Spotlight on: Wake Forest University

   Located in Winston-Salem, N.C., Wake Forest University is a private institution founded on February 3rd, 1834. According to Niche.com, Wake Forest University currently ranks as one of the top 50 Best Colleges in the nation--coming in at 48th--and as the 4th Best College in the state of North Carolina. While Wake Forest College is at the center of WFU’s academic and cultural life, the University also boasts several graduate and professional schools with strong reputations, such as the Wake Forest Law School, its School of Medicine, and the Wake Forest School of Divinity. 

   Wake Forest has an undergraduate enrollment of approximately 5,400 students and a student to faculty ratio of 11:1. The most popular undergraduate majors at Wake Forest are: Business, Finance, Political Science & Government, Communications, Economics, and Psychology. Niche.com ranks Wake Forest as the third best school overall in the nation for Kinesiology and Physical Therapy, 18th for Accounting and Finance, and 24th for Business. Overall, Wake Forest’s College of Arts and Sciences has 29 academic departments and 16 interdisciplinary programs.

   According to its website, Wake Forest College aspires to be a community of learning that:
• combines the pedagogical intimacy of a liberal arts college with the academic vitality of an internationally recognized research institution;
• emphasizes exceptional teaching, discovery, and student/faculty engagement within a dynamic academic community;
• fosters the discussion of ideas and issues, modes of expression, and artistic and cultural exchange;
• attracts a diverse community of the brightest scholars and students from throughout the country and the world;
• encourages international education and experiences for its students and faculty;
• links intellectual curiosity with philosophical reflection, ethical deliberation, and a commitment to service.

   Also from the website, here is Wake Forest University’s mission statement where it elucidates its commitment a liberal arts education for its students, belief in cultural diversity and focus on in-depth interdisciplinary study:

   “Wake Forest College stands as the cornerstone of Wake Forest University. It is a distinctive academic institution that values and maintains the liberal arts tradition within the context of an internationally recognized research university. The College embraces the teacher-scholar ideal, valuing exceptional teaching; a commitment to outstanding and innovative research, discovery, performance, and creative activities; and personal academic interaction between students and faculty both in and out of the classroom.

   The College honors the ideals of liberal learning, which encourages habits of mind that ask “why,” that evaluate evidence, that are open to new ideas, that attempt to understand and appreciate the perspectives of others, that accept complexity and grapple with it, that admit error, and that pursue truth. Liberal education also entails commitment to teaching the modes of learning in the basic disciplines of human knowledge; advancing the frontiers of knowledge through in-depth and interdisciplinary study and research; transmitting cultural heritages; developing critical appreciation of moral, ethical, aesthetic, and religious values; and using knowledge in the service of humanity. The College believes in the development of the whole person and is committed to sustaining an environment where beliefs, assumptions, and ideas are examined thoughtfully and critically in a climate of academic freedom.

   The College embraces the challenges of cultural diversity and pluralism in all their forms and is committed to addressing these challenges through the cultivation of diverse learning communities that reflect the world in which students and faculty live. To fulfill the ideals of liberal education, Wake Forest students, staff and faculty must bring with them differences to be shared and explored. The College promotes a vibrant scholarly community and integrates academics into a broad-based program of intellectual engagement with community service and extracurricular activities.

   While Wake Forest College has attained a national presence and constituency, its sense of self is shaped by cultures that are distinctively southern and North Carolinian, cultures which value service. To this end, the College takes seriously its commitment to serve the community and region wherein it resides and endeavors to expand its awareness and extend its influence by emphasizing international study and international understanding. The College strives to be a dynamic and diverse learning community, valuing knowledge, experience, and service for the benefit of humanity, thus preparing students to be active and informed members of the world in which they live.”

   So, what does it take to get in to Wake Forest? Here is an overview of its admissions statistics:

ADMISSION BY THE NUMBERS
  For the class of 2028, Wake Forest College received 18,735 applications, a 7% increase from the previous year. From those applications, Wake Forest selected 22% of them for admission to their incoming freshman year class. Students for the Class of 2028 were represented from all 50 states as well as 39 countries. 37% of the members of the Class of 2028 were members of historically underrepresented groups.

