Why are Northern Kids Flocking to Southern Universities?

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:I live in the South (from here but grew up mostly in DC) and am not allowing my kids to apply to the big state schools in the SEC. I find them to be overly focused on the worst version of greek life, very white, basic, and to involve a huge gameday culture that includes lots of parents visiting all the time to drink etc. That is the last thing I plan to do with my weekends. It's a whole thing that you don't really understand unless you are from here. Also, sorry, but you don't just move to NYC, DC, London etc with a degree from Alabama or Miss State. Those schools still are largely for people who stay close by and are part of a Southern culture that I am not really into.

I can see how it is exotic for people, but TBH, kids from other places are not going to have the same experience that all these kids who grew up aspiring to be part of greek life there have. I live and breathe amongst this group and many of them are currently spending tons on good private schools. I find it baffling that they would do that and then send their kids off to these places where, of course you can get a wonderful education, but the predominant culture is basic, white, drunk, and greek.

You are insufferable.

LOL, Roll Tide, I guess. Do you know about this culture and have a greater understanding of it or are you just excited about the acceptance rates?

My kid is Northeast school and their is no interest in Southern schools. Have lived in the South but my response was to your tone and tenor. A lot of I in a thread about kids flocking to Southern schools...add in the baseless accusations and you just look pathetic.

This is an anonymous board so there are no points for tone and tenor. I am from the south and have lived here most of my life. Same for my DH and we agree on these schools. There is nothing "baseless" about my opinions. I know a lot about this world.

OK, so two rando's on an anonymous board, you and your spouse. "I find it baffling that they would do that and then send their kids off to these places where, of course you can get a wonderful education, but the predominant culture is basic, white, drunk, and greek." Those are your words give us the data oh sage from the south...

If you all are interested in the SEC schools, great! I personally would not spend $120K on high school only to have my daughter go to a school where her main focus was dancing around in short shorts during rush with a bunch of tanning bed types. I, of course, know many smart people who went to SEC schools. I did not, however, encounter many of these in the elite law firm world of NYC or DC. Maybe that has changed. And I am talking about the predominant culture, not international students, etc. who I honestly think my child would not even find among the frat culture. I also know a lot of fratty types who are now Southern country clubbers (yes, successful but not really interesting). Not for me, but if you like it, great!

Calling BS on this person knowing anything about the “elite law firm world.”

The managing partner at O’Melveny (of the DC office and then the entire firm) received his undergraduate degree from Tennessee, and he wasn’t the only Tennessee grad in the DC office. I could find many other examples to show that person indeed has no clue about Big Law.

LOL the managing partner is a woman who did not go to UT, but ok, you can probably find some people at most law firms who went to these schools and then better law schools.

If you all who live in DC and are not from the south know so much about Ole Miss, Alabama, the other big SEC schools, and the South in general, go forth and enjoy. It actually helps their rankings to have all of these DC area/Northeastern kids apply, so it helps them, and you will probably see more and more people in elite jobs with those degrees. Socially, I assure you that I understand the culture a lot better than you do, and will not be paying for my kids to participate in it. What you don't know is probably helping you love them. To be clear, I am not talking about Vandy, Rice, Duke, Emory and the like.

Look up AB Culvahouse and get back to me with your lol (are you 5?). You sound like an insecure snob, and definitely low on the fun factor.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:it's more fun, kids get bored in dark cold places with crappy sports teams.

Most people don't sit around studying 24/7 they like to be out and about. Imagine being at an outdoor party while those up north are inside sipping tea on a study break

Students who are primarily focused on partying, having a good time, and ogling "hot coeds" may indeed be flocking to Southern universities. I don't think that's a big loss for colder-weather northern universities, especially those receiving record numbers of applicants (e.g., University of Michigan, University of Chicago, Purdue, etc.).

Agree!

You agree that the bolded is true? You know this how?

https://www.michigandaily.com/news/university-highlights-gains-in-applicants-for-class-of-2026-admissions/#:~:text=For%20the%20class%
20of%202026%2C%20the%20University%20of,to%20the%20over%2080%2C000%20applications%20received%20last%20year.

