take some digging), check textbooks used in classes, look for information about internships, research and study abroad opportunities, and so on. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tess in the Burbs Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I went to NC State and know someone who graduated from the English Dept. Sadly she never was able to secure the editing job she wanted in life and runs a church preschool now. She loved State. It's a great school if you like large schools. I transferred to UNC-Asheville halfway through college and knew many people in the English dept there who LOVED it. Much smaller place obviously, but lots of creativity going on at that school. The humanities required sequence is a classical homeschooler's dream ;-) I agree with looking at the professors bio's and trying to visit the campus/department to get a feel for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KarenNC Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 Thanks, that's very helpful! She's very interested in John Kessel, who is over the creative writing dept, as he has a Nebula award and she prefers speculative fiction. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckymama Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Thanks, that's very helpful! She's very interested in John Kessel, who is over the creative writing dept, as he has a Nebula award and she prefers speculative fiction. Try to determine how many classes he teaches a semester/year, who can take the classes (juniors and seniors only?), and if his classes are difficult to get into (do seniors fill the classes first?). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jane in NC Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 Yes! One of my friends switched from engineering to philosophy, then went on to a successful career as a technical writer, working for well known software and hardware companies. A young man I know decided against UNC-CH when he realized that he would have to fight for a position on the Daily Tar Heel whereas he had better odds to write for the Technician (student newspapers) which he began doing as a first year student. NCSU has some interesting arts related programs. I would visit the school and check them out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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