Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:35
Subject: Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:UVA was the #1 choice before starting campus visits and then we didn't even apply.
Looks just like a prison.
I’d turn to a life of crime if prison was like UVA.
We were pleasantly surprised by JMU’s
school of art and design. Absolutely beautiful facilities. Didn’t love the rest of campus so much, though.
We kind of dragged kid to Pitt since we were in town anyway. Didn’t expect much, but she loved it and has applied.
Lafayette was a bust.
Seriously a strange comment. UVA is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. I know of some Cal States that look like prisons but that’s because they were built in the 60s, but no one has said that about UVA before …
Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:35
Subject: Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
Muhlenberg is a pit. Just yuck. They do have some good 3/2 programs but the campus, location and size of school are yuck.
To each their own. We thought Muhlenberg's campus was lovely--a quintessential small liberal arts college. Old stone buildings, leafy walkways, open views to the surrounding hills, and those inviting red doors. The chapel was stunning (tour guide said it is an exact copy of the chapel at Princeton, just one-third the scale). Yes, it's definitely a small school, but that made it seem cozy. Location wasn't amazing but also nothing dire. Just an average small city. The area right around campus seemed fine.
Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:33
Subject: Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
DC- Strongly disliked -
University of California San Diego - DC thought it was directly on the beach but it is not easy to get to the beach since it requires walking a considerable distance. It has an ugly concrete, cold feeling about it with no central campus. So many of the students seemed depressed and even the tour guide seemed sad every time he looked away and wasn’t directly addressing the people in the tour. University of Irvine seemed similar.
Pepperdine. In the middle of a burned out small town far from any actual city. Students seemed rich and entitled.
Pomona/Claremont McKenna- it was really hot when we went and it is in a far far off area of LA. Not sure how to describe some of the Pomona students.
University of Santa Barbara- Campus seemed so run down. So much deferred maintenance needed. Great that campus is actually on a beach so that part was amazing, but so many students seemed really into partying.
DC liked-
UCLA- nice campus, students seemed friendly. We try to eat in the dinning commons just to get a feel for food and students. DC liked diversity of food and vibe.
University of Utah-DC wasn’t thrilled about the lack of diversity, the new dorms and new buildings on campus were really nice. Everyone was over the top friendly and helpful. Super close to skiing and hiking. Students didn’t seem ultra competitive and seemed like they would collaborate.
UC Berkeley- thought it would be grungy with homeless all around but that wasn’t our experience at all. Had a great tour and saw a beautiful campus in an urban setting.
UC Davis- fantastic college town, students were friendly and seemed happy, such a great campus to bike around. We ended up renting bikes because there were so many amazing bike paths and the campus has a lot of very flat land. Biked to pet a goat and cow, biked to a small lake and small river that runs through campus, biked to town to get ice cream, bikes to raptor center, bikes to student union, biked to an athletic event. Helped the tour guide was really personable and fantastic and it was a gorgeous day. So hard to know how it would be different if it were a dreary rainy day with a bad tour guide.
University of California San Diego - DC thought it was directly on the beach but it is not easy to get to the beach since it requires walking a considerable distance. It has an ugly concrete, cold feeling about it with no central campus. So many of the students seemed depressed and even the tour guide seemed sad every time he looked away and wasn’t directly addressing the people in the tour. University of Irvine seemed similar.
Pepperdine. In the middle of a burned out small town far from any actual city. Students seemed rich and entitled.
Pomona/Claremont McKenna- it was really hot when we went and it is in a far far off area of LA. Not sure how to describe some of the Pomona students.
University of Santa Barbara- Campus seemed so run down. So much deferred maintenance needed. Great that campus is actually on a beach so that part was amazing, but so many students seemed really into partying.
DC liked-
UCLA- nice campus, students seemed friendly. We try to eat in the dinning commons just to get a feel for food and students. DC liked diversity of food and vibe.
University of Utah-DC wasn’t thrilled about the lack of diversity, the new dorms and new buildings on campus were really nice. Everyone was over the top friendly and helpful. Super close to skiing and hiking. Students didn’t seem ultra competitive and seemed like they would collaborate.
