<p>No. 1 Johns Hopkins University and No. 2 Duke will face each other at the Homewood campus this Friday at 8 p.m. for a mean game of lacrosse. After conducting numerous mathmatical calculations and spending hours meditating, it is clear to me that berurah's son should attend the winning school.</p>
<p>
[quote]
No. 1 Johns Hopkins University and No. 2 Duke will face each other at the Homewood campus this Friday at 8 p.m. for a mean game of lacrosse. After conducting numerous mathmatical calculations and spending hours meditating, it is clear to me that berurah's son should attend the winning school.
[/quote]
bigmain,</p>
<p>Well, FINALLY!!!!!!!!!!!!! A true voice of reason. I am just ROLLING here! OMG, bigmain, I needed this!! I feel like a HUGE burden has just been lifted. Seriously. I think we'll let the game decide! :) ~b.</p>
<p>B-</p>
<p>I don't know if my last post made sense... what I was trying to say was, no eleven year old paints "JHU" on their basketball hoop! Duke is a "dream" that <em>is</em> accessible in middle school. A school like JHU or Williams or UChicago or Swat is an unlikely candidate for a 'decade-old dream' unless the kid lives next door to one of these schools. They just don't come across to kids; they are too intellectual and there are no sports heroes on Saturday afternoon TV to bring them alive. (As opposed to Stanford, Duke, UCLA etc which have this dimension.)</p>
<p>The really important question is not which place will be the fulfillment of a youthful dream... but which will be the best catapult towards achieving an adult dream.</p>
<p>SBmom - that's what I said! more or less... or what I meant!</p>
<p>You're quite right, SBmom.... unless the middle-schooler plays lacrosse. </p>
<p>I know people whose toddlers walked around in Blue Jay blue miniature lacrosse uniforms and carried little JHU lacrosse sticks. Granted, this isn't a very large fraction of the population ;), but there's a reason they call lacrosse "the fastest game on two feet". I knew nothing about it before I arrived at JHU, and I still love the sport to this day.</p>
<p>I'm looking forward to that JHU/Duke lax game, too, bigmain! Stick 'em, Jays!</p>
<p>
[quote]
The really important question is not which place will be the fulfillment of a youthful dream... but which will be the best catapult towards achieving an adult dream.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>SBmom, </p>
<p>This concise statement sums it up beautifully! I thank you for putting that into just the right words. This has been the exact nature of our conversations since the package was opened. S is behaving in a remarkably mature fashion as he analyzes the factors that will play into this decision. And what it comes down to is what you just said above.</p>
<p>NJres,</p>
<p>I thank you for offering the same sentiment, and too, I am glad that you approved of my thread title this time. I created it with you in mind...REALLY! :)</p>
<p>~berurah</p>
<p>mootmom,</p>
<p>If my son DOES end up there, it's lacrosse outfits for the WHOLE family! Don't know about the sticks though...can't imagine those in the hands of my youngest three! :)</p>
<p>~b.</p>
<p>what's the Duke aid picture, do you know yet?</p>
<p>
<p>After defeating Ohio State by a 21-8 score this past Saturday, the Duke men's lacrosse team remained as the nation's number two team in the latest USILA poll released on Monday afternoon.</p>
<p>Duke (11-0) joins top-ranked Johns Hopkins (6-0) as the only unbeaten teams remaining in the country, setting up the game between the Blue Jays and Blue Devils for Friday night in Baltimore, Md. Face-off is set for 8 p.m., and the game is scheduled to be televised live by ESPNU. Johns Hopkins defeated North Carolina, 7-5, on Saturday and hosts Albany on Tuesday night.
................</p>
<p>SBmom,</p>
<p>We don't have that information yet, but they should have all necessary papers by tomorrow. Since they didn't offer him merit money, I am not optimistic, but I definitely wanted to let them get an offer out before I approached them with our <em>dilemma</em>. Jami has made me nervous about monies other than scholarships and grants. I guess you're kinda at their mercy if you've put in two years already and then they cut the $ off....</p>
<p>~berurah</p>
<p>NJres, </p>
<p>Thanks for posting that game info. Now, I KNOW when our decision will be made! bigmain's suggestion has really taken a lot of pressure off! :)</p>
<p>~b.</p>
<p>Should your youngest three get lacrosse sticks in their hands just let them know that once they kill you they still must post for the rest of us so we don't feel your loss:)</p>
<p>Berurah, First and foremost your son needs to visit. Physically these are two very different places. Since comparing opportunities in medical research may end up splitting hairs (they are both insanely good!) the decision may just come down to the "hood;" where does he want to live for four years in an uber-college-campus or in an urban setting? If he's on the fence, the money may push him over. If he reacts negatively to JHU's urban issues, then Duke is a wonderful choice.</p>
<p>My son has a close friend at JHU (he's in IR). He loves the environment, loves the urban access, loves the intellectual stimulus. It is competitive, but for this particular kid, that's a good thing. This is the same kid who was horrified at spotting a bear on the Amherst-Williamstown road and was relieved to get to nice safe Baltimore. </p>
<p>JHU School of Public Health has some connection to Indonesia so there are a lot of JHU staffers and PhD's who end up here with various NGO's. Everyone I've known has been enthusiastic about the opportunities that JHU offered. I know that that's grad school, but these are the same people, who presumably will be TA'ing undergrad courses and I can tell you they are a very brainy and accomplished group. I don't have any close friends who are at Duke, but I imagine that the ambience is a lot like Michigan -- the full American college experience. </p>
