<p>My friend goes to Colby College and likes it but says the kids from MA/CT/NH/VT lack serious social skills, like talking to strangers and meeting new people. </p>
<p>I live in San Diego, CA. Only applied to schools on the east coast.</p>
<p>Going from GA to NY, I have to be frank. I found it refreshing that people went about their business without the unnecessary small talk (i.e. attempting to chat with a stranger)...I always was annoyed by that...</p>
<p>^^^ HAHAHA! Most people love that.
I feel like we should all yell "Digression" at times. lol
I'll stick to the topic first then expand a little. Or alot.</p>
<p>I know someone who went to Massachusetts from Texas. Left for California, said it was too cold.
A friend went to a Missouri school from Chicago, doesn't care for it. Lacks the immense diversity of her high school and she's a minority when it comes to race and some ideals.
I know someone from Chicago who went to a southern HBCU and hates it because it lacks the diversity of her school. She's def not a minority there in racial aspects lol But she feels like people aren't as open-minded to different styles and ideals.
Students from suburban IL who LOVE their southern HBCUs.
Students from Chicago who love virginia and washington, d.c.
One student from CHicago hates Atlanta, another loves it.
Two students from Chicago love New Jersey.
Another loves Mass. Some more love New York. lol I could go on forever.</p>
<p>No offense to the original poster, but the only way to give this question a simple answer is to generalize. I think that's where the whole "experience" part comes in. Instead of stating which you THINK would be harder to do, you simply state which WAS harder for you or someone you know.</p>
<p>You really have to take each individual's background into perspective. Midwest (or saying any geographic region) is simply too broad when there are such vast "cultural differences" just in that area! So instead of Midwest, you would need to say which state. Then which city,town, suburb. Then northside, southside. Then which neighborhoods...schools...and then last but most defintiely not least, the individual's upbringing.</p>
<p>I personally was more concerned with having a school in or near a city,weather, and not TOO far away. I'm applying to two in-state schools, one midwest one, 2 Massachusetts (one in suburbia , one in a city), and one southern. People at my school generally only apply to a few West Coast schools. (The UC's, Stanford, Arizona ) but most people have a variety of southern, midwestern, and East Coast schools on their list.</p>
<p>With this long post, I hope I've at least answered the question!</p>
<p>No offense taken. I wasn't expecting a generalized answer. That's why I prefaced the question with "based on your experiences..."</p>
<p>We're from Boston, S is at Wash U St. Louis and loves it, no big cultural adjustment---though I don't think Wash U is representative of Missouri overall. Really like Missouri a lot, St. Louis and KC are both great cities.</p>
<p>Anyone who thinks Idaho and South Dakota are part of the Midwest fails geography. The Midwest is typically defined as Ohio to Minn./Iowa or the Big 10 states less Penn.. Idaho is a Mountain State and South Dakota is part of the Great Plains states.</p>
<p>I'm from MN and I know someone that is a freshman at LSU this year and absolutely loves it. He never wants to come back!
I think it definitely depends on the person and their own personality.</p>
<p>poetsheart: I understand that what you're saying is true, but I don't understand why these uber religious conservative Christians get so offended when others call them ignorant. I mean how can these people say that gay people are gay because they chose to be that way, when they themselves aren't gay!!! It is true that a gay person can choose to accept the fact that they're gay and to be proud of that, but would someone really wish to be ridiculed by so much of society? I mean come on. Let's get real. How many straight people can say that they've sat down and told themselves that they would be straight and like the opposite sex? none. How many gay people have sat down and told themselves that they would be gay and like the same sex? None. What's the diff?</p>
<p>If some one believes in God, ect. I'm all fine with that, but for someone to believe in something that is so absolutly far fetched and factually wrong is rather ignorant if I say so myself. A preference is something that comes naturally. Did you choose to like certain foods, or choose to like certain music? Probably not. Just sorta happened.</p>
<p>As a East Coast resident, I really like the laid-back feel of the West Coast I experienced during my time there. I guess it's why most of the schools I've applied to are in CA.</p>
<p>jsmall, believe me, I understand where you're coming from. It does indeed seem far fetched that a person would choose a lifestyle with such potential for social isolation. I'm just telling you what many fundamentalists believe. Additionally many of them believe that these persons who choose homosexuality are literally "demon possessed", a tragic condition that impairs their ability to make the "logical" choice of heterosexuality. I actually had someone tell me that they believe that a person can be possessed from birth, which is why some people identify as gay from early childhood:eek:</p>
<p>First I'd like to say that I think that the degree the culture shock affects any person (northerner to the south or mid-westerner to the east, whatever), depends entirely upon the person. I slow-going new yorker could adjust to a move to the south better than a fast-paced-life-loving southerner moving to manhattan. It really depends though. I have a friend who moved to long island from a small town in florida and she couldn't handle it (she had anxiety attacks as a result, etc) and moved back home.</p>
