Furman University Top Questions

I would say the thing that sticks out in my mind the most about Furman is that everyone I meet, and I mean everyone, is extremely nice. It's impossible to walk to class without seeing someone you know that will stop and greet you. The campus is beautiful too, and most of the academic buildings are in very good condition. That being said, I think that Furman is far from perfect. While I enjoy some aspects of the relatively small size of Furman, I sometimes wish there were more people on campus so that there would be a more equal ratio of men to women (women largely outnumber men here). Greenville itself is a cool town and has a lot to offer, but the location of Furman makes it difficult to access Greenville's opportunities easily because Furman is at least a 10 minute drive from downtown. The faculty and staff are usually helpful and very willing to meet with students outside of class. There is almost no school spirit; sports, especially football, are not popular here and people usually only go to football games to tailgate. Students most often complain about the huge workload, lack of food options, and how small Furman can feel at times.

I would say the thing that sticks out in my mind the most about Furman is that everyone I meet, and I mean everyone, is extremely nice. It's impossible to walk to class without seeing someone you know that will stop and greet you. The campus is beautiful too, and most of the academic buildings are in very good condition. That being said, I think that Furman is far from perfect. While I enjoy some aspects of the relatively small size of Furman, I sometimes wish there were more people on campus so that there would be a more equal ratio of men to women (women largely outnumber men here). Greenville itself is a cool town and has a lot to offer, but the location of Furman makes it difficult to access Greenville's opportunities easily because Furman is at least a 10 minute drive from downtown. The faculty and staff are usually helpful and very willing to meet with students outside of class. There is almost no school spirit; sports, especially football, are not popular here and people usually only go to football games to tailgate. Students most often complain about the huge workload, lack of food options, and how small Furman can feel at times.

Furman has about 2700 students, making it a wonderful size for those desiring a small, liberal arts environment--yet not too small. Students study fairly hard, but then also spend a lot of time in club sports, intramural sports, and outdoor activities. Most students fall into the preppy category, but are not pretentious or showy. Most are down to earth, fun, but very focused on success in life. My first day as a freshman, several of us were already discussing what graduate schools we would attend. Students enjoy each other and have a lot of school spirit, although that spirit is slightly more laid back than SEC football spirit. Greenville is a magnificent city of 300,000, with nice restaurants, bars and sufficient night life. But, in the end, most students love being around other students who were probably "best all around" in high school. Professors are caring and students are wonderful.

I think Furman is the right size because that is the size university I wanted to attend. There is so much to get involved with on campus and in Greenville that you have no excuse to be bored. There is a ton of pride from students, alums and the larger community. The huge issue last year was all of the political candidates that spoke on campus with the addition of Ann Coulter's visit and President Bush giving the Commencement Address. I was very proud of how most people dealt with it. Not at all proud of the faculty protesters at Commencement - VERY SELFISH on their part.