For the class of 2026, the University of Michigan received a record breaking number of applications from prospective first year students, according to the University Record. In total, the University saw over 84,000 applications, which was a 6% increase to the over 80,000 applications received last year.

The Southern schools are seeing 20 plus percentage increases in apps, some significantly higher.

Because they're starting from a lower baseline. And the increase is NOT coming at the expense of applications to strong northern universities.

And your proof of that is that the northern schools had a much smaller increase?

[Anonymous]

TikTok

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

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Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:it's more fun, kids get bored in dark cold places with crappy sports teams.

Most people don't sit around studying 24/7 they like to be out and about. Imagine being at an outdoor party while those up north are inside sipping tea on a study break

Students who are primarily focused on partying, having a good time, and ogling "hot coeds" may indeed be flocking to Southern universities. I don't think that's a big loss for colder-weather northern universities, especially those receiving record numbers of applicants (e.g., University of Michigan, University of Chicago, Purdue, etc.).

Agree!

You agree that the bolded is true? You know this how?

https://www.michigandaily.com/news/university-highlights-gains-in-applicants-for-class-of-2026-admissions/#:~:text=For%20the%20class%
20of%202026%2C%20the%20University%20of,to%20the%20over%2080%2C000%20applications%20received%20last%20year.

For the class of 2026, the University of Michigan received a record breaking number of applications from prospective first year students, according to the University Record. In total, the University saw over 84,000 applications, which was a 6% increase to the over 80,000 applications received last year.

The Southern schools are seeing 20 plus percentage increases in apps, some significantly higher.

Because they're starting from a lower baseline. And the increase is NOT coming at the expense of applications to strong northern universities.

And your proof of that is that the northern schools had a much smaller increase?

Have you not been reading prior postings on this thread yesterday and today? Percentage increases are just one data point. Just as important is the actual number. The University of Michigan, for example, received twice the number of applications as Auburn. Purdue University received 20,000+ more applications than Auburn.

Look, I don't think anyone is arguing that some Southern schools aren't seeing an increase in applicants from the North. I'm sure they are. For example, a surprising 41 kids at my DC's FCPS high school applied to Clemson last year (although only 6 of the 21 who were accepted chose to enroll there.) But the argument that kids in the Northeast/Mid Atlantic and Midwest are now "flocking" South (i.e., preferring Southern schools over those in the North much more so than in years past) doesn't appear to be backed by reliable data and does not mesh with the fact that the number of applications to many strong schools in the North has increased. Look at UIUC -- the population of Illinois is declining, but the school experienced a big jump in applications. (Google it if you want.)

Also, one data point cited is that the number of OOS applicants to Southern schools has in some cases increased quite a bit. But OOS just means outside that particular Southern state. The growing number of OOS applicants to Alabama or Auburn, for example, likely include those from out West (e.g., California and Colorado) and nearby Georgia and Tennessee.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:it's more fun, kids get bored in dark cold places with crappy sports teams.

Most people don't sit around studying 24/7 they like to be out and about. Imagine being at an outdoor party while those up north are inside sipping tea on a study break

Students who are primarily focused on partying, having a good time, and ogling "hot coeds" may indeed be flocking to Southern universities. I don't think that's a big loss for colder-weather northern universities, especially those receiving record numbers of applicants (e.g., University of Michigan, University of Chicago, Purdue, etc.).

Agree!

You agree that the bolded is true? You know this how?

https://www.michigandaily.com/news/university-highlights-gains-in-applicants-for-class-of-2026-admissions/#:~:text=For%20the%20class%
20of%202026%2C%20the%20University%20of,to%20the%20over%2080%2C000%20applications%20received%20last%20year.

For the class of 2026, the University of Michigan received a record breaking number of applications from prospective first year students, according to the University Record. In total, the University saw over 84,000 applications, which was a 6% increase to the over 80,000 applications received last year.

The Southern schools are seeing 20 plus percentage increases in apps, some significantly higher.

Because they're starting from a lower baseline. And the increase is NOT coming at the expense of applications to strong northern universities.

And your proof of that is that the northern schools had a much smaller increase?

Have you not been reading prior postings on this thread yesterday and today? Percentage increases are just one data point. Just as important is the actual number. The University of Michigan, for example, received twice the number of applications as Auburn. Purdue University received 20,000+ more applications than Auburn.

