Picking a fun American college for exchange for a semester

College Search & Selection
1

Hi guys!

I am a student at a university in Australia and am planning on doing an exchange for 1 semester in America. I will be coming in I believe its called the ‘fall semester’ (the semester that starts in september/august).
My grades are already very high and I have a graduate job offer secured already. furthermore my grades on the exchange wont effect my GPA back in Australia. I should have the grades and extra curriculars to be able to do exchange at any uni. This exchange trip will mostly just be for fun. I want to experience what the traditional American college experience. Preferrably in a college town or a city that is dominated by the college, but any recommendations for colleges in big cities would be good too.

I’m mostly interested in going to events, playing sports, going to parties, exploring the area, and making lots of friends etc. Although I don’t need academic rigour, the university still has to be well known back home, ie; flagship universities or something with a name that people will know back in Australia. I have no real geographic preference and I love all things American and would be absolutely happy to live/study in any state/region from the deep south to new england. please give me absolutely any suggestions or at least tell me about any colleges that you are familiar with or even ones to not think of. I do not know much about which colleges are fun or not other than what I’ve seen on TV.

Thanks so much for any input !!

2

Is their a specific list of schools from which you can choose or is it any school in the US?

3

I can go to any school. the only issue is that i cant pick any particular school in the university of california system. i apply for the system overall and they place me in one of the colleges without my picking which one. also i get extra money from my university and the credits are more easily transferrable if i go to the university of virginia. my university is also very friendly and has quite strong relationships with a few good ones in america like unc chapel hill and carnegie mellon but really i can to go to any college, there is no list. :slight_smile:

4

Fall semester + Football + SEC Conference = Fun

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southeastern_Conference

5

I’d pick a big 10 school like the University of Iowa or something. If I could pick any college in the US to go to I would Arizona State.

6

UC Santa Barbara, hands down. It’s on the coast. You can study on the beach. Isla Vista is right next door, where there is lots of fun to be had. Excellent academics in multiple disciplines. Plus, good city-wide bus service, so if you are over age 21 (that’s the drinking age in the US) and you want to bar/club hop in downtown SB or shop downtown, there’s bus service available.

Plus, I’m biased because its my alma mater.

http://www.ucsb.edu/

7

ok, I just read your other post in this thread. Dang it, no UC schools. never mind what I just said!

8

Carnegie Mellon is probably the opposite of fun.

9

Oh darn I forgot to mention that I wont be 21 when i go so I cant go to any licensed venues like night clubs etc. I guess I would me mostly stuck to things like house and frat parties and university events… i guess thats just another reason to focus on college towns rather than colleges in big cities.

10

Fall is a magical time of year for college football. If you are into sports, you might consider a school in one of the five main college football conferences. These are the schools and mascots:

B1G (Big Ten):
Illinois Fighting Illini
Indiana Hoosiers
Iowa Hawkeyes
Maryland Terrapins
Michigan Wolverines
Michigan State Spartans
Minnesota Golden Gophers
Nebraska Cornhuskers
Northwestern Wildcats
Ohio State Buckeyes
Penn State Nittany Lions
Purdue Boilermakers
Rutgers Scarlet Knights
Wisconsin Badgers

SEC (Southeastern Conference):
Alabama Crimson Tide
Arkansas Razorbacks
Auburn Tigers
Florida Gators
Georgia Bulldogs
Kentucky Wildcats
Louisiana State (LSU) Tigers
Mississippi (Ole Miss) Rebels
Mississippi State Bulldogs
Missouri Tigers
South Carolina Gamecocks
Tennessee Volunteers
Texas A&M Aggies
Vanderbilt Commodores

Big XII:
Baylor Bears
Iowa State Cyclones
Kansas Jayhawks
Kansas State Wildcats
Oklahoma Sooners
Oklahoma State Cowboys
Texas Longhorns
Texas Christian (TCU) Horned Frogs
Texas Tech Red Raiders
West Virginia Mountaineers

ACC (Atlantic Coast Conference):
Boston College Eagles
Clemson Tigers
Duke Blue Devils
Florida State Seminoles
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Louisville Cardinals
North Carolina Tar Heels
North Carolina State Wolf Pack
Notre Dame Fighting Irish (partial member)
Pittsburgh (Pitt) Panthers
Syracuse Orange
Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Virginia Cavaliers
Virginia Tech Hokies

Pac-12:
Arizona Wildcats
Arizona State Sun Devils
California (Cal) Golden Bears
Colorado Buffaloes
Oregon Ducks
Oregon State Beavers
Southern Cal (USC) Trojans
Stanford Cardinal
UCLA Bruins
Utah Utes
Washington Huskies
Washington State Cougars

Check them out – see which schools’ campuses and environments seem most appealing to you… and which colors and mascots you like best (if that would play a role in your decision).

