Regret after choosing a college...long post, sorry :/

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hi everyone,</p>

<p>My name's Brooke and I am attending the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in the fall as a freshman. The whole college selection was really, really tough for me, I applied to about eight schools, all out of state except for Illinois. I never imagined myself staying in Illinois, but now it looks like I'll be here for four more years.</p>

<p>I eventually narrowed it down to U of I and Texas Christian University, my dad's alma mater and my best friend's future home for four years. I know U of I and TCU are very different, but I loved both of them and it was SO stressful trying to pick one. I worried so much that if I picked college A, I'd regret not picking college B, and vice versa. Everyone assured me that no matter which one I picked, I'd be happy and it would be a great college to go to.</p>

<p>I was so lost that one day at school I had a bunch of acquaintances take a poll on which school they thought would be best for me, and about 90% of the votes were for TCU. Even my college counselor leaned towards TCU, and so did my brother and most of my good friends. But, my mom was a different story. She will be devastated once I leave for college, so you can imagine how much she wanted me to stay close so she can visit/I can come home on weekends if I need to.</p>

<p>I weighed the options - TCU would be smaller, in a better climate, I'd have my best friend and some relatives close by, and most of all, something different than the Midwest; an adventure; something new. Then there was U of I - a bigger school with tons of opportunities, a more familiar culture and classmates, closer to home and Chicago, where I would love to live in and work in some day, and what seems like a better-known school, although I know you're not supposed to base your choice on that. </p>

<p>But, after all of that, I ended up choosing U of I, hopefully relieving all of my stress. At first I was relieved to have finally picked, but now that the time is drawing closer, I'm feeling some second thoughts. Did I pick the right one? Should I have branched out and gone to TCU? I've been losing sleep over this a lot the past couple of weeks, and I just can't shake it. </p>

<p>I talked with my brother about it for almost 45 minutes, and he really thinks I should just call up TCU and U of I and tell them I've changed my mind. Like I would ever do something that drastic! I mentioned how I'm feeling to my dad, and he thinks I might need to consider transferring after a semester or something. I can't tell my mom, she'd be so crushed if I wanted to transfer out of U of I.</p>

<p>So now I'm stuck on this and it's really bothering me. I don't want to regret this the rest of my life, college is supposed to be the time of your life, right? Is there any advice someone could give me? </p>

<p>So sorry for such a long post, I just really needed to get it all off of my chest. Thank you so much!</p>

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<p>Stay at U of I</p>

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<p>Any reason why in particular?</p>

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<p>[National</a> University Rankings | Top National Universities | US News Best Colleges](<a href=“http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities/spp+50]National”>http://colleges.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities/spp+50)</p>

<p>U of I = #47
TCU = #99</p>

5

<p>I think it is safe to say that most people go through this feeling. I know I did, and all of my friends are too (yes, even the ones who got in ED to their “dream” school). It’s natural. Whenever I start to regret my decision, I just start to think of the positives of the school I picked. And ignore that poster about the rankings. Your life shouldn’t revolve around US News.</p>

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<p>That’s a good point. I’m just worried that I’ll end up stuck in Illinois for the rest of my life and never be able to really branch out and explore the country, you know? I guess that’s my big fear right now.</p>

7

<p>Stay at U of I. You’re in state, so the tuition is probably cheaper than at TCU…TCU isn’t a bad school, but it’s certainly not worth the debt you’d have (unless it’s no problem for you financially).</p>

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<p>@clientpotato but it’s best to pick the better school :p</p>

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<p>Also, you can get out of Illinois if you want…you can apply wherever to grad school. You’ll only be stuck in Illinois if you let yourself be.</p>

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<p>It wasn’t too different per year, I think U of I was about 11 or 10k per year and TCU was about 14k. But that does add up after 4 years for sure! My parents have always told me to go to which ever school I wanted, whether it was completely free or really expensive, they’ve always wanted me to pursue my dreams, as cheesy as that sounds!</p>

11

<p>Don’t worry, you’re not going to have that problem of being stuck in the same state. There are going to be plenty of opportunities in life to branch out, whether it be through grad school, a career, or just deciding to pick up and try something different.</p>

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<p>LOL I would hate if my parents had that philosophy.</p>

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<p>Haha why not?? I love it!</p>

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<p>It’s an easy way to get stuck in debt, how do you think our country got to the way it is?</p>

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<p>Yeah, I get what woeishe is saying…if you can’t afford it without taking out massive loads and ending up in tons of debt, don’t go. It really isn’t worth it in the end, and your parents should tell you that. They should encourage you to do something you like but at the same time, be realistic about everything.</p>

16

<p>Claps to You laurenicole.</p>

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<p>A way to enhance your college experience is to investigate the study abroad opportunities at Illiniois. There may be summer service experiences sponsored by U. of I. in other parts of the country or abroad in areas where much help is needed.</p>

18

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<p>Why assume you’ll end up stuck in Illinois? How do you know you won’t end up stuck in Texas instead?</p>

<p>My Dad graduated from Illinois, and the day after graduation he bought a car and headed west on Route 66. He never looked back. :)</p>

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<p>* I think U of I was about 11 or 10k per year and TCU was about 14k. But that does add up after 4 years for sure! My parents have always told me to go to which ever school I wanted, whether it was completely free or really expensive, they’ve always wanted me to pursue my dreams*</p>

<p>Since your would NOT likely get the same FA package from TCU as a transfer student, you need to find out…</p>

<p>a) If you can get the great FA package if you switch back to TCU right now.</p>

<p>b) If you transfer later and your parents have to pay FULL FREIGHT…will they still be ok with that. They may have meant that they don’t mind paying a few thousand more per year…but they may object to paying $25-30k per year more - which is likely as a transfer student.</p>

<p>People often wrongly think they’d get the same FA package as a transfer student that they did as an incoming frosh …rarely would they get the same. Often they get nothing but a loan.</p>

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<p>Just chiming in to say that UIUC is a great university. No matter what happens in your life (and it’s all up to you), this is one decision that you’ll never seriously regret.</p>