Seriously, has anyone outside of Virginia ever heard of JMU?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm not the PP, but I do find that even in the real working world that your undergraduate degree can make a difference many years out. I still have relationships from my very top STEM school and I never hesitate to contact old study friends, even professionally. And then outside of the work world, it's wonderful to know so many people who are big contributors in life. My old roommates are doing some amazing things in their respective fields and I'm glad to call them my friends.

There is nothing wrong with going for the cheaper option - no doubt. And you're right, much of what you do in your career is NOT tied to your degree. But it's not like they are the exact same experience. It's up to each family to decide what's important to them.

Name-dropping, of course, is important to yours.
Regarding staying in contact with college friends - you sound as though it is specific to top schools. News flash - people make friends everywhere.

[Anonymous]

I imagine 98% of students choose school's first from the region where they live, or from those that friends and family members attended.

This is an interesting statement. Our son is not at a college that anyone in the family or any friend has ever attended. It is also not in the local region of our home. So I guess we are in the 2%?? We never had the expectation that he would go to one of our alma maters or follow anyone else. He picked his school based on what he wanted out of a school. I would be interested in knowing if we are "odd" in this respect or if others on this forum picked schools based on the merits of the school itself and not on its regional location or on the fact that family/friends had gone there. BTW he chose a school that none of us had ever heard of before. Amazing, huh?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Before I came to Virginia, I'd never even heard of UVa, much less JMU or GMU.

Clicking the "like" button here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

I imagine 98% of students choose school's first from the region where they live, or from those that friends and family members attended.

This is an interesting statement. Our son is not at a college that anyone in the family or any friend has ever attended. It is also not in the local region of our home. So I guess we are in the 2%?? We never had the expectation that he would go to one of our alma maters or follow anyone else. He picked his school based on what he wanted out of a school. I would be interested in knowing if we are "odd" in this respect or if others on this forum picked schools based on the merits of the school itself and not on its regional location or on the fact that family/friends had gone there. BTW he chose a school that none of us had ever heard of before. Amazing, huh?

This page has some stats from the Chronicle of Higher Ed on the % of students in each state attending their own states' schools. For VA it is 74%. Most of the states are over 50%. I would guess that if you add in neighboring states (VA kids going to North Carolina or MD) you'd increase a lot from that 74%. It also notes that a survey found only 15% of freshmen attend a college more than 500 miles from home. So yes, your child is the minority in going to another region for college.

http://www.thecollegesolution.com/where-most-students-end-up-attending-college/

My kids aren't in college yet but I did attend a public university in my own state, one usually ranked among the top "regional" universities in my area. I had a great experience there and the cost was very reasonable so I graduated with no debt. I was introduced to it by my dad, who liked to recruit new grads from there, and I liked the relatively small size, focus on undergrad educations vs. graduate teaching/research, the location, and strong internship program. I've had a great career - and no trouble getting into and doing well in grad school - and don't feel I was in any way hindered by not spending a crapload of money on an Ivy league degree (I was accepted at U of Penn). We live in VA and my kids know that we will pay for 4 years at a VA state college. If they want to go somewhere else that would require them to go into debt then we'll have to talk seriously about how much debt and what benefits they think they'd gain from that and if it is really worthwhile. But, the only way I can imagine it being worthwhile is for some super-specialized program that really fits a particular passion of theirs and that leads to a lucrative career. Going into debt purely for surface things like perceived status, name recognition, or you just love the campus is not worth it IMO.

[Anonymous]

http://chronicle.com/interactives/freshmen_states
This is another interesting article that shows where out-of-state students come from for each state.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not the PP, but I do find that even in the real working world that your undergraduate degree can make a difference many years out. I still have relationships from my very top STEM school and I never hesitate to contact old study friends, even professionally. And then outside of the work world, it's wonderful to know so many people who are big contributors in life. My old roommates are doing some amazing things in their respective fields and I'm glad to call them my friends.

There is nothing wrong with going for the cheaper option - no doubt. And you're right, much of what you do in your career is NOT tied to your degree. But it's not like they are the exact same experience. It's up to each family to decide what's important to them.

Name-dropping, of course, is important to yours.
Regarding staying in contact with college friends - you sound as though it is specific to top schools. News flash - people make friends everywhere.

+1 And people from all sorts of schools do amazing things in their respective fields. And I have friends who haven't done anything amazing professionally but are incredible people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

And people do care where you got your degree especially at top companies and academia.

