<p>D1 thinks she has ALMOST finalized her college choice - to SUNY New Paltz. As mentioned in an earlier post, she was admitted to her dream school (Bard) but despite a fairly generous aid package, we just cannot swing the difference to meet the $60,000-plus price tag :(</p>
<p>OOS tuition for UMass is not cheap, but with FA is doable. She is comfortable with, and leaning towards NP, but realizes UMass has a lot to offer, and wants to give it one last look before making up her mind and committing to NP. </p>
<p>The problem is-- when we visited UMass earlier this year, she had an almost "turn-the-car-around" moment, and we never made it past the admissions building. She is very quiet, laid-back, and thoughtful, and the vast office complex -like campus with the giant dorm tower, paired with the "zoo" stereotype, scared her off. This time around we will take the closer look we should have the first time. The problem is that she is 100% undecided as to potential major - interested in everything from math to sciences, to English Lit. I know we'd get more out of the visit if we had a department or two to focus on, but we do not. In a school that huge I think it would be fairly important to find your niche and not feel lost in the crowd. Also wondering - do UMass students often utilize the five college system?</p>
<p>Any suggestions from parents or students to help get the most out of this visit would be most appreciated.</p>
<p>I always saw UMass students enjoying evening activities and events at the other 4 colleges, to the extent that they will jump onto the college shuttle bus, which is easy, frequent and convenient. No doubt others stayed only or primarily on the UMass campus, as it offers sports, activities, speakers and all the rest. The social adventurousness might be up to each student. </p>
<p>My S (Theater/Music double major) at Amherst College cast a UMass student as lead in his student capstone thesis play, because her audition was the best. UMass students were always present in the audience and on crew of plays and concerts on that LAC campus. It worked in reverse too, with S doing some auditions and two plays at UMass, not just Amherst because UMass had a better developed Musical Theater offering than Amherst.</p>
<p>I’m not as sure about classroom attendance, however. I would ask you to comb the websites, and even phone if necessary, to report here whether the enrollment in classes is fully open, or are there any conditions applied. For example, if the course is already offered at UMass, can that student still enrol at one of the smaller schools? Do they have to wait until the second line of registration? Etc.</p>
<p>I’m thinking that there must be some filters in place, because otherwise the numbers of UMass students would overwhelm the chance for each LAC to enrol its own students on their own campus. </p>
<p>I’d want to have a realistic sense of how readily she can cross-enrol from UMass into other courses. If, for example, she wanted to take Spanish, would she be required to take it at UMass? But if the course were more unusual and only offered elsewhere, perhaps the rules are different. That kind of thing.</p>
<p>I hadn’t even thought about the cultural offerings at the other schools. Good to know! She LOVES music, plays in HS wind ensemble, and would like to keep playing her instrument in college, but is leery of committing to anything too time consuming.</p>
<p>She’s under the impression that it might be hard to get into classes at the other schools - in the event she did ever want to take one. Not expecting small, intimate classes at UMass, but also hoping for something other than huge lectures. Hopefully after freshman year is complete class sizes shrink a bit.</p>
<p>If she is in the honors college at UMASS, I recommend contacting them about a tour. I think it would also be helpful for her to pick a specific school to tour with. She doesn’t have to declare her major, but just as a way to see the school through a more personal lens.</p>
<p>UMASS has a great music department! Lots of quality musical groups and instructors. You need to go to the music building and ‘hang around’ there a bit. It is not an attractive building but the music groups are strong. We visited SUNY New Paltz but did not hear any music groups there. I am not even sure which instrumental musical groups are offered (I think they have more on the choral side). Anyway, check into it before you decide to attend. New Paltz has more of a Bard ‘artsy-ness’ however, the Amherst Northampton local area near UMASS also has that vibe. The 5 college consortium is a definite plus for UMASS students.</p>
<p>PMK - I don’t think she would be in the Commonwealth Honors College - at least it wasn’t mentioned in the admit letter. I know for her Chancellor’s scholarship she needs to maintain a 3.2, which hopefully she can manage. I do think it would be a very good idea to pare our tours down to a specific school or two if possible. It might seem less overwhelming.</p>
<p>And chemusic - we didn’t get a chance to check out the music dept at New Paltz, though we love their co-ed acapella group! She doesn’t know if she wants to commit to anything too time consuming, but is interested in something informal, like pep band, just to keep playing her instrument. Also a good way to meet other kids.</p>
<p>And we love the Amherst/Northampton area. I’m secretly glad that both schools are in such appealing spots :)</p>
<p>When you visit UMass, get off the outer ring road and walk around the campus. The area around the pond is particularly nice. The architecture is rather random, with some 1960’s concrete buildings, but there is a lot of open space. If she was put off by the dorm towers (Southwest dorms), look at the Central and Northeast dorms, which are traditional red-brick buildings at the opposite end of campus from the visitor’s center. The big tower in the middle of campus is the library. Yes, it’s tall, but there are great views from the top. Take the time to check out the main street in Amherst–a classic college town. UMass is pretty much what you make of it–the administration has been trying to tone down the “zoo”, but it can still be found if you look for it, particularly in Southwest. On the other hand, there are a lot of serious students there too, and they can be found all over campus, and more commonly in Northeast (home of engineers and other techie types). There are RAP’s (residential academic programs) in which you can live with students that have the same academic interests, and themed floors, which are the same concept, but not so academically-oriented (environment, politics, etc.). Check the residential life website for more information. I’ve been particularly impressed with how the administration tries to break down the big school into smaller sub-groups (not that my son has taken advantage of that…). So give UMass another chance, your daughter might be pleasantly surprised.</p>
<p>Thanks, hornetdad-- Wish we had stuck it out more on that first trip! We had planned on visiting again as soon as Thursday or Friday, but now she is having second thoughts</p>
<p>She is currently undecided re: potential major - interested in many - sciences, math, English, etc. She received a generous scholarship that makes the OOS tuition manageable, but dependent on keeping a 3.2 GPA. If she chose English or Lit it would probably be ok, but if she chose a more challenging (for her) major, like a scienc, it could be a concern. We may go ahead with the visit and weigh it all carefully after–</p>
<p>Thanks to all who replied. Looks like the trip is back on. Feeling more confident about the 3.2 GPA requirement. Will take above advice and stick to just one or two departments to keep her from feeling overwhelmed.</p>