I’m a student in the UK and next year I will be allowed to go on my Study Abroad.
My major allows me the choice of 5 (well, more than 5, but I have narrowed them to 5) schools to go on exchange to. I’m just looking for some information on them. It does;t have to be detailed but i’m looking for the good and the bad. Regardless if it’s one small sentence or a huge essay answer - anything helps. I have a mental order from what i know so far, but that is an outsider looking in from a great distance.
I’d like to know what you guys think of the schools, regardless if you live in the state or not. Anything you’ve heard, any experiences you’ve had, anything at all.
I have pretty good grades as it stands, so if I continue them this semester, I may get my first choice, so it’s so important that it’s the correct choice for me.
So, here are the schools I narrowed down to:
University of Massachusetts (Amherst)
University of North Carolina (Wilmington)
Washington State University
University of Wisconsin (Eau Claire)
University of Wisconsin (La Crosse)
These are the ones I pretty much ruled out (But i’m happy to reconsider if there is an overwhelming positive feeling):
University of Alaska (Fairbanks)
California State University (Monterey Bay)
University of Louisiana (Monroe)
San Diego State University
University of Wisconsin (Stout)
University of Hawaii (Hilo)
Like I said, literally any information you can give, no matter how big or small will really help.
If I had the opportunity to spend one year in the US, I would want to be somewhere that has easy access to big city / airport hub and decent weather during the months of the school year. Your criteria may be entirely different.
Therefore, I would not have Wisconsin or Alaska on my list. California schools would get a bump up. And since I’ve spent time in NC, I know the reputation of UNCW when I was there was very laid back and not very academically focused. It was more for students that wanted to go to school at the beach - and it is likely mostly in-state students.
UMass Amherst is the state flagship (strong academics) with access to Boston and NYC.
Good top choice.
I would replace U Wisconsin La Crosse with SDSU and I’d bump it up to 2nd place. Great city to live in, great weather, the strongest CSU after Cal Poly SLO.
UNC Wilmington has actually become one of the most selective universities in the UNC system, after UNC-Ch and NCSU and above 12 others. It’s still on the beach and has good weather too.
UMass Amherst is a great first choice - great location, lots of academic choices, the 5-college exchange means you’ll encounter a great variety of students and you may be able to take a class at one of the most prestigious colleges in the country (Amherst) or at women’s colleges, a uniquely American university (Mount Holyoke, Smith).
For my 5th choice I’d pick Eau Claire over La Crosse because it’s about 2 hours or less from St Paul (which isn’t far for the US :p).
UMass Amherst being a state flagship, is probably the most prestigious and might have better academics/resources than some of the others. Like @lots2do said, you would have access to Boston and New York City (though it’s not super close to either).
What’s your area of study?
That should be a determining factor, as many of these schools are regional and excel in certain areas and not so much in others…
I agree that SDSU should be back on your list because of it’s overall academic excellence, location, diversity of the student body and nice campus/nice area with great weather. Within the CSU system in California, it ranks in the top two. U Mass Amherst is also a good choice.
Note that Washington State U, while an excellent institution, is in far Eastern Washington (near the state of Idaho) and
is not particularly easy to travel to.
Weather for me isn’t really important. Coming from Scotland I am use to (and maybe prefer) a cooler climate. However, if the academics and social aspects of the school far outweigh the weather conditions, i’d certainly consider it.
With Marine Bio as a major, you should certainly add Monterey Bay back into the mix, along focusing on SDSU.
You’d be at an advantage to be close to the coast, remembering that in the US, there’s approximately 3,000 miles (just under 5,000 kilometers) between them. It’s much easier to do field research when you’re close to the ocean.
Monterey Bay is smaller and somewhat quirky, but close enough to San Jose and San Francisco that you’ll be able to easily get to some touristy spots for visits.
With your stated major, I would also suggest throwing U Hawaii-Hilo back into the pile. The Manoa campus is better known for it’s program, but the Hilo campus is also strong, albeit smaller.
P.S. Are UC San Diego (with access to the Scripps Institute), UCSanta Cruz, Humboldt State or San Jose State (all in California) on your list? Those, along with CSU-MB have some of the better Marine Bio programs on the west coast. Other strong programs include Oregon State and U Oregon.
Hi Hop. The only ones I can attend are the ones I listed. Even some of them aren’t for sure because My college has to check with their program to make sure there are classes that can be transferred back to.
I heard UNCW has one of the best Marine programmes in the country which was why it was on my list.
I’ve never really been interested in the west USA. California has never been a state I ever wanted to visit. Coupled with the intense heat and the fact it’s on the far side of the country from where I am travelling, I had ruled it out - not academically but more practically and logistically.
UNC W indeed has one of the best marine science programs in the US, along with Eckerd. Because that’s your major, it should be #1. SDSU #2.
I wouldn’t consider coastal southern california “intense heat”, although clearly it’s scorching inland, and no one would consider anywhere San Francisco and higher “hot”. Being on the coast keeps everything perfectly warm, not too hot, not too cold, and sunny with a breeze. Once you’ve passed LA, it goes to warm&cool to cooler. Humboldt’s weather would be similar to Cardiff’s.
Unfortunately, CSU MB is in an isolated location. While it’s on the bay, and beautiful, it’s also not a good choice for an international student who won’t have a car. Great for on campus work, study, hanging out… but not so good for travelling. OP, can you drive and will you be able to buy a car in the US? If so, CSU MB is great for you. If not, it’d be too isolated I think (subjective opinion, so look into it). Anyway i’d still keep it as #5 regardless due to its academics. Cut Washington State and Wisconsin La Crosse. Add Hawai’i Hilo.
San Diego and Monterey Bay will not have “intense heat”. They are in very moderate climates. Likewise, Hilo, Hawaii, is a very moderate climate. Because the temperatures are more moderate, you would be able to explore the natural surroundings more so than you would in Fairbanks, Wisconsin or UMass Amherst. UNC and University of Louisiana will be a lot hotter. Have a look at weatherspark.com to see the temperatures of each location over the course of a year.
Don’t let distance be a factor. If you want to study marine science, then you have to go where it is.
