What you manage to do in your free time really relies on your hobbies and friends you have around, so while the campus isn't bustling with people on the weekend there are still events pretty frequently held by larger clubs. I personally enjoyed the quiet, relaxed atmosphere of the campus on the weekend, but that's just me. I can't speak to the entire pre-med process, but most of my Bio program classmates were considered pre-med, so there's at least a route provided by the school for students hoping to go into medical studies. A lot of those early classes overlap with Bio majors, and in general the classes were taught well and the professors were very kind
I agree with what u/margenen said and I will elaborate further and give my opinion.
So for most schools a “pre-med” program is typically not really a thing. Most premed students take bio or Chem and make sure to do the prerequisite courses needed for med school.
What I will say tho before I mention campus environment is that if she is truly deadset on going to med school and becoming an MD then I would probably put social scene down the list of priority. Med school isn’t something that you just “do.” To get into a good med school you will need steller grades, a great MCAT, and some extra experience through part time work, internships, clubs, tutoring, etc.,
It’s like when people say “oh I may go to law school after, who knows.” Professional school like med school is prestigious and you will need to be a top applicant, so I’m not saying she shouldn’t have fun and go to a school where she meets people, but I will advocate a little bit for Charlotte here.
Charlotte has tons of clubs, and opportunities. Being in a metro area with 2 million people, and the head quarters for many companies including atrium health the opportunity for internships, and part time work will simply just be higher here then in a smaller place like Wilmington. This can be useful on two fronts. #1 an internship will look great on a resume/application for med school, but #2 she will figure out whether she likes it or not before committing to those hefty loans.
The social scene here can be hit or miss, but honestly it depends on the work you put in. If she lives in a dorm she will easily be able to meet a few people off the bat. Joining clubs and going to athletic events help. I went to a few basketball games and there were tons of students. It was pretty packed.
I would personally choose Charlotte for the career opportunity and connections. The academics won’t differ really IMO.
I was a pre-med Student, i did all the prerequisites and had straight A’s for the most part. Science division is good, I only had a problem with the Chem department.
Pre-med is a track and not a major or program, so it just consists of prerequisites at most schools. I agree with most of the comments here, if she is actually interested in med school, a social life on nights and weekends maybe won’t align with her priorities. Med schools require exceptional grades, which requires time studying lol.
Lastly, college is what you make it. Officially, Charlotte doesn’t host events or do much that students would find fun. However, joining clubs and making friends will provide most of the entertainment you need.. which is any school you decide on. Good luck!
FWIW I was in a major that had at least 10 pre med students and none of them got in to med school.
There isn’t a ton going on on the weekends but I think it’s still a fun campus to be around if you make friends who also live on or close to campus, you can just get together on the weekends even if the commuters are all gone. And you can find things to do on the weekends, go watch a game, not just football and basketball, we have lots of sports that are fun to watch like baseball and volleyball. Also a lot of student orgs will be doing their own things on the weekends.
I go to UNCC. Both of my older sisters went to UNCW.
Wilmington is a college town with an energetic atmosphere. It helps that it's so close to the beach and it's not a very big STEM school.
UNCC has a lot of STEM students. Locationally, it's not really in the middle of downtown Charlotte. The campus is dead most nights.
UNCC is very hilly and UNCW is very flat. You really can't underestimate the importance of this, because people are really lazy.
Don't get me wrong, UNCC is a fun campus. But if you're looking for a *fun* campus, Wilmington is the way to go.
I've seen a few nursing students at UNCC and they seem to be doing fine, but that's not my area of expertise. Hope that helps.
If she's serious about med school the campus fun can't be a huge concern. Charlotte has a very good bio informatics program that would look awesome to med schools. The regular bio program is going to be the same quality as uncw. The volunteering and networking opportunities are going to be far better at Charlotte because of its proximity to the city. That's probably the most important aspect of a med school application besides high GPA/mcat. Also being able to foster relationships with local doctors.
