Is it possible to do a virtual tour and arrange to speak with someone there over Zoom? Anything to help you get your questions answered and make the right decision.
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Weāre in the same boat. Down to three great schoolsā¦but heās dragging his feet a bit. Says heās 80% decidedā¦just wants to reach out to some peers.
I think of all the schools she has visited so far, UMaine is in top place. She had some reservations about the weather and not having a city nearby, but those wouldnāt keep her from attending. She also has reservations about weather at other schools, including LSU but for the opposite reason. 
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Ah yes, so many factors to considerā¦ Best wishes!
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Maine is very much in the mix for my C25āhave you posted subjective impressions of it upthread or elsewhere on CC? No need to repost, but a pointer would be appreciated if itās easy.
(Maine is one of the three states Iāve never been to myself, so hey, if the youngest kid goes there Iāll finally have an excuse.
)
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I donāt think Iāve posted much about our visit. I should do that at some point and return the favor.
I like the UMaine campus. It seemed to have a lot of facilities but still be a very walkable campus.
On some college tours, I lamented the lack of places for students to hang out or study in common areas, alone or in groups. But UMaine seemed to have of places like that in the academic buildings we saw.
And I was just thinking how much I liked the students we met at the admissions office. They just seemed very down-to-earth.
The admissions office also played very nice music when they put me on hold. Just a little perk.
I read an article that UMaine is continuing to provide a lot of online classes since the pandemic, a significantly high percentage. Our tour guide talked about the benefit of getting some classes out of the way by taking them online over the summer. But I also read that some required classes might only be available online. One of my older kids loved the organization of her online classes during the pandemic, but my younger two had MUCH lower grades in online classes so thatās a bit concerning.
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D22 just finishing up freshman year at UMaine- glad to answer any questions as well 
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I could care less what my kidās HS says at this point about an absence. All I care about is if my kid passes the 4 AP tests she has in May. I donāt care about grades or anything. Just graduate and hopefully pass the AP tests.
Heck even if the HS wouldnāt give her the diploma I would just have her take the GED and I would be willing to bet that the college would honor her acceptance.
As you can see I am so done with K-12.
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Iām sorry to hear that. I did not hear that when we went recently.
@dfbdfb UMAINE Orono was the lowest rank school of the New England Flagships we toured. We went to admitted students day thinking it would be easy to cross off the list, but we were really impressed.
S23 applied there as a marine science major and despite the lack of (immediate) access to the Ocean, the program blew us away. Top that with an honors invite and merit/flagship match bringing the COA down to 32k and it was tough to pass up. Everyone we met was super nice and down to earth. The honors college offered a separate dorm with study areas. The ResLife presentation was funny and there were tons of activities at the fair. (Outdoor club is quite active). For those interested in marine science, UMAINE is one of the strongest programs in the country and the strongest at UMAINE with 30 faculty bringing in more research $ than any other program. Program Coordinator William Ellis was outstanding.
Ultimately though, my kid was not 100% committed to marine science and we did not feel other programs were as strong. He also could not get by the fact that Oronoās downtown was tiny with just a few restaurants and on a Saturday in late March, not a lot of kids out and about. He does not need urban, but a college town with a large downtown, thrift shops and a record store would be nice. He did not want to deal with driving to Bangor for such amenities.
I urge anyone to consider it for natural sciences, nursing and engineering.
[edited downtown description to be more fact and less opinion]
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Speaking of APs, my kid has informed me that he expects to get a 1 on AP Stats. The teacher is abysmal (a substitute from the beginning of the year, and not a math teacher, for starters) and he says theyāve barely reached the halfway point in the study material.
This doesāt really upset me in the scheme of things, but Iām annoyed that Iām locked in to the test fee.
Oh! Almost forgot! The guy is actually making them take a final, in addition to the AP test. I think thatās a first for him.
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The same is true for Oregon State. A lot of classes are offered through āEcampusā and they also offer online degrees. I was surprised when I started looking through the catalog to see that some core classes are only offered through Ecampus. For example my son plans to take German, and all of 2nd year German seems to be offered only through Ecampus.
The advantage I guess is that the Ecampus classes are very well supported by the university, so it does have the small bonus that my son would be able to squeeze in some classes during study abroad or travel. But I will admit that seeing a lot of online courses in the catalog gave me a doubtful feeling. (āIs this really the quality education that I want for my kid?ā)
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The fact that you have to commit to the AP exam so early is yet another reason that the College Board is evil.
If weād known before having to sign up for the test that C25 would be taking Calc I at the local college next semester anyway, we wouldnāt have paid the fee for the Calc AP exam. Now weāre out a pointless amount of money to help pad the College Boardās bottom line.
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Can she at least take some youtube tours - maybe student done - and talk to a student ambassador.
Itās hard for enroll and the first time you get to campus be the first time you are ever on campus.
But itās not unheard of and back in the day (when I did this as a high schooler from San Diego attending college in Syracuse, other than brochures - I had nothing - except knowing they were my favorite college basketball team.
So she could do LSU and even if sheās never been, sheāll have plenty of on line resources to give her an idea of what to expect campus wise.
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Does your school allow approved absences for college visits? Our school allows each senior three excused absences to visit schools. Nex week D is going to a last-minute college visit that she needs to fly to, so sheāll miss one and a half days. Tried to schedule it for tomorrow since itās a school holiday here but itās much cheaper to fly next week.
My D has been out three times this year for 3 or more days for being sick. She has been absent more this year than the last 12 years combined. Not even seniorities or something fun, sheās had the flu three times! I cared about her missing school the first two times but now I just feel it is what it is.
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Ummm. Now my washing machine is brokenā¦not connected to the leak I discovered this morning. Iām kind of glad I didnāt commit to any visit in the next week.
We are leaving school early tomorrow for a college visit, and Iām a teacher at the same school. My principal was fine with my kid missing and with covering a class for me. Those college visits are definitely viewed as important and excused absence.
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I have to stick up for Orono a little bit here-- The town you are referencing is actually Old Townā¦I hope you didnāt miss Orono!
(Itās possible if you took a certain exit and left the same way??)
Orono, Maine has a cute little downtown with quite a few restaurant/bars and shops, pizzerias, a brewery, a cool acai bowl / brunch place, coffee shops, etcā¦ Iām not saying itās big or has a whole lot, but thereās more to it than you describe and it has itās own charm and character. 
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My senior has missed approx 40% of the school days this year soā¦ā¦
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Not it was not Old Town which actually appears to be a cute small town north of campus with more going on.
The McD/Supermarket is how some folks there described what was immediately adjacent to campus (campus is surrounded by Penobscot & Stillwater Rivers). We did see the Aroma Joeās and Orono Pizza on the east side of campus and a couple brew pubs southerly across the river. We then saw an intersection with Thai Restaurant, Mexican, Bank. But overall, on a Saturday morning, not much life, in s23ās opinion. 
Yup- sounds like you passed through Orono! I totally get it- kids look for a vibe.
Again, to be fair, Orono has, and IS way more than just āa gas station, grocery store, and McDās.ā Putting that out there just seems like a needlessly harsh characterization of the area, and unfair to those who are considering, or have chosen UMaine, which is a great school and option!
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