<p>Interestingly, I feel like the students who would have gone to U of C back in the '90s (for example) were NOT the type to wear college t-shirts. Maybe that is where some of the dissonance in this comes from for me. School spirit was not a strength of U of C back in those days, so maybe that is why these mailings strike me as a bit odd. It is not just marketing, but almost a re-branding effort. As in, we want the kind of student who is excited to wear a college t-shirt.</p>
<p>Jak321, you have exactly 38 posts on CC. I don’t think you have spent much time seeing how the college search process works out for many students. I have watched an entire class of high school students from D1’s class go through their four years of college, and saw a bunch of her classmates unhappy/transferring. You know which ones had problems at their first choice schools? The ones who just brushed the surface with their search, and took the schools at face value on what was in the marketing materials. Watching D2’s classmates, I am pretty sure I can predict which ones will have trouble and probably transfer as well. The ones who were so taken with a “brand name” that they didn’t really look at the school and their fit with it. Or those who did a two hour visit (tour and info session), and called it good before deciding to attend. Again, U of C is going to be a great school for a lot of students, and I am glad that many of them are active on the U of C forum. I do think that being on CC gives people a broader perspective because it is not (usually) part of the marketing process. Although having an ad-com on the forums can have an impact, I think – U of C’s is not intrusive outside the ad-com thread, but I have seen other ad-coms hop into threads for other schools to interject when something less than positive, but possibly true, is said about their schools. It has a dampening effect on discussion on those forums, which just makes it another part of the marketing process. But in general… I think people who come out and spend time on CC are often trying to see past the marketing to an extent.</p>
<p>By the way, Poplicola, I am a “she”, not a “he”. And I will admit that I am very cautious about encouraging any of my kids to attend a large research university for undergraduate studies. I did it myself, and understand the pros and cons very well. My D is welcome to do so as long as she understands what she can and cannot expect from the experience, and if it is what she really wants. And I also admit I am having a hard time getting a “read” on the current state of U of C, given the rapid changes it has gone through. The “old” U of C would have been a better fit, I suspect. Which could be at the root of why this intensive marketing is bugging me, as I am not convinced that this “re-branding” and attracting a different kind of student is moving the school in a direction that would be best for my particular kid.</p>
<p>Okay… enough on t-shirts. Because, of course, this isn’t really mostly about t-shirts at the root of it all. I will go mull over my thoughts on the changes at U of C, and you guys enjoy your swag. :)</p>