<p>How did ND get on her list in the first place?</p>
<p>pugmad – Woah, sorry, I guess the humor didn’t translate. I did preface my comment by saying that the sister had every right to not like Notre Dame. I thought it was clear that one of her problems with it was the lack of diversity. I just found the description of the kids outside to be sort of . . . well, humorous but also a little odd – as if other ethnic groups don’t like to be outside or eat grilled meat. I got the bigger point – didn’t mean to get anyone’s hackles up.</p>
<p>My Catholic Biracial son did not like ND either, but not because of religion or lack of diversity. It broke my heart because I love ND! (Its ok because he actually ended up at another wonderful Catholic school) Anyway, we did correspond via CC with an African American student at ND who is loving his experience and recommended it highly. Have you talked to any other Asian ND students? First impressions of ANY school are not always accurate and it may be that your sister would come to love ND. There may be more diversity than she thinks, via international students, minority students, culture clubs, etc. Not all ND students are religious either.</p>
<p>If it is the best financial situation and she is obviously very bright, it would be well worth giving ND another chance. She might come to love it.</p>
<p>dragon: no articulation agreements with Cal.</p>
<p>Horror of horrors. A student just HAS to go to ND (with all of those BBQ-loving white people) on what sounds like a full ride. Yes, this is just an awful scenario.</p>
<p>What a sense of entitlement. The family is under financial pressure, but that does not seem to matter to the student. She was accepted to Berkeley; therefore she is entitled to go to Berkeley, regardless of the impact on her family.</p>
<p>Sorry, but I just can’t drum up much sympathy.</p>
<p>westerndad, I don’t see anything showing that the sister felt entitled to go to Berkeley and didn’t care about the impact on her family. Rather, she wants to go somewhere where she’ll be happy for the next four years.</p>
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<p>It is really hard for her to know beforehand whether or not she could be happy at ND. If she shows up with a negative attitude, she will probably not be happy.</p>
<p>This idea that Asian students are turned off by barbeque and casual sports on the lawn is a bit strange to me. I live in a college town, and many–actually most–of my son’s best friends were Asian-born, Asian-American children of immigrants or Asian-American children of mixed parentage. They liked to barbeque and loved to get together at parks and throw Frisbees, ride bikes on the trails, etc. Some of them are thriving at universities that have relatively few Asians/Asian Americans, including some in the south. </p>
<p>About ND in particular: my experience is not at all recent, but many years ago my H was on the faculty there. I took some undergraduate courses as a non-degree student, just for my own enlightenment. I found the undergraduates to be a very, very nice group of kids. Smart, welcoming, polite, enthusiastic about their studies and hard-working. The faculty was top-notch. While some of the freshman-level courses were just as large as those at the big publics, discussion sections and labs were run by faculty, and all were very well taught.</p>
<p>The town of South Bend was sub-par as a college community. If it hasn’t changed a lot (and who knows, maybe it has), then it wouldn’t offer a lot of off-campus opportunity.</p>
<p>If the OP’s sister is looking to reproduce the same kind of environment she already knows and is comfortable with, then she won’t find ND to her liking. If she is looking to broaden her perspectives and get a first-rate education, she could do a whole lot worse.</p>
<p>I think westerndad has a valid point.</p>
<p>“Rather, she wants to go somewhere where she’ll be happy for the next four years.”</p>
<p>Understood. However, in a family that is under financial pressure, “needs” should perhaps trump “wants.”</p>
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<p>Just what do Asian students wear, do on the grass, eat, and play? Sorry I don’t know, I didn’t go to a diverse school.</p>
<p>If your sister (not your parents, but sister) would only have to take out a maximum of $20k in loans over four years, Berkeley is doable (it amounts to $247/month over 10 years.) If more than that, she should make the best of ND. She might be happily surprised, but if she keeps up her grades, she could also transfer later.</p>
<p>It looks like you sis. has already made her mind and is using her predjudice while making her arguments. I heard from Jew attending Catholic University that Religion classes did not bother him at all and he still belonged to Jewish college organization, which makes me to believe that your sis. migh have lesser problem in regard to religion (whish is basically just a humanity class) than she wants everybody to believe. My D. is in non-catholic college known fo its non-diversity image. You can find plenty of diversity at any place, it is much more depends on student than her surroundings. $$ were big in our decision, we went with that and she loves the place. Every place will have pros and cons, kid’s attitude is much more important.</p>
