I am beyond confused

College Search & Selection
1

<p>When trying to put together a list of colleges, there are just too many things to consider.</p>

<p>I've been reading some of Lauren Pope's books (Looking Beyond the Ivy League, etc.), and she seems to really believe small schools are best for undergraduate education. I agree with that to a certain extent, but I DO NOT want to be isolated from the 'real world', ie. surrounded by college people every waking moment for four years</p>

<p>But then there's the whole financial thing. My parents can pay about 20-25k a year, but it would probably will a good idea to save some for graduate studies. A lot of the best bargains seem to be state schools, but there are a lot of things not to like about them (big size, in-state/out of state disparities, commuting).</p>

<p>I want to study Biology but I don't want some super-intense pre-med atmosphere. I want some study abroad opportunities; I must go to Italy.</p>

<p>I don't really know what I'm saying; I'm just very confused. I've been considering schools that are sooo different from eachother, and its not so much that I don't want I want because I think I do. And its not like I haven't done some visiting but I can't go everywhere...</p>

2

<p>Hmmmm, I think it's actually better that your college choices are so varied, b/c what often happens is that after you finish submitting all of your applications you realize that wow, I wouldn't be happy with a school that has it's own zip code, but then you don't have any choices to pick from. </p>

<p>And don't worry most people really don't know where they want to go to for a while and then sooner or later they have an epiphany and just realize what's best for them. So for now I would say keep searching but don't expect to find the perfect answer right away.</p>

3

<p>There are public universities like Florida's New College that are small. Many publics don't have a lot of commuters. In addition, it may be possible to get good merit aid to an out of state college depending on where you apply and what you have to offer.</p>

4

<p>I don't like the whole make your own curriculum thing at schools like New College. It becoming painfully obvious, that too many options are a bad thing for me.</p>

<p>How many small publics are there really?</p>

5

<p>well go read fiske guide to colleges</p>

<p>it's really gonna help you
either that or talk to your college counselor if your'e lucky enough to have a good one</p>

6

<p>You could snag a private school for $20K - $25K if you qualify for a merit scholarship. If your grades and tests are strong (in the top 20% or so of the college's applicants - AND if the school offers merit money). You might go to the parent forum and look at the "Important" posts at the top that have to do with merit money. Look up schools that you might be interested in on College Board and look at their accepted students' stats.</p>

<p>Have you looked at Case Western? Good scholarships, good pre-med.</p>

7

<p>What have you learned from your visits?</p>

8

<p>
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What have you learned from your visits?

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</p>

<p>I'm not sure. I pretty much know right away whether I like the atmosphere of a school, but there are always some hang-ups. I want someplace balanced more than anything else</p>

9

<p>Look at UCSD. They are tops in science and their study abroad program is really big there. They also have the 6 college system which creates the atmosphere of a small school while still having all of the assets of a major university.</p>

10

<p>Some private schools will give you good merit aid.</p>

<p>Outside of the Ivies, there are a number of good small schools. I'd recommend Rice (small tuition about 10K less that similar schools). They also offer merit aid. You can't forget about the real world when in Houston. Northwestern is also a good choice I would think.</p>

11

<p>It is tough to find a school that has no hang ups at all. </p>

<p>Which schools did you like the atmosphere of?</p>

<p>What do you mean by "balanced"?</p>

12

<p>And I'm sorry if this is already said but I never caught it.. where are you a resident of?</p>

13

<p>I second Rice, but it should be noted that I'm quite biased.</p>

14

<p>
[Quote]
It is tough to find a school that has no hang ups at all.</p>

<p>Which schools did you like the atmosphere of?</p>

<p>What do you mean by "balanced"?

[/Quote]
</p>

<p>I like Wake Forest, Duke, UVA, and Chapel Hill. By balanced its hard to explain what I mean. For example, someplace with active social life and parties but not completed populated by drunken frat members and southern belle clones. Which kinda happens when you're looking at southern schools. I'm from NJ but don't want to go North very much, so I've been looking more in, say, North Carolina and Virginia. I suppose I have a bias against the Midwest and Texas; I just could never imagine living there.</p>

15

<p>Seriously....Check out UCSD</p>

16

<p>UCSD looks cool, but it seems overwhelming made up of in-staters. If I were in California it'd up there for sure</p>

17

<p>UCSD provides an example of what I meant about it being tough to find a school that has no hangups at all.</p>

<p>Are you surer that a high percentage of California in-staters is automatically a dealbreaker?</p>

<p>After all, California is a gigantic place, with a lot of diversity.</p>

18

<p>Well its 97% in-state. Not like 60 or 70, but 97 is really high. I've never even been to California. So I'm pretty sure its a dealbreaker, although their bio programs look pretty cool</p>

<p>All of the UCs have unusually high amounts of in-staters it seems</p>

19

<p>If you've never even been to Calif., then you couldn't have visited UCSD, so really don't know if it would be a good fit for you.</p>

20

<p>Exactly, and I doubt I'll ever get the chance to visit. Another reason it's pretty much out</p>