Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Georgetown

+1. I'm class of '95. My wife is class of '97 under grad and class of '01 for grad school.. My father went there for undergrad and law school and my FIL taught medicine there for 27 years. Five diplomas between us all.

We took our son there a dozen times over the years since we live in Arlington. Did the official tour, and, I'll take heat for this, but he felt very out of place as the only white boy in the 20 person group. It came across more like a business presentation than a campus tour. So bland and uninteresting. Our son left completely underwhelmed. He applied anyway and was rejected, which floored us given the huge legacy.

So, screw Georgetown. They'll never see another dime from any of our families.

Try not to vacation in CA. And most schools out here, there is a real risk that he would find himself in similarly uncomfortable situations.

West cost schools tend to be waaaaaay whiter than east coast schools on the whole.

Uh, only if you consider Asian kids white.

Nope.

University of Oregon is 65% white and 6% Asian
University of Washington is 40% white and 20% Asian
Calpoly is 55% white and 17% Asian

All three are less than 4% black.

Like I said, they are white af.

Who are you trying to get away from? Black students? Indian students? Hispanic students ?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Georgetown

+1. I'm class of '95. My wife is class of '97 under grad and class of '01 for grad school.. My father went there for undergrad and law school and my FIL taught medicine there for 27 years. Five diplomas between us all.

We took our son there a dozen times over the years since we live in Arlington. Did the official tour, and, I'll take heat for this, but he felt very out of place as the only white boy in the 20 person group. It came across more like a business presentation than a campus tour. So bland and uninteresting. Our son left completely underwhelmed. He applied anyway and was rejected, which floored us given the huge legacy.

So, screw Georgetown. They'll never see another dime from any of our families.

Try not to vacation in CA. And most schools out here, there is a real risk that he would find himself in similarly uncomfortable situations.

West cost schools tend to be waaaaaay whiter than east coast schools on the whole.

Uh, only if you consider Asian kids white.

Nope.

University of Oregon is 65% white and 6% Asian
University of Washington is 40% white and 20% Asian
Calpoly is 55% white and 17% Asian

All three are less than 4% black.

Like I said, they are white af.

Who are you trying to get away from? Black students? Indian students? Hispanic students ?

Who said anything about getting away from people? Do facts scare you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Georgetown

+1. I'm class of '95. My wife is class of '97 under grad and class of '01 for grad school.. My father went there for undergrad and law school and my FIL taught medicine there for 27 years. Five diplomas between us all.

We took our son there a dozen times over the years since we live in Arlington. Did the official tour, and, I'll take heat for this, but he felt very out of place as the only white boy in the 20 person group. It came across more like a business presentation than a campus tour. So bland and uninteresting. Our son left completely underwhelmed. He applied anyway and was rejected, which floored us given the huge legacy.

So, screw Georgetown. They'll never see another dime from any of our families.

Try not to vacation in CA. And most schools out here, there is a real risk that he would find himself in similarly uncomfortable situations.

West cost schools tend to be waaaaaay whiter than east coast schools on the whole.

UCs, CSUs, USC, USF and I think the 5Cs (not as familiar with them) are all majority non-white, many significantly so. Cal-Poly is the outlier.

The sad thing is that African Americans are really poorly represented in the UCs, frequently around 3% of students.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Georgetown

+1. I'm class of '95. My wife is class of '97 under grad and class of '01 for grad school.. My father went there for undergrad and law school and my FIL taught medicine there for 27 years. Five diplomas between us all.

We took our son there a dozen times over the years since we live in Arlington. Did the official tour, and, I'll take heat for this, but he felt very out of place as the only white boy in the 20 person group. It came across more like a business presentation than a campus tour. So bland and uninteresting. Our son left completely underwhelmed. He applied anyway and was rejected, which floored us given the huge legacy.

So, screw Georgetown. They'll never see another dime from any of our families.

Try not to vacation in CA. And most schools out here, there is a real risk that he would find himself in similarly uncomfortable situations.

West cost schools tend to be waaaaaay whiter than east coast schools on the whole.

Uh, only if you consider Asian kids white.

Nope.

University of Oregon is 65% white and 6% Asian
University of Washington is 40% white and 20% Asian
Calpoly is 55% white and 17% Asian

All three are less than 4% black.

Like I said, they are white af.

I agree that there is a problem with black enrollment.

