<p>I don't want to offend anyone but I have been hearing some really bad things about the east coast especially how rude and mean people are. I am currently looking at a few schools in the D.C. and Boston areas and everyone here (including trusted teachers and counselors) tell me that I would hate the east because people would be mean and I would never fit in. I have also been told by a few that I would end up dropping out and returning home. Generally my high school never sends people that far off so I can't really find past students and ask them what it was like. Is the east coast any ruder than the west? And yes I am from a small town but it is itself very rude even to people who have lived here there entire lives (basically if you can't trace your lineage back to the Russian era people are pretty snobby).</p>
<p>2 stories for you, draw your own conclusions:</p>
<p>1) a man walks to the gates of a small village and asks an old man near the gate what the villagers are like. "What are they like where you come from?" replies the old man. "They're nasty and will cheat you every chance they get". "Well", says the old man, "they're like that here too". </p>
<p>A second man walks up, same question. "In my village people are friendly and helpful" is the answer. "Same here", says the old man.</p>
<p>2) I'm not a fisherman, but I'm told that when you're fishing for crabs you don't need to have a lid on your bucket. As soon as a crab starts to make his way out of the bucket the other ones reach and grab him back.</p>
<p>i live in a wealthy suburb of philadelphia and its really not like that. althogh if you have a southern accent some arrogant people may joke around. im your stereotype though, third generation immigrant family from eastrern europe so maybe i just dont notice it, but ive never really seen any problems. i love the northeat</p>
<p>So are all people in Alaska solitary, unsocial types who live in small, backward towns, fish for a living and drink too much??? I doubt it. You sound very nice here on CC and I know you are worried about going so far.......take a chance. You seem to have forgotten that many folks at Eastern Colleges are NOT from the East Coast......we are transplants just like you would be. I would love to meet someone who is really from Alaska......other than Gary Paulsen, the author. I mean really now.........such an experience. I've never seen a glacier and maybe your opines on oil drilling, global warming etc. would be of great interest to me and my friends. You'd have a lot to contribute because you live it and know about that part of our country.....I have never seen an Alaskan iceberg....have eaten Alaskan salmon and I love it, Alaskan Crab ditto. Come see what we are about and teach us what you are about......take a risk.</p>
<p>We live in Florida and a local boy here tried college "up north" and lasted exactly 4 days.....by the weekend he was at a southern college and very happy. I don't know what that was all about, really....but as a former northerner, I can tell you that people can be perceived as being more..."pressured"....the pace can be faster at times so sometimes people seem rude when they're just in a hurry. This is a broad generalisation, but I think sometimes there's a bluntness up north which isn't the worst thing in the world. I'd rather have someone say something to my face than have them smile sweetly and talk behind my back the way it can be done "down here".....no flames, please....a broad generalisation, I know and just my personal experience. After saying all of that, I'm encouraging my kids to leave the southeast and try their hand at a northern education. "if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere".....I believe its true.</p>
<p>I would say people are more direct and can be what seems abrupt. If you are not used to it you might think they are mean. I'd say just more honest without all the niceties other areas add on. It's better than the fake niceness we have in Seattle.</p>
<p>oops! I thought OP was from Arkansas, not Alaska....sorry about that!</p>
<p>I've lived in New Hampshire all my life (although I now go to school at Northwestern, outside of Chicago), and I think the northeast is beautiful and a wonderful place to be. I do agree that people tend to be more abrupt and blunt, but people also are very inclusive and gravitate towards community...also, there's nothing like a small New England town with it's white steepled church and general store (not Boston, of course, but drive an hour north and you'll find them). </p>
<p>As for Boston...it's a really fun city, and a great college town. However, they do have some of the worst drivers I've ever seen, so ALWAYS look both ways. Seriously.</p>
<p>So bottom line: people are people, and you'll find people you like whereever you go. College is the perfect time to experience something new, so give it a shot!</p>
<p>I disagree about "people are people." I have lived in a lot of parts of the country and the urban areas in the NE are unique. The epicenter is NYC. Life is at a rapid pace. People tend to think fast, act fast and are assertive. After quite a few years in the NE, I have gotten used to the culture. It did take quite a while. </p>
<p>I never got used to southern mannerisms. Couldn't stand the slooooow pace. Didn't care much for "yall come back now" when they really meant "thank god the yankees leaving."</p>
