Is 'fit' overrated?

[Anonymous]

I mean, sure, cold and uncaring might work for some at 18. Others need a bit more time to mature/build confidence/etc.

Just know your kid. Many would drown in that sink or swim environment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Fit certainly matters if you go somewhere small. A pre professional kid is not going to fit in at Hampshire, nor a pot smoking hippie kid at Washington and Lee.

I get that. But at bigger places, with classes even in the low thousands? The law of large numbers takes over. Your tribe will be somewhere to be found. Ranking, affordability, availability of majors, and location matter much more than fit for medium and large sized institutions, because they're big enough to fit many different types of kid.

In short, fit matters for SLACs, but not normal sized schools.

Thoughts?

I agree! I came to the same conclusion. And this is exclusively an American phenomenon. Rest of the world there is no such thing as a fit.

This is more like marketing to deflect from the pressure to get into top schools. This is more a calming technique to soothe anxious families that there is a college that uniquely suits their child.

If there really is a "fit", then we should be able to define it clearly, provide that criteria and publish it. So that any student can check it and have a ready list of "fit" colleges.

Now, every family is supposed to be on a journey of self exploration and find its own list of "fit" colleges.

People start foaming at the mouth if someone applies to two seemingly different schools.

I'm confused because we DO have these tools at our disposal.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2023/opinion/build-your-own-college-rankings.html
Add naviance and other resources I'm forgetting, these are all available assets for students. I do think many students are horrendous researchers and then incessantly complain about their college experiences. American students demand too much compared to other countries for a college.

We are not talking about just campus location, size, rating, etc. but also subjective things like "vibe" etc. which are going to change depending on the day of the year, weather, etc. to find "fit".

Fit should be objectively measurable. If a student says I like a, b, c d, e... factors then we should be able to select those factors and come up with a list of colleges. But no. We are supposed to visit colleges, read student news papers, eat the cafeteria, get the vibe, to see if it is a "fit".

[Anonymous]

How is fit (the true sense of the word) ever overrated?

[Anonymous]

This is how they are able to sell SLAC's as this mythical 'fit' for some students.

Nothing against SLAC's they do serve a role but it is just marketing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How is fit (the true sense of the word) ever overrated?

Because beyond a very rough approximation, it does not exist.

You cannot put an academically weak student who is poor in math at MIT. See? Not a good fit.

A very bright intelligent kid would shine at any of the top 100 colleges. Teens are moldable. They grow up to adjust to the environment. Actually you want some level of adjustment to grow.

It is not like a kid cannot do well both at W&M or Ohio State. But no, people get a fit if someone applied to both. They are so different.

[Anonymous]

People start foaming at the mouth if someone applies to two seemingly different schools.

This made me laugh because there is truth. One could think my oldest had a prestige driven "fit" list because she didn't have a strong preference on location outside of east coast or midwest, could be rural or city. The factor that mattered for her fit was small to mid-size and a very strong academic vibe. There are absolutely phenomenal academic kids at all schools, but there is most definitely a different feel to some schools based on the prevailing student body. If you're not interested in sports, greek life or partying dominating, it does change the list.

[Anonymous]

"Fit" is a thing but my hope is that our children aren't in need of a particular fit. We discourage SLACs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it's overrated once you have narrowed your college choice down to a size/general location/has your major/D1 sports (as a spectator).

There is another thread about how a kid has decided Berkeley is their "dream" school...when in fact I bet that kid will have a grand old time at UCLA, University of Washington, UC Boulder, etc.

The other issue I have is there are plenty of people who pick a college based on fit and then are looking to transfer after 1 year because your decision on a "fit" school is made with such incomplete information.

It depends on the student. Some really care about campus environment (rural vs city), or weather. Some really care about finding a school where a large % of peers care about classes and have intellectual discussions in their free time. Some care about sports culture. Some do not care about any of this, hence fit is not as important.

I get any objective criteria including rural/city, weather, sports culture, etc…which will still leave you with probably 50+ schools. Fit as DCUM seems to define it is supposed to capture a feeling or other subjective criteria which I think is the trap.

There are thousands of schools, and you have to narrow it some way. 50+ schools is still 40 schools too many.

My point is a kid would probably be happy at any of the 50, so no need to somehow find the perfect “fit”.

Decide weather is most important, followed by objective criteria X which narrows the list to 10-15, apply and then see where things shake out.

That is exactly what fit is -- you have narrowed 4000 colleges down to 50 you could be happy at. Now you have to make another 5 cuts of 10.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How is fit (the true sense of the word) ever overrated?

Because beyond a very rough approximation, it does not exist.

You cannot put an academically weak student who is poor in math at MIT. See? Not a good fit.

