Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It always surprises me how many of my kids' friends aren't interested in UVA. I think there are some kids who think it's really snobby, some kids who think it's boring (everyone goes there!), and some who think they can get into a better school. Of course, the ones who usually end up going there are those kids who think they will get into a better school. They often do end up getting offers from other schools, but once their parents realize the price difference of UVA and some of the other schools, reality kicks in. The good news is that almost every kid I know ends up loving UVA. (I don't have a kid in UVA. It's just my observation.)

This is simply not true for in state kids. It certainly wasn't for mine. There's a big difference between a top 10 private and UVA. Once a kid realizes, and it's pretty obvious, that realistically they're not getting into Harvard, Yale, Stanford, etc., a smart in state kid doesn't bother applying to them and doesn't really consider other private universities because they're clearly not so much better that they justify the price. Of course, the calculation is different for out of state kids.

I had three kids who were qualified enough to get into UVA. Two were very mainstream -- smart, cute, funny, popular and nice -- and were the type who could fit in anywhere. Those two both went to UVA and loved it. The other just knew it wasn't a fit, and we didn't disagree. Never applied, got into William & Mary instead, and ended up at a very good liberal arts college that offered lots of merit aid. Without the aid she would have gone to W&M and would have been just fine.

We weren't a family who obsessed over colleges. We didn't approach the process like a kid choosing a spouse, which so many DCUM families seem to do. There are plenty of fits, not just one. But if you live in VA, are smart but not quite Ivy material, and aren't a complete weirdo it makes very little sense to look too far beyond UVA, William & Mary, or Virginia Tech.

I was with you but the “cute” part? Come on. gross.
(And I have a kid at UVA)

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm curious why everyone thinks that UVA is so inexpensive for in state? Just dropped my first year engineering major off yesterday and our COA for this year is $50K+

Compared to flagship public schools in neighboring states, this is way higher.

Although I love VA schools in general and I'm thrilled to have my kid at UVA, I think the COA for in-state students overall is very disappointing as compared to public universities in other states.

Although I guess compared to many comparable privates and OOS publics, it is less expensive.

Engineering is uniquely expensive the first year at UVA. Arts and Sciences is $40k, by comparison.

Still more expensive than many in-state publics to be sure, though not entirely unprecedented. And less than half the COA of many privates.

Anonymous wrote:I don't get the hype at all, but I'm from the west coast.

Anonymous wrote:I'm curious why everyone thinks that UVA is so inexpensive for in state? Just dropped my first year engineering major off yesterday and our COA for this year is $50K+

Compared to flagship public schools in neighboring states, this is way higher.

Although I love VA schools in general and I'm thrilled to have my kid at UVA, I think the COA for in-state students overall is very disappointing as compared to public universities in other states.

Although I guess compared to many comparable privates and OOS publics, it is less expensive.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It always surprises me how many of my kids' friends aren't interested in UVA. I think there are some kids who think it's really snobby, some kids who think it's boring (everyone goes there!), and some who think they can get into a better school. Of course, the ones who usually end up going there are those kids who think they will get into a better school. They often do end up getting offers from other schools, but once their parents realize the price difference of UVA and some of the other schools, reality kicks in. The good news is that almost every kid I know ends up loving UVA. (I don't have a kid in UVA. It's just my observation.)

This is simply not true for in state kids. It certainly wasn't for mine. There's a big difference between a top 10 private and UVA. Once a kid realizes, and it's pretty obvious, that realistically they're not getting into Harvard, Yale, Stanford, etc., a smart in state kid doesn't bother applying to them and doesn't really consider other private universities because they're clearly not so much better that they justify the price. Of course, the calculation is different for out of state kids.

I'm the poster you are responding to, and I am talking about in-state kids. I know students who were accepted to Yale, Dartmouth, Georgetown, and Northwestern but ended up at UVA. They did not want to go to UVA. They desperately wanted to attend the other schools, but ultimately, couldn't afford it. All of them eventually ended up happy with their UVA experiences. I also know some kids who wanted a smaller liberal arts experience but didn't feel that William & Mary was a good fit. However, once their parents realized how expensive SLACs are, they ended up at UVA. This isn't a dis against UVA. Their reasons for not wanting to go there were often silly ("I will see too many people from my high school there") or wanting to be unique in their college choice. I think these kids are nuts. I'd be thrilled if one of my kids ended up there.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It always surprises me how many of my kids' friends aren't interested in UVA. I think there are some kids who think it's really snobby, some kids who think it's boring (everyone goes there!), and some who think they can get into a better school. Of course, the ones who usually end up going there are those kids who think they will get into a better school. They often do end up getting offers from other schools, but once their parents realize the price difference of UVA and some of the other schools, reality kicks in. The good news is that almost every kid I know ends up loving UVA. (I don't have a kid in UVA. It's just my observation.)

This is simply not true for in state kids. It certainly wasn't for mine. There's a big difference between a top 10 private and UVA. Once a kid realizes, and it's pretty obvious, that realistically they're not getting into Harvard, Yale, Stanford, etc., a smart in state kid doesn't bother applying to them and doesn't really consider other private universities because they're clearly not so much better that they justify the price. Of course, the calculation is different for out of state kids.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Serious question, what makes UVA better than other state flagships, like U of TN, U of GA, U of FL, U of OR, WA, IA, MI, WI.....etc?

is it the teaching? the elite students from NOVA?

The peer group at UVA is much stronger than all state schools besides UCB. That said, it was not strong enough to be a fit for my super bright kids—they did ivies instead and are glad they had that chance to go out of state. UVA was a backup, plain and simple, and it is such for the entire top cohort of our private. It is not seen as a “wow” school there, for the top ones.

^this attitude is exactly why my kids (who got into Ivies, but went to OOS publics) didn’t even want to look at instate UVA.

And IF UVA has such a great peer group, how come UVAs programs are ranked better? Crappy admin? Crappy professors? [/quot

You sound like a peach.