<p>Why does she have to go to college this year? She could work, save money, and apply to more schools that are likely to give merit aid but that are a better fit than ND. I’ve never known any student who was a weaker applicant after a voluntary year off.</p>
<p>She could get a job? That is nice to know. There are many people that I know, who cannot. I wonder what is her secret.</p>
<p>Unless you went to a college where 77% of the students were of a different race than you, then the comments are useless. How many of your children are going to a school where their race is only reflected in 7% of the student body? </p>
<p>Here’s the bottom line; a college age kid wants to go to a school where she’ll feel comfortable and fit in. You may not like the example she used, but mocking her about it is really below the belt.</p>
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<p>And, of course, all minorities feel the same about any issue. </p>
<p>What happend to “fit?” Or are all of you sending your kids to colleges that they felt they did not fit in at? Let’s get real here, if your kid is white, would you insist they attend a historically black college if after the tour they said they felt they did not fit in with the day to day culture of the school?</p>
<p>One thing to consider is the TRAVEL money needed to attend ND. That will be a big chunk of change if the student is planning to come home for holidays and summers.</p>
<p>I’m kind of feeling the racial thing. My s got accepted to UC Irvine. He’s white. So many comments are about how Asian UCI is and how that’s a turn off for white kids. I can’t help but think of all the minorities who were the first to attend all white colleges with rocks and slurs being thrown their way. I KNOW that won’t happen to my S. it’s an interesting pheonomenon.</p>
<p>“Fit” is indeed important. My niece attends ND. It was a challenge for her to “fit in” there as well; she is Catholic and asian. She is finishing her junior year there and has “found her niche.” A friend’s S attended ND as well. He never found his niche & ended up transferring back to flagship U. Another friend’s S LOVED it & went on exchange to Japan, forming a lasting relatiionshp with the host family there.</p>
<p>Each individual has to figure out how well/poorly they fit and work with the options available to them.</p>
<p>We did not consider what we could not afford. This is our way in regard to everything, not just college education. My S. commented that plenty of his friends envy him for not having student loans at the beginning of his carrier. Well other people migh have different philosophy about it. They migh need to explain to their children what it means facing tens of thousands of debt at 22 especially in times when jobs are not that easy to find. However, it might be OK with them.</p>
<p>pugmad – Again, speaking only for myself, no mocking was ever intended. But, just as you point out to others offering anecdotal stories, bear in mind that the OP does not speak for her entire minority group, either. And it doesn’t help his/her case to paint the entire student body of ND with one broad brush.</p>
<p>But of course, HER feelings are critical to HER college decision. No one is disputing that.</p>
<p>For what it’s worth, neither of my white Catholic-raised daughters thought they would fit in at ND either. It is definitely one of those schools that people love or hate, with a very defined culture in a relatively isolated location.</p>
<p>I need to echo a question asked above – how did ND ever get on the radar for this child in the first place?</p>
<p>If one of her concerns about Notre Dame is that she’ll have to sit through a year of classes on how to be a good Catholic, does she know she could take Theology 40117 Intro to Judaism and Theology 30222 The Worlds of Buddhism? Just because it is a Catholic school doesn’t mean that the theology studies are 100% oriented toward Catholicism or Christianity.</p>
<p>I also think she should talk to someone in the ND Asian American Association if at all possible. Actually, talking to as many ND students as possible would be good.</p>
<p>If it were my daughter and we did not have a financial safety, I would give her a choice of community college or Notre Dame and - I admit - I really would recommend that she give Notre Dame a try.</p>
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<p>I understand. However, these parents took this student on a tour of the college the student wants to now attend and they still have not given her a firm yes or no. It’s the end of April, for goodness sake! </p>
<p>While I would not do the big loans either, I would not send my child to a school they strongly dislike. That’s just not the answer. </p>
<p>When people feel isolated and left out, they tend to not live up to their potential. I would very worried about taking my child’s hard earned academic reputation and doing serious damage to it.</p>