<p>I live in NYC, and stereotypes abound as to the horrible, godless people that live here. Though I'm the first to affirm a lot of those stereotypes, quite a few are really misunderstood--about East Coasters and NYers in particular. It's certainly true that a lot of cities here feel much tenser than, say, laid back San Francisco or even Seattle. But that is, again, an oversimplification. Things here are fast-paced, but I'm speaking from someone in the heart of New York. If you want a challenge or just to give the East Coast a feel, I'd recommend going to, say, Vermont, Virginia, New Hampshire, or even Maine. If you want urban, stay away from New York City, Boston, DC. It sounds like the pace might just be a bit overwhelming, and those are certainly less "welcoming" places than more rural areas. You do have to keep in mind things like weather, political climate, etc., if those are important as well.</p>
<p>It depends on your personality. I lived in KY, then Baltimore and later northern NJ. I prefer the Northeast because people aren't as superficially friendly. People are more abrupt, and you can't expect the cashier, for example, to chat with you. People however are more tolerant of differences because there is so much more diversity.</p>
<p>I have been told by students from the south that they miss the southern hospitality and courtesy. I think people who live in some big northeast cities tend to be "stand-offish" and impatient with strangers, especially NYC. They probably are not that way with their friends and family. Big-City-dwellers probably learn to keep strangers at a distance.</p>
<p>Most important, students at northeastern colleges are kind and friendly with each other, tend to like southern accents, and locals actually tend to respond favorably when they know how far away you live (like Alaska). At least this is true at the school I know.</p>
<p>You really do just have to visit...I for one HATE NYC but I LOOOOOVE Boston...and I have a kind of neutral feeling for DC...awesome political stuff but way too many laws and crime.</p>
<p>I attended a northeastern LAC near Boston, and we had one girl from Fairbanks there. Everyone thought she was so "cool" (no pun intended!) and needless to say, she was the only one there from her state..She loved her college experience but was happy to return to Alaska afterwards. (ended up marrying a relo'd Red Sox fan who she met in Fairbanks)</p>
<p>New York is the capital of the world, its where people, jobs, education and opportunity are alive and rampant, no better or more exciting place on earth to be... period.</p>
<p>My California kid chose NYC for school because it was different and he wanted to push himself out of his comfort zone. He's found: the pace is intense, the relationships are more "formal", less just hanging out. He's having a great time but made the interesting comment that he's glad he's at a college with a real campus, so he can withdraw into the campus when he doesn't feel like dealing with the city. So, that might be one suggestion for you.</p>
<p>A different question might be dealing with the distance. Alaska's a long way. He had to fly home last year for a funeral, and right now he has mono. Luckily, we happened to be visiting him when he came down with it, and he hasn't had to come home. But you might think of some place where you at least have some family or family friends for support the first year or two.</p>
<p>I love Alaska! But when we asked the college-aged kids we met there whether they went to University of Alaska, they all laughed and said only people from out of state want to go to school in Fairbanks.</p>
<p>I second the person who said people on the East Coast are less laid back. I've been a Marylander (basically DC) all my life, and whenever I go to California, people in particular are just way more chill. Here, people for the most part aren't going to make an effort to be your friend, you have to reach out. No one's really going to do much to help other people who are in trouble, that's probably why so much crime goes unreported. But the good thing is, if you have a good bunch of frineds, you'll have a lot of fun, espeially in NYC. I met a boy from Alaska during a couple of my vacations (they were conferences so we always saw the same families) and he was so friendly and nice, nothing like people here.</p>
<p>Are you from Alaska? I had a friend who moved from Alaska to New York. She loved it here and setted down here and is now raising a family here. Have you visited? It is hard to explain about New Yorkers. You have to see for yourself. They are the worst at times, but the best when it really counts. Visit- see for yourself. You won't be disappointed.</p>
<p>I just skimmed through the other posts quickly so I may be repeating the ideas of others, but...I have spent most of my life in a fairly affluent suburb of Boston in a quaint New England town. Boston does have the reputation of being the rudest and downright unwelcoming city in the country, I won't disregard that. Maybe not rude, but Bostonians (we don't even call ourselves that...) are not all that touchy-feely, Southern charming whatever kind of people. We have a tough exterior. Thus it may seem (and does to outsiders) very hard to assimilate and find your niche wherever in New England you are. As someone on the inside, obviously it seems just fine to me. It's part of who we are. But anyhow, any major college environment, whether you be in Cambridge, Boston, Pioneer Valley or whatever is saturated with foreign and out of state kids who are not tried and true New Englanders, therefore you will not be met by the armies of cold and reserved individuals others have warned you of. I think you'd fit in just fine. As I'm sure you know, between MIT, Harvard, BU, BC and so forth, the Boston area is not lacking in those slightly intimidated by the Boston mentality. In sum, the people of Boston are unique, somewhat reserved but not apathetic and most welcoming to diversity. Go for it! And, Boston as a city rocks if I do say so myself, however bias.</p>
<p>What can anyone tell me about Carnegie Mellon and Pittsburgh?</p>