AVERAGE GPA & STANDARDIZED TEST SCORES
   The average GPA for students admitted to Wake Forest is 4.01. Admitted students will have taken the most rigorous coursework possible in high school with a strong showing of AP/IB courses on their transcripts.

   The average SAT score for applicants admitted to Wake Forest for the Class of 2028 was 1450. Though Wake Forest does not require the submission of standardized test scores for admission, potential applicants should have at least an SAT score of 1410 to be thought of as serious contenders

   The average ACT score for applicants admitted to Wake Forest for the Class of 2028 was 33. Though Wake Forest does not require the submission of standardized test scores for admission, potential applicants should have at least an ACT score of 32 to be thought of as serious contenders

REQUIRED COURSEWORK
   Applicants admitted to Wake Forest are required to have taken the following courses in high school:
• Four (4) years of English;
• Three (3) years of math;
• One (1) year of science;
• Two (2) years of a foreign language; and
• Two (2) years of social studies.

APPLICATION DEADLINES
   Wake Forest has four admissions deadlines. Applicants seeking to apply to Wake Forest during the early round must apply Early Decision I or Early Action by November 15th. Regular Decision and Early Decision II applicants must apply by January 1st. 

   Early Decision I applicants are notified on a rolling basis. Early Action applicants are generally notified by January 15th. Early Decision II applicants are notified by February 15th and Regular Decision applicant are notified by April 1st.
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   Need-based aid applicants will receive an award notification as early as December 1st if applying Early Decision I or Early Action, February 1st for Early Decision II applicants, and April 1st for Regular Decision applicants

MERIT-BASED SCHOLARSHIPS
   Wake Forest also has several merit-based scholarships for applicants to consider. Those scholarships are as follows:

• The Guy T. Carswell Scholarship is awarded to applicants with outstanding qualities of academic promise, leadership, and talent. Carswell Scholars are typically been leaders in a variety of extracurricular pursuits and won recognition for their interests at the regional, state, or national level. Carswell Scholarships provide up to five scholarships to cover the annual cost of tuition, room and board, plus $3,400 for personal expenses.

• The Joseph G. Gordon Scholarship is awarded to students who show exceptional promise and achievement and who are members of constituencies traditionally underrepresented at Wake Forest. Gordon Scholars receive the annual cost of tuition, room, and board, plus $3,400 for personal expenses.

• The Graylyn Scholarship is offered to one student each year and recognizes leadership and academic excellence, with funding provided by and in recognition of the Graylyn International Conference Center of Wake Forest University. Graylyn Scholars receive the annual cost of tuition, room and board, plus $3,400 for personal expenses.

• The Leadership and Character Scholarship is comprised of a small, selective cohort of top students from the incoming class. These scholars will participate in leadership and character programming designed specifically for them, and they will be offered experiential learning opportunities to practice leadership and character in service to our campus and within the greater community as well as receive a full scholarship for their educational costs. Students must apply for, and qualify for, need-based financial aid in their first year.

• The Nancy Susan Reynolds Scholarship is awarded to students who are excellent students, but are also creative leaders who are able to influence others in directions likely to benefit society. Reynolds Scholars have typically been leaders in a variety of extracurricular pursuits and won recognition for their interests at the regional, state, or national level. Up to five Reynolds Scholars are selected each year and receive the annual cost of tuition, room, and board, plus $3,400 for personal expenses.

• The Stamps Scholarship is awarded to about fifteen entering first-year students who demonstrate outstanding academic achievement, a high degree of intellectual curiosity and scholarship, exceptional promise in leadership, service and social responsibility, perseverance, character, integrity, and innovation. Stamp Scholars receive the annual cost of tuition, fees, room, and board, and includes a $3,400 allowance for books and personal expenses. Stamps Scholars also join a larger Stamps network of approximately 1,000 current undergraduate scholars around the world.

   So...do you have what it takes to be a Demon Deacon?

   Hopefully, this information help qualified potential applicants consider Wake Forest University as a highly selective university with much to offer its student body.