UC Berkeley- thought it would be grungy with homeless all around but that wasn’t our experience at all. Had a great tour and saw a beautiful campus in an urban setting.
UC Davis- fantastic college town, students were friendly and seemed happy, such a great campus to bike around. We ended up renting bikes because there were so many amazing bike paths and the campus has a lot of very flat land. Biked to pet a goat and cow, biked to a small lake and small river that runs through campus, biked to town to get ice cream, bikes to raptor center, bikes to student union, biked to an athletic event. Helped the tour guide was really personable and fantastic and it was a gorgeous day. So hard to know how it would be different if it were a dreary rainy day with a bad tour guide.
Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:30
Subject: Re:Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
Albright was awful. Clearly in serious economic trouble. The dorms were like prisons, no security. Faculty seemed desperate.
Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:29
Subject: Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:South Carolina - very pleasantly surprised by how pretty the campus was
Davidson - quirkier than we thought and town was teeny tiny
Clemson - not super pretty but the vibe was a happy one and the lake was a bonus
Furman - there were fires nearby when we visited so it was super smoky but it did seem pretty and the golf cart was fun
Duke - seemed very somber between the Gothic architecture and vibe of the kids
Wake - very pretty but homogeneous
Davidson isn't "quirky." Town is very small but so cute and all shop owners very friendly.
People can have different opinions than you. Perhaps you’re quirky.
+ 1
Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:29
Subject: Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
Anonymous wrote:Surprised we liked:
-Binghamton: Campus was nicer than we'd imagined based on reviews, and the vibe felt relaxed.
-Clark U: Brimming with intellectual energy, at least in my dc's desired field (STEM). Seemed like a place where a bright student would really be seen, would receive personal attention, and would be given opportunities to shine.
-Muhlenberg: Campus was lovely, tour guide was great, and everyone we interacted with gave us a good feeling. Hard to explain, but the "vibe" was just good.
-Fordham Rose Hill (Bronx): Campus is gorgeous! Totally its own enclave, and beautiful in a classic way. Students seemed earnest and smart.
Is your child in one of the above or still deciding? Just curious if it’s Binghamton or Fordham and how they like it ?
Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:28
Subject: Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
Thomas Jefferson - not pretty, everyone rude, very rigid.
Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:28
Subject: Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
Those who loved Columbia, what did you love about it?
My child was admitted off the waitlist last year and we never toured. The most we ever visited was a 10 minute walk across campus a few years prior.
They ended up taking another waitlist offer so I'll forever be a tiny bit curious about Columbia.
My child was admitted off the waitlist last year and we never toured. The most we ever visited was a 10 minute walk across campus a few years prior.
They ended up taking another waitlist offer so I'll forever be a tiny bit curious about Columbia.
Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:21
Subject: Re:Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
Loved Syracuse
Disliked Cornell
Disliked Cornell
Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:21
Subject: Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
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.
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.
Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:19
Subject: Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
We visited Virginia Tech for the first time in the fall, then returned in April for ASD. Absolutely beautiful both times. The foliage in the fall and the flowering trees in the spring were gorgeous. Turned out to be everything out DC was looking for - after initially thinking they might want an urban school! Did a complete 180 there.
Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:15
Subject: Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
Anonymous wrote:Had wonderful tours and experiences at both Kenyon and RIT. Lots of individualized attention and both tour guides clearly loved their school
I agree that RIT had a really good tour. They have some serious industry money that pays for a lot of cool machines.
Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:15
Subject: Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
Anonymous wrote:I thought St. Johns, Annapolis was going to be amazing. It was a shit hole.
I liked Columbia, Yale, Georgetown, American University (surprisingly)
didn't like Colby, or Barnard (again, shit hole).
Columbia and Barnard are basically the same campus, I don't see how you can like one and think the other is a sht hole.
Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:14
Subject: Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
Had wonderful tours and experiences at both Kenyon and RIT. Lots of individualized attention and both tour guides clearly loved their school
Anonymous
10/26/2025 17:09
Subject: Schools you toured that you were surprised you liked or didn’t like?
Flagler looked like a resort