Happy, but....

Parents Forum
1

<p>So far, I really like my school. My dorm is nice, the kids are nice, the partying scene doesn't seem anywhere near as prevalent/pressuring as I expected (still don't drink a drop and find lots to do) and I'm involved in a lot of activities that I, by and large, enjoy. I'm doing alright academically (not that sure of my grades yet as we don't get midterm reports and still have many grades to go in most classes... ), have professors that are very good so far, like my classes for the most part... even the intially resistant Japanese department is staerting to turn a new leaf, I think (please, please, let that hold!). I'm happy here so far, much happier (and busier! 21 credits= work!) than I would have expected in June, and its relatively cheap, which takes a lot of pressure by proxy off me... (I'm hoping that happiness holds out but I know things can change. Don't count those eggs...)</p>

<p>However, I just can't shake the feeling of, I don't know, [italics]guilt[/italics], over being here. I feel weird knowing I chose a third tier, out of state, state u instead of a smaller lac or even a larger, prestigeous u. I don't like football (though I do like it when we win, for some reason!), don't party, and did well in high school.... While I feel I fit here, I don't feel like I should. Sometimes, I wonder if I'm just fooling myself. I have a good friend who attends Lewis and Clark in Portland ( and loves it, btw :) ), and I wonder if I'm missing out on something big by not attending a small school. People at small schools boast so of things like faulty attention (which I haven't yet have a problem with as every professor knows my name, even in my 80 person psych class where the professor complimented me personally on my work), unified student body, and this general sense of a tight-knitted community that I find myself pondering if I might get out more out three years there than I would at this 13,500 person, unranked school that I enjoy for what seems like all the wrong reasons. Would a small school benefit me more as a person in the end, enough for me to uproot myself from a place I like?</p>

<p>I know this may come across as prestige whorish, but it's not, really. It's hard for me to explain the cognitive dissonace going on, but I hope this posts gets across just a bit of my question.</p>

<p>Thanks in advance...</p>

2

<p>I think you are over thinking it and second guessing yourself. You are obviously an introspective, intelligent person. Enjoy where you are without worrying about why you fit where you are. Just be happy that you do feel you fit. Life will unfold for you, the trick is in enjoying the moment.</p>

3

<p>Ditto from me. Bloom where you have planted yourself. Only fools spend their lives looking over the fence to see if the grass is greener and in doing so, miss the great moments and chances of their lives...</p>

4

<p>"unranked school that I enjoy for what seems like all the wrong reasons"</p>

<p>-- I didn't see any wrong reasons in your post: you like your school, you like your classmates, you're making connections with your professors, you're involved and working hard. The u is a good fit and it's "relatively cheap" -- which will give you financial options for graduate school many of your 'small LAC' grads will envy. You're fine where you are -- what you do with your education and your experience counts far more than the 'prestige' factor of the school. Relax!</p>

5

<p>For awhile I went to the U on MN undergrad. Some of my classes were huge but they were still good because the profs were good and I wanted to learn. I had some really great TAs also. Even in a Soc. course with 800 students, I was able to start up class discussions. And I was amazed by how many small discussion-based classes I was able to get into. Enjoy where you are. You can get as much out of your school as you decide to. Eventually I went on for Ph.D at another huge U. but this time, my whole program was 8 students.</p>