But the schools are cherry picked. Note that I said nothing about Oregon and Washington, only CA. Cal Poly is the CSU exception.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Georgetown

+1. I'm class of '95. My wife is class of '97 under grad and class of '01 for grad school.. My father went there for undergrad and law school and my FIL taught medicine there for 27 years. Five diplomas between us all.

We took our son there a dozen times over the years since we live in Arlington. Did the official tour, and, I'll take heat for this, but he felt very out of place as the only white boy in the 20 person group. It came across more like a business presentation than a campus tour. So bland and uninteresting. Our son left completely underwhelmed. He applied anyway and was rejected, which floored us given the huge legacy.

So, screw Georgetown. They'll never see another dime from any of our families.

Try not to vacation in CA. And most schools out here, there is a real risk that he would find himself in similarly uncomfortable situations.

West cost schools tend to be waaaaaay whiter than east coast schools on the whole.

Uh, only if you consider Asian kids white.

Nope.

University of Oregon is 65% white and 6% Asian
University of Washington is 40% white and 20% Asian
Calpoly is 55% white and 17% Asian

All three are less than 4% black.

Like I said, they are white af.

I agree that there is a problem with black enrollment.

But the schools are cherry picked. Note that I said nothing about Oregon and Washington, only CA. Cal Poly is the CSU exception.

They are not cherry picked at all. Two of them are the flagship universities for two of the three states that make up "the west coast". The original point was west coast schools are whiter than east coast schools.

Anyway, I have no interest in arguing with a moron that can't understand the basic demographic differences between Tuscaloosa Alabama and Eugene Oregon.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
I'll never understand why people put so much weight on the quality of the tour guide. Why would you assume that the tour guide is representative of the school? Or that a poor tour guide means that the school must be poor.

Because these are the students that the Admissions Office picked hopefully as being excellent representatives of the school. If this is the caliber they put forward, maybe it's a one-off but it makes you think.

IMO this is why if it's possible it can be good to visit twice or find ways to engage with other students during your own wandering around campus. Sit in the cafeteria. Maybe stop a student and ask them for directions, see how they react to you. Get other perspectives, because if that tour guide is your only impression of the student body it can say something.

Why would you assume that the Admissions Office is picking the best representatives of the school? Probably the Admissions Office is considering other institutional priorities. Also, why would you assume that the best representatives want to be tour guides? Your other suggestions make sense. It's crucial to engage with other students, get other opinions about the school, etc. The quality of the tour guide should be a very, very minor factor in your opinion about a school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Georgetown

+1. I'm class of '95. My wife is class of '97 under grad and class of '01 for grad school.. My father went there for undergrad and law school and my FIL taught medicine there for 27 years. Five diplomas between us all.

We took our son there a dozen times over the years since we live in Arlington. Did the official tour, and, I'll take heat for this, but he felt very out of place as the only white boy in the 20 person group. It came across more like a business presentation than a campus tour. So bland and uninteresting. Our son left completely underwhelmed. He applied anyway and was rejected, which floored us given the huge legacy.

So, screw Georgetown. They'll never see another dime from any of our families.

Try not to vacation in CA. And most schools out here, there is a real risk that he would find himself in similarly uncomfortable situations.

West cost schools tend to be waaaaaay whiter than east coast schools on the whole.

Uh, only if you consider Asian kids white.

Nope.

University of Oregon is 65% white and 6% Asian
University of Washington is 40% white and 20% Asian
Calpoly is 55% white and 17% Asian

All three are less than 4% black.

Like I said, they are white af.

I agree that there is a problem with black enrollment.

But the schools are cherry picked. Note that I said nothing about Oregon and Washington, only CA. Cal Poly is the CSU exception.

They are not cherry picked at all. Two of them are the flagship universities for two of the three states that make up "the west coast". The original point was west coast schools are whiter than east coast schools.

Anyway, I have no interest in arguing with a moron that can't understand the basic demographic differences between Tuscaloosa Alabama and Eugene Oregon.

Actually, I said CA not west coast.

If I was black, I’d seriously consider sending my son to an SEC school over an UC one for the reason you mention. And it is common for some families out here to send their kid to an HBCU.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Georgetown

+1. I'm class of '95. My wife is class of '97 under grad and class of '01 for grad school.. My father went there for undergrad and law school and my FIL taught medicine there for 27 years. Five diplomas between us all.

