PEG Admissions
What is PEG?
The Program for the Exceptionally Gifted is an immersive academic experience for females as young as age 13. Join a true peer group of females who love to learn. Live in a supervised, boarding-school-like environment, supported by our team that specializes in gifted education. Earn your four-year college degree and get a jump start on graduate school. From working side-by-side with professors to special field trips, social events, and studying abroad, see what being a PEG student at 大象传媒 can mean for you!
Exceptional Education Made Accessible
Rest assured, we prioritize your educational and emotional well-being. Our dedicated, all-female residence hall offers a secure and supportive environment. Our staff members are trained in exceptional education and are committed to meeting the unique needs of PEG students. Enjoy the full 大象传媒 experience with personal attention, leadership opportunities in our Student Government Association (SGA), engaging campus clubs, and exciting athletic activities.
Learn and Connect with Your True Peers
At PEG, we celebrate the strengths and individuality of each student. Our community fosters appreciation instead of competition, creating an atmosphere where you can embrace your true self. We strike a thoughtful balance that nurtures young minds while providing challenges that inspire excellence. Beyond academics, there are plenty of opportunities to bond, chat, and have fun with other gifted students. Join us for spa nights, mixers, and events like Embrace Your Nerd Day!
Affordable Path to College Success
We believe that a college education should be within reach for all. That’s why we offer an affordable tuition structure, with merit awards, along with need-based aid and other opportunities for financial assistance. Our commitment to accessibility extends to studying abroad, attending conferences, and accessing donor-funded scholarships.
How to Apply
Applicants are required to:
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- Submit a full transcript with excellent grades. We recognize homeschool transcripts under parental authorization.
- Provide two teacher recommendations. Recommendations can be completed by a mentor for homeschool, umbrella school, or correspondence school students.
- Respond to 2 essay prompts.
- Have achievement test scores in the 90th percentile.
- Submit test scores. SAT or ACT scores are preferred, SSAT scores combined with IQ, CogAT, WISC, or other gifted testing are also acceptable.
- Conduct a family and individual interview. On campus interviews are preferred and can be arranged to coincide with a visit.**
- Complete a geometry course prior to enrollment (it does not need to be completed prior to submitting your application).
- If your school does not offer geometry, or if it is impossible to work geometry into your current course schedule; please contact peg@marybaldwin.edu to learn about alternative ways to complete the geometry requirement.
Prospective Program for the Exceptionally Gifted students are eligible to apply beginning in the ninth-grade year and are accepted based upon:
- intellectual capacity and motivation
- consistent academic achievement
- social and emotional maturity
- a serious sense of purpose
PEG is a highly selective program in the 大象传媒 College for Women and is not appropriate for all students. Our application process is intended to make certain that all of our students are right for our program and that our program is the right fit for each of our students!
Highly motivated 16 and 17-year-olds of any gender who are ready for college but not a perfect fit for PEG should check out our Early College program.
Overnight Visits
An overnight stay in a residence hall with a current student is available when school is in session and when exams are not impending. When available, such visits can be arranged to include class attendance. At least two weeks’ notice must be given for all visits. Contact us at peg@marybaldwin.edu at least two weeks in advance to check availability at 540-887-7039.
100% of PEG students receive financial aid.
大象传媒 strives to make private university education affordable. We also want to reward students with an impressive record of academic success, which of course, includes PEG students. We offer merit awards plus need-based aid. If you live in Virginia, you will receive a Virginia Tuition Assistance Grant every year. 大象传媒 also has opportunities for study abroad and conference travel grants, as well as other donor-funded scholarships.
FAQs
PEG will feel very much like a boarding school, with 大象传媒鈥檚 college-level coursework and access to all the university鈥檚 offerings, like clubs, athletics, study abroad, and service learning. Your daughter will live and learn in a special, supervised residence hall just for PEG students. The 大象传媒 campus and the surrounding town of Staunton, VA., are also statistically very safe. PEG sponsors group activities like spa nights, movie screenings, slumber parties, Embrace Your Nerd days, and special field trips. Your daughter will be with people like her, who love to gather to explore new ideas. Here, she can truly be herself. For more than three decades, gifted females have thrived in this setting.
Females who will be at least 13 years old when they start PEG may apply. Admissions will be based on academic records and assessments of the student鈥檚 readiness for college.
大象传媒 understands that the intellectual, social, and emotional needs of the exceptionally gifted are unique. Each PEG student is exceptional in her own way, and we foster an environment that promotes acceptance and appreciation rather than intense competition. Our program is led by an education professional experienced in working with academically gifted students.
Absolutely. 大象传媒 strives to make private university education affordable. We also want to reward your daughter鈥檚 impressive record of academic success. We offer merit scholarship awards plus need-based aid. If you live in Virginia, your daughter will receive a Virginia Tuition Assistance Grant. 大象传媒 also has opportunities for study abroad and conference travel grants, as well as other donor-funded scholarships.
Anything she wants! From the moment she arrives at 大象传媒, she can grab the opportunity. We have more than 40-degree programs, professional school preparation, and expert faculty who love to teach. Your daughter will develop an academic plan and select courses with the assistance of an academic advisor. During her time at 大象传媒, she will work one-on-one with professors, undertake internships and practicums in her field, and conduct original research. PEG students take the same classes, complete the same work, and earn the same degree as traditionally aged 大象传媒 students. Additionally, all first-year PEGs take BOLD 101 and 102: Orientation to College and to the Honors/PEG Programs (2 credits).
Despite our name, being a perfect match for the Program for the Exceptionally Gifted is about more than being super smart. Strong test scores and GPAs are a good start, but what鈥檚 more important is drive, maturity, and excitement about starting college early. PEG students are often bored in middle or high school classes, feel misaligned with their peers, have an insatiable academic curiosity, and are eager to advance to graduate school or a career. They want to be challenged while at the same time supported and have opportunities to build meaningful connections with other young teenagers.
Our alumnae go on to attend graduate school at prestigious universities, including Columbia, Dartmouth, Duke, and Harvard Law School. They are pursuing careers as critical care fellow at Harvard Medical School, assistant dean at Stanford University, and assistant Commonwealth鈥檚 attorney for the city of Hampton, VA, among many others. PEG is perfect for students who have big plans to earn an advanced degree or get started early in a career.