Why are Northern Kids Flocking to Southern Universities?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Go south, rush Greek life, and enjoy the sun. Don’t overthink it. North U.S. weather is boring and depressing — only worth putting up with at an Ivy.

Enjoy the sun as you sit drenched in sweat and almost pass out from heat stroke watching an SEC football game in September (but maybe you're too drunk to care).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Go south, rush Greek life, and enjoy the sun. Don’t overthink it. North U.S. weather is boring and depressing — only worth putting up with at an Ivy.

Different strokes for different folks. Cycling through the different seasons is fantastic, not boring. It's interesting.

This is a cope people trapped in the rust belt tell themselves.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:State school is state school. As long as it’s an R1 and has Greek life and a decent football team, go wherever you get the best deal. UMD and Tech are high school 2.0 for DMV kids. Tap out of state scholarships and broaden your horizons.

You must be old. Today, the only people who say that are those who don’t have the stats to apply or those who were rejected. UMD College park has 41,000 students; Virginia Tech has 36,000. An entire public high school class could get lost I. Those numbers. Fwiw my UVA kid never saw his high school colleagues once they matriculated

You must be old and think kids go find themselves in the nearest state school and everyone makes all new friends. Not these days. Kids stay connected to the same group of high school friends. Thank social media, smartphones, group chats, and online gaming (boys). If you’re local and tried to make all new friends you’d seem like a weirdo. You’re stuck with the high school group unless you go out of state.

DP. You often troll with this same bizarre narrative. It's pretty clear you don't know what you're talking about. My kid goes to a large state school and most of her friends are from OOS. Those who are in-state, like her, come from all over the state - and she never sees anyone from high school unless she goes out of her way to do so. Kind of obvious you've got some weird axe to grind against state schools, since nothing you ever say resembles reality.

So you’re miffed because your kid lacked high school friends? For any other McLain or Arlington kid, they’re going to know hundreds of peers at UVA and Tech and it would be super odd if they randomly ghosted all of them and also sketchy to out of state peers if they shared they had no friends from high school on a campus full of kids from their hometown. But good to hear it worked out for your kid (or is this really about you?) after struggling in high school. That scenario is not ideal or easy in 2022 for a local kid at the go-to public U.

I don't think PP went to college.

+1
What a weirdo. My kids attend VT and JMU and almost *never* see anyone they went to high school with, much less "hundreds of peers" . Their friend groups consist of kids from all over the state as well as OOS - many from the west coast. Doesn't sound like the PP gets out much.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Go south, rush Greek life, and enjoy the sun. Don’t overthink it. North U.S. weather is boring and depressing — only worth putting up with at an Ivy.

Different strokes for different folks. Cycling through the different seasons is fantastic, not boring. It's interesting.

This is a cope people trapped in the rust belt tell themselves.

My parents live in Florida and seem to like it. Good for them. I can visit but no thanks as a permanent address for me. But enjoy. Some people love it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:State school is state school. As long as it’s an R1 and has Greek life and a decent football team, go wherever you get the best deal. UMD and Tech are high school 2.0 for DMV kids. Tap out of state scholarships and broaden your horizons.

You must be old. Today, the only people who say that are those who don’t have the stats to apply or those who were rejected. UMD College park has 41,000 students; Virginia Tech has 36,000. An entire public high school class could get lost I. Those numbers. Fwiw my UVA kid never saw his high school colleagues once they matriculated

You must be old and think kids go find themselves in the nearest state school and everyone makes all new friends. Not these days. Kids stay connected to the same group of high school friends. Thank social media, smartphones, group chats, and online gaming (boys). If you’re local and tried to make all new friends you’d seem like a weirdo. You’re stuck with the high school group unless you go out of state.

DP. You often troll with this same bizarre narrative. It's pretty clear you don't know what you're talking about. My kid goes to a large state school and most of her friends are from OOS. Those who are in-state, like her, come from all over the state - and she never sees anyone from high school unless she goes out of her way to do so. Kind of obvious you've got some weird axe to grind against state schools, since nothing you ever say resembles reality.

