How does that feel?
You’re entering a state school where many of the freshmen already know each other because they went to high school together. During breaks/summers, you’re far away from your college friends and when some of them go home on weekends, you’re unable to do so. During summers, you see most of your college friends hang out in that state and meanwhile, you’re 800 miles away… does that happen often as an OOS student?
The experience depends a lot on the state school. I go to a state school as an OOSer, but about 40% of the schools is OOS (and it is a relatively large state, some in-staters live further away from the University than some OOSers).
School: Michigan
@yikesyikesyikes can you tell me a bit about what your experience at Michigan has been like?
I go to William & Mary as an out of state student, which is a public school in virginia where two-thirds of students are from in-state. Honestly most of the freshman do not already know eachother. This may differ because W&M is more selective, but even in cases where students come from schools that send 15-20 students here, they don’t always hang out with the people from their high school and there is always more people to meet.
I don’t feel particularly out of place at all. I mean yes there are definitely culture differences and some in-state idioms that I didn’t initially understand (ex: nova means northern virginia), but honestly most people meet so many people in college and very little people stick with just their high school friends. Also whenever I said where I was from, there was intrigue and interest rather than “oh I know where that is.” So it is also an opportunity and a chance to reinvent yourself.
This will also depend on the school, but although some friends went home on the weekends (maybe once very month or every other month) which would kind of suck because we couldn’t hang out that weekend, I always had many other friends around on campus. Freshmen weren’t allowed to have cars on campus, which provided a very community feel because most things happened on campus. This meant that people went home rarely, except for major holidays. It wasn’t a big deal at all and some friends invited me to have a sleepover at their house.
During the summer most students are either doing research, interning, volunteering, or working. If you go to a state school, many of those opportunities will also be in the surrounding area, so if you decide to stay on campus over the summer or get a job interning in the local area, you could still potentially see those people. I have done this. Additionally, I have made many other friends from the surrounding area as me even though I am far from my college. We go to trips together into the city and just got back from a trip to see a musical and hang out in Central Park.
One of the main reasons why I chose to go out of state is because I wanted to experience a new portion of the country and I am a type of person that doesn’t get homesick easily. Are there downsides? Yes it is more expensive and I don’t always go home for the shorter breaks (personal choice, I don’t feel much need to go back for a four day holiday) but I am mostly pretty happy here. If you like the school and the culture then it might be something to consider. If not, chances are your state school or other colleges that are not public schools may better fit your needs.
A state flagship is more likely to have a significant out-of-state student population. If it is in a large state, it may have in-state students from different distinct regions of the state.
A non-flagship state university may attract mainly students from the local region, with relatively few from out-of-state or even out-of-region within the state.
I went to an in-state school 7 hours away with 0 people from my HS. Sure the “locals” go home on weekends/breaks, but not all of them and not every weekend. Plus sometimes they invite you to go with, especially if you live far away. The first summer you will probably go home and see your HS friends again. Later summers you will probably have an apartment so you can just stay in town.
Some state schools can be suitcase schools. However, some have a lot of OOS students or they are located in a large geographical state where going home isn’t easy.
Few flagship type schools would have instate students that have “a lot of high school friends attending”.
I know we see kids write things like, “I don’t want to go to my flagship because everyone from my high school will be going.” That is usually BS.
Even big top 100 publics can’t and won’t typically end up enrolling a large percent from any one high school.
That said…LOOK at the OOS numbers. There are flagships that enroll 80%+ instate. Those wouldn’t be a good choice, in many cases. the OOS may be mostly athletes and students who now live in the state. The few remaining true OOS non-athlete students might be lonely at times…like 2-3 day weekends when the instaters go home.
Sure @blourring.
In my experience, many students at Michigan know each other before (a lot of feeder schools), but that does not stop them from expanding/changing their social circles. Do many in-staters go home during the weekends? Kinda, somewhat, not really. But I have honestly never really felt lonely (except right before breaks when I may have one of the last final exams - you will also likely feel a little lonely if you do not go home for Thanksgiving). Michigan is definitely not a “suitcase” school. Weekend life is lively, and almost certainly not lonely. The high percentage of OOS (about 40%) certainly helps too.
To add on to that, almost every freshmen was open to meeting new people. It might be a little awkward at first, but you will make it through it. IDK if you are going to/considering Michigan for yourself or a friend/loved one, but if you are, I can answer any questions you have about life here.
I would say as long as an out of stater finds a friend from within the state, then they would be able to make more friends.
This is a great thread, as I often wondered about what it’s like for an out of stater. One thing I wondering is how it affects Greek life if you want to Rush. I heard stories about how Indiana Univ sororities are hard to get into if you aren’t from there, because they tend to choose girls from their high schools or home towns. Is this case at many flagships?
I don’t know if this helps, but someone here at CC once said that it’s good to find a state school that has at least 30 percent of it’s students from out of state.
I go to UNC Wilmington as an out-of-state student from New Jersey. Being nine hours and 500 miles away from home, and away from my family for the first time, I sorta didn’t really know what to expect. But I fit in like a glove. My school, which is 85% in-state, has a really chill and laid-back atmosphere in addition to a terrific academic reputation (among those who know it). North Carolinians are incredibly friendly people, so it’s very easy to make friends, which is especially crucial if you’re from so far away like me. Most in-staters are actually from other areas around the state - only 14% of students are from Wilmington or the surrounding areas. Yes, there are people who go home every other weekend, but many people who stay on campus or in a nearby off-campus apartment, so it doesn’t really feel like you’re missing a whole lot of people. There are so many different people and clubs and activities here, so you can easily find your niche. Being 10 minutes from the beach is also a huge perk.
Also, I don’t know your race or ethnic background. But as an African American male, I have always felt much more comfortable in NC than I ever did in my very affluent North Jersey suburb.
My son goes to school 9 hours away and daughter 8 hours away and most of his friends live in one of two southern states. I think they key is that the OOS student absolutely has to embrace the culture of the school. If there is any “that’s not the way we do it at home” attitude then it could be difficult. My son and daughter have had GREAT experiences being OOS
For many students, cost is the biggest, most obvious drawback to an OOS public school.
In most cases, you’re paying a big price premium for that out-of-state experience (compared to one of your own state colleges.) Furthermore, unless you’re considering one of the “public ivies”, you may not be getting significantly better academic quality for the extra cost. If you do insist on leaving your state, and your family income is not very high, you may get a better value (after need-based aid) from a private school.
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you may get a better value (after need-based aid) from a private school
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@tk21769 Probably not this student. Both parents own their own businesses (2 businesses), and after business deductions have a very low reported AGI. A private that gives great need-based aid will likely use CSS Profile and add their deductions back in and require a high family contribution.
This student, if she wants to go OOS, needs to focus on schools that will give huge merit for stats.
Of the ~60 colleges that claim to cover 100% of demonstrated need, nearly all do use CSS Profile.
There may be a few schools that cover 90-99% and use FAFSA only.
Beloit and Earlham seem to be examples.