<p>Re post #53 – given the reasons you gave for the colleges you like, I can’t see Colorado possibly being a good fit for you. It seems to me that you are energized with a lot going on around you. I think you might be very frustrated with the block system during all the times your current course wasn’t the one that most intrigued you, much happier if you were taking a mix of courses and coming into contact with a broader array of students during the course of a week. </p>
<p>Also, if you think that the architecture of the school library is important… well, ahem, I don’t really think that you are going to want to consider attending any other school after you see what Chicago’s got. (Use a Google image search to see what I mean)</p>
<p>That being said, I think your mom should let you visit Colorado so you can figure out for yourself that it not what you are looking for. I mean… I wouldn’t have allowed my d. to attend NYU for financial reasons, but it was soooo much easier to let her make that decision after attempting to negotiate with the financial aid department. That way, as a parent, I never had to revisit the decision. There were times when she was quite unhappy* at the college she attended, but not once did I ever hear, “you should have let me go to NYU.” (*Alternating with times she was extremely happy … the reality is that no college is all smooth sailing. If there are ‘fit’ problems, even if only transitory, a small LAC can seem a lot more constraining than a larger university in or near a major urban center.)</p>
<p>I’m sorry, but this seems extremely reductive to me, and I’m wondering what you’re basing your conclusion on. Your son’s experience is interesting, but it’s not entirely analogous, since it seems he went to a large-ish U. There’s also the fact that your son is one person who had one experience; it’s great to hear he’s thriving now, but it seems a leap to extrapolate a universal lesson from his experience. Maybe I’m misreading your post, but it seems you’re suggesting that a super-smart person who chooses a school based on his or her own sense of what will work for him or her intellectually, rather than going to the “best” school he or she can get into and afford, is wasting four years. I can’t quote chapter and verse on this, but I’ve seen data that suggest that many LACs, even some that are not at the tippy-top in the U.S. News rankings (for lack of a better scale), do pretty well in the production of PhDs. Maybe that’s not the best measure of intellectual firepower, but it’ll do for the purposes of demonstrating that there is intellectual life outside of the University of Chicago and its ilk. Listen, I’ve got nothing against the U. of C. Some of my best friends (my boyfriend, as a matter of fact) went there. I also have a good friend, a serious academician (a Fulbright scholar, in fact), who graduated from Colorado College. But the right choice for my BF, or your son, or my friend the Fulbright Scholar is not the point. The most important point is where the OP thinks he or she will thrive. I’m sorry if I put a little more passion into this than seems warranted; it’s just that I’ve struggled myself to allow my child to own her college search (which, I guess, is why I’m kibitzing here; my opinions are no longer of any interest to my own child!).</p>
<p>Will you get full control of your finances when you turn 18? If so, how much longer do you have to wait for that? You need more information about the investments that are in your name. There may be a perfectly fine college/university out there that you can pay for without your parents’ help. Not Colorado College or U of Chicago for sure, but somewhere that gives you full independence from your parents’ influence over your decisions.</p>
<p>Oh yes, and your parents are flat-out wrong about a “top” undergrad being necessary for admission to a “top” institution. Happydad and I met when we were both grad students at a “top” university, and some of our best friends there were graduates of colleges and universities that I’ve never once seen mentioned here at CC.</p>
<p>I agree that menloparkmom’s characterization seems somewhat elitist and I do think that Colorado College can be an excellent school… I just have a hard time seeing it as a fit for this particular student, given his (her?) own statements about the other schools. </p>
<p>I also have some difficulty understanding why a student who was willing to apply ED to Columbia would be fretting over the lack of opportunity to visit a specific LAC after being admitted EA to Chicago. There is a broad equivalency between Chicago & Columbia on many fronts … but Colorado seems like an odd choice given the other schools that attracted this particular student. </p>
<p>I would agree with menloparkmom on one point though: IF a student is feeling intellectually underchallenged at a particular school, for whatever reason, a small LAC can be a lot tougher place to be – simply because it is small. </p>
<p>I think the block program at CC could be particularly frustrating for a student who feels out-of-sync with other students – because the student will be in the position of having to spend half a day, every day, with the same set of students and the same prof. If that particular class seems dull… it could be like 3 weeks of torture. Students at other universities end up having to take dull, uninspiring courses from time to time as well – but it’s less frustrating if that is counterbalanced by other courses that are more stimulating.</p>
<p>Calmom kinda said it for me, but I don’t want to wonder what Colorado would have been like. Like I’ve said before, I think that making the trip out there is worth it, even if all I learn is that I would be miserable there. Or that I could be happy, but I would be happier at Chicago. </p>
<p>There’s a possibility that I like the idea of a school like Colorado much more than I like the actual school, which is a strong possibility, since all I know comes from their admissions rep, their publications, and then what I’ve found through Google. I’m not going to know whether my impression is completely off-base or not, however, unless I visit. </p>
<p>I get that Colorado may be a strange choice. It is definitely different. The schools on my complete list are sometimes similar, like Columbia and Chicago, and sometimes radically different. I think they all have elements that unite them, as well as aspects that are unique to each college. Since I don’t really know where my life is going to take me, I didn’t really have a focus when looking at schools. If I liked what I saw, I applied. I think that’s one of the reasons my schools are so varied.</p>
<p>"I just have a hard time seeing it as a fit for this particular student, given his (her?) own statements about the other schools. "</p>
<p>"I also have some difficulty understanding why a student who was willing to apply ED to Columbia would be fretting over the lack of opportunity to visit a specific LAC after being admitted EA to Chicago. There is a broad equivalency between Chicago & Columbia on many fronts … but Colorado seems like an odd choice given the other schools that attracted this particular student.</p>
<p>I would agree with menloparkmom on one point though: IF a student is feeling intellectually underchallenged at a particular school, for whatever reason, a small LAC can be a lot tougher place to be – simply because it is small."</p>
<p>Well said calmom.
