Turning down a much higher-ranked/more prestigious school

[Anonymous]

This is definitely different than two traditional universities. He should attend the academy of the service he is most comfortable serving in after graduation. There are a lot of differences between serving in the Navy and serving in the Coast Guard.

[Anonymous]

I agree with others on where does your kid want to serve.

That said, am I dense in that I don't associate any relative measure of prestige between the service academies? I think the academies are all prestigious and they primarily serve the military purpose to which they are designed.

When someone leaves the Academy/Service, does a Navy grad get viewed differently from a Coast Guard grad by a private employer?

[Anonymous]

My kid might be turning down UVA, Pomona and BC for W&M Monroe. When the Ivies & Georgetown come out--we will have to see.

We like WM's size and attention to each student; professors teaching the courses, small class sizes, great recommendations/interns/access since you get to know profs so well.

I attended a larger public state school--and UVA has me thinking of the things I didn't like about it---lots of TAs, larger class sizes, less personal, less relationships with individual profs, more a cog in a bigger system so course scheduling more of an issue, etc.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid might be turning down UVA, Pomona and BC for W&M Monroe. When the Ivies & Georgetown come out--we will have to see.

We like WM's size and attention to each student; professors teaching the courses, small class sizes, great recommendations/interns/access since you get to know profs so well.

I attended a larger public state school--and UVA has me thinking of the things I didn't like about it---lots of TAs, larger class sizes, less personal, less relationships with individual profs, more a cog in a bigger system so course scheduling more of an issue, etc.

I think the admitted events next month should help a lot of kids' decisions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
That said, am I dense in that I don't associate any relative measure of prestige between the service academies? I think the academies are all prestigious and they primarily serve the military purpose to which they are designed.

Oh, there are definitely differences in prestige. Quite a bit of it is intangible, yes, but the difference in USNWR rankings are stark.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I agree with everyone says he needs to stick with the cultural fit. But the question is, how does he keep the prestige of another school from blinding him? And how can I cautiously suggest this to him without being overly involved in the decision?

If the school is a cultural fit issue, I suspect the nature of the post-grad service and job options would also have more or less appeal.

Try focusing the discussion on what the student would be most likely to do after each school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid might be turning down UVA, Pomona and BC for W&M Monroe. When the Ivies & Georgetown come out--we will have to see.

We like WM's size and attention to each student; professors teaching the courses, small class sizes, great recommendations/interns/access since you get to know profs so well.

I attended a larger public state school--and UVA has me thinking of the things I didn't like about it---lots of TAs, larger class sizes, less personal, less relationships with individual profs, more a cog in a bigger system so course scheduling more of an issue, etc.

Guessing Pomona has the same small class size and professor access. Does it come down to finances there?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
That said, am I dense in that I don't associate any relative measure of prestige between the service academies? I think the academies are all prestigious and they primarily serve the military purpose to which they are designed.

Oh, there are definitely differences in prestige. Quite a bit of it is intangible, yes, but the difference in USNWR rankings are stark.

But, does that translate into the private sector in any way?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
That said, am I dense in that I don't associate any relative measure of prestige between the service academies? I think the academies are all prestigious and they primarily serve the military purpose to which they are designed.

Oh, there are definitely differences in prestige. Quite a bit of it is intangible, yes, but the difference in USNWR rankings are stark.

But, does that translate into the private sector in any way?

West Point grads would like to think so. I honestly don't know, though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is fairly easy and prestige has nothing to do with it. What Service does he want to spend 5-20+ years in when he graduates? That is the only question.

Good point. He needs that reminder.

[Anonymous]

If it helps frame his thinking, it is definitely normal not to "like" service academy culture but to go anyway. The service academy grads I know (USMA) refer to it as "a good place to be from, not a good place to be". So it would be normal to go and hate it while he's there--he might fit right in.

[Anonymous]

Yes, my son did in order to be closer to home. sub 4hrs drive from home became a prioroty for him as reality kicked in and results came rolling in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes, my son did in order to be closer to home. sub 4hrs drive from home became a prioroty for him as reality kicked in and results came rolling in.

How far away was the highest ranked school?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid might be turning down UVA, Pomona and BC for W&M Monroe. When the Ivies & Georgetown come out--we will have to see.

We like WM's size and attention to each student; professors teaching the courses, small class sizes, great recommendations/interns/access since you get to know profs so well.

I attended a larger public state school--and UVA has me thinking of the things I didn't like about it---lots of TAs, larger class sizes, less personal, less relationships with individual profs, more a cog in a bigger system so course scheduling more of an issue, etc.

Guessing Pomona has the same small class size and professor access. Does it come down to finances there?

Yes. $85-90k/year and flights back and forth. Plus, he's going into International Relations/govt/history so DC area is the best for internships and everything else. Seems crazy to go to West Coast.

[Anonymous]

Naval Academy is impressive. Congrats!