From Another Wheaton parent
Posted on October 25, 2012
Dear Prospective Wheaton Parents,
As a member of the Class of 2008, our daughter Erin had an incredibly enriching experience at Wheaton — extraordinary for her to be sure, but quite typical of the transformative experiences of her classmates as well.
Erin's childhood dream has always been to become a marine mammal trainer. Her Wheaton experiences helped her to realize that dream, as she is currently training harbor seals, fur seals and sea lions at the New England Aquarium — a job she absolutely loves! During her Wheaton years, she spent five summer and winter internships working with dolphins in Key Largo and a summer at the Whale Center of New England researching humpback whales. Two of those internships were supported by stipends as a Wheaton Community Scholar and a Wheaton Fellow.
Wheaton's flexibile curriculum as well as the school's encouragement to stretch beyond the campus boundaries played an important role in Erin's development. Scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef during study abroad; undertaking field study on the East, West and Gulf Coasts during the Williams-Mystic Maritime Studies Program; and cross-registering into a whale biology course at Brandeis are vivid examples of the flexibility which Erin enjoyed.
The college search process can be daunting. Finding just the right school, where both students and parents feel the right "fit" can be challenging. In Erin’s case, it was incredibly easy! She attended a Nike Field Hockey Camp at Wheaton during high school and something about the campus, people, athletics, and the academics just clicked. Erin was looking for a small school where one could know a significant portion of the campus community. While we visited a number of other schools, Wheaton was ultimately the only place Erin applied. Before the first snowflake landed that fall, she was in! The process may not be that easy for everyone, but I hope it illustrates the importance of good "fit.”
Erin’s closest friends are still her Wheaton teammates — and she sees many of them on a regular basis. Even during these challenging economic times, all of her friends landed great jobs in their fields. They all seem pleased with their career choices, as well as the academic and life lessons offered by Wheaton. That has certainly been Erin's experience, and I hope that it will be for your student, wherever he or she ends up. Hopefully for many of you, that place will be Wheaton!
If you have questions about the resources available for your student at Wheaton, please visit a special section of the Admission web site designed for you.
Good luck with your search process!
Dave Weber,
Director, Corporate and International Relations
MIT Sloan School of Management