So you’re miffed because your kid lacked high school friends? For any other McLain or Arlington kid, they’re going to know hundreds of peers at UVA and Tech and it would be super odd if they randomly ghosted all of them and also sketchy to out of state peers if they shared they had no friends from high school on a campus full of kids from their hometown. But good to hear it worked out for your kid (or is this really about you?) after struggling in high school. That scenario is not ideal or easy in 2022 for a local kid at the go-to public U.

People - don't let your middle schoolers troll this forum. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Go south, rush Greek life, and enjoy the sun. Don’t overthink it. North U.S. weather is boring and depressing — only worth putting up with at an Ivy.

Different strokes for different folks. Cycling through the different seasons is fantastic, not boring. It's interesting.

This is a cope people trapped in the rust belt tell themselves.

when did DC area become the rust belt?

Not the person you were responding to, but I've lived in the Mid-Atlantic most of my life. I did go to school in NC for 4 years, but they still had seasons, just didn't get QUITE as much snow as we do (which some years, is next to none)

I like seasons. My husband spent a tour on Oahu while we dated long distance. Sure, nice weather is lovely, but he actually got bored with it. Nice place to visit, but living there is a totally different thing.

Plus, tornadoes and hurricanes in the south - no thanks.

[Anonymous]

Anyone in 2022 who says their local kid at a local university doesn’t talk to any high school friends is either lying to pushback on how insular and ruthlessly cliquish public colleges are or is inadvertently revealing their passive kid struggled socially in high school. High school cliques do in fact control the social scene at public universities. The top frats and sororities are fortified pipelines to certain schools, towns and networks. Good luck rushing when your kid doesn’t talk to anyone who controls these houses. Arriving at a state school when you grew up 20 minutes to 2 hours away with no friends is a really challenging spot to be in. Going to a public school in a different state would at least give you a valid reason for not knowing anyone on campus when you arrived.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone in 2022 who says their local kid at a local university doesn’t talk to any high school friends is either lying to pushback on how insular and ruthlessly cliquish public colleges are or is inadvertently revealing their passive kid struggled socially in high school. High school cliques do in fact control the social scene at public universities. The top frats and sororities are fortified pipelines to certain schools, towns and networks. Good luck rushing when your kid doesn’t talk to anyone who controls these houses. Arriving at a state school when you grew up 20 minutes to 2 hours away with no friends is a really challenging spot to be in. Going to a public school in a different state would at least give you a valid reason for not knowing anyone on campus when you arrived.

More than 2. Fairfax to VT is 4 hours one way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone in 2022 who says their local kid at a local university doesn’t talk to any high school friends is either lying to pushback on how insular and ruthlessly cliquish public colleges are or is inadvertently revealing their passive kid struggled socially in high school. High school cliques do in fact control the social scene at public universities. The top frats and sororities are fortified pipelines to certain schools, towns and networks. Good luck rushing when your kid doesn’t talk to anyone who controls these houses. Arriving at a state school when you grew up 20 minutes to 2 hours away with no friends is a really challenging spot to be in. Going to a public school in a different state would at least give you a valid reason for not knowing anyone on campus when you arrived.

So if you go to an OOS public that's controlled by high school cliques, of whom you know no one, that's better?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My best friend's kid -- an average MoCo student -- joined a couple of friends in heading to the University of South Carolina (Columbia) a few years ago. But once he settled in he didn't like the cultural environment, and really didn't like his first ever exposure to country-club style antisemitism. So he spent his freshman year getting his grades up and transferred to Syracuse, which he loves (now a senior).

Contrary to what the Southern boosters here go on about endlessly, a balmy climate isn't really the key determinant of a college's appeal or value.

College applications have surged everywhere in the country, and that's put a lot of formerly regional universities on the nationwide map (Northeastern? Pitt? Indiana? Connecticut? heck even UMD) in a way they weren't before. It's logical that effect would also trickle down to some southern schools that previously had a mostly regional profile. I guess it represents progress that those Southern schools are now also benefiting from nationwide trends rather than being excluded from them (although I'm still meeting a lot of HS students who will say "oh, I'll go to college anywhere -- except the South" -- and we all know that's not just social justice warriors).

But it's also true that only in the South does being part of a nationwide surge in college applications then become repurposed as representing some sort of victory in a culture war against the North, or part of owning the libs, or being where woke goes to die. No wonder so much of the rest of the country rolls our eyes at our Southern cousins' antics ...