People in academia care where you get your degree, but 99% their caring about this is evaluating where you did your PhD and postdoc. Undergrad doesn't really matter that much. I see faculty candidates all the time who went to regional schools for their undergrad and then Caltech/Berkeley/Harvard whatever for PhD who are plenty competitive. I don't know that there is any particular edge to the person who attended a more prestigious school even when you have two candidates, say, where one went to Harvard for undergrad and the other went to, say, a SUNY school but both went to Caltech for their PhD--at that point it's going to depend on their graduate record (publications, rec letters, etc.) and whether or not they are the right fit for the department.

Not true. Graduate admissions committees DO care where you did your undergrad. You are more likely to get into a highly competitive grad program if you went to a high prestige / highly competitive undergrad school (in other words, not GMU or JMU).

Yes, there are exceptions, but if you are planning on an academic career you'd better go prestige school all the way.

Are you the arrogant "prestige only" poster that we've all been mocking? If so, what you're saying is utter B.S. It's been noted over and over that many JMU grads (and probably GMU as well) go on to top grad schools. You're clearly full of yourself and your career in academia, but interestingly, most people have no desire to go down that path.

If you are a JMU grad, you are a poor advertisement for them based on your lack of reading comprehension.

Note the bolded "more likely" and "there are exceptions" qualifiers. Yes, some JMU and GMU grads have gone to top grad schools. But if you think they are equally likely to do so as, say, Stanford or Ivy grads, then you are deeply stupid and mistaken.

Most people have no desire to go down the academic path. Good! There are too many people in it already, and that's why it is very, very hard to get a full-time, tenured job these days. But if you do go down the academic path, you had better have a high-prestige graduate degree -- and a high-prestige undergrad degree will help you to get that. Hate it all you want, that is the simple reality.

+1

JMU is not a research university. Even UVA is lacking in that regard compared to other well known state schools such as Michigan, Berkeley, Wisconsin, etc. I am still waiting for the stats that backs up the claim that many JMU grads go on to top graduate schools.

Funny, were still waiting for the state that say they don't...

Signed,

JMU Alum and UVa Law Grad...and remembers JMU well represented there....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I grew up in Maryland and knew some people who went to JMU. I remember seeing signs for CNU on the way to the beach.

Does Bethesda count as out of state? About 15 per cent of BCC went to either JMU or VT....but no haven't heard of the other one.

Stumbled across this thread - went to high school in MoCo and JMU for undergrad.

What an amazing amount of misinformation on this thread. The term "regional" is not coextensive sight the word "mediocre". JMU is a solid State School that serves, along with Virginia Tech, as the best second choices to WM and UVA for a VA residents depending on major. This is not conjecture - rankings by Kiplinger, Forbes, others bear this out.

JMU when ranked against all Public Universities - and not just equally small ones, consistently ranks pretty well - top 25 generally, as does Va Tech.

And it's majors are strong. Look at its Communications alum. Consider the latest Businessweek ranking of its undergraduate Business School: it ranks higher than GW, Maryland and VT both in terms of ranking and placement/salaries.

Consider the rankings by Money, Kiplinger, Insider, USAToday - do they bear out a mediocre school?

Whether JMU is a household name is only somewhat relevant. I'd argue its grads are not suffering its Harrisonburg location or small size....

+1

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

And people do care where you got your degree especially at top companies and academia.

People in academia care where you get your degree, but 99% their caring about this is evaluating where you did your PhD and postdoc. Undergrad doesn't really matter that much. I see faculty candidates all the time who went to regional schools for their undergrad and then Caltech/Berkeley/Harvard whatever for PhD who are plenty competitive. I don't know that there is any particular edge to the person who attended a more prestigious school even when you have two candidates, say, where one went to Harvard for undergrad and the other went to, say, a SUNY school but both went to Caltech for their PhD--at that point it's going to depend on their graduate record (publications, rec letters, etc.) and whether or not they are the right fit for the department.

Not true. Graduate admissions committees DO care where you did your undergrad. You are more likely to get into a highly competitive grad program if you went to a high prestige / highly competitive undergrad school (in other words, not GMU or JMU).

Yes, there are exceptions, but if you are planning on an academic career you'd better go prestige school all the way.

Are you the arrogant "prestige only" poster that we've all been mocking? If so, what you're saying is utter B.S. It's been noted over and over that many JMU grads (and probably GMU as well) go on to top grad schools. You're clearly full of yourself and your career in academia, but interestingly, most people have no desire to go down that path.

If you are a JMU grad, you are a poor advertisement for them based on your lack of reading comprehension.

Note the bolded "more likely" and "there are exceptions" qualifiers. Yes, some JMU and GMU grads have gone to top grad schools. But if you think they are equally likely to do so as, say, Stanford or Ivy grads, then you are deeply stupid and mistaken.

