All throughout high school my collegiate plan was to go to some nearby dinky cheap local university or college.
After meeting my girlfriend last year and throwing down a 2130 on my SAT this all changed (3.44 unweighted GPA and 3.5+ AP honor scholar)
My girlfriend went to Hamilton college in NY last fall and I wanted to follow her. I applied to Syracuse university early admission because I was short sighted in my college searching and stupidly concerned with her. My parents weren’t supportive of any diversity in college and didn’t care about me applying to more prestigious places with my scores.
Of course, as expected me and my girlfriend of 15 months split up a couple months ago, too late for much more in colleges. I’d also already committed to Syracuse.
Now I’m having horrible cold feet. I don’t know if I’m going to enjoy the environment. Most of all my scores are so much higher than the average that I’m scared I’m not going to be challenged or in the rigorous academic environment that I’ve craved my entire life but haven’t been able to taste!
I don’t know what to do. There aren’t any options left that suit my needs and I’m pretty much locked into Syracuse because I committed. I feel sick to my stomach that I made this mistake and I’m afraid to tell my parents because I’m going to look like such a fool for following this girl. All my dad does is sit there and brag about the school and how well it is known but has no idea that I’m way more academically oriented than the students there.
My ultimate dream would be to attend a small and prestigious lib arts school and get the same major (polisci) I would at Syracuse and also go cheap because my financial need is very high. But it’s too late now and I’m scared that I’m stuck at Syracuse and my credits won’t transfer and I’m not gonna get in if I apply as a college freshman!
Please help, I really need some advice. I want to be challenged in college. I want a healthy small and smart environment to grow as a person. I’m afraid I’m going to a drunk expensive party school with blow-off classes that I don’t belong in. Please, any advice on what I should do.
A lot of students would love to get into Syracuse. Have to say that I’m not really buying this idea that with your 3.4 GPA, you are so superior academically to the other students there. You will definitely find smart people there. Embrace the adventure!
NEVER EVER base life changing decisions on romantic interests. If it’s meant to be, you’ll find ways but proximity is overrated. Anyways, talk to your guidance counselor but even if some desparate school takes you, chances of getting scholarships are negligible. I don’t really know much about financial aid but you should be talking directly to colleges.
Thank you, also my GPA is low due to a lot of slacking freshman and sophomore year. Education wasn’t very serious in my household but once I started getting a taste of college my GPA ramped up significantly over my junior and senior year respectively. I saw an over 150 point jump in my SAT after no prep classes, just from taking it.
I guess it’s superficial but I see these videos of campus life and it honestly looks like a bunch of dumb drunk jocks and I don’t know how much that lines up with me.
Also, what could a counselor do in my circumstance? Most colleges have closed admissions pretty much for good at this point.
I’m assuming blindly that your parents knew that you wouldn’t listen to them as you think that you are in love so nothing else really matters. If that’s the case, make amends with them. Don’t leave home with strained relations.
You could take a gap year and reapply. Have you been to accepted student days yet? I would start there.
However… know that your stats are borderline for the LACs that meet need & are need blind in admission – GPA on the low end (GPA is average for Syracuse, by the way). Academically you are a match for some schools that meet need but are not need blind – but your high need could keep you out.
Another way to look at it is that you could do very, very well there if you apply yourself. You will certainly have good professors – take advantage of them, and the opportunity to get very good grades. About 40% of their students come from the top 10% of their class – you will find some academic peers there, too.
My parents were simply clueless on college. When I threw down a 2130 they merely asked how much money it would give me at some local college (it’s not like we’re in that bad of a situation, and I’d be willing to take loans). I’ve played it off like I still really want this college but my doubts are existent and they don’t know about them.
I know I’m borderline for those schools. But I didn’t even get to apply for one at all. I didn’t apply myself in college admissions and I blew that chance. I think I have a shot at those types of schools though. I have a lot of state and national success through high school debate and have received numerous ceritications, honors, etc., I’m also wonderful at interviews, I wish I had at least tried and I feel like it’s too late
There are lots of students at Syracuse whose academic achievements far exceed yours so stop feeling above everyone else. Have you been invited to join the honors program? If not, consider that every freshman who is invited into that program has stats higher than yours, and they won’t be at Syracuse just to party! Join the honors program when you are able to so you can be among the most serious ambitious students there. Get involved in student government. Choose a difficult major like engineering if you are so eager for a challenge.