A very bright intelligent kid would shine at any of the top 100 colleges. Teens are moldable. They grow up to adjust to the environment. Actually you want some level of adjustment to grow.

It is not like a kid cannot do well both at W&M or Ohio State. But no, people get a fit if someone applied to both. They are so different.

Well, they are different and a kid cannot choose both if you happen to be admitted to both. So, you pick the one that fits you best, even though you would be "fine" at either. Fit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is how they are able to sell SLAC's as this mythical 'fit' for some students.

Nothing against SLAC's they do serve a role but it is just marketing.

Smaller schools are a “fit” for some kids. These schools exist for a reason. It isn’t mythical. It is preferences.

I was glad I had options. I’m glad my child has options.

It really feels like the point of this thread is “just go to a huge public, everyone-it’s a one size fits all”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Fit" is a thing but my hope is that our children aren't in need of a particular fit. We discourage SLACs.

Why, though?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I think it's overrated once you have narrowed your college choice down to a size/general location/has your major/D1 sports (as a spectator).

There is another thread about how a kid has decided Berkeley is their "dream" school...when in fact I bet that kid will have a grand old time at UCLA, University of Washington, UC Boulder, etc.

The other issue I have is there are plenty of people who pick a college based on fit and then are looking to transfer after 1 year because your decision on a "fit" school is made with such incomplete information.

It depends on the student. Some really care about campus environment (rural vs city), or weather. Some really care about finding a school where a large % of peers care about classes and have intellectual discussions in their free time. Some care about sports culture. Some do not care about any of this, hence fit is not as important.

I get any objective criteria including rural/city, weather, sports culture, etc…which will still leave you with probably 50+ schools. Fit as DCUM seems to define it is supposed to capture a feeling or other subjective criteria which I think is the trap.

There are thousands of schools, and you have to narrow it some way. 50+ schools is still 40 schools too many.

My point is a kid would probably be happy at any of the 50, so no need to somehow find the perfect “fit”.

Decide weather is most important, followed by objective criteria X which narrows the list to 10-15, apply and then see where things shake out.

You are talking about fit and don't seem to realize it. I Think you just don't like the word fit. So call it something else, but it's the same thing everyone is talking about. "Fit" =/= just one magic school. No one is saying that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is how they are able to sell SLAC's as this mythical 'fit' for some students.

Nothing against SLAC's they do serve a role but it is just marketing.

Smaller schools are a “fit” for some kids. These schools exist for a reason. It isn’t mythical. It is preferences.

I was glad I had options. I’m glad my child has options.

It really feels like the point of this thread is “just go to a huge public, everyone-it’s a one size fits all”

This is it in a nutshell. There is a strong contingent here that feels like every kid should go to a big instate public and if they don’t want to there’s something wrong with the kid.

I went to a big in state public and I wish I had known about smaller schools. I had friends and did fine academically. But I knew I was just a number. My professors were more concerned with their grad students and research and my TA’s were just doing what needed to be done for their graduate degrees.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Fit" is a thing but my hope is that our children aren't in need of a particular fit. We discourage SLACs.

Why, though?

Not PP, but my guess is that they want their kid to choose the highest ranked school they get into no matter how much they hate the school. "Rank" is the end all be all for people who think "fit" is a dirty word synonymous with weakness. Whereas, "rank" mens superiority and strength.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Disagree. I found my friends at my large college, but I had a horrible experience because it was a cold, uncaring environment. I was really lost, and it was clear that no one cared. I think I’d have done much better at a smaller school where professors/ administrators had some knowledge of the students.

Fit is about more than just finding a good group of peers.

I respectively disagree with you. Cold and uncaring is part of life. I'm glad my big state U taught me that as a youngster. It took me to great heights in my life! I had to learn how to advocate for myself and it opened my eyes to many different world views .

I'm not saying its for everyone. Big State U's can be very tough. But, not humble brag but real brag, I have made millions from my humble State U education and retired when I was 53.

For better or worse, my kids are following their paths and enjoying their decisions!

That gets back to fit. The big state U suited you and taught you how to advocate for yourself. I, on the other hand, had to deal with the death of my mother my freshman year and had no adult to help me through that.

At a smaller or generally more caring college, it’s likely that some professor or administrator might have reached out and guided me towards some of the available resources. At my cold and uncaring large university, I simply had professors who asked if I wanted the homework assignments I missed while attending my mother’s funeral.

Op’s point was that only the peer group matters, and that can be found at any large university so the concept of “fit” does not apply. I disagreed with their point, as I did have a good group of peers available, but the university itself was still a poor fit due to my own needs which were beyond simply finding a good peer group.