<p>I am British, and have the option to study abroad for a semester in my second year. What would be the best college to pick from this list in order to maximise the experience, given that I am only there for a semester?</p>
<p>Arizona State University
North Carolina State University
University of Illinois at Urbana - Champaign
University of Maryland, College Park
University of Massachusetts at Amherst
University of Missouri at Columbia
University of Tennessee at Knoxville
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
Wellesley College</p>
<p>Well, what field are you studying? Just as an example, MO-Columbia if journalism is your focus…</p>
<p>What kind of geography appeals to you? </p>
<p>Are you planning to travel around the country during your one semester? The U.S. is a great big place, and some of these schools are not particularly close to a lot of other places. If you want to hop on a train, for instance, you need to check that out. How about a day trip to the ocean now and again? Forget Illinois, MO, Arizona.</p>
<p>Some of these college towns are a lot more interesting than others. Columbia is a good college town, Amherst and the area around it are good; some of the others may be as well, I haven’t lived in all of them. </p>
<p>Also, be aware that this site (cc) is heavily populated by those who live on the coasts, rather than in the big middle, so your responses may be biased. </p>
<p>Give some more specifics about what you are looking for, and the answers can be tailored better.</p>
<p>I agree with everything midmo says. However, if I were choosing, I would choose UNC, Chapel Hill. Great college town, highly regarded school, decent weather. Close enough to the coast and to Washington, DC which would be a great city to visit. I also think a Brit would feel comfortable there - can’t put my finger on why, just a gut feel. I would only choose differently if your major is engineering. Then, I would choose UIUC or possibly Maryland if you want to be close to DC and have better weather.</p>
<p>I would choose Univ of Illinois for fall semester. Make sure you go to the football games to see the other Big 10 teams, US football is a big part of the American college experience, and you will love the marching bands, cheerleaders, and sitting in the student cheering section.</p>
<p>Agree that your best choice may depend on what you’re studying. For overall academics, I’d say Wellesley is tops in this group, followed by UNC-Chapel Hill then the University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). But they’re very different. Wellesley is a small women’s liberal arts college just outside Boston, a very lively and interesting Northeastern city with dozens of colleges and universities and lots of things for young people to do. Wellesley itself, however, is in a sleepy little suburban town. The college shuttles students to Boston and Cambridge (home of Harvard and MIT, two of America’s greatest universities) on weekends.</p>
<p>UNC-Chapel Hill is a large but very good public university in a classic U.S. college town in one of the largest urban clusters in North Carolina, though to my mind not as interesting an urban center as Boston. Chapel Hill itself is just a lovely, charming, lively town, though. Like basketball? UNC is basketball-crazy.</p>
<p>For math, science, computer science, and engineering, UIUC is the strongest of this group. Champaign-Urbana is a nice enough college town but the surrounding area isn’t so interesting, flat with endless miles of corn and soybean fields. But UIUC is only about 2-1/2 hours by train or car from Chicago, one of America’s greatest cities. Huge school.</p>
<p>Next strongest in this group academically would be U Maryland and Rutgers, about even, and both large public universities. U Maryland is a pretty good public university in a suburb just outside Washington, DC. For academics it would be hard to choose it over Wellesley, UNC, or UIUC unless you have a particular reason to be in/near DC, e.g., you’re studying government/politics or maybe U.S. history. Similarly for Rutgers: it’s the closest of these schools to New York City, about an hour away by bus or train. Rutgers is in a small city in central New Jersey.</p>
<p>For the classic American college experience, I’d say UNC-Chapel Hill. It’s got all the advantages of UIUC, but it’s more personal (half the size), more scenic, and has ideal weather during the academic year. In Illinois, you’ll spend a good part of the winter snowed in.</p>
<p>I am studying History with Economics here in the UK, so programmes / minors that I would take (whatever they’re called in the States, forgive me but I’m not entirely sure) would, I assume, be similar to them, e.g. Politics, Economics, History etc. </p>
<p>I’m not too worried about the academic reputation of where I go, given that I am only going to be there for a semester I am more interested in the experience as a whole. Would you recommend a smaller college over a larger one to get a more personal, communal feel to my time then?</p>
<p>I would go w/UNC as well. They have pretty good (especially women’s) football-soccer to you- in the Fall. Not as good as MANU or MANC, but fun. Wonderful academics and pretty good weather as well.</p>
<p>I’m a bit biased, but I’d say stay on the east coast. UNC and Wellesley would be my choices. I have a friend that goes to Rutgers that really likes it, and it’s about half an hour from NYC. If you’re going to the US, I’d recommend visiting there.</p>
<p>In my opinion, a decent sized university would be a better way to get a feel for the U.S. than a small college. More speakers, more diversity among fellow students (age, socioeconomic), more places to hang out and meet other students, and so on. I also think the presence of professional schools on the same campus (i.e. law, medicine, graduate programs in general) provide a ‘larger’ experience for someone who will only be around for a short time.</p>
<p>I lived on the East Coast for many years, and while I am not in general biased in favor of the coasts, in this case I might be, simply because the distances between things are so much more manageable. It will be easier to see more places.</p>
<p>However, if cozy is what you are seeking, smaller campuses are better for that.</p>