Believe whatever makes you feel better. I wouldn’t want to burst your bubble, but your “trickle down” theory isn’t supported by the evidence.

And your last paragraph says more about your own sensitivities than anyone else’s. It actually made me laugh, since there isn’t one thread about a school in the South on this forum that doesn’t generate a comment about how the parent would never let their child go to school in the South for political reasons. In fact, it’s become an article of faith among many here that Red-state schools are going to go out of business. When someone points out that none of that is supported by the data, they are the “culture warriors?”

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Anyone in 2022 who says their local kid at a local university doesn’t talk to any high school friends is either lying to pushback on how insular and ruthlessly cliquish public colleges are or is inadvertently revealing their passive kid struggled socially in high school. High school cliques do in fact control the social scene at public universities. The top frats and sororities are fortified pipelines to certain schools, towns and networks. Good luck rushing when your kid doesn’t talk to anyone who controls these houses. Arriving at a state school when you grew up 20 minutes to 2 hours away with no friends is a really challenging spot to be in. Going to a public school in a different state would at least give you a valid reason for not knowing anyone on campus when you arrived.

It's becoming more and more clear that this PP is either a troll or has never attended college. This post actually made me laugh, especially the bolded! Wow, totally clueless.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone in 2022 who says their local kid at a local university doesn’t talk to any high school friends is either lying to pushback on how insular and ruthlessly cliquish public colleges are or is inadvertently revealing their passive kid struggled socially in high school. High school cliques do in fact control the social scene at public universities. The top frats and sororities are fortified pipelines to certain schools, towns and networks. Good luck rushing when your kid doesn’t talk to anyone who controls these houses. Arriving at a state school when you grew up 20 minutes to 2 hours away with no friends is a really challenging spot to be in. Going to a public school in a different state would at least give you a valid reason for not knowing anyone on campus when you arrived.

So if you go to an OOS public that's controlled by high school cliques, of whom you know no one, that's better?

Yes, because you have an excuse why you don’t have any friends and are seeking new ones. And you’re sort of exotic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone in 2022 who says their local kid at a local university doesn’t talk to any high school friends is either lying to pushback on how insular and ruthlessly cliquish public colleges are or is inadvertently revealing their passive kid struggled socially in high school. High school cliques do in fact control the social scene at public universities. The top frats and sororities are fortified pipelines to certain schools, towns and networks. Good luck rushing when your kid doesn’t talk to anyone who controls these houses. Arriving at a state school when you grew up 20 minutes to 2 hours away with no friends is a really challenging spot to be in. Going to a public school in a different state would at least give you a valid reason for not knowing anyone on campus when you arrived.

So if you go to an OOS public that's controlled by high school cliques, of whom you know no one, that's better?

+1
What is this fixation with "high school cliques"? Obviously, the PP is projecting her own terrible high school experience onto universities on which she has never even set foot. My kid attends a large state school and sees one other person she went to high school with regularly because they have a shared class. They weren't even friends in high school, but now are - so bonus. Other than that, she sees virtually no one from her large NoVA high school. And that is just one plus of attending a large college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Anyone in 2022 who says their local kid at a local university doesn’t talk to any high school friends is either lying to pushback on how insular and ruthlessly cliquish public colleges are or is inadvertently revealing their passive kid struggled socially in high school. High school cliques do in fact control the social scene at public universities. The top frats and sororities are fortified pipelines to certain schools, towns and networks. Good luck rushing when your kid doesn’t talk to anyone who controls these houses. Arriving at a state school when you grew up 20 minutes to 2 hours away with no friends is a really challenging spot to be in. Going to a public school in a different state would at least give you a valid reason for not knowing anyone on campus when you arrived.

So if you go to an OOS public that's controlled by high school cliques, of whom you know no one, that's better?

Yes, because you have an excuse why you don’t have any friends and are seeking new ones. And you’re sort of exotic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:my daughter is really interested in the schools we have found in New England, MI and even Canada. So different strokes, I guess? I have been up front with her that it will be colder and snows quite a bit. She likes that idea, though.

Mine too. She's not considering anything in the South. She likes the 4 seasons and likes winter. We are in Virginia and not interested in going any further South.