Graduate wins Fullbright scholarship

Notre Dame graduate Jessica Nelson was recently awarded a Fullbright scholarship. Jessica, a 2008 graduate, will teach English in Spain.

The full (though very short) article is here. Congratulations to Jessica!

Admissions and athletics

So maybe the last post, about how much ND spends to recruit student-athletes, bothered you a little. If so, this one will definitely reassure you about our athletic programs.

I think we all pride ourselves on the fact that our alma mater holds itself, and its student athletes, to higher standards than most institutions out there.

Recruiting

According to this article, Notre Dame spends the second most amount of money to recruit its student-athletes out of any university (University of Tennessee was number one). If this fact bothers you, you should be reassured by the next post!

Religion and the faculty

CatholicCitizens.org is not very happy with the Notre Dame faculty. In this article, the group lets its feelings be known about the place and role of religion in relation to the faculty here at Notre Dame.

I post this article not as an argument for or against its text, but because it provides an interesting commentary on an issue faced by Notre Dame (not only the faculty, but also the students and the administration): how do we become a great and elite university while still maintaining our Catholic heritage and identity? Some see reason, intellectual freedom and faith as quite compatable; others (see the article), may have a different opinion.

Looking to improve research

A major focus of Notre Dame's institutional mission the past few years has been research. Research research and more research. The University is looking to expand the research opportunities for undergraduates while also improving and expanding the graduate programs. The article found here, from the Chicago Tribune, presents a nice overview of the University's goals and mission.

Notre Dame supplement to Common Application

Here is a link to the Notre Dame supplement to the Common Application. This must be completed and submitted with a student's Common App.

You are welcome to save the supplement to your computer and distribute it as necessary.

Picture of the Day - July 1

2007 orders

As promised, here is the Excel file with the orders from last year. Please let me know if you have any difficulties accessing the information.

Our application is available!

The online application is now up and running! Students are able to apply through www.commonapp.org (there is also a link on our website to the application). Students must submit both the Common Application and the Notre Dame supplement; the latter will be available soon and certainly no later than August 1.

Notre Dame is an "Exclusive" member to the Common Application; only this application will be used for admission. We do not, however, accept the Transfer Common Application.

Common Application FAQs are here.

College loan rates go down today

The interest rates on federal loans for college students decreases to 6 percent today, down from the previous 6.8. According to a post on a Chicago Tribune blog, this fall's freshmen will save about $2,600 because of the change in rates.

The full piece is available here.