Cold weather schools when you aren't a cold weather person

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My DC's top two choices could not be more different weather wise. Of course, the cold one is a much better school academically (top 25). The warm one isn't nearly as strong (60s), but my kid loves sunshine and warm weather. Thanks to merit, the cost is not that different between the two and they both are a plane ride away. If the academics of the warm one matched the cold one, it would be a no brainer. If you or your kid went to a cold climate (and weren't a cold climate person), how did that work out? Is weather a big enough issue or does academic reputation matter more?

I did promise we could go to the Caribbean for Christmas if they went north. :p.

I am from the south. I was miserable my four years in Ithaca. Made lifelong friends, but that kind of cold weather is just not for me. Every chance I had, I got the hell out of that place to thaw….I’m going to say I regret since it has opened a lot of doors for me over the years, but I could have stayed South at Rice, but decided to go up north…..tough one.

[Anonymous]

Michigan is a great school but I remember walking to class in -30 degree wind chills , slipping on an icy sidewalk, and having my car stuck in a foot of snow. I would let your student decide based on whatever criteria they deem important.

[Anonymous]

Michigan's positively tropical! It's nearly in Ohio. Mich Tech grads laugh at the idea that Ann Arbor is cold.

In seriousness, yes Ann Arbor gets cold. Either you plan to embrace it, or you go elsewhere. I wouldn't trade my years at Minnesota-Duluth for anything, even if I saw temperatures I didn't know you could see in the Continental US. I did things I never thought I'd do (dog sled, cross country ski, walk on frozen Lake Superior, snowshoe), and learned a different outlook on cold weather. I stayed for another 3 years after graduating. Sure, sunbathing in January wasn't something on campus, but we did plenty of other things. It's just a different college experience. I wouldn't say I love the cold, but I have a healthy respect for it and learned how to do lots of things I otherwise never would have had the chance to learn.

And, yes, I'm now one of those absolutely obnoxious northerners that lives in the south (North Carolina) and mocks everyone for putting on puffy coats when the temperature drops below 60.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For everyone saying you just put on a coat and hat and deal with the cold, that is true BUT what is missing is that warmer weather campuses are a lot more bustling the majority if the school year - kids are outside throwing frisbees and sitting in lawn chairs and clustering in groups talking and sitting outside to read and do HW and so on. Cold weather campuses, especially those that start to get dark at 4:30pm (looking at all those Maine and Mass colleges!) just don’t have the same vibe.

- Went to undergrad in NC and law school in Boston

I went to college in the south and this doesn't sound like my campus at all. It was a Greek heavy campus so maybe that had an effect on the location of socializing. I don't even recall outdoor seating anywhere.

[Anonymous]

I do not understand the fuss about weather. If your child’s preference is in the warmer climates, why did you apply to schools in the NE?

[Anonymous]

It was really really hard and I didn’t understand seasonal depression until I moved away after college. I do not have good memories of college and absolutely told one of my kids to factor this into the decision. Those saying it doesn’t matter are not affected. It’s not the weather it’s the dark and grey of the NE. That’s what did me in.

[Anonymous]

Fall and Spring in Ann Arbor are amazing though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It was really really hard and I didn’t understand seasonal depression until I moved away after college. I do not have good memories of college and absolutely told one of my kids to factor this into the decision. Those saying it doesn’t matter are not affected. It’s not the weather it’s the dark and grey of the NE. That’s what did me in.

This is the key.

[Anonymous]

The school in question is not in the NE. It's Michigan.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The school in question is not in the NE. It's Michigan.

That's worse!

[Anonymous]

If just for argument’s sake we say it’s Michigan vs. Tulane, the weather informs a totally different cultural experience. Your kid will prefer one or the other. My kid chose Brown over Emory despite not liking cold weather because he didn’t like that the kids at accepted students day at Emory were all talking about their SAT scores as it was a tipoff to a vibe that wasn’t a fit for him. He’s very happy at Brown in his North Face jacket.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The school in question is not in the NE. It's Michigan.

That's worse!

How so?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The school in question is not in the NE. It's Michigan.

My son went from prep school in MA to MI. He said temp wise MI was a bit colder but it was sunnier than MA. It gets darker earlier in MA largely because of how much farther west and closer to Central time MI is. Might get light a bit later but most college students don't notice that since they're asleep. (As a reference, sunset in MA today is 5:00pm and MI it's 5:55pm. Sunrise is skewed the same way, but like I said, a lot of kids sleep through that time)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For everyone saying you just put on a coat and hat and deal with the cold, that is true BUT what is missing is that warmer weather campuses are a lot more bustling the majority if the school year - kids are outside throwing frisbees and sitting in lawn chairs and clustering in groups talking and sitting outside to read and do HW and so on. Cold weather campuses, especially those that start to get dark at 4:30pm (looking at all those Maine and Mass colleges!) just don’t have the same vibe.

- Went to undergrad in NC and law school in Boston

No, that's a law school experience. Kids are outside on cold weather campuses doing other things. And they're sitting indoors in groups and clusters for all the other things, so that doesn't really make any difference.

-undergrad in CT and law school in Nashville

[Anonymous]

I remember seeing hammocks at UVM, so I don't think cold weather students don't go outside. :p