<p>PS What happened at Stanford? Did I miss something in this amazing and fascinating saga?</p>
<p>B - what D expects to do with the MD/JD involves some long, twisty explanation with logic apparent only to her. My gut sense tells me that she'll default into one of these or the other, and then life will intrude - plus she'll surely get tired of all the studying. </p>
<p>Having said that, I completely forgot about the issue of sports and Duke - personally, I think this adds a critical cultural component to any college experience and cannot imagine life without significant sports influence. Also, in terms of the prestige of the JHU scholarship, by the time your son has spent a year or two or three at Duke, he will surely have many prestigious accomplishments to add to his resume, and surely his accomplishments along the way will balance out the prestige of the JHU scholarship. Plus, you're still waiting on the Duke financial aid package, right? </p>
<p>Quick side note, may I ask you to visit my thread in the Cafe re career choices? I'd be very greatful for your thoughts on my question.</p>
<p>
[quote]
Should your youngest three get lacrosse sticks in their hands just let them know that once they kill you they still must post for the rest of us so we don't feel your loss
[/quote]
Alum,
OH NO...You've got this ALL wrong! They would be much more likely to go after each other...<em>I</em> will be safely ensconced in the next room, posting away at CC!! :)</p>
<p>~berurah</p>
<p>momrath,</p>
<p>I appreciate your input on JHU. I honestly don't think that my son would have a problem living in an urban area. The only thing is, I have lived in numerous urban areas for the majority of my life--my son has only lived in urban areas as a very young child. For most of his life, he's been in this suburban, nearly rural area. It will definitely be an eye opener....but I think he'd proabably enjoy it.</p>
<p>BTW, my son received a rejection letter from Stanford just yesterday.</p>
<p>~b.</p>
<p>latetoschool,</p>
<p>I appreciate your fully understanding one of the less important but significant things he would be giving up if he went to JHU instead of Duke. In some small way, I fear that after all is said and done, he may feel like he sacrificed the typical college experience (which, at Duke, has the big sports component) for this unique and prestigious undergrad experience at JHU. It's so hard to look into the future and to imagine the full impact of current choices. It would be so nice if both of those things could be combined for him, but in the end, I think he'll probably opt for the educational opportunities. We'll see.....</p>
<p>And of course, I'd be glad to check out your thread in the Parent Cafe!</p>
<p>~berurah</p>
<p>berurah, I am so excited for your S!!!</p>
<p>Two tiny tidbits from me:</p>
<p>Having just been in the "final two" situation with our S - it REALLY helped to re-visit both schools, if this is feasible/possible. It truly helped him. He was deadlocked. Re-visiting "did the trick."</p>
<p>Trust his judgment. Our S took this very seriously and made a sound, solid choice - your S sounds like a wonderful, grounded young man and I know he will do the same.</p>
<p>Good luck! You just didn't know how many GOOD THINGS WERE AROUND THE CORNER!!!
Tabby</p>
<p>It is so hard to flash forward to your adult self and know what you would value later. I will share the things I was looking for at 18 and the qualities of a great collegiate experience that resonate for me 2 decades later:</p>
<p>As a kid I wanted:</p>
<p>Faraway location
Academic reputation & tradition
Cute Guys ;)
preppy/east coast experience (images of "The Paper Chase" in my mind, after attending "Ridgemont High")
seasons/snow</p>
<p>Other schools on my list besides Brown were Princeton, Cornell, Williams, Amherst, Wesleyan, Bryn Mawr and three others of the same ilk that I can't even remember now!</p>
<p>As an adult looking back I most value:</p>
<p>The open curriculum, and the way it helped me to know myself better
The people who surrounded me-- belonging/fitting in/great friends
Inspiring and attentive teachers
Doing a thesis & the honors program
Institutional attitude of "no problem" (lack of red tape)
RISD & Providence resources & connections</p>
<p>While all the qualities on my first list were present at Brown, look how the specific things unique to the place are the things I remember. Look how the unique features of Brown were not even on my 18 year old self's radar. </p>
<p>Once I was in and deciding between schools, the open curriculum did tip my decision towards Brown-- but not for the reason I now value it as an adult... It appealed to my base notion never to take another math class again! ;)</p>
<p>The visit can help your S determine what the specific strengths of the school really are-- and Duke has similar realities behind the cool image as well! </p>
<p>These are the kinds of things that will make the college experience and resonate 20 years later.</p>
<p>BTW I have no doubt that if I chose another school I would have a different list of wonderful memories and shaping forces.</p>
<p>"In some small way, I fear that after all is said and done, he may feel like he sacrificed the typical college experience (which, at Duke, has the big sports component) for this unique and prestigious undergrad experience at JHU."</p>
<p>Oh, maybe. Or maybe he will be relieved to have the opportunity to shed them (and having to deal with frats, lots of drinking, etc.), and concentrate on what he (thinks he) is really there for. It will be different for different kids.</p>
<p>I predict the visits will clarify mightily. Let us know when the financial aid from Duke comes in - perhaps that would be the time to start a new thread.</p>