It is great your father is so proud of you. Fall in love with Syracuse. It is a fantastic university. There are partiers at every university, even the Ivies, and there are more focused students at every university, even Syracuse. Just go there and find your people and don’t worry what the original reason was you applied there. You will find plenty of opportunities to fulfill your goals there. If you really can’t stand it after you are there and give it a fair chance with an open mind and positive attitude, then look into options to transfer elsewhere later.
Syracuse is a fine school and worthy of a brag. And with a student body of considerable size, there will be a range of student ability at the school, including plenty of smart students who are not “a bunch of drunk dumb jocks”. The only stuff that ends up going viral in videos is the out-there stuff like “Girls Gone Wild”, not the boring stuff like “Girls Gone Studying”.
That said, the person who really earned the “dumb” appellation is the person who picked a school based on where GF is going…
Go to Syracuse with an open mind. You’ll find plenty there to challenge you and plenty of students who share your interests. You’ll be fine.
It’s not the end of the world. There is a lot more coming ahead that you can do better because you are wiser because of your experience. Your parents may not be in such good financial situation so may be their reaction was because of that and limited knowledge of admission process.
It’s water under the bridge anyways, go be the big fish in small pond, it may open up opportunities that you never dreamt of. Go rock that school with hard work and positive contributions. Find driven peers, I’m sure SU has plenty of students who are solid students but going there for commute, money, certain program and things like that. Spin it in your favor. Good luck!
Thank you. I know I’m critical of the school and I’m honestly not very educated about the whole topic. I made mistakes, I understand. And you’re right. I didn’t do great in HS GPA wise so I lack there, probably explains no honors college. But I’m just scared that the kind of rigorous academia, the contemporary philosophy filled polisci classes with a professor well versed in foucault to zizek like I want to be, just won’t exist.
There is a huge glut of PhDs in this country. There are at least a couple hundred qualified applicants for every ONE tenure track position that opens up. The talent pool for professors is very, very deep in this country. I know truly amazing professors at schools reasonless way, way below Syracuse. You can find the education you want there.
One of my kids picked a school where she had high stats compared to the average student. She knocked her college career out of the park. Graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a double major and the top department award in one of them, a senior thesis nominated as one of the top 60 undergrad thesis in the country in her major that year, great relationships with professors that she has maintained after graduation, and an excellent job found through an older student she knew. It sounds like you can afford Syracuse, and it is a solid school. Go get the most out of it.
Syracuse is one of THE most selective universities in the country. I know it’s easy to lose sight of that on a website that concentrates on a very narrow subset of colleges and universities, but Syracuse admits less than half its applicants, and the vast majority of institutions in the US admit the majority of people who apply. Also, undergraduate political science is located in the Maxwell School, which is one of the premier places in the country to study politics and government.
I went to the Syracuse political science faculty page to get a listing of where people got their PhDs in political science and the rankings of those doctoral programs.
University of Chicago x2 (top 10-15)
Princeton x2 (top 10)
MIT x4 (top 15)
American
UCSD x2 (top 5-10)
Yale (top 10)
Columbia x3 (top 5-10)
Harvard (top 3)
UNC (top 10-20)
Duke x2 (top 10-15)
Rutgers
Northwestern (top 30-40)
Cornell x2 (top 25)
Berkeley (top 5-10)
Michigan (top 5-10)
UVa (top 30-40ish)
UW-Seattle (top 15-25ish)
Claremont Graduate University
Pittsburgh (top 10-20)
UW-Madison (top 10-15ish)
These are some of the top programs in the world. There are PhDs in political science that would give their left arm to teach at Syracuse. You will have no shortage of talented, intelligent, professors. Some of them will discuss/integrate classical philosophy into their coursework and some of them won’t, since there’s more to poli sci than philosophy. But you can supplement with classes from the philosophy department and maybe a minor there. I am willing to bet that the philosophy professors are even more distinguished, since philosophy is an even more competitive market.
Also, partying is not mutually exclusive with being intellectually curious and intelligent. I bet that lots of those people you see having a good time in marketing videos also take their classes seriously, have leadership positions on campus, do internships, etc.
Is Syracuse affordable for your family ?
(without loans)
Have you visited/spent an overnight ? (if you can’t afford to visit, you can ask if they’d help pay for transportation to get you there.)
It’s an excellent school and tour stats are average for Maxwell so don’t worry, you’ll be challenged.
Ah… It’s that time for the “cold feet, regrets, second guessing my school decision” threads. You will be fine at Syracuse. Forget the GF and focus on the great friends you will make at 'cuse. You will be fine.