And what I was trying to say was - I could not see this student, who said he loved Columbia and applied to Chicago for some reason [2 of the most seriously academic U’s in the US], could find the same level of intellectual stimulation at a small, far less academically intense college such as CC. Pomona, Swarthmore, Williams, perhaps… But my read on this student is CC would be a bad fit. Call me elitist if you like.</p>
<p>I think that it really depends a lot on the student’s learning style. I think you are very much mistaken if you think a highly intelligent student can’t be happy at a college like CC --I think you also are grossly underestimating the caliber of the CC student – but I do think a lot depends on personality and learning style.</p>
<p>I still can’t get past the library/architecture comment, though…</p>
<p>I love the Chicago library!! Harper Memorial Library, that is. I don’t find the Reg. quite as appealing
Oh, and Bartlett Dining Commons. The place is basically Hogwarts, and if I chose a school based on architecture, there would be no contest</p>
<p>From what I’ve heard about Columbia and Chicago and seen at Columbia…there are some slight…but visible differences in the “academic seriousness” of those two great universities.</p>
<p>Columbia undergrads tend to be more pre-professional oriented and sometimes disengage/get intimidated when the level of in-class conversation gets “too theoretical”. A few sometimes even get annoyed with classmates who are “too enthusiastic” about the theoretical aspects of a course. Saw this firsthand in a few undergrad classes I’ve sat in on at the invitation of a Prof/TA friend. However, there’s a good mix between deeply intellectual engaged students and the “hang out and shoot the breeze” casual type students…and both aren’t terribly hard to find. </p>
<p>UChicago undergrads tend to be less pre-professionally oriented and are much more willing to deeply engage class discussions…however difficult and theoretical…sometimes with an excess of enthusiasm. </p>
<p>Only slight concern I’d have for the OP in that academics and campus culture is he may have a slightly harder time finding the “hang out and shoot the breeze” casual type students because most IME…tend to be put off by Chicago’s reputation of high intellectualism, extremely heavy academic workloads, and “where fun goes to die”. He’ll still find them…but he’ll need to be somewhat more patient in getting to know his classmates before finding the casual type of students.</p>
<p>May be it has been mentioned somewhere in this thread, but are your parents immigrants and if so are they from Asia? High achieving, highly educated immigrant parents often would like their child to go the best school they can afford. Best is a relative term but one way of looking at best is college rankings (not getting into a discussion on the merits of such a criteria). In that case Chicago ranks a lot higher than CC and your parents may feel that their money is not buying them the best.</p>
<p>SS, you are a wonderful person and I wouldn’t mind having a fourth son just like you! It’s good that you can see yourself flourishing in a lot of different environments…the ability to bloom wherever you may be planted is an excellent talent to have.</p>
<p>I can understand your wanting to visit CC…even if just to get it out of your system, just so you don’t angst over "what might have been…</p>
<p>And of course you and your family know you best.</p>
<p>I hope you get to visit CC, and hope an open-minded parent will go with you.</p>
<p>But if it doesn’t happen, please don’t let what you didn’t get to do cloud your present or future options…just go with the flow because the flow you have (U of Chicago or some other great opportunities that will come your way) is nothing but good.</p>
<p>After reading Menlopark mom’s posts, I have changed my mind. Do not under any circumstances even visit Colorado College because some of the dumbness floating around there might rub off on you, contaminating your higher intellect. You might lose some points from your IQ if you drink the water there. The atmosphere has turned geniuses into bumbling idiots by the end of the first block - there is less oxygen for the brain at that altitude. Forrest Gump was a valedictorian there. George Bush has been considered for an honorary degree. You could probably teach the faculty there. Having attained admission to Chicago, your DaVinci like intellect could only suffer at a small LAC that isn’t top 5 on this years list. You can’t risk associating with kids who have scored less than 700 on one or more of the SAT categories - it would be dirty and unnatural.</p>
<p>OP, You should visit every school you are seriously considering. My son visited a school he was sure would be his #1 choice…and he found it was not what he wanted at ALL. Researching for hours online is great, but it can never take the place of visiting in person. If you don’t check out Colorado, you may always wonder. Go see it. Take the Greyhound Bus if you have to. Arrange to stay on campus, take the tour. Make an informed decision.</p>
<p>SJR, that happened to my oldest son as well. He was in love with Tufts and was all ready to apply ED there…until we visited the campus in person. He couldn’t wait to get on campus…at the end of the day there he could not wait to leave. Tufts was totally off of his list.</p>
<p>We went on a beautiful Boston day…campus was shown in its best light. But he did not like a single person he met…and he is an easy going kid who likes just about everyone! He could not put his finger on any one thing, it just was not the place for him…a gut feeling.</p>
<p>Two months later he visited Emory, sure he would hate it…he didn’t want a school in the south, he hates the heat…
We visited Emory in July and it was a sweltering 98 degrees…he loved the campus, he loved the people he met (even though it was summer), he loved a professor he ran into in the bathroom…</p>
<p>He applied to Emory ED and never looked back.</p>
<p>And his very close friend from summer camp had a wonderful four years at Tufts.</p>
<p>Maybe you should add to your list to have more/different choices in Spring? top schools with Jan 15th deadlines: Georgetown, WashUStLouis, Reed.</p>
<p>You can still apply for merit scholarship apps at WashUStLouis; the whole package needs to be received by jan 15th</p>