Look, I don't think anyone is arguing that some Southern schools aren't seeing an increase in applicants from the North. I'm sure they are. For example, a surprising 41 kids at my DC's FCPS high school applied to Clemson last year (although only 6 of the 21 who were accepted chose to enroll there.) But the argument that kids in the Northeast/Mid Atlantic and Midwest are now "flocking" South (i.e., preferring Southern schools over those in the North much more so than in years past) doesn't appear to be backed by reliable data and does not mesh with the fact that the number of applications to many strong schools in the North has increased. Look at UIUC -- the population of Illinois is declining, but the school experienced a big jump in applications. (Google it if you want.)

Also, one data point cited is that the number of OOS applicants to Southern schools has in some cases increased quite a bit. But OOS just means outside that particular Southern state. The growing number of OOS applicants to Alabama or Auburn, for example, likely include those from out West (e.g., California and Colorado) and nearby Georgia and Tennessee.

The absolute number of applications doesn’t reveal trends. You do realize that, right? Let’s say Purdue had 7500 fewer applications next year and Auburn had 9000 more. Purdue would still have more total applications, but the trend the admissions office would care about would be the decrease in apps, especially if other schools were experiencing a double digit increase.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:it's more fun, kids get bored in dark cold places with crappy sports teams.

Most people don't sit around studying 24/7 they like to be out and about. Imagine being at an outdoor party while those up north are inside sipping tea on a study break

Students who are primarily focused on partying, having a good time, and ogling "hot coeds" may indeed be flocking to Southern universities. I don't think that's a big loss for colder-weather northern universities, especially those receiving record numbers of applicants (e.g., University of Michigan, University of Chicago, Purdue, etc.).

Agree!

You agree that the bolded is true? You know this how?

Maybe the same way that the OP knows that northern kids are "flocking" to southern universities? - NP

Op provided links, maybe you missed that.

No, I didn't miss the link.

The headline of the article OP linked states: "College applicants - including those from Northern liberal enclaves - are flocking to traditional Southern schools. From this OP asks "Why are Northern kids Flocking to Southern Universities?" (Bolded mine for those who may not get the point.)

I see little to no evidence from the numbers/data cited in the article that the increase in applicants to Southern universities like Texas Christian in Fort Worth is a result of "Northern" kids, let alone kids from "Northern liberal enclaves," flocking to them.

I don't read Town and Country - too elite for me - but it seems as though someone has an agenda here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:it's more fun, kids get bored in dark cold places with crappy sports teams.

Most people don't sit around studying 24/7 they like to be out and about. Imagine being at an outdoor party while those up north are inside sipping tea on a study break

Students who are primarily focused on partying, having a good time, and ogling "hot coeds" may indeed be flocking to Southern universities. I don't think that's a big loss for colder-weather northern universities, especially those receiving record numbers of applicants (e.g., University of Michigan, University of Chicago, Purdue, etc.).

Agree!

You agree that the bolded is true? You know this how?

https://www.michigandaily.com/news/university-highlights-gains-in-applicants-for-class-of-2026-admissions/#:~:text=For%20the%20class%
20of%202026%2C%20the%20University%20of,to%20the%20over%2080%2C000%20applications%20received%20last%20year.

For the class of 2026, the University of Michigan received a record breaking number of applications from prospective first year students, according to the University Record. In total, the University saw over 84,000 applications, which was a 6% increase to the over 80,000 applications received last year.

The Southern schools are seeing 20 plus percentage increases in apps, some significantly higher.

Because they're starting from a lower baseline. And the increase is NOT coming at the expense of applications to strong northern universities.

And your proof of that is that the northern schools had a much smaller increase?

Have you not been reading prior postings on this thread yesterday and today? Percentage increases are just one data point. Just as important is the actual number. The University of Michigan, for example, received twice the number of applications as Auburn. Purdue University received 20,000+ more applications than Auburn.

