if it were you, not your kid: what would your school list look like and why

[Anonymous]

our college counselor is having us parents do a thought experiment to see what parameters are important and how it can be different but valid btw even mom and dad. I picked northwestern, Georgetown or rice bcs I wanted access to a city, strong school identify but also career placement record

[Anonymous]

Interestingly, both of my kids lists were very similar to mine from 30 years earlier.

[Anonymous]

I’d have gone to college in nyc bcs I wanted to live in nyc.

[Anonymous]

Exactly the same because I was able to control DD's college search the way that she controls the guy with the axe in Minecraft.

[Anonymous]

OK, now we have really crossed the bridge over to true obsession

[Anonymous]

My kid is currently at my alma mater.

[Anonymous]

I was the college applications parent in our house. For kid 1, I said to DH my kid’s junior year, SLAC X would be perfect for our kid. Fit, social atmosphere, academics, specific ECs. I can see them doing really well there. I asked my kid to put it on the list when we did visits nearby. And besides that, I zipped it and let the process play out. And the kid chose that school themselves.

For kid 2, exact same deal. Except, she’s very practical, looked at the Ed numbers and picked the school I loved for ED, without my ever saying it was my preference.

Both kids love their colleges, feel at home there, are in excellent academic programs in their field and have said they made the exact right decision for them.

It feels like I could have saved a lot of time and effort by just telling them where they were going junior year. Then again, there is a lot of value in the process, and making your kid do the work and make the choice, so that they have some psychological skin in the game, and can’t just blame mom if it doesn’t work out.

That said— nailed it! (More like, I know my kids and I did the research).

[Anonymous]

I likely would have had a very different list than I had 30 years ago, knowing what I know now.

I probably would have attended a similar school to where I wound up in the end, but I may have more seriously considered the DC schools than I did.

My child is on the opposite end of the academic scale from me, and I actually have enjoyed learning about a whole different type of school than I considered. I did a ton of the research for her to try to find schools that would be a good fit for her and her needs. I have learned about schools across the country. The internet has made this process so much easier.

[Anonymous]

I would pick a warm weather College with tons of women and a good party scene

[Anonymous]

I think I'd have included more LACs on my list. When I was a senior I couldn't imagine a college smaller than my high school but my DD is now at a LAC and after going through the search with her I can appreciate the positives of it.

But overall, my top would be William & Mary. Which was also my top when I was a senior but we were OOS and my parents decided it was too expensive. It was a little disappointing to me that neither kid wanted to go there. I thought it could be a great fit for the DD who went to a LAC but she really wanted to go to school outside Virginia.

[Anonymous]

Oxford
American College of the Building Arts
Wyoming Catholic
Merchant Marine Academy
Colorado School of Mines
Deep Springs
New Franklin College
College of the Ozarks
Webb Institute
Appalachian Bible College

I like offbeat institutions, classics, engineering, vocational & religious programs, and mostly dislike big cities.

[Anonymous]

A NYer here. I’d love to have gone to a midwestern city college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:our college counselor is having us parents do a thought experiment to see what parameters are important and how it can be different but valid btw even mom and dad. I picked northwestern, Georgetown or rice bcs I wanted access to a city, strong school identify but also career placement record

OP: You got it right, but I'll comment anyway.

I regret having attended an LAC (was over 2,000 students) because it was too small in all respects other than size of the campus. Did not offer the breadth and depth of courses that I would have liked. Too few professors in each department. Got tired of seeing the same faces everyday. Did not like the smallness of knowing everyone's business, etc. One's college years are a time for growth and experiencing new things on a weekly basis; not a time for experiencing the suffocating confines of isolated, small town living.

Today, my list of schools would consist entirely of National Universities--both public and private. UC-Davis, UCLA, U Michigan, U British Columbia, Georgetown, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, U Texas, Indiana, UNC, etc. I think that I would have enjoyed almost any school in the SEC, Big Ten, or Ivy League. Would prefer a campus near a major city, but not NYU or GW, or a large university adjacent to a vibrant college town.

I would enjoy seeing new faces each day and meeting new people each day. I like diversity.

Even though I know that many LACs offer an outstanding education, LACs are too confining and make me feel as though I am suffocating during what should be some of the most dynamic growth years of one's life.

Most recent family member to attend college ruled out all LACs because they were too similar to the prep boarding school attended.

Today, the option of attending an Honors College at a large public university offers the best of both worlds and usually with a substantial merit scholarship.

[Anonymous]

I think I could thrive anywhere. Big schools -
UCSB
UCSC (redwoods are dreamy)
UVA

But I also like smaller schools which my DD does not.

I’d hate a school like Penn State or Ohio State. I’d also hate an overly political school where there are a lot of protests.

Lots of inconsistencies but I think that’s typical of humans…we don’t stay in neat little boxes.

[Anonymous]

I wouldn't attend any woke schools, and unfortunately the list of those is getting long.