<p>Coureur, as a new yorker with family from the south, I can assure you that there is a huge cultural difference between the liberal east and the conservative south. Yes, there are liberal areas of the south. They don't compare to certain areas of NY or MA, but they are not so "Deep South." And, there are liberal and moderate schools in the midwest and south, so it isn't like things need to be so jarring. However, people--local people--act differently in the south and midwest (exceptions somewhat for large cities, but we're not talking about that so much). I've found locals to be far more "smiling at strangers"-type friendly in those areas. Religion is also approached differently in some places. The issue is that MORE people are conservative there, and so, while it isn't a given that every person will be religiously zealous, it is more likely that a person will encounter that in Chatanooga, TN, versus in Boston, MA. </p>
<p>Also, I can see someone moving back to NYC from a small town in the south. It is a slower atmosphere, and may be less comfortable. I can see someone moving away from a town that is very church-focused if he/she is uncomfortable with religion or feels like that is too "in her/his face." It is not that odd. I was yelled at by my COUSIN once in a church for saying something that no person I know would even think twice about. I had no idea that I had said anything offensive. Humors are different in different areas and that could make it more difficult to make friends. </p>
<p>Personally, I love how friendly people are in the midwest and the south; however, I HATE that I feel compelled to avoid nastiness by not expressing some of my very liberal viewpoints. Dissent just isn't as accepted, and I am just not a person who could function in a place that is even more "in the box" than here.</p>
<p>Hudsonvalley51, are you from the hudson valley in NY? (if you are so am I haha) Great topic btw.</p>
<p>I'm a junior in HS now, and I moved from suburban Connecticut to Southern California (near Malibu) Freshman year. I got destroyed by culture shock.</p>
<p>The people are just so different; it's really difficult to adjust if you are shy. (then again, it is always like that when you move)</p>
<p>I can't even explain how different things were from what I was used to. I've grown to appreciate and like the differences over time though.</p>
<p>I grew up in a town which topped out in population at 189. There were 13 people in my (public) high school class. </p>
<p>I moved to a much larger city in January of my junior year of high school (population about 2.5 million), and did just fine in school. I then went on to college in the heart of Chicago, hated the lack of grass, liked riding the "L", couldn't have cared less about the skin color, national origin, or religion of the people I went to school with. They were classmates - some friends, some not.</p>
<p>My native New Yorker husband did have complete culture shock when I took him to my birth town's Centennial celebration. He was the only guy at the tractor pull with a shirt on (and not in cover-alls). He still talks about it!</p>
<p>I think the shock is much greater for a person going from an urban environment to a rural or less crowded one. The city person just can't always figure out what to do with him/herself in a rural area. Most rural kids have been to museums, concerts, restaurants, and (horrors!) even political rallies (see Iowa caucuses). I would venture to say that the great majority of city kids cannot even imagine standing in the middle of a cornfield, a forest, being in a canoe on a northern lake at dusk, hearing the call of a loon from the sleeping bag.</p>
<p>One of the greatest shocks for me going to a city area was the "smell" of the city. Too much perfume, sweat (read: b.o.), and bad air. For my husband, he never did get used to the sweet smell of fertilizer.</p>
<p>South Florida bagels> New York bagels. period.</p>
<p>Would someone from NYC have trouble fitting in at Duke assuming I was lucky enough to get accepted?</p>
<p>colegehopeful78,</p>
<p>I'm a Duke student, and I laughed my ass off at your comment. (no offense)</p>
<p>There are so many NYCers here :)....The school has a huge northern contingent</p>
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<blockquote> <p>Coureur, as a new yorker with family from the south, I can assure you that there is a huge cultural difference between the liberal east and the conservative south.<<</p> </blockquote>
<br>
<p>I grew up a military kid and experienced as both child and adult all parts of the country and some foreign countries as well. And the cultural differences between NY and the south are trivial compared to some places that really are different. If you want to experience some real cultural shock, try living in Tripoli, Libya for four years as I did. After a few months there, you'll view New York City and deep south US as being as alike as two peas in a pod.</p>
<p>But as different as Tripoli was, I still got through it okay. And I have a broader and richer world view because of it. I can't believe that people from the northeast are all that fragile. If I can handle Libya, I'm sure some kid from NY can handle the south or the midwest.</p>
<p>my nj-born-and-raised son ventured to college in south carolina with an open mind and a plan to fit in, but never felt welcome. eventually he transferred to a school in virginia and is much happier.</p>
<p>I know I was just making sure. I know Duke has a large population from the midatlantic states (NJ,NY,PA).</p>