Why I Choose Clemson

Saturday marked a year since I decided that I would attend Clemson for my college years. It's crazy to me to think that a year has already passed as it feels like just yesterday but simultaneously feels like a gazillion years ago (funny how life does that to you!). I know that this year's seniors in high school are in the midst of deciding where they will be attending college in the fall so I decided that I would share why I decided that Clemson was the school for me!

The first time I visited Clemson, I got that "gut feeling" that it would be the school for me. I went to a small private high school and when I toured Clemson the January of my junior year, I thought that I would hate Clemson and would then focus on smaller to mid-sized colleges. When you enter the town of Clemson, there's a part of the road that has tiger paws painted on it and I got "the feeling" the moment my mom and I drove through (and I still do!).

Fast forward to my senior year and I was pretty conflicted on what I should do. I applied to 7 different colleges in North Carolina, South Carolina, and then one in Mississippi. I narrowed my decision down to two different schools that were drastically different. Clemson is a big state school with a big football program (Go Tigers!) while the other school was a smaller private school that was more similar to my high school. If y'all have been reading Chic in Carolina for a while, you can probably figure out what the other school is and I have nothing against this school and still speak highly of it, I just realized it wasn't the right fit for me.

Clemson hosted an Open House event for Education majors so my mom and I drove down to Clemson for the event and then decided to stop by the other school on the way home. I loved my day at Clemson but still wanted to stop by the other school. We got out of the car and were standing in the parking lot and I just had this gut feeling that I needed to chose Clemson. I remember literally getting out of the car and telling my mom "Clemson" as I just knew. The whole process of deciding on a college was pretty overwhelming and this sounds a little overdramatic but I started crying once I decided as even though I knew that Clemson was it, it scared me how outside of my comfort zone it would be for me. I'm so glad that I chose Clemson and looking back at my senior year, I know that it was the right choice. Now that y'all have heard me babble for a bit, here are why I chose Clemson:

The Campus

Clemson's campus is gorgeous, which a quick Google search will help y'all out with. The most iconic building on campus, Tillman Hall, houses the college of education and is so pretty! I also love that even though Clemson is a big school, it's so walkable and you can get pretty much anywhere in 10 minutes (except from my dorm to the gym haha). Clemson sunsets also cannot be missed as the orange and purple skies will convince you that God is a Clemson tiger (on my hall, it's not uncommon to hear someone yell "oh my gosh, look at the sunset")

The Clemson Family

When I heard my tour guides talk about how Clemson is one big family and the Clemson Family, I honestly thought it was just something they tell you on tours. It is honestly so true and everyone at Clemson is just so happy to be going to Clemson. Everyone on campus is so welcoming and nice, which makes Clemson feel so much like home.

The Education Program

As y'all know, I am an Elementary Education major and my major is obviously a large part of why I chose Clemson. Clemson has an amazing education program, which I absolutely fell in love with during the open house last spring as well as during orientation during the summer. We start taking our education courses freshman year, which is pretty unique, and are in the classroom in local schools our first semester of freshman year!

Sports

I was the third graduating class of my high school and since we were so new, sports and school spirit weren't exactly super big at my high school. I wanted to go to a school where everyone had a lot of school spirit and Clemson is definitely not lacking in school spirit. The amount of orange in my closet has grown substantially and it obviously wouldn't be the fall without Clemson football!

Traditions

Clemson has so many fun traditions to participate in, which I love especially after coming from a newer high school where we didn't have a ton of traditions! Clemson, being an older state school, has so many fun traditions from First Friday to the Cadence Count to the Alma Mater to the Clemson ring, which I absolutely love! Fun traditions bind the Clemson community together and make Clemson such a fun school to go to!

Even though it's a big school, it's a small world

One of my favorite things I heard on a college tour (at another big school) was that you can make a big school smaller, but you can't make a small school bigger. This really resonated with me and it's so true. As y'all know, I joined Theta the first week I was at Clemson and I love that it gives me a connection with so many other girls on campus (Clemson sororities are literally the size of my high school as each sorority has around 200 girls in it). Even though Clemson is big with around 16,000 undergrads, I literally can't walk to class or go to the library without seeing at least 3 people I know, which I love. Clemson is such a small world as I feel like everyone knows everybody, which I love.

Good luck to all of this year's seniors in their big decisions!