<p>Okay, I went to visit Linfield College in McMinnville last weekend for a "competitive scholarship" contest. With that came a long campus tour, and overnight, and a class visit. I really enjoyed the feel of the school and thought the class was great (although I would have liked to see more interest in it...) but the overnight was terrible... and it wasn't Linfield's fault. I'm one of those kids who actually wants to go to college for the academics. I don't drink and won't drink... ever. However, I ended up with a partying Sorority girl as a hostess and all the other prospects and hostesses on the floor were Sorority girls or prospective ones. There's nothing wrong with Sororities... they just aren't for me. However, I was stuck. All they talked about was the party life, getting drunk, how much substance free 24-hour quiet dorms suck (the ones I'm looking into), and how annoying homework is. In the class I met people that weren't like this, so I know they exist. Plus, not a huge part of the population is in Sororities/Frats but... I'm having a hard time getting over this aspect of it all. For example, they opted out of showing my group anything on campus because they wanted to spend the whole night watching the Oscars. >.<;;</p>
<p>This isn't exactly my first choice (I really hope Whitman accepts me and gives me a nice aid package... or I wiish I could afford Reed) and was my first visit but its pretty much my fall-back school. I know there's more to it and I met many nice people who weren't obsessed with the Oscars and getting drunk every other night... but I was just wondering if anyone has suggestions for getting over this horrible overnight.</p>
<p>Fraternity and sorority members like to volunteer for these kind of things so they can "advance pick" who they want to rush. Unfortunately for you, you got stuck with a group you wouldn't choose to be with and it sounds like you got a view of the college from their perspective (which could very well be a minority view given that Greek life is not dominant). I'm glad you were able to meet other students that were more in synch with your interests - I'd be worried if everyone seemed like the party girls. No one likes everyone or every group at college - just be sure that there are enough people there for you to feel comfortable, which it sounds like there are.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice! I may really need to consider a visit, just to make sure enough of these groups exist. One of the other things I really need to look for are people who are sincerely interested in learning... I saw one or two at least in the class but... yeah. XP I also think it might help when I actually see an other college so I have something to compare to.</p>
<p>Find a kid in the sub-free dorm you can correspond with... Ask this kid to comment on the general tenor of life at this school; is there a large enough group of like-minded kids (intellectual, non-greek) to have a good community of friends there? Feeling "a part of things" will be important to your happiness. Make sure that the other side of life exists there....</p>
<p>With 3,000 colleges and universities in the U.S., I would just put Linfield behind you. Yes, I'm sure there are people that don't drink. Yes, I'm sure on another day, at another time, etc., etc., it might have been different.</p>
<p>But you have to work with the information you have. And you have A LOT of information. "All the other prospects and hostesses on the floor were Sorority sisters or prospectives." "All they talked about was the party life, getting drunk, how much substance free 24-hour quiet dorms suck (the ones I'm looking into), and how annoying homework is." So now you know that the campus is divided strongly into drinkers and non-drinkers, and studious and non-studious folks. This division - not the drinking or partying per se -- and the way folks feel about, is a big issue. You might, for example, have been in a studious, substance-free dorm where folks complained about all the drinking on campus and the lack of studiousness on the part of their classmates. You might have been more at-home with these students, but it would have been equally a problem. Do you have any evidence that the studious ones feel differently? You could try another visit. But if that's not possible, you have to go with the information you've got, I would think. It isn't complete, but you'd only have that after 4 years.</p>
<p>One of the things that's hard is I'm kind of "trapped". Linfield has offered me quite a bit of merit aid, making it one of the few schools my family could afford (save the state schools I applied to as safeties). I was admitted EA into Lewis & Clark with a fairly good scholarship, but its still so expensive that I've pretty much hard to give up there (I want to visit, my dad doesn't really see a point because we can't afford it) even though it sounds like a much better fit for me academically. I'm also waiting on Whitman and Reed, but I fear neither will have an aid package I can work with. :P</p>