Most people have no desire to go down the academic path. Good! There are too many people in it already, and that's why it is very, very hard to get a full-time, tenured job these days. But if you do go down the academic path, you had better have a high-prestige graduate degree -- and a high-prestige undergrad degree will help you to get that. Hate it all you want, that is the simple reality.

For the record you are the only poster comparing JMU (or UVa or WM for that matter) to Stanford.

This thread has gone off the rails. Someone has an axe and it's showing....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

And people do care where you got your degree especially at top companies and academia.

People in academia care where you get your degree, but 99% their caring about this is evaluating where you did your PhD and postdoc. Undergrad doesn't really matter that much. I see faculty candidates all the time who went to regional schools for their undergrad and then Caltech/Berkeley/Harvard whatever for PhD who are plenty competitive. I don't know that there is any particular edge to the person who attended a more prestigious school even when you have two candidates, say, where one went to Harvard for undergrad and the other went to, say, a SUNY school but both went to Caltech for their PhD--at that point it's going to depend on their graduate record (publications, rec letters, etc.) and whether or not they are the right fit for the department.

Not true. Graduate admissions committees DO care where you did your undergrad. You are more likely to get into a highly competitive grad program if you went to a high prestige / highly competitive undergrad school (in other words, not GMU or JMU).

Yes, there are exceptions, but if you are planning on an academic career you'd better go prestige school all the way.

Are you the arrogant "prestige only" poster that we've all been mocking? If so, what you're saying is utter B.S. It's been noted over and over that many JMU grads (and probably GMU as well) go on to top grad schools. You're clearly full of yourself and your career in academia, but interestingly, most people have no desire to go down that path.

If you are a JMU grad, you are a poor advertisement for them based on your lack of reading comprehension.

Note the bolded "more likely" and "there are exceptions" qualifiers. Yes, some JMU and GMU grads have gone to top grad schools. But if you think they are equally likely to do so as, say, Stanford or Ivy grads, then you are deeply stupid and mistaken.

Most people have no desire to go down the academic path. Good! There are too many people in it already, and that's why it is very, very hard to get a full-time, tenured job these days. But if you do go down the academic path, you had better have a high-prestige graduate degree -- and a high-prestige undergrad degree will help you to get that. Hate it all you want, that is the simple reality.

I'm marveling at the fact that an "academic" such as yourself (snicker) would be spending so much time on a thread concerning a school or schools you have such disdain for. It appears you are a poor advertisement for your own profession. Clearly academia isn't keeping you nearly busy enough!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm not the PP, but I do find that even in the real working world that your undergraduate degree can make a difference many years out. I still have relationships from my very top STEM school and I never hesitate to contact old study friends, even professionally. And then outside of the work world, it's wonderful to know so many people who are big contributors in life. My old roommates are doing some amazing things in their respective fields and I'm glad to call them my friends.

There is nothing wrong with going for the cheaper option - no doubt. And you're right, much of what you do in your career is NOT tied to your degree. But it's not like they are the exact same experience. It's up to each family to decide what's important to them.

Name-dropping, of course, is important to yours.
Regarding staying in contact with college friends - you sound as though it is specific to top schools. News flash - people make friends everywhere.

+1
I "I never hesitate to contact old study friends, even professionally. And then outside of the work world, it's wonderful to know so many people who are big contributors in life. My old roommates are doing some amazing things in their respective fields and I'm glad to call them my friends." And I went to a state school, imagine that. I guess this kind of thing can happen no matter where you go to school!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Before I came to Virginia, I'd never even heard of UVa, much less JMU or GMU.

LOL!

You must not be a sports person at all. UVA has done very well in baseball and men's basketball in recent years. Their soccer program is usually good as well.

GMU - Final Four 2006, google it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Before I came to Virginia, I'd never even heard of UVa, much less JMU or GMU.

LOL!

You must not be a sports person at all. UVA has done very well in baseball and men's basketball in recent years. Their soccer program is usually good as well.

GMU - Final Four 2006, google it.

I am an immigrant and artsy; husband is not into sports, either. Sports were the last thing on our minds - scratch that, they were not on our mind at all when we were considering college options for our oldest. VA still wins for the variety of options and value for the $$ for the in-state candidates.
Now our kid has been indoctrinated into the school spirit and regularly goes to home games... still can't wrap my mind around this

[Anonymous]

Forbes ranks JMU #185.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
I'm marveling at the fact that an "academic" such as yourself (snicker) would be spending so much time on a thread concerning a school or schools you have such disdain for. It appears you are a poor advertisement for your own profession. Clearly academia isn't keeping you nearly busy enough!

One of the benefits of tenure is that I have all the time I need to correct people who are wrong on the internet.

And shouldn't you be slaving away at your humdrum office job right now?