We took our son there a dozen times over the years since we live in Arlington. Did the official tour, and, I'll take heat for this, but he felt very out of place as the only white boy in the 20 person group. It came across more like a business presentation than a campus tour. So bland and uninteresting. Our son left completely underwhelmed. He applied anyway and was rejected, which floored us given the huge legacy.

So, screw Georgetown. They'll never see another dime from any of our families.

Try not to vacation in CA. And most schools out here, there is a real risk that he would find himself in similarly uncomfortable situations.

West cost schools tend to be waaaaaay whiter than east coast schools on the whole.

Uh, only if you consider Asian kids white.

Nope.

University of Oregon is 65% white and 6% Asian
University of Washington is 40% white and 20% Asian
Calpoly is 55% white and 17% Asian

All three are less than 4% black.

Like I said, they are white af.

I agree that there is a problem with black enrollment.

But the schools are cherry picked. Note that I said nothing about Oregon and Washington, only CA. Cal Poly is the CSU exception.

They are not cherry picked at all. Two of them are the flagship universities for two of the three states that make up "the west coast". The original point was west coast schools are whiter than east coast schools.

Anyway, I have no interest in arguing with a moron that can't understand the basic demographic differences between Tuscaloosa Alabama and Eugene Oregon.

Actually, I said CA not west coast.

If I was black, I’d seriously consider sending my son to an SEC school over an UC one for the reason you mention. And it is common for some families out here to send their kid to an HBCU.

No one GAF lady. The point being debated was"

"West coast schools tend to be waaaaaay whiter than east coast schools on the whole."

West coast. Not California.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Well, the country as a whole is about 65% white, so that means the school is balanced and fairly representative of society.

Your other 2 examples are hardly white AF.

What is the unaccounted 40% at UW?

How about the close to 30% at Cal Poly?

80-90% white is white AF. That was a point against one of my daughter’s choices. And I think is the current situation at my Alma mater, which isn’t great.

DP.

The person you are responding to is a woke nutjob with a persecution complex.

Fact is, universities on the west coast are quite diverse; most universities are.

Also, the PP you argued with seems desperate to find a way to exclude Asian folks from being POCs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Georgetown

+1. I'm class of '95. My wife is class of '97 under grad and class of '01 for grad school.. My father went there for undergrad and law school and my FIL taught medicine there for 27 years. Five diplomas between us all.

We took our son there a dozen times over the years since we live in Arlington. Did the official tour, and, I'll take heat for this, but he felt very out of place as the only white boy in the 20 person group. It came across more like a business presentation than a campus tour. So bland and uninteresting. Our son left completely underwhelmed. He applied anyway and was rejected, which floored us given the huge legacy.

So, screw Georgetown. They'll never see another dime from any of our families.

Try not to vacation in CA. And most schools out here, there is a real risk that he would find himself in similarly uncomfortable situations.

West cost schools tend to be waaaaaay whiter than east coast schools on the whole.

Uh, only if you consider Asian kids white.

Nope.

University of Oregon is 65% white and 6% Asian
University of Washington is 40% white and 20% Asian
Calpoly is 55% white and 17% Asian

All three are less than 4% black.

Like I said, they are white af.

I agree that there is a problem with black enrollment.

But the schools are cherry picked. Note that I said nothing about Oregon and Washington, only CA. Cal Poly is the CSU exception.

They are not cherry picked at all. Two of them are the flagship universities for two of the three states that make up "the west coast". The original point was west coast schools are whiter than east coast schools.

Anyway, I have no interest in arguing with a moron that can't understand the basic demographic differences between Tuscaloosa Alabama and Eugene Oregon.

Actually, I said CA not west coast.

If I was black, I’d seriously consider sending my son to an SEC school over an UC one for the reason you mention. And it is common for some families out here to send their kid to an HBCU.

No one GAF lady. The point being debated was"

"West coast schools tend to be waaaaaay whiter than east coast schools on the whole."

West coast. Not California.

No, that was your thing. My posts have always been about CA. If others want to discuss the west coast with you, they can.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Takeaways from this- (have just seen multiple people report in this thread)

Schools that surprised people in a positive way:
Pitt
UMD
Columbia

Schools that surprised people in a negative way:
Tufts
Carnegie Mellon
Duke

Schools that went both ways- both exceeding expectations and falling short for different families:
Chicago
Northwestern
VTech
William and Mary

Takeaways from this

1. Schools that spurned my kid were much worse than we thought when we toured.
2. Schools that admitted my kid were just wonederful and much better than anticipated. Kid loved it!

