<p>So I got accepted into the third round of Posse. Long story short:</p>
<p>If I accept and am one of the 10 out of 25 chosen, I get my 4 year tuition paid and become a Posse scholar for Middlebury. </p>
<p>So now the question is... do I accept?</p>
<p>Reasons to accept:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>Something like 150,000 grand? I can't comprehend that. I live with my singled disabled mother. We get by on about 1,000 a month. I come from a poor ghetto in NY. And in this harsh economic times and competition... how can I turn that down?!</p></li>
<li><p>I'd have no shot getting into MIDD if I applied as a non Posse scholar. </p></li>
<li><p>It's one of the top schools in the country</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Concerns I have:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>I'm from NYC. And while I do want to move away... MIDD Is in the middle of nowhere. A drastic change for me. </p></li>
<li><p>No journalism program. I was set on majoring in journalism</p></li>
<li><p>This is binding, so my hopes of going to other schools are done.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>I'll be visiting on Thursday. I have until Friday to accept.</p>
<p>This is such a life changing decision, I don't know what to do! Do I want to go to Vermont, after being a purely urban kid? Do I want to be one of the few minorities on campus? What on earth will I major in (although MIDD does have an excellent English program).</p>
<p>Also, my grades and SAT's are mediocre. Though I want to go to schools like Boston and Northeastern, it's only 50-50 I'll get in. Plus even if I do, I probably won't get as much money as I would from this scholarship. Plus with Posse I get the Posse support, internships they offer, and the students I'll be with. </p>
<p>What do you guys think? Such a tough choice! Need some guidance here <_<</p>
<p>Congratulations on this incredible opportunity!
Middlebury has a weekly news publication, The Campus, and a magazine. If you are interested in journalism, that could be a great way to learn and get the “clips” you’ll need for applying to graduate school in journalism.
My sister-in-law is a reporter who went to Columbia for journalism school after college. She was a biology major as an undergraduate, and the admissions person for the J-school told her that her major was one of the main reasons that she was admitted.</p>
<p>Congratulations! Why not take their excellent writing major and work on the school paper, too, plus get Posse help for Summer journalism internships?</p>
<p>I was a city boy, but the beauty of the countryside can be very nice and the campus probably has plenty to do.</p>
<p>I hear you on the diversity issue, but it sounds like you have 150,000 good reasons to take the chance. Check out the kids carefully on your visit and see if they are friendly and down to earth.
Best of luck.</p>
<p>I would go. If you end up really not liking it you can transfer, and as a Posse scholar with good college grades you could transfer to a Midd peer. Chances are you’ll like it just fine and get a great education.</p>
<p>Incredable opportunity! But only good if you can be happy.</p>
<p>1st question – You state IF you are one of the 10 – To me at 1st blush sounds like it is NOT binding until you become one of the 10.</p>
<p>2nd question – What bothers you about the remote location? Is it that you believe you’ll need to escape campus for social opportunities? For variety of meals? You’ll need to escape for work (intern) opportunities? Students I know do not leave a close prox. of campus on a daily basis. Most of your college time will be spent close to the school (IMO), so figuring out what you want to closely surround you is important no matter the location. </p>
<p>– You state you’d never get into Midd without Posse. While Posse gives a big leg up for admit, do NOT diminish yourself. </p>
<p>Will Thursday be your first visit to the campus? If so I think you will know immediately if you hate the location.</p>
<p>I would take a critical look at Midd when you visit on Thursday. Ask tough questions. The Posse scholarship would be an amazing opportunity and the education you could receive at Midd would far surpass what you would typically have available with mediocre grades and SAT’s. A good liberal arts education would be a good preparation for a career in journalism - the best journalists have a broad array of general knowledge. Ask about internship opportunities that may further your career goals. As far as being in the middle of nowhere, you will be with other students few of whom live in rural areas. The college life takes on a life of its own regardless of the location. It also sounds like most colleges would result in a change of scenery for you. Turn down the scholarship if you go up there and hate it but remember, no decision is permanent. If it turns out you have a miserable year in the snow, it would be possible to transfer to another school.</p>
<p>This is an opportunity that will drastically change your life for the better.</p>
<p>If you won’t even qualify for Boston University or Northeastern, both of which would give you no money, why would you turn down a full ride at one of the best colleges in the country?</p>
<p>The transition to Middlebury from New York will be tough, and you’ll miss your family. But, you’ll only feel like an outsider if you isolate yourself. The Middlebury community is warm and welcoming, and there will be countless opportunities for you to get involved in campus life and meet new people.</p>
<p>Everyone wants to be something at some point or the other in their lives. Plans change. The vast majority of people who want to become doctors throughout their childhood are met with a rude shock when they take their first college science courses.</p>
<p>Once you visit, you’ll quickly realize how fortunate you are.</p>
<p>As a Posse Scholar, you’ll discover countless doors opening before you. Look past journalism and you’ll see everything else.</p>
<p>I hope, I’m sure it’s an excellent school. But it’s just that if I do accept then I would have to change my plans a little, as far as what I major in and all.</p>
<p>Plus completely leaving all my friends and family behind. Due to location, I’d hardly come home. As opposed to some of my other choices which would allow me to come home. </p>
<p>The location is my other big concern. I’m a very open minded person. I would LOVE to learn snowboarding and skiing. But then again I can see my possibly getting bored. Especially since one of my main things is music (Im in a band) and MIDD doesn’t seem to offer as many opportunities to perform as oppose to if I were in a city, or close to one.</p>
<p>I also get bored very easily >__></p>
<p>But I keep thinking how good the college is, and how much money it is. Plus being a posse member sounds like a great opportunity. It would also be nice to have my college process done and out of the way.</p>
<p>The only thing it seems no one bothers to point out is how will OP fare at Middlebury when the (submitted) stats are quite high compare to OP’s. If you go to Middlebury only to set the lower curve, you’re better off going to a local CUNY.<br>
If you underperform, you will graduate with the same prospect as someone who went to Umass Amherst. Think long, think hard. Middlebury might not be doing you any favor in the grand scheme of thing.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>If I accept entry to the third round then I fill out an application as well and say that if I do get accepted, then I will go with MIDD as my choice. So I have to make that decision this week</p></li>
<li><p>The location does concern me for the reasons you stated. I like to get off campus and go to music shows, movies, see pretty flashing lights >__>… etc, etc. I’m hardly at home here in NY. I also like to be surrounded by a lot of people. I feel weird going to places and nobody is walking around.
