Anyone touring top schools and finding then all to be dumpy and unimpressive?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oh great the board now has resident logicians who can't get passed an ad hominem. Who invited the redditor^?
For the future all we'll hear about is what fallacy is causing this poster great peril, instead of contributing something useful

Hit a nerve with you, clearly. But so glad you got to show off "ad hominem" and "fallacy" from your SAT word bank.

Not PP, but weren't you the first to pull out ad hominem? Both of you need to get back on topic.

[Anonymous]

What are people even arguing about? People have different priorities when it comes to picking a college. Why is this a shocking or bad thing? Do you want everyone to value the same things and hence apply to the same schools as your kid? Denigrating other people's priorities is pointless.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What are people even arguing about? People have different priorities when it comes to picking a college. Why is this a shocking or bad thing? Do you want everyone to value the same things and hence apply to the same schools as your kid? Denigrating other people's priorities is pointless.

And yet you just did exactly that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are people even arguing about? People have different priorities when it comes to picking a college. Why is this a shocking or bad thing? Do you want everyone to value the same things and hence apply to the same schools as your kid? Denigrating other people's priorities is pointless.

And yet you just did exactly that.

And when did I do that? I don't care what kind of school you like. Whatever floats your boat. I have not said a single negative thing about any kind of school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a rising senior and have been doing the rounds of many top 25 schools (universities and colleges). We started with safety schools last year and then junior year grades came back so this summer we've been touring some top schools. My kid is trying to figure out an ED.
We have a rising junior as well so we have a couple of kids with us.

The more of these schools we tour, the less impressed I am. They're sort of all a bit falling apart, poorly maintained, with pretty odd students (tour guides, summer students and especially touring students alike--don't jump all over for for saying this--being brutally honest), little sense of community, same-old, same-old stuff about study-abroad, etc. Many have very large class sizes, etc.

I feel like we're (kid and parent alike) are supposed to love these schools and want to pay $90K for them and my kids can't find one they really like. I very, very, very much feel like we're being sold a product that we're supposed to want to buy because of prestige and name but when we see the product up close it doesn't look great and I feel like a sheep lining up to say "yes sir. let me put my kid through mental/emotional twister for a 5% chance of being admitted to your school and then I will gladly pay you $90K for the honor. Yes sir." It just feels... gross. Maybe not gross but yucky. My kids are like, "well I didn't really like this or that here but I could probably make it work." They too feel the pressure to LIKE these places. The Almighty XYZ or ABC school! It's supposed to be their dream!

Please don't jump on me. I know it's summer and we're not seeing the universities at their best but ugh. They're all kind of disappointing. I can't be the only one who feels this way? (I'm not going to name university/college names because then this post will turn into a giant thread about whatever school(s) I name.

Dumpy? Unimpressive, meaning structurally, academically, what? As you looking at colleges or real estate to purchase?

She is buying a service for $360k and expects the quality of the service to reflect the price paid.

When did people start thinking of education in this way?

Oh I'd say between 1995 and 2000. Colleges have nobody to blame but themselves for it.

The Government and popular expectations are responsible for most of it. I went to a highly regarded school a very long time ago. No air conditioning in any but the science buildings. Dorm rooms consisted of two metal single beds! Two desks and two chairs. One bathroom area per floor. All you had to learn from were books. Very little tutoring, almost no mental health support centers, etc. I’m sure that relatively few reports were required by the Federal Government. Of course there was no internet or other such things that we take for granted.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a rising senior and have been doing the rounds of many top 25 schools (universities and colleges). We started with safety schools last year and then junior year grades came back so this summer we've been touring some top schools. My kid is trying to figure out an ED.
We have a rising junior as well so we have a couple of kids with us.

The more of these schools we tour, the less impressed I am. They're sort of all a bit falling apart, poorly maintained, with pretty odd students (tour guides, summer students and especially touring students alike--don't jump all over for for saying this--being brutally honest), little sense of community, same-old, same-old stuff about study-abroad, etc. Many have very large class sizes, etc.

I feel like we're (kid and parent alike) are supposed to love these schools and want to pay $90K for them and my kids can't find one they really like. I very, very, very much feel like we're being sold a product that we're supposed to want to buy because of prestige and name but when we see the product up close it doesn't look great and I feel like a sheep lining up to say "yes sir. let me put my kid through mental/emotional twister for a 5% chance of being admitted to your school and then I will gladly pay you $90K for the honor. Yes sir." It just feels... gross. Maybe not gross but yucky. My kids are like, "well I didn't really like this or that here but I could probably make it work." They too feel the pressure to LIKE these places. The Almighty XYZ or ABC school! It's supposed to be their dream!

Please don't jump on me. I know it's summer and we're not seeing the universities at their best but ugh. They're all kind of disappointing. I can't be the only one who feels this way? (I'm not going to name university/college names because then this post will turn into a giant thread about whatever school(s) I name.

Dumpy? Unimpressive, meaning structurally, academically, what? As you looking at colleges or real estate to purchase?