BRAVA! Especially true re UVA bashing .. no surprise.

Why are criticisms of other schools valid but criticisms of UVA are bashing? It's ok that not everyone likes every school.

Baffled with this too. People are different. For example, my 10th grader really liked UVA and my 12th grader wasn't crazy about it.

To DD, UVA just gave off this creepy party-school vibe, which she didn’t get from her other top choices we toured (Michigan, Carnegie-Mellon, Case Western, and Pitt.

Omg. Same! I thought my boys would love it. They both hated it. We were there on a Thursday-Friday in April admitted day (not spring break) and our hotel had a pre-sorority mixer going on and everyone was sh@tfaced. The corner was a mess. Now, personally, I loved the vibe (lol) and I’m a Hokie. But- my kids did not. They preferred the mid-size schools in Urban areas.

UVA boosters are worse then vegan bicyclists.

No one is denying UVA is a huge party-school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We liked Columbia a lot more than we expected to. It went way up on the list after our visit.

Wesleyan was the other school that was a surprise hit. Nice place with a good mix of students. Other SLACs were more clearly dominated by one type, like athletes or preppy students or eccentric students, but Wesleyan felt like it was home to everyone. And students seemed happier than at the other schools. I also was expecting to be underwhelmed by the campus, but it was lovely, and Middletown was nowhere near the "dump" I'd heard it was.

Middletown was just awful, buildings disjointed and spread out, some run down brick 50s buildings. We didn't understand the appeal at all, the area was depressing....

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Georgetown

+1. I'm class of '95. My wife is class of '97 under grad and class of '01 for grad school.. My father went there for undergrad and law school and my FIL taught medicine there for 27 years. Five diplomas between us all.

We took our son there a dozen times over the years since we live in Arlington. Did the official tour, and, I'll take heat for this, but he felt very out of place as the only white boy in the 20 person group. It came across more like a business presentation than a campus tour. So bland and uninteresting. Our son left completely underwhelmed. He applied anyway and was rejected, which floored us given the huge legacy.

So, screw Georgetown. They'll never see another dime from any of our families.

Try not to vacation in CA. And most schools out here, there is a real risk that he would find himself in similarly uncomfortable situations.

West cost schools tend to be waaaaaay whiter than east coast schools on the whole.

Uh, only if you consider Asian kids white.

Nope.

University of Oregon is 65% white and 6% Asian
University of Washington is 40% white and 20% Asian
Calpoly is 55% white and 17% Asian

All three are less than 4% black.

Like I said, they are white af.

I agree that there is a problem with black enrollment.

But the schools are cherry picked. Note that I said nothing about Oregon and Washington, only CA. Cal Poly is the CSU exception.

They are not cherry picked at all. Two of them are the flagship universities for two of the three states that make up "the west coast". The original point was west coast schools are whiter than east coast schools.

Anyway, I have no interest in arguing with a moron that can't understand the basic demographic differences between Tuscaloosa Alabama and Eugene Oregon.

Actually, I said CA not west coast.

If I was black, I’d seriously consider sending my son to an SEC school over an UC one for the reason you mention. And it is common for some families out here to send their kid to an HBCU.

No one GAF lady. The point being debated was"

"West coast schools tend to be waaaaaay whiter than east coast schools on the whole."

West coast. Not California.

No, that was your thing. My posts have always been about CA. If others want to discuss the west coast with you, they can.

My thing was THE thing. You don't get to tell someone else what they meant with their words. Are you so upset at not being white?

[Anonymous]

I don't have a dog in this fight but I do find it hilarious that someone is pretending the west coast isn't whiter than the south east. Gotta be trolling.

[Anonymous]

-Davidson - meh. Red brick buildings; no clear campus center ….
-UVA - yuck. Too spread out with lots of cars whizzing by; disgusting “high street” close to campus with gross/run down restaurants and homeless/druggies lolling on the sidewalk. Quickly crossed off the list.
-university of San Diego - wow- gorgeous campus with views all around. Lovely mission style buildings.
-Pomona - also delightful / lovely town and campus with views of mountains. new top choice.
-wake forest - holy stepford wives.
-college of Charleston - omg - absolutely gorgeous.
-UCSD - all charm is gone with giant expansion- way too big and soulless now.