Anonymous wrote:- then avoid Johns Hopkins university at all costs.

people gatekeeping on here when hopkins had high grade inflation is funny. nice try

I don't think any top20 school is fun if you're in STEM or the science and want to do well.

I have a UVA kid who is trying to keep close to a 4.0 in a challenging STEM major and they work really hard, study a lot and don't play around very much at all. Their STEM friends at Michigan are also working extremely hard. Their Cornell friends are working very hard too.

If you want a more relaxed college experience at these type schools you need to study an easier major or decide that you're not going to attempt to get straight As.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD has had impressive college admissions but admitted that high school has been a grind, not a lot of fun, but very high achieving. She is thinking of going somewhere more fun for college instead of continuing the drudgery (her words). Anyone else's kids feel this way? She will be successful wherever she goes, I am confident, but I want her to be happy too.

I'd recommend the following:
Rice
Rice, and
Rice

Heard from friend typically with open mind and good judgment (but not judgy) that the peer group feels “too Texas” to their DC recently graduated. Said it was nice and collaborative at first which was a welcomed departure from this kid’s intense high school (northeast), but by junior year the Texan thing was too represented on campus and by senior year they were waiting to leave. Friend said it felt like a cruise ship, it was fun at first but after a week you feel suffocated and want yo get off

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD has had impressive college admissions but admitted that high school has been a grind, not a lot of fun, but very high achieving. She is thinking of going somewhere more fun for college instead of continuing the drudgery (her words). Anyone else's kids feel this way? She will be successful wherever she goes, I am confident, but I want her to be happy too.

DC at UVA and has balance with interesting classes, involvement in activities, and a social life. They are really enjoying their time there.

+1 Same with my UVA kid.

My kid is trying to decide on their EA/ED plan and is having a similar experience. Tough choice between a school with better weather campus and one that is a better fit and likely more fun but colder and more dirty/urban. For now we are trying to approach it as "what a privilege to have this choice" and encouraging no restrictive applications unless you are SURE.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD has had impressive college admissions but admitted that high school has been a grind, not a lot of fun, but very high achieving. She is thinking of going somewhere more fun for college instead of continuing the drudgery (her words). Anyone else's kids feel this way? She will be successful wherever she goes, I am confident, but I want her to be happy too.

I'd recommend the following:
Rice
Rice, and
Rice

Texas is a turn off for many students in 2026.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It has more to do with majors.

Op here. Electrical engineering.

same here for my dd--between gtech and Michigan-going to visit both

Congrats on both acceptances! My advice would be to visit both in February or March. That's what we did. It may help your decision. Climate was important to our DS.

what did she decide? honestly weather wise i think my dd would prefer Michigan but seems the program at gtech has better ROI

Sorry, I wasn't clear, my kid didn't apply to Michigan, but had a choice between GT, ND and Northwestern (both similar climates to Ann Arbor). We made sure we visited during around Feb and March so he could get a true feel what it would be like walking around those campuses during that time. Warmer weather definitely was a factor for him specifically. I should add we are from a cold weather state. My kid already has a summer engineering internship opportunity just after his freshman year and a lot of that had to do with the name Georgia Tech. I agree with the ROI statement. Good luck with your choice!

I wouldn’t be so confident unless you have strong family resources that make attending college a pure experience. The NG job market is brutal right now and there is a good chance it’ll become worse. Our DC chose college that maximizes their post graduate job perspective as they knew we can’t help further beyond college.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DS picked Vandy over Chicago for this reason.

Your DS got into both Chicago and Vandy in RD???

ED to Vandy, got in, and delayed withdrawing his app to Chicago because he was curious to see what they’d eventually say (yes) (declined).

Same for the UCs. Because he was curious (UCLA = no)

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It has more to do with majors.

Op here. Electrical engineering.

same here for my dd--between gtech and Michigan-going to visit both

Congrats on both acceptances! My advice would be to visit both in February or March. That's what we did. It may help your decision. Climate was important to our DS.

what did she decide? honestly weather wise i think my dd would prefer Michigan but seems the program at gtech has better ROI

Anonymous wrote:DD has had impressive college admissions but admitted that high school has been a grind, not a lot of fun, but very high achieving. She is thinking of going somewhere more fun for college instead of continuing the drudgery (her words). Anyone else's kids feel this way? She will be successful wherever she goes, I am confident, but I want her to be happy too.

I'd recommend the following:
Rice
Rice, and
Rice

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It has more to do with majors.

Op here. Electrical engineering.

If you want yo have fun and cruise in a college, don't do engineering. Do something like communications, art history, etc.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It has more to do with majors.

Op here. Electrical engineering.

Honors programs at large state schools can offer rigorous engineering plus fun, OP.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It has more to do with majors.

Op here. Electrical engineering.

same here for my dd--between gtech and Michigan-going to visit both

Congrats on both acceptances! My advice would be to visit both in February or March. That's what we did. It may help your decision. Climate was important to our DS.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It has more to do with majors.

Op here. Electrical engineering.

same here for my dd--between gtech and Michigan-going to visit both