<p>Not sure I agree with Mini. When kids are paired with hosts by the admissions office, these visits are very hit or miss and only give you a small slice of what a college is like. We really don't know if the substance-free dorms kids complain or not....</p>
<p>I would suggest that if you do go back for a second look, that you tell the admissions people just what you told us in your post, and see if they can pair you up with a more like-minded host. It sounds like Linfield considers you a student they would love to have and I expect they will make efforts to show you that you would be happy there. </p>
<p>When my D visited Brandeis some years ago, she was paired with a student who thought the best way to convince D to come to Brandeis was to watch Jerry Springer and drink. D had absolutely no interest in that. She just left with another prospective student, opting to see what else might be happening that night, returning just to sleep. She ended up attending a Free Tibet rally. In the end, she decided against Brandeis, and her overnight experience surely contributed to that decision. But so did other things, and she knew that her host was not typical of all Brandeis kids - but that she was typical of some.</p>
<p>If you are the kind of person who can set out on your own, I think it is a great idea to say, "Enjoy the Oscars! I think I am going to explore a little. See you later!" Perhaps that will work for you on other college visits you may make.</p>
<p>My daughter looked at Linfield ( didn't do an overnight- it was part of a junior year tour with her class). She didn't say anything about drinking, but didn't like it cause she felt it was just like her prep school</p>
<p>Since Linfield gave you merit aid- ( is it above EFC?) you may want to talk to Lewis and Clark and let them know that while you liked L& C enough to apply EA, that you don't feel you can afford it, and that Linfield has a very appealing offer.( however showing you like it will include visiting IMO)
Same with Reed- they may surprise you by their offer- they did us, but I have also heard from others that they didn't get as much as expected.
But if you are close enough to visit I would strongly suggest you do so. If hotels are a problem, there are two good hostels in Portland, one on Hawthorne very close to Reed, and one across the river- to save $$</p>
<p>Thank you! :D I'm so impressed with how nice everyone is here!</p>
<p>I've heard about people who did that with the aid package, how would you go about it? Like, would I call the admissions office? <em>is very uninformed about these things</em> I probably should wait to see the need-based part of my package (it probably won't be anything though, seeing as my EFC is incredibly high). </p>
<p>Thank you emeraldkity, I'll try to convince my dad we need to take a visit down to L&C and Reed. And, I guess I'll keep crossing my fingers one of these other schools will really want me. ^_~</p>
<p>I think another thing that's been weighing on me is that I haven't seen a college I absolutely adored yet. I've been to colleges I liked (for example, I liked Linfield more than Seattle U) but I haven't seen one that really jumped out at me. :/</p>
<p>I do think going back is an okay idea. But the problem is that, if you get the view from the "substance-free world", or some such, which view are you going to believe? The first one isn't invalidated by the second. Specifically asking to be paired with a "like-minded student" might be the worst thing you could do, as it might give you a highly misleading view of what to expect. Random selection is best. Yes, the visits are hit-and-miss, but you have to operate with the information you have. (Now if it turns out this is your only choice, or seems on paper the better of two, you might return after admission to see how you feel about it.)</p>
<p>Whitneylm, have you visited the big schools? If you are having trouble finding schools you like, I would consider the bigger schools. They are cheaper and with more students, the odds are you will find like-minded students.</p>
<p>I agree with Mini, random is best. There is a very good chance Linfield is not for you.</p>
<p>Whitneylm - I am sorry that your visit was not what you expected. I agree with mini above - about not asking to be paired with someone like you. Getting paired with someone like you is fine, but if you are unsure about the school you need to see it from many angles. I also want to recommend that if you really have your heart set on one college then you might want to ask your guidance counselor to call the admissions office about a change in the financial aid package to make it more affordable for your family. Just a suggestion:)</p>
<p>Stupid stupid stupid schools!!! Why don't they just do a little basic screening and matchmaking??? We were very concerned that our S would have a bad overnight at a school that we were hoping he would choose. They did match him up with a lacrosse player (very bad match - S hates the lacrosse scene) but fortunately he was actually an ex lacrosse player and S didn't have a bad time and chose that school. A frend of ours was hosted by a student who was on academic and disciplinary probation for drinking violations! Can you imagine? Apparently serving as a host was part of his punishment / community service! The prospective student and his parents were extremely unimpressed!!!</p>
