Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 22:07     Subject: Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
Anonymous wrote:My DC goes to a popular Virginia state school and I have been surprised by how Virginia-centric it is. My DC’s roommate is from several states away and feels like an outsider. I see many parents on the parent Facebook page complaining that their OOS child is having a hard time making friends.

Separately, I have heard that at big public’s like Michigan the NY/NJ kids basically stick together and there is, in general, a big social division between Michigan kids and the rest.

I ask because my other kid would like to go to a new state for college and likes some flagships but now wonders if that might be a bad idea.


I think it sucks to be a commuter student, out of state is mostly fun.
Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 21:57     Subject: Re:Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
Probably. Almost all large state universities have a mandate to take an overwhelming percentage of kids from their state. Thus, kids from every part of the state will already know other kids at the school, have easy access to parents/home, develop carpools, and just know the culture. OOS will bond best with other OOS kids, especially if there is a lot of them from a region of the country.
Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 21:52     Subject: Re:Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:We are in MD. If my kid was going to Florida for college it would suck even more now. And no way to evacuate? Yikes.


My DD is at a University of Florida. It’s inland. Not even any power loss to her apt with the storms. Go look at a map. She loves it! Go Gators!

Best choice ever for her!


My DS is at University of Florida too! Hope they have met! Most friends from Florida but plenty all over the country, it isn’t an issue to be OOS.


I also went to UF. I was in state, but there was no issue with being OOS. There was an amazing amount of school spirt that I found bonded most students pretty quickly. It didn't matter where people were from, as long as you they bled orange and blue.



Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 21:32     Subject: Re:Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:For those bringing up their experience years ago, please understand that this generation of college students is having trouble connecting for whatever reason. That's not to say that everyone is struggling, but many are.

My recommendation for anyone concerned about being OOS and out of place is to try to find a roommate who is also OOS. Several friends and my nephew were roommates with in-state students who maintained their social connections from high school ad did not include the OOS kids.



Nobody organically "starts fresh" and branches out anymore because social media and iPhones keeps everyone hyper-connected to their same high school cliques. And every new potential friend cyber-stalks your social media to see if you're "compatible." Joining a frat or sorority is a must.


Uggh, that’s just gross. I highly doubt everyone vets friends that way. Boys sure don’t.


A lot of campus activities that can gate-keep are doing so now by combing through students’ old social media and superficially judging them ahead of time. It makes starting fresh at college a lot harder. (This is not just sororities but also clubs and other groups.)
Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 21:15     Subject: Re:Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:For those bringing up their experience years ago, please understand that this generation of college students is having trouble connecting for whatever reason. That's not to say that everyone is struggling, but many are.

My recommendation for anyone concerned about being OOS and out of place is to try to find a roommate who is also OOS. Several friends and my nephew were roommates with in-state students who maintained their social connections from high school ad did not include the OOS kids.



Nobody organically "starts fresh" and branches out anymore because social media and iPhones keeps everyone hyper-connected to their same high school cliques. And every new potential friend cyber-stalks your social media to see if you're "compatible." Joining a frat or sorority is a must.


Uggh, that’s just gross. I highly doubt everyone vets friends that way. Boys sure don’t.


Agreed! My son is currently finding friends in his freshman dorm by playing ping pong and pool.
Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 21:14     Subject: Re:Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:For those bringing up their experience years ago, please understand that this generation of college students is having trouble connecting for whatever reason. That's not to say that everyone is struggling, but many are.

My recommendation for anyone concerned about being OOS and out of place is to try to find a roommate who is also OOS. Several friends and my nephew were roommates with in-state students who maintained their social connections from high school ad did not include the OOS kids.



Nobody organically "starts fresh" and branches out anymore because social media and iPhones keeps everyone hyper-connected to their same high school cliques. And every new potential friend cyber-stalks your social media to see if you're "compatible." Joining a frat or sorority is a must.


Uggh, that’s just gross. I highly doubt everyone vets friends that way. Boys sure don’t.
Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 20:37     Subject: Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
Anonymous wrote:Not a problem at Pitt.


+1 We live in a Pittsburgh suburb and dd originally did not apply bc she thought she would run into tons of kids from her high school. Fast forward and she ended up transferring. She rarely sees anyone from her high school and 90% of her friends are from out of state. Her in state friends are from different areas - Philadelphia, other Pittsburgh suburbs, etc. It’s a great place to be an OOS student.
Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 20:32     Subject: Re:Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:90% of my kid's friends went to UVA and VT.
It's like high school 2.0.

It's time to spread your wings, get out, and explore.

People saying diversity then go to a school where 80-90% of kids are from the same state.

Sorry about all the middle class folks who are stuck with not many options.


My kid is at one of those schools, and it's most definitely not "high school 2.0" unless you're deliberately seeking out kids you went to high school with. My DC has said she never sees anyone from high school - and she likes it that way.



+1. Ditto. My UVA kid never even saw his high school friends there (there are, after all, 27,000 students there).
Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 20:25     Subject: Re:Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
Anonymous wrote:90% of my kid's friends went to UVA and VT.
It's like high school 2.0.

It's time to spread your wings, get out, and explore.

People saying diversity then go to a school where 80-90% of kids are from the same state.

Sorry about all the middle class folks who are stuck with not many options.


My kid is at one of those schools, and it's most definitely not "high school 2.0" unless you're deliberately seeking out kids you went to high school with. My DC has said she never sees anyone from high school - and she likes it that way.
Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 20:09     Subject: Re:Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
90% of my kid's friends went to UVA and VT.
It's like high school 2.0.

It's time to spread your wings, get out, and explore.

People saying diversity then go to a school where 80-90% of kids are from the same state.

Sorry about all the middle class folks who are stuck with not many options.
Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 20:08     Subject: Re:Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:We are in MD. If my kid was going to Florida for college it would suck even more now. And no way to evacuate? Yikes.


My DD is at a University of Florida. It’s inland. Not even any power loss to her apt with the storms. Go look at a map. She loves it! Go Gators!

Best choice ever for her!


+1 Gainesville is nowhere near Ft. Meyers/Lee County. I was an OOS student and I loved UF. Go Gators!
Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 19:47     Subject: Re:Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Certain frats won’t take kids from OOS.


At some schools, the OOSA kids are a hot commodity in Greek life.


Not at schools in the south
Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 19:36     Subject: Re:Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
Some kids want to go far away from home for their chance of a great education, to have an adventure, to avail of opportunities, because of aid money, to escape their family. It all depends on what experiences they have and how well they do after college.
Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 19:34     Subject: Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
Anonymous wrote:I did not have this experience at all. I was out of state but at a big school and made tons of friends from in state and out. Maybe it’s because I was at a bigger school but it never even occurred to me that this would be an issue.


It's not. Some people seem to want to make it into an issue, though.
Anonymous
Post 09/30/2022 17:53     Subject: Re:Does it kind of suck to be an out of state student?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:We are in MD. If my kid was going to Florida for college it would suck even more now. And no way to evacuate? Yikes.


My DD is at a University of Florida. It’s inland. Not even any power loss to her apt with the storms. Go look at a map. She loves it! Go Gators!

Best choice ever for her!


My DS is at University of Florida too! Hope they have met! Most friends from Florida but plenty all over the country, it isn’t an issue to be OOS.