KatinCA

My daughter is considering attending Elon University. We know that it is in a very small town near Greensboro and Raleigh. My question-- what is the weather like there in the winter? How is the drive from the airport- and which airport is best to use? Will she have total culture shock there if she is coming from out-of-state and isn't the "sorority-joining-type"?

Diana

Elon College is actually in Burlington, which used to be a mill town.

It's almost exactly in between Raleigh and Greensboro - about 50 miles from each.

The weather there in the winter is not too bad. It usually doesn't snow much around here, but Burlington lies right on what seems to be an invisible line where if it does snow, it's worse over that way.

It depends on what airline you would be flying as to which airport to go to. The distance to both is close to the same.

The cost can be as much as $100 different as to which airline is selected between the two airports.

It's pretty quiet over there, and being a small town in the south and a private school, my guess is it's kind of clique-ish, but I'm sure she would be fine unless she is expecting glitzy nightlife and shopping close by.

Gretchen

Elon has risen rapidly in the small college/university ranks. I think there is excellent attention to the individual student. Located as it is between Wake Forest, Chapel Hill, Duke and NC State, I imagine the opportunity for social events is quite legion. She can fly to Piedmont Triad Airport (near Greensboro) and probably take advantage of cheaper airfares. Also Raleigh-Durham is serviced by a number of low fare airlines. Going to college is very much of a growing experience--I am sure she will find a group of friends.

KatinCA

Thanks for your replies!

sclubb

KatinCA - in case you're still looking for replies (I know I'm a month late) - I am actually an Elon grad! I was from out of state & also was not interested in joining a sorority - and I had a GREAT time there! There are a lot of Greeks there, but there are SO many other things to get involved with too. The weather was wonderful (coming from the north) the winters are very mild. I was just back to the campus for a visit in October & things are even more beautiful than when I graduated (10 yrs ago). I wish I could be a student there now! I have lived many places in the south & that area of NC (near Raleigh/Greensboro) is a great area and I dont think she will have much culture shock. I will say that the first year was hard - which is probably the case for any college student moving away - but once she finds her group of friends, she will have a great time! It's a great school!

KatinCA

Thanks for your reply! Yes, my daughter is still interested in this college, but was wary of the whole Greek influence ... she just read a book called "Pledged" (about sorority life) and wants to stay away from that scene. Can you tell me if the campus runs shuttles to nearby towns for shopping..? As an out of state student, what can you do if you don't return home for all the breaks? (Can't seem to get answers to this on the website). Although we have many fine colleges in southern California, I think my daughter longs for seasons that actually change!

sclubb

Yes - although many of my friends went to college thinking they didn't want to get involved in the Greek life, many still did. I had a lot of friends (both Greek & non Greek) that never thought it was "weird" that I didn't pledge. It just wasn't my thing. But anyway....
I actually had a car when I was there so I would usually drive home (to PA - not as bad as southern CA!). I took friends home with me for breaks as well as went to other friends homes for breaks. So, I'm sure she will find a place to stay if she can't make it home every time. By the way, Southwest flies out of Raleigh and they have some good prices to CA. You'll probably find better deals out of Raleigh anyway as Greensboro is almost always more expensive. Since I had my car, I don't remember if there was a shuttle (again, 10 years ago)....but I know MY CAR was a shuttle for lots of friends! There are the basic stores & restaurants nearby and we'd often drive to Greensboro for shopping at the bigger mall or a fun dinner out. Also - there is a "ride board" near the mailboxes where she can check out if people want to share a ride somewhere - so maybe she could get a ride to somewhere else for break to visit other friends who might be scattered across the US. If she goes...tell her to make sure she has lunch at Harrison's (not too far from the campus, but you have to drive) - I worked there all 4 years & I sure do miss their sandwiches!! Oh - and for shopping, I forgot - there are outlets in Burlington, but I rarely went there. She'll have all 4 seasons, but the winters are really mild & rarely get snow - they get more ice....but even that is rare. Again, this is coming from someone from PA, so to me, the winters were really nothing. Let me know if I can answer any other questions!

Jayne11159

KatinCA,

I tend to think that she will experience culture shock coming from Southern California. Can your daughter go spend a long weekend there and stay in the dorms? DH has done that at a couple of campuses, but not on the designated "visit" weekends. She went at a time when she could get a real taste of what campus like would be like on a normal weekend.

We are from FL and Elon talked to my daughter about playing volleyball there. We visited Elon in the spring and it is a very small community, but as others have said, Raleigh is nearby.

DH does not want to join a sorority wherever she attends college and she did not get the feeling she would be missing anything by not joining one at Elon. However, she felt that the pace was a little too slow. She is a senior at a small private high school and she is ready for a change, so she's likely going to forego playing college volleyball to attend a state university.

Personally, I LOVED Elon. The campus is beautiful and I was impressed by everyone we met. I felt that it would be a safe and caring environment. I probably should have kept my mouth shut and told DH I hated the place which would have made her consider it more seriously! However, she is a true FL child--she loves the beach and hates the cold so she's staying in her home state for now!

sclubb

Thats a good point Jayne. We didn't even have our own stadium when I was at Elon (they have a really nice one now) but it is a totally different atmosphere than a huge campus. It just depends on what the person wants. My husband works for Pitt now & sometimes it makes me think we missed out on that type of college experience by choosing Elon (big games, etc), but if I would have chosen a school like that, then I would have felt I missed out on the small school type experience. So - that is a hard choice to make & glad I'm not making it anymore! Good luck!