<p>To the OP: That is a difficult experience/impression to overcome, but the fact that you found students in the classroom that seemed more your type is encouraging.</p>
<p>This experience is far too common! S visited an illustrious school in CA and was placed for his overnight with a freshman who spent the whole time looking for the best party. Son was on his own a lot of the time, even went to a movie he had just seen to get away from the party scene. Ironically, the host told him he had been required to go to an outreach activity when HE had visited in his senior year, and he had decided to make it a point NOT to subject any of his prospects go through THAT. Son is very into outreach and would have loved to have been part of that aspect of school. He was left with a negative feel, but went ahead and applied, assuming that he was given a warped view. He told his school counselor about the incident, and she call the school to let them know. They were quite unhappy about his experience and planned to assign no more visiting students to that host.</p>
<p>Thank you everyone for all your responses! I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one who went through this. XD</p>
<p>Also, I've been talking to my dad and he's starting to see my view. He agreed to be open to other schools and offers, as long as they're reasonable. So, hopefully they will be. :D</p>
<p>Unfortunately, Linfield does have a rep for being a drinking/party school. What you saw may very well have been what you can expect there. Have your Dad read the archives online of Linfield's student newspaper and it's full of stories of drinking parties, problems with the police busting underage drinking parties, etc. That's not to say that everyone drinks there, but it's a big enough part of the college culture that it deserves thinking about to weigh whether its right for you personally. I'd be less concerned about the drinking and frat/sorority aspect (all schools have partying going on) if Linfield wasn't in McMinnville --- there aren't many other social options in such a small town.</p>
<p>Lewis & Clark isn't big on drinking but the students we talked to there said there is quite a bit of pot smoking. My daughter thinks she'd prefer that to wild drinking parties. (she neither drinks nor does drugs). At least with L&C you have lots of other options in Portland. I agree with the advice that it may be possible to negotiate with L&C but I'd do an overnight there first if you haven't already. And, it would be best if it is your PARENTS who deal with the financial aid office and negotiations there instead of you.</p>
<p>I think Linfield might be "off your list" as you sound mature enough to be able to rely on your instincts. It is possible to deal with a mismatch one night socially, and possible to find your party peer group later...but if you also did not get the academically alive vibe from your peers...don't go. I do hate to hear of a really academic kid on a full ride in a school with few peers in class and in the dorms who are also highly motivated. Transferring out is to be avoided and is a drain of your youthful four years and energies, but is an option. Your social group really matters in college as much of your growth is within relationships and your peers really will impact your happiness. Better to take on a little debt and be where you will make many lifetime friendships. If you truly can't find the funds for the better-ranked LACs you are choosing, don't forget to give a great larger state university a shot if you applied to any. best wishes...</p>
<p>"But the problem is that, if you get the view from the "substance-free world", or some such, which view are you going to believe?"</p>
<p>Mini, why does it need to be one view or the other? Both worlds can co-exist, of course.</p>
<p>NJres, I don't think the match problem is incompetent admissions offices. I think they have enough experience and feedback to know how to do these things. And I suspect I know why they don't focus more on matches. I suspect they realize that kids may not be forthright in what kind of pairing they want (mom hovering over kid's shoulder, gently nudging kid's pen to certain boxes...and admonishing "you don't want to be with THOSE kids, do you?").</p>
<p>WhitenyLM, please get your Dad to visit L&C with you. As part of the trip, have him make an appointment in advance (for the two of you) with the Financial Aid office. Bring a copy of the Linfield offer. I do <em>not</em> recommend appearing to blackmail L&C. But a stance along the lines of the following is in-bounds and may yield surprising results: I applied her EA and would like to come but finances are tight. We have this offer from Linfield, which is very attractive, but L&C is my first choice. Is there anything you can do?</p>
<p>A similar approach turned the FinAid offer from my D's first choice from #3 to #1. We're still paying more than I'd like but all things considered, I can't complain.</p>