11

University of Michigan is the complete American college experience and is one of the most prestigious universities in the world! It’s in Ann Arbor, which is a city completely dominated by the university, has amazing food, etc. Incredible social life and HUGE football tradition with fall football games every weekend.

12

I’d pick schools with good American football (or other sports) programs, a colder climate so you can try skiing, skating, and other winter sports before you leave. Most of the large state schools would work for you. These are pretty well known:

Colder climates with winter sports:
Michigan (Ann Arbor), Wisconsin (Madison), Northwestern, Penn State
Colorado (Boulder) , Utah, Washington (Seattle - drive to Canada for skiiing)

Warmer climates:
UT (Austin) , UAlabama- (Tuscaloosa), LSU, UFlorida, UGeorgia (Athens)
Oregon

Best cities in the group with the most things to do (IMO):
Austin (music, politics, and football)
Ann Arbor (sports crazy, great music & culture)
Seattle (city of young people)
Boulder (participant sports like rock climbing, fittest place in USA)
Madison (Amazingly beautiful setting, super friendly)

all have great food and culture affordable for students.

The best known in Australia are probably:
Michigan, UT-Austin, Washington, Northwestern

Best skiing:
Colorado
Utah

If you are beer drinker: Michigan, Oregon, Colorado, Washington and California have the best craft beers in the country. (Drinking age is 21).

This list might help you:
http://www.bestcollegereviews.org/50-best-college-towns-america/

UVa and UNC (especially) are also good choices if your university already has a relationship with them.

13

I also will vouch for Michigan - Ann Arbor is tough to beat as a college town. Also, home of the second largest permanent sports stadium in the world.

14

If it is Fall, you have to experience college football. Suggest University of Michigan, University of Alabama, or University of Texas. They are all in fabulous college towns, Ann Arbor, Tuscaloosa, and Austin, respectively. Be sure you let us know where you end up and how you liked it.

15

Don’t think you really need to look further than UVa. Great town. Great academics and lots of rah rah school spirit. It’s also a beautiful area in the fall.

16

Thanks for all the advice everyone!

After looking at a few of these options, I really think the big colleges in the smaller college towns (particularly in the south) are quite appealing. UVA Charlottesville, UNC Chapel Hill, and particularly Ole Miss are looking like standouts right now. can anyone comment on these colleges or offer any suggestions for places that might be similar? What is the University of Mississippi like? I haven’t heard much about it but from looking online it seems like a cool place

17

University of Colorado, Boulder: great scenery, very outdoorsy, lots of parties, great town. Academics, too (Nobel Prize winners, top aerospace engineering programs, respected business school) And if you ski, well…

18

Auburn is in the top SEC schools for game day experience AND everyone is nice - you don’t run into rude, snarky people starting fights. Husband is an Ole Miss fraternity grad who loves his school but agrees Auburn has more spirit with the top marching band, Aubie the Tiger 9 x Natl Champion Mascot) and our eagle flyovers - awesome school with great academics (engineering) and great football weather!

19

I wouldn’t pick based on viewing sports, but the overall experience. Anywhere in CA near the water, anyplace in Wash, DC, NYC. UVA is a fun school, historical area. I know less about UNC, but also a good choice. Many of the southern flagships include kids from many parts of the US, have local culture as well as the diversity (of all sorts) on campus.

20

You might want to consider major airports close to the college town you choose, to give you easier/cheaper access to see other parts of our country.

Also, weather/seasons differ in different regions, so some areas will show off beautiful fall colors in their trees, some places will be more barren, some will have early snowfall, some will still have pleasant temps throughout winter. In Virginia, you could see mountains, beaches, and maybe a bit of snow, depending on how long you stay in our country.

From Virginia, you could travel to Washington DC and take in our nation’s capital. You could possibly get to snowski, and there are lots of outdoor adventures to be had. North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia will all give you glimpses of mountains and beaches in the same state.