And also the internship opportunities. There doesn’t seem to be as much as I would get if I went to a place that’s near civilization.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>1 --As others have stated, journalism can be a career without it being a major</p>
<p>2 – I don’t think you’ll have too much time in any of the schools you mentioned to get bored. College is a wonderful & exciting time!</p>
<p>3 – You aren’t going to be the only student leaving family & friends behind, but be honest, how often would you go home from any school? Is it really that you want to go home or is it just that you want the reassurance that you could get home if you needed to?</p>
<p>4 – Music/performing – Ask questions like this to all the students you encounter Thursday.</p>
<p>Check out the Midd section of CC. It is active & the students/parents could provide some great info.</p>
<p>Could not disagree more. And Midd provides it’s students the support to do well. They don’t accept kids who they don’t think will do fine there.</p>
<p>I am often taken aback at the fact that kids consider college location such a big deal This is 4 years and many in your generation will live to be over 100. You’ll find lots of rides home and new interests in a drastically different environment. But mostly, you’re going to college to get educated. Having smart peers is a critical part of that. Add in small classes, excellent profs you’ll get to know well, a resource rich campus and a strong network in the job market. It would be a shame to see someone at CUNY who was offered this opportunity IMHO.</p>
<p>P.S. Most journalists were not journalism majors. Graduating from a top school will give you great opportunities in the field.</p>
<p>Midd has the potential to turn you into an excellent writer, so it doesn’t have to be journalism. You’ll never get that support at the other schools you mention.You’ll have to stretch yourself in a lot of ways.On the other hand, you must have awesome skills and drive to get as far as you have, so I bet you will be successful. Kudos to you and your mom.
There is a funky Vermont vibe with an above average amount of stuff to do in town and on campus, but it’s no NYC. It’s no White River Junction, either. There is a great alumni network, so the internship issue isn’t real.
Have a great visit, and I wish you the best.</p>
<p>I’m not knowledgeable about the Posse program other than knowing that a bunch of terrific colleges are behind it. Boston University is one of them so I guess the question is, did you apply as a Posse Scholar there as well? </p>
<p>Middlebury is a terrific school and that scholarship money sounds terrific. </p>
<p>I do think that Northeastern (my school) is pretty decent with scholarship money. But I see that we are only participating with Posse for grad school at this time. Still, I’d love to see you apply at NU if you don’t go the Middlebury route. And we have journalism kids working at the Boston Globe all the time. </p>
<p>Well BU being tied with Northeastern as my first choice… I would have loved to go there as a posse scholar. Sadly, it’s only for Posse Atlanta scholars.</p>
<p>But the more I think about it… the more appealing it becomes. Middlebury seems renown for its writing, and has fantastic programs. Plus I do have other interest in computer technology, law, and maybe business. So maybe a liberal arts college is for me.</p>
<p>Wasn’t there an article on the Posse group at Grinnell a while back? 4/9 dropped out because they were alienated, couldn’t handle the work, couldn’t handle the pressure. The others aren’t doing so well. </p>
<p>You don’t have to major in journalism to become a journalist. You can work for the campus newspaper and do excellent work for it and then apply for and obtain excellent summer internships. You also could go to grad school in journalism.</p>
<p>Anyway, most students in college switch majors at least twice. That’s because in college, they are exposed to more subjects than they were exposed to in high school.</p>
<p>Writing this from the perspective of being a former journalist and journalism professor.</p>
<p>Middlebury sounds like an excellent option for you. If you don’t like it, as long as you academically do well there, you should be able to transfer to a peer institution.</p>