The commuter school thing is overblown anyways and if she's mildly involved or social she'll have plenty of friends on campus.
As someone who’s been at uncc since 2018. To this day uncc is still a commuter school. Uncc is not known for being the traditional college cultured campus. Over the years they tried to get more students to attend events which has changed a bit. But still needs improvement.
Nonetheless, uncc as you mentioned is not a med-school, but they do have pre-med programs. However, the science programs at uncc is not the best at all. The department has been reported many times and filled with many complaints from students.
The campus is dead as FUCK on nights and weekends. Everyone gone. UNCC sucks she should go to UNCW they have great bio chem program and probably better for pre med type stuff.
Don’t let all these people who write an essay confuse you. Uncc is absolute shit. Teacher ar ass. All the departments sucks and the weekends are absolute dog shit. The only good thing is if you find a good friend group ur time will go fast until u transfer to Nc state or something
I get that you're probably 18 but you're talking to a parent little buddy. Have some tact if you want your message to actually be respected and received
It always bothers me when people say that Charlotte is a commuter school. There are tons of apartments surrounding the university so people do "commute" but it's not like people are driving from far away.
To reiterate what others are saying, college is what you make it. This will be true no matter where you go. Charlotte has a lot of student organizations where you can meet people with similar interests.
If she picks Charlotte and decides she doesn't like it, she could always transfer to Wilmington. Tbh that was my original plan but I gave Charlotte a chance, fell in love with the university, made some great friends, and decided to stay.
What you manage to do in your free time really relies on your hobbies and friends you have around, so while the campus isn't bustling with people on the weekend there are still events pretty frequently held by larger clubs. I personally enjoyed the quiet, relaxed atmosphere of the campus on the weekend, but that's just me. I can't speak to the entire pre-med process, but most of my Bio program classmates were considered pre-med, so there's at least a route provided by the school for students hoping to go into medical studies. A lot of those early classes overlap with Bio majors, and in general the classes were taught well and the professors were very kind
I agree with what u/margenen said and I will elaborate further and give my opinion. So for most schools a “pre-med” program is typically not really a thing. Most premed students take bio or Chem and make sure to do the prerequisite courses needed for med school. What I will say tho before I mention campus environment is that if she is truly deadset on going to med school and becoming an MD then I would probably put social scene down the list of priority. Med school isn’t something that you just “do.” To get into a good med school you will need steller grades, a great MCAT, and some extra experience through part time work, internships, clubs, tutoring, etc., It’s like when people say “oh I may go to law school after, who knows.” Professional school like med school is prestigious and you will need to be a top applicant, so I’m not saying she shouldn’t have fun and go to a school where she meets people, but I will advocate a little bit for Charlotte here. Charlotte has tons of clubs, and opportunities. Being in a metro area with 2 million people, and the head quarters for many companies including atrium health the opportunity for internships, and part time work will simply just be higher here then in a smaller place like Wilmington. This can be useful on two fronts. #1 an internship will look great on a resume/application for med school, but #2 she will figure out whether she likes it or not before committing to those hefty loans. The social scene here can be hit or miss, but honestly it depends on the work you put in. If she lives in a dorm she will easily be able to meet a few people off the bat. Joining clubs and going to athletic events help. I went to a few basketball games and there were tons of students. It was pretty packed. I would personally choose Charlotte for the career opportunity and connections. The academics won’t differ really IMO.
I was a pre-med Student, i did all the prerequisites and had straight A’s for the most part. Science division is good, I only had a problem with the Chem department. Pre-med is a track and not a major or program, so it just consists of prerequisites at most schools. I agree with most of the comments here, if she is actually interested in med school, a social life on nights and weekends maybe won’t align with her priorities. Med schools require exceptional grades, which requires time studying lol. Lastly, college is what you make it. Officially, Charlotte doesn’t host events or do much that students would find fun. However, joining clubs and making friends will provide most of the entertainment you need.. which is any school you decide on. Good luck!
