Visitors to Campus:

Yesterday a group of the interns along with some other students on campus for the summer met up with one of William and Mary’s most loved Professors to give an informal tour to a group of young British students who were touring the area. The group consisted of about fifty students between the ages of 15 and 18. We split them in half and took them around the ancient Christopher Wren building and the beautiful paths of Old Campus while talking about our school and the characteristics that make it unique.

I was so struck by how curious these students were. At first everyone was a little quiet and unsure of what to talk about but very quickly the ice was broken and questions were flying in both directions. I think the interest was very mutual, as the William and Mary students were just as anxious to find out what the British students education system was like as they were to hear about ours. Some of the striking differences that stood out were size. I was talking with two guys who couldn’t believe how “big” our school was. To them, just under six thousand students was a mammoth size but to us we feel like a very small school in comparison to most other universities in the U.S. We also discovered that the selection of majors or subjects of study is a different process as well. Where we don’t have to select a major till the second semester sophomore year, they select the areas they will be studying at a much younger age (before they even go to a University). Discussion continued and we covered so many topics such as Greek life, classes, and the social experience at William and Mary. I think both sides really enjoyed getting to know the different systems better and gave all of us a broader view of higher education!