She is buying a service for $360k and expects the quality of the service to reflect the price paid.

When did people start thinking of education in this way?

Oh I'd say between 1995 and 2000. Colleges have nobody to blame but themselves for it.

The Government and popular expectations are responsible for most of it. I went to a highly regarded school a very long time ago. No air conditioning in any but the science buildings. Dorm rooms consisted of two metal single beds! Two desks and two chairs. One bathroom area per floor. All you had to learn from were books. Very little tutoring, almost no mental health support centers, etc. I’m sure that relatively few reports were required by the Federal Government. Of course there was no internet or other such things that we take for granted.

I'd think it has to do with the influx of first-generation college students of all backgrounds. Institutions have tried to even the playing field by eliminating many of the factors which cause inequality within their first-year classes but they cannot make up for a lacking social safety net. I'd trade "big government" social programs with colleges sans dorms and the crazy amenities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are people even arguing about? People have different priorities when it comes to picking a college. Why is this a shocking or bad thing? Do you want everyone to value the same things and hence apply to the same schools as your kid? Denigrating other people's priorities is pointless.

And yet you just did exactly that.

And when did I do that? I don't care what kind of school you like. Whatever floats your boat. I have not said a single negative thing about any kind of school.

Other people choose to comment and you are tone policing them. It is ironic. Their opinions about the topic are as valid as yours about their opinions.

[Anonymous]

a lot of these schools have half the kids paying 100k a year and half paying 15k a year. People already feel like suckers .. and then when the food is frozen chicken cutlets or the dorms have mold in the vents, it's natural to complain.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are people even arguing about? People have different priorities when it comes to picking a college. Why is this a shocking or bad thing? Do you want everyone to value the same things and hence apply to the same schools as your kid? Denigrating other people's priorities is pointless.

And yet you just did exactly that.

And when did I do that? I don't care what kind of school you like. Whatever floats your boat. I have not said a single negative thing about any kind of school.

Other people choose to comment and you are tone policing them. It is ironic. Their opinions about the topic are as valid as yours about their opinions.

Lol...fine. Bicker away!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What are people even arguing about? People have different priorities when it comes to picking a college. Why is this a shocking or bad thing? Do you want everyone to value the same things and hence apply to the same schools as your kid? Denigrating other people's priorities is pointless.

And yet you just did exactly that.

And when did I do that? I don't care what kind of school you like. Whatever floats your boat. I have not said a single negative thing about any kind of school.

Other people choose to comment and you are tone policing them. It is ironic. Their opinions about the topic are as valid as yours about their opinions.

I hereby validate your need to denigrate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:a lot of these schools have half the kids paying 100k a year and half paying 15k a year. People already feel like suckers .. and then when the food is frozen chicken cutlets or the dorms have mold in the vents, it's natural to complain.

I personally would be fine with how schools were in the 90s for my kid, except maybe for more emphasis on mental health services than existed back then. I was fine with the institutional dorm rooms and the 2-3 treadmills in the basement of some building that constituted our "gym," and the mediocre cafeteria food that they suddenly spruced up for parent visit days. This was back when tuition at my university was around 18K. Inflation calculator says that would be $38K today, but tuition is now actually $60K.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What are people even arguing about? People have different priorities when it comes to picking a college. Why is this a shocking or bad thing? Do you want everyone to value the same things and hence apply to the same schools as your kid? Denigrating other people's priorities is pointless.

Somebody really needed to bust out Aesop's Fables to suggest Ivy wannabes are just jealous.

Btw the point of the Medium post is that the Fox can truly be happy with some other fruit after going on his merry way. Not being able to snag some particular bunch of grapes is hardly a life crisis.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Oh great the board now has resident logicians who can't get passed an ad hominem. Who invited the redditor^?
For the future all we'll hear about is what fallacy is causing this poster great peril, instead of contributing something useful

Hit a nerve with you, clearly. But so glad you got to show off "ad hominem" and "fallacy" from your SAT word bank.

Someone is showing their age with the word bank comment...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:a lot of these schools have half the kids paying 100k a year and half paying 15k a year. People already feel like suckers .. and then when the food is frozen chicken cutlets or the dorms have mold in the vents, it's natural to complain.

The real issue is that many of these schools force students to pay $$ for these moldy crowded dorms that regularly flood and frozen chicken cutlets for the first few years of the degree.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:a lot of these schools have half the kids paying 100k a year and half paying 15k a year. People already feel like suckers .. and then when the food is frozen chicken cutlets or the dorms have mold in the vents, it's natural to complain.

The real issue is that many of these schools force students to pay $$ for these moldy crowded dorms that regularly flood and frozen chicken cutlets for the first few years of the degree.

and now they're forcing you to live in their moldy dorms for 4 years to make more $$$. It was a PITA to get DC's college to let him live off campus, because it's a "residential experience" and 94% of students live on campus-uh huh, and it's also $92,000 this year and he'd rather share an apartment in this expensive area than stay on campus.