Look, I don't think anyone is arguing that some Southern schools aren't seeing an increase in applicants from the North. I'm sure they are. For example, a surprising 41 kids at my DC's FCPS high school applied to Clemson last year (although only 6 of the 21 who were accepted chose to enroll there.) But the argument that kids in the Northeast/Mid Atlantic and Midwest are now "flocking" South (i.e., preferring Southern schools over those in the North much more so than in years past) doesn't appear to be backed by reliable data and does not mesh with the fact that the number of applications to many strong schools in the North has increased. Look at UIUC -- the population of Illinois is declining, but the school experienced a big jump in applications. (Google it if you want.)

Also, one data point cited is that the number of OOS applicants to Southern schools has in some cases increased quite a bit. But OOS just means outside that particular Southern state. The growing number of OOS applicants to Alabama or Auburn, for example, likely include those from out West (e.g., California and Colorado) and nearby Georgia and Tennessee.

The absolute number of applications doesn’t reveal trends. You do realize that, right? Let’s say Purdue had 7500 fewer applications next year and Auburn had 9000 more. Purdue would still have more total applications, but the trend the admissions office would care about would be the decrease in apps, especially if other schools were experiencing a double digit increase.

What I was trying to point out is that percentage increases should be looked at in conjunction with total numbers to give a complete picture. It may sound really impressive to hear that Town A's population grew by 100% in one year, but if it had 1,000 residents to begin with, then it added just 1,000 residents while Town B with 2,000 residents that "only" grew by 50% in one year added the same number of residents (1,000). But is the "trend" for Town A to grow faster than Town B? Sure. Is the "trend" for Auburn's application pool to grow faster than the application pool for University of Michigan? I guess, but so what? That doesn't mean that kids from the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic/Midwest are increasingly preferring Auburn over Michigan. Similar "trends" elsewhere don't mean that, as a whole, kids from the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic/Midwest are choosing Southern schools over those schools in those regions significantly more than they did 10 years ago. As posted above, the rise in applications can come from various sources.

[Anonymous]

I believe UGA told applicants this year that it was revising its policy because of the sharp increase in out of state applicants. Sounds like flocking.

[Anonymous]

Likely because the Southern schools are not drowning in wokeness, like so many of the NE schools and CA schools. I'm a professor and have crossed many of the top schools off the list for teens because of the horrible campus climate, incredibly intolerant and anti-free-speech students, and "safe space"/hand-holding culture. Who wants a joyless 4 years of college being yelled at because you are the oppressor? Plus rampant anti-Semitism at so many NE SLACs, the UC schools, NYU, Columbia. Thanks, but no thanks.

*and before you instinctively call me a racist, I've been teaching CRT and the like for the past 25 years!

[Anonymous]

Just not well, evidently.

[Anonymous]

Likely because the Southern schools are not drowning in wokeness, like so many of the NE schools and CA schools.

Hmmm...PP may be correct. This feels like someone has an agenda.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I believe UGA told applicants this year that it was revising its policy because of the sharp increase in out of state applicants. Sounds like flocking.

Applying to a school doesn't mean actually enrolling in it. Kids are applying to LOTS of schools (some to well over 10), but they can only enroll in one. And UGA OOS applicants include students from the West and elsewhere in the South.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Likely because the Southern schools are not drowning in wokeness, like so many of the NE schools and CA schools. I'm a professor and have crossed many of the top schools off the list for teens because of the horrible campus climate, incredibly intolerant and anti-free-speech students, and "safe space"/hand-holding culture. Who wants a joyless 4 years of college being yelled at because you are the oppressor? Plus rampant anti-Semitism at so many NE SLACs, the UC schools, NYU, Columbia. Thanks, but no thanks.

*and before you instinctively call me a racist, I've been teaching CRT and the like for the past 25 years!

No wokeness AND no antisemitism? Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I believe UGA told applicants this year that it was revising its policy because of the sharp increase in out of state applicants. Sounds like flocking.

Likewise, given the sharp increase in OOS applicants, sounds like students are flocking to Vermont! (Maybe they got tried of sweating profusely at August/September high school football games down South.)

https://www.wcax.com/2022/05/05/uvm-sees-record-number-applications/

[Anonymous]

UGA has a specific scholarship for in-state kids that makes it very hard to get into for OOS. This has been the case for years. It doesn't mean that it is a great school...