Just For Fun: If you could go to any college...

[Anonymous]

Funny - I was thinking Northwestern before I opened the thread.

Northwestern, Brown, Stanford

[Anonymous]

honestly, just for the pure FUN of it, an honors college at a place like Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama - the student body we see on Saturday football games is just too much to pass up on.

if I'm being more pragmatic, Harvard

[Anonymous]

UCLA

[Anonymous]

Brown, no question

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to NYU, but I would have preferred a traditional campus. Luckily, I appreciated it for what it was and had a good experience, but a city campus was not a good fit for me.

I'd go to Stanford or Duke. I love both parts of the country. School spirit, fun campus life, and a world class education. I also think nice weather is more important than I used to. Being at a pep rally or bonfire and you feel pain in your chest from the cold is not as fun as a balmy evening. I mean, it's not that big of a deal I guess, you can throw on some Patagonia. Anyway.

I also think I would be a doctor if I could re-do, and both are stellar for pre-med.

+1000

I think this is true for the vast majority (like 90%) of college students. Don't understand the current rush and explosion of popularity of "city" schools like NYU, Columbia, Northeastern, BU, Penn, etc. I think most of these kids will regret their decision, as the vast majority of alumni I meet from these schools seem unhappy with their college experience.

Yes. I see many parents on this board and others saying "my kid wants urban" and I think, do they? If so, great. But it's something your family should really think about.

+1

Columbia alum here and I really regret going there. So do most of the other alumni I know.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to NYU, but I would have preferred a traditional campus. Luckily, I appreciated it for what it was and had a good experience, but a city campus was not a good fit for me.

I'd go to Stanford or Duke. I love both parts of the country. School spirit, fun campus life, and a world class education. I also think nice weather is more important than I used to. Being at a pep rally or bonfire and you feel pain in your chest from the cold is not as fun as a balmy evening. I mean, it's not that big of a deal I guess, you can throw on some Patagonia. Anyway.

I also think I would be a doctor if I could re-do, and both are stellar for pre-med.

+1000

I think this is true for the vast majority (like 90%) of college students. Don't understand the current rush and explosion of popularity of "city" schools like NYU, Columbia, Northeastern, BU, Penn, etc. I think most of these kids will regret their decision, as the vast majority of alumni I meet from these schools seem unhappy with their college experience.

Yes. I see many parents on this board and others saying "my kid wants urban" and I think, do they? If so, great. But it's something your family should really think about.

We pretty much live in the city. 1.5 mikes from Georgetown. My teens Metro to and from high school. They walk everywhere from our house. They know the city. But, I think a school with a very active campus and a smaller college town is the best, like my alma mater.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you woke up tomorrow and you were a high school senior....yourself, but knowing everything you know now....
and you could magically receive acceptances at every school you applied to...
and, let's say, your parents tell you they can and will pay for it in its entirety...

Which school would you choose?

I would maybe choose Northwestern for its vibrant arts community, interesting campus, academics, and different location (I'm from the NE).

You?

William and Mary 100%
I love the history and colonial Williamsburg. It's also a great school academically. I just LOVE the vibe.

Ugh. I went there. Would not repeat.
DP

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:we are going to take our daughter to see Drexel in Philly for a possible "urban/city" school option

But knowing that she fell in love with the campus she saw Monday, pretty sure it is going to be a big fat no

Within the past two days a random, senseless killing occurred during daylight in the Drexel area. The deceased was a recent Temple graduate. Murder rate in Philly is soaring. It is not a safe area.

Philly would be a tough sell for me. Especially for a girl. And I went to college in NYC.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to NYU, but I would have preferred a traditional campus. Luckily, I appreciated it for what it was and had a good experience, but a city campus was not a good fit for me.

I'd go to Stanford or Duke. I love both parts of the country. School spirit, fun campus life, and a world class education. I also think nice weather is more important than I used to. Being at a pep rally or bonfire and you feel pain in your chest from the cold is not as fun as a balmy evening. I mean, it's not that big of a deal I guess, you can throw on some Patagonia. Anyway.

I also think I would be a doctor if I could re-do, and both are stellar for pre-med.

+1000

I think this is true for the vast majority (like 90%) of college students. Don't understand the current rush and explosion of popularity of "city" schools like NYU, Columbia, Northeastern, BU, Penn, etc. I think most of these kids will regret their decision, as the vast majority of alumni I meet from these schools seem unhappy with their college experience.

Yes. I see many parents on this board and others saying "my kid wants urban" and I think, do they? If so, great. But it's something your family should really think about.

We pretty much live in the city. 1.5 mikes from Georgetown. My teens Metro to and from high school. They walk everywhere from our house. They know the city. But, I think a school with a very active campus and a smaller college town is the best, like my alma mater.

PP you quoted and yes, I love the city, have tons of experience with cities, etc. But in many cases, it's just not a great experience for college. There's something about the traditional campus experience that is widely appealing and appropriate for that time in your life.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If I could attend any college, I would prefer a large university with a lot of diversity in all of its forms, but especially socioeconomic diversity.

Cornell: "such diversity in one university"

https://youtu.be/QUTECBJmNB8?t=184

[Anonymous]

better version:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcvVaXSRKUA&t=147s

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to NYU, but I would have preferred a traditional campus. Luckily, I appreciated it for what it was and had a good experience, but a city campus was not a good fit for me.

