Can I say this out loud?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Vanderbilt University
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<p>Our student is home now for the summer. It was a long year. I have read so much on CC about Vanderbilt, about how Vanderbilt is awesome. Vanderbilt is great, it really is great, and it might even be awesome. But can I say out loud that Vanderbilt is not perfect? Does anyone else agree with me?</p>

<p>Why it is not perfect you may ask. The reason really doesn't matter. Just know, just be realistic. If you didn't get in, if you are on the waitlist, if you did get in, just know that Vanderbilt is not perfect. All students should expect some disappointments, some hard times, some failures. I think those hard times will be easier for students and parents to take if they know going in that Vanderbilt is not perfect, even if it is great.</p>

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<p>I think that goes without saying, but it may help some to hear. Nothing is perfect!</p>

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<p>“All students should expect some disappointments, some hard times, some failures.”
That’s true no matter what college you attend.</p>

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<p>@wtstatus - please let us know why you say that. Like others pointed out no school is perfect and no kid is perfect. </p>

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<p>My D is a 2011 grad who is very happy she attended Vanderbilt. However, it was not perfect. No school is perfect. Life is not perfect. OP, I am guessing your child suffered some disappointment(s) during the year … social, academic, whatever. As a parent, we hurt when our children hurt. Remember, though, that every experience is a building block for the future, and each disappointment makes future successes that much sweeter.</p>

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<p>A post this week on an anonymous Vandy Facebook page:</p>

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<p>My post if more of a reality check, than venting or warning. I really just want to say that Vanderbilt isn’t perfect. So if you are disappointed because you didn’t get in and Vandy was going to be “perfect” for you, you will be okay and Vandy isn’t perfect anyway. Likewise, if you did get in and you just know that Vandy is going to be “perfect” for you, take a step back and realize that it really isn’t perfect. You will have some disappointments, students and parents alike, some of them major. True, this can be said about any school. I just think it is worth saying out loud.</p>

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<p>As a parent, 2 years in, I can’t say I have had any disappointments yet. It is possible my son has had some he has not shared, but he is generally upbeat and seems happy with how things are going. (I think the same would have been true if he ended up somewhere else too.)</p>

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<p>I think the problem the OP mentions is not one with the school, but with unrealistic expectations.</p>