Anonymous wrote:I went to school at a large state school...something like 60 kids from my graduating class went there. I never saw them. Literally.

I went to a local elite private. My cousin ended up there, too and decided to spread nasty rumors about me. Fun times.

Another thread suggested that Graduate School is the new college.

Keeping that in mind your student is better served if they go in-state for BA/BSc and then go out of state later.

Having a crushing student loan is a piss poor start to life and so is not saving enough for retirement.

If you do not have a money problem - your student can go anywhere.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want my child to go away to school and do an abroad program. Yes, I think it is incredibly important she NOT stay in this area. Boston or New York would be marginally okay but We are encouraging her to go farther.

We are not practicing Catholics but Norte Dame has a great sophomore year abroad program that would be great for her.

Do you have any idea how stupid you sound? Do you really think that your child will have a meaningfully different experience at a school that's 800 miles away as opposed to 300 miles away? For that matter if the school is 100 miles away do you fear they'll be home every weekend? It sounds like you and the OP didn't go to college and have little to no understanding of the dynamics of the college experience. And every college offers study abroad although usually during junior year. As others have said, focus on the fit and not some absurdly irrelevant criteria like distance from the home.

A school in another part of the country and with a year abroad program IS what she wants and is what is best for her. Yes, I believe she will have a meaningfully different experience at Norte Dame than at UVA. The abroad program at ND is a full year during sophomore year which is better for non language majors. I don't know why more colleges don't do this. A fit for my daughter is away.

Any other questions on my parenting?

It has nothing to do with parenting and everything to do with being reasonably well informed. There is nothing more alarming than ignorant parents giving advice to ill informed children. And btw you need to do more research on study abroad programs.

NP here and I actually graduated from Notre Dame and did the sophomore year abroad program. I did do research and found no other American university with a university-run program for sophomores. At Notre Dame, you pay ND tuition, have a ND faculty member there and your grades at the foreign college are counted toward your Notre Dame GPA.

But that is beside the point. I want my kids to go to another part of the country for college as well AS PART of their education, too. It has nothing to do with "fit". I want my kids to learn to fit in anywhere they go - college, jobs, countries, etc. I don't want them to repeat their high school experiences.

^Ah, the irony....

Anonymous wrote:Notre Dame -- not Norte Dame ("our" not "north"; French not Spanish).

Ugh... get a life! At this point in our technological lives, don't we all understand auto-correct and typos? Is this really the only way you can increase your self-esteem?

I told my kid I thought college was a great time to get to know a new place. After visiting schools in CA, the Northeast, and the Midwest, her faves were both in the Midwest and she's attending one of them. Personally, I think the focus on "fit" is wrong-headed (except in cases involving special needs). To me, it makes more sense to look at academics and then at opportunities for growth, exploration, and new experiences rather than to look for people like you in the kinds of places you already know you like.

Anonymous wrote:I went to school 15 minutes from home. It was the right school for me, and bc my dad worked there, we only had to pay for room and board. I went home at Thanksgiving, Christmas, spring break, and summer. I made tons of friends, went to football games, joined clubs, etc. I don't understand the arbitrary rules some of you make.

Keep in mind that the traditional, residential college experience is NOT the norm. It might seem like it is, but it's not.

Sure is the norm for MC/UMC.

I went to school 15 minutes from home. It was the right school for me, and bc my dad worked there, we only had to pay for room and board. I went home at Thanksgiving, Christmas, spring break, and summer. I made tons of friends, went to football games, joined clubs, etc. I don't understand the arbitrary rules some of you make.

Keep in mind that the traditional, residential college experience is NOT the norm. It might seem like it is, but it's not.

I went to college 45 minutes from my home town. Several people I was friends with in high school went too. I still had a great time, met lots of new friends and only visited home occasionally. It was the school that was right for me. Then I went to grad school overseas. I'm not stunted culturally and I'm independent.

Oh and we saved about $40k which was invested well.

Anonymous wrote:The obsession with college on this board is out of control. Why don't you let your kid decide?

Well, this is the College and University section.

Notre Dame -- not Norte Dame ("our" not "north"; French not Spanish).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want my child to go away to school and do an abroad program. Yes, I think it is incredibly important she NOT stay in this area. Boston or New York would be marginally okay but We are encouraging her to go farther.

We are not practicing Catholics but Norte Dame has a great sophomore year abroad program that would be great for her.

Do you have any idea how stupid you sound? Do you really think that your child will have a meaningfully different experience at a school that's 800 miles away as opposed to 300 miles away? For that matter if the school is 100 miles away do you fear they'll be home every weekend? It sounds like you and the OP didn't go to college and have little to no understanding of the dynamics of the college experience. And every college offers study abroad although usually during junior year. As others have said, focus on the fit and not some absurdly irrelevant criteria like distance from the home.

A school in another part of the country and with a year abroad program IS what she wants and is what is best for her. Yes, I believe she will have a meaningfully different experience at Norte Dame than at UVA. The abroad program at ND is a full year during sophomore year which is better for non language majors. I don't know why more colleges don't do this. A fit for my daughter is away.

Any other questions on my parenting?

It has nothing to do with parenting and everything to do with being reasonably well informed. There is nothing more alarming than ignorant parents giving advice to ill informed children. And btw you need to do more research on study abroad programs.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I want my child to go away to school and do an abroad program. Yes, I think it is incredibly important she NOT stay in this area. Boston or New York would be marginally okay but We are encouraging her to go farther.

We are not practicing Catholics but Norte Dame has a great sophomore year abroad program that would be great for her.

Do you have any idea how stupid you sound? Do you really think that your child will have a meaningfully different experience at a school that's 800 miles away as opposed to 300 miles away? For that matter if the school is 100 miles away do you fear they'll be home every weekend? It sounds like you and the OP didn't go to college and have little to no understanding of the dynamics of the college experience. And every college offers study abroad although usually during junior year. As others have said, focus on the fit and not some absurdly irrelevant criteria like distance from the home.

A school in another part of the country and with a year abroad program IS what she wants and is what is best for her. Yes, I believe she will have a meaningfully different experience at Norte Dame than at UVA. The abroad program at ND is a full year during sophomore year which is better for non language majors. I don't know why more colleges don't do this. A fit for my daughter is away.

Any other questions on my parenting?

I live in DC, I discourages any school in VA or MD.
I know many parents specified the school had to be within a 4 hr drive of their home...

I agree. I also want him to study abroad so if he plays D1 sports he will take a year off to do that before school.