I'd go to Stanford or Duke. I love both parts of the country. School spirit, fun campus life, and a world class education. I also think nice weather is more important than I used to. Being at a pep rally or bonfire and you feel pain in your chest from the cold is not as fun as a balmy evening. I mean, it's not that big of a deal I guess, you can throw on some Patagonia. Anyway.

I also think I would be a doctor if I could re-do, and both are stellar for pre-med.

+1000

I think this is true for the vast majority (like 90%) of college students. Don't understand the current rush and explosion of popularity of "city" schools like NYU, Columbia, Northeastern, BU, Penn, etc. I think most of these kids will regret their decision, as the vast majority of alumni I meet from these schools seem unhappy with their college experience.

Yes. I see many parents on this board and others saying "my kid wants urban" and I think, do they? If so, great. But it's something your family should really think about.

We pretty much live in the city. 1.5 mikes from Georgetown. My teens Metro to and from high school. They walk everywhere from our house. They know the city. But, I think a school with a very active campus and a smaller college town is the best, like my alma mater.

PP you quoted and yes, I love the city, have tons of experience with cities, etc. But in many cases, it's just not a great experience for college. There's something about the traditional campus experience that is widely appealing and appropriate for that time in your life.

Do they? I think for a lot of POC/first-gen students, the whole Greek life/football culture is a major turn-off for them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to NYU, but I would have preferred a traditional campus. Luckily, I appreciated it for what it was and had a good experience, but a city campus was not a good fit for me.

I'd go to Stanford or Duke. I love both parts of the country. School spirit, fun campus life, and a world class education. I also think nice weather is more important than I used to. Being at a pep rally or bonfire and you feel pain in your chest from the cold is not as fun as a balmy evening. I mean, it's not that big of a deal I guess, you can throw on some Patagonia. Anyway.

I also think I would be a doctor if I could re-do, and both are stellar for pre-med.

+1000

I think this is true for the vast majority (like 90%) of college students. Don't understand the current rush and explosion of popularity of "city" schools like NYU, Columbia, Northeastern, BU, Penn, etc. I think most of these kids will regret their decision, as the vast majority of alumni I meet from these schools seem unhappy with their college experience.

Yes. I see many parents on this board and others saying "my kid wants urban" and I think, do they? If so, great. But it's something your family should really think about.

We pretty much live in the city. 1.5 mikes from Georgetown. My teens Metro to and from high school. They walk everywhere from our house. They know the city. But, I think a school with a very active campus and a smaller college town is the best, like my alma mater.

PP you quoted and yes, I love the city, have tons of experience with cities, etc. But in many cases, it's just not a great experience for college. There's something about the traditional campus experience that is widely appealing and appropriate for that time in your life.

Do they? I think for a lot of POC/first-gen students, the whole Greek life/football culture is a major turn-off for them.

Yes. This is not a binary choice between "takes classes in the city/lives in a high rise" VS "gets wasted at the frat house every weekend". There are plenty of schools with real meaningful campus life that do not emphasize football or Greek culture. I think it's a great experience, maybe especially for POC/first gen.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I went to NYU, but I would have preferred a traditional campus. Luckily, I appreciated it for what it was and had a good experience, but a city campus was not a good fit for me.

I'd go to Stanford or Duke. I love both parts of the country. School spirit, fun campus life, and a world class education. I also think nice weather is more important than I used to. Being at a pep rally or bonfire and you feel pain in your chest from the cold is not as fun as a balmy evening. I mean, it's not that big of a deal I guess, you can throw on some Patagonia. Anyway.

I also think I would be a doctor if I could re-do, and both are stellar for pre-med.

+1000

I think this is true for the vast majority (like 90%) of college students. Don't understand the current rush and explosion of popularity of "city" schools like NYU, Columbia, Northeastern, BU, Penn, etc. I think most of these kids will regret their decision, as the vast majority of alumni I meet from these schools seem unhappy with their college experience.

Yes. I see many parents on this board and others saying "my kid wants urban" and I think, do they? If so, great. But it's something your family should really think about.

We pretty much live in the city. 1.5 mikes from Georgetown. My teens Metro to and from high school. They walk everywhere from our house. They know the city. But, I think a school with a very active campus and a smaller college town is the best, like my alma mater.

PP you quoted and yes, I love the city, have tons of experience with cities, etc. But in many cases, it's just not a great experience for college. There's something about the traditional campus experience that is widely appealing and appropriate for that time in your life.

I agree with this. You can live in a city for grad school and the rest of your life. Unless you are a professor, college years are the only time to live in a campus environment like a Villanova, U of South Carolina, UCLA (random examples!).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:If you woke up tomorrow and you were a high school senior....yourself, but knowing everything you know now....
and you could magically receive acceptances at every school you applied to...
and, let's say, your parents tell you they can and will pay for it in its entirety...

Which school would you choose?

I would maybe choose Northwestern for its vibrant arts community, interesting campus, academics, and different location (I'm from the NE).

You?

William and Mary 100%
I love the history and colonial Williamsburg. It's also a great school academically. I just LOVE the vibe.

Ugh. I went there. Would not repeat.
DP

I certainly would.