Help! I need coping strategies

<p>P.S. she would gladly take your space if you don’t want to go!</p>

<p>Hey! I LOVE Bowdoin and am going. I know what a great school it is (and no, not all f my peers are going to ivies - it’s just that none of them have heard of any schools other than the big name ones). You really cant blame me for wanting some recognition and respect from my classmates and teachers after four years of hard work in high school. </p>

<p>But rest assured that I will go to Bowdoin and make the most of all the wonderful opportunities there. For those of you on the waiting list, I am truly sorry :(</p>

<p>I should have put a LOl after my last post. Best of Luck. I’m sure you will love It!</p>

<p>No one i know has ever heard of bowdoin and it sucks that such a great school has no reputation to the rest of the world!!</p>

<p>I understand SP135’s dilemma. I am not a Bowdoin alumnus; however I went to Amherst and have put up with a lifetime of blank stares. I chose to attend there over one of the “big three” ivies. I based my decision on where I thought I would get the best education FOR ME, not someone else. Among academics and most professionals, the top LACs are highly regarded. I had a great college education and experience and later attended arguably the top professional school in my chosen field. There definitely was no handicap career-wise coming from a highly-regarded LAC c/w other top universities. You will get a great education at Bowdoin and have terrific future career prospects. To further add to the earlier analogy: Be glad you are wearing a diamond necklace and be content with owning it without flaunting it.</p>

<p>None of the most selective LACs are “well-known”, generally speaking. Swarthmore is probably even lesser known than the New England schools. Just the way it is. Women’s Colleges have greater name-recogonition due to their history as the female counterparts of the Ivies. Wellesley is probably better known (outside academic circles) than all other schools ranked in the top 20 by U.S. News. </p>

<p>Just an anecdote:All international students applying to study in the States are required to have a visa interview at the Local U.S. Embassy. My interviewer apparently knew of Bowdoin (could tell from his tone when he read from my form–“oh, you’re going to Bowdoin”.), pronounced the name the exact way it should be and confirmed with me that Bowdoin mascot really is a polar bear lol.</p>

<p>I am living and working in Portland, Oregon this summer and so far tons of people who i talk to know about Bowdoin and how good it is. I guess a lot of the people I am around are sailors and sailed in college and Bowdoin has a strong program. but still it is really cool that people know of it and know its a good school even out here on the west</p>