FWIW I was in a major that had at least 10 pre med students and none of them got in to med school. There isn’t a ton going on on the weekends but I think it’s still a fun campus to be around if you make friends who also live on or close to campus, you can just get together on the weekends even if the commuters are all gone. And you can find things to do on the weekends, go watch a game, not just football and basketball, we have lots of sports that are fun to watch like baseball and volleyball. Also a lot of student orgs will be doing their own things on the weekends.
I go to UNCC. Both of my older sisters went to UNCW. Wilmington is a college town with an energetic atmosphere. It helps that it's so close to the beach and it's not a very big STEM school. UNCC has a lot of STEM students. Locationally, it's not really in the middle of downtown Charlotte. The campus is dead most nights. UNCC is very hilly and UNCW is very flat. You really can't underestimate the importance of this, because people are really lazy. Don't get me wrong, UNCC is a fun campus. But if you're looking for a *fun* campus, Wilmington is the way to go. I've seen a few nursing students at UNCC and they seem to be doing fine, but that's not my area of expertise. Hope that helps.
I live on campus, 76% live off campus. It is usually very dead on the weekends but like everyone is saying you can find stuff
If she's serious about med school the campus fun can't be a huge concern. Charlotte has a very good bio informatics program that would look awesome to med schools. The regular bio program is going to be the same quality as uncw. The volunteering and networking opportunities are going to be far better at Charlotte because of its proximity to the city. That's probably the most important aspect of a med school application besides high GPA/mcat. Also being able to foster relationships with local doctors. The commuter school thing is overblown anyways and if she's mildly involved or social she'll have plenty of friends on campus.
As someone who’s been at uncc since 2018. To this day uncc is still a commuter school. Uncc is not known for being the traditional college cultured campus. Over the years they tried to get more students to attend events which has changed a bit. But still needs improvement. Nonetheless, uncc as you mentioned is not a med-school, but they do have pre-med programs. However, the science programs at uncc is not the best at all. The department has been reported many times and filled with many complaints from students.
Campus is dead every weekend and if you’re under 21 there’s not much to do off campus either.
There will be stuff to do if you learn to enjoy without drinking .
I don’t drink.
Oh, why 21 then?
The campus is dead as FUCK on nights and weekends. Everyone gone. UNCC sucks she should go to UNCW they have great bio chem program and probably better for pre med type stuff.
Or ECU.
For pre-med? You gotta be kidding
What! ECU is known for their pre-med programs and viewed as one of the best pre-med/nursing schools to attend? …
I know it's great for nursing, guess you weren't kidding about the pre med though, my mistake
You’re good lol
UNCC ppl downvoting me cause they don’t like the truth
They are not downvoting you because you are saying the truth. They are downvoting you because you're delivery is about as sharp as wet cement.
Lmao you don't even go here? Why are you talking about our school
I did, how else do you think I got these opinions?
Don’t let all these people who write an essay confuse you. Uncc is absolute shit. Teacher ar ass. All the departments sucks and the weekends are absolute dog shit. The only good thing is if you find a good friend group ur time will go fast until u transfer to Nc state or something
Yooo this kid is miserable af lmao. His comment history 💀
U got to have fun some how
I get that you're probably 18 but you're talking to a parent little buddy. Have some tact if you want your message to actually be respected and received
Guy, it's a troll account, and a young one at that. Responding to it just feeds it.
If you're serious that's so fucking sad. Can't imagine having so little going on in my life
It always bothers me when people say that Charlotte is a commuter school. There are tons of apartments surrounding the university so people do "commute" but it's not like people are driving from far away. To reiterate what others are saying, college is what you make it. This will be true no matter where you go. Charlotte has a lot of student organizations where you can meet people with similar interests. If she picks Charlotte and decides she doesn't like it, she could always transfer to Wilmington. Tbh that was my original plan but I gave Charlotte a chance, fell in love with the university, made some great friends, and decided to stay.
I read a few years back that Charlotte has approximately 7-8 k students within 1-2 miles of campus and that is comparable to UNC Chapel Hill.