<p>Is anyone going to UofH Manoa in the fall of 2011 from the main land? Also, if you go there, or went there, any advice or thoughts? I'm trying to decide between UofH and Penn State University Park. Hawaii has given me a lot of aid, and I won't have to put any money out up front. That's not the case with PSU at all, and I honestly believe my parents and I will have an extremely difficult time trying to afford PSU. Help?</p>
<p>P.S. Do you fill out a survey type thing for getting a roommate? Or is it completely random? And when are they assigned?</p>
<p>I’m not going to UH, but I’ve been to Hawaii a few times. It is definitely a culture shock coming from the mainland, but not in a bad way. Just different. Have you visited?</p>
<p>Penn State is certainly a more reputable school, except for a few specialized fields. However, that shouldn’t prevent you from getting a good education at UH.</p>
<p>If your family can’t afford PSU, then you can’t afford PSU. It is not worth going into big debt.</p>
<p>I know Hawaii is in a fairly large budget crunch, but I’m not sure how the university is affected.</p>
<p>Speaking as someone who has lived here for six years…</p>
<p>it’s definitely a culture shock. People have a whole different way of speaking called pidgin. It’s easy to understand once you get used it, but at first can be a little difficult. </p>
<p>UHM is clique-ish, meaning most local people just go after highschool with all their friends. Definitely be prepared for that. </p>
<p>Some (not all) local people are racist. Some people you meet will be the most fantastically nice and wonderful people you will meet anywhere in the world, and others will call you a haole. Everyones experience varies though.</p>
<p>Whether or not you should go to UHM greatly depends on your major. The best picks are marine science and anything Asian related. </p>
<p>Don’t know how big the financial gap is between UofH and Penn State for you, so this may be a non-issue, but do remember that flying to and from Hawaii is going to be very expensive. </p>
<p>I have a friend at a school on one of the islands, and he can only come home in the summer and for winter break because of this.</p>
<p>I’m majoring in PoliSci and History. I’ve been to Hawai’i before and loved it. I’m going again in April and will be visiting the school while I’m there which should ultimately make my decision for me. I’m not too worried about being able to come home because I’m very ready to leave my small boring town. Also, if I don’t like it then I’ll just transfer to PSU for my sophomore year. I just don’t want to have a horrible experience at UofH and regret it. But I also don’t want to regret not trying it.</p>
<p>sorry I know this has been a while but I was wondering if you decided to go to UH Manoa and if so, how you liked it, what were your grades for the financial aid. I applied for Fall 2013 and I am hoping for aid.</p>
<p>I live in Hawaii and am most likely going to UHM. I know tons of people (including a sibling that goes to UHM) and there is definitely little to no racism anymore. There are a lot of out-of-staters in UHM and calling all of them haole would pretty much make you a big target. Tolerance went up over the past years I suppose. People accept everyone.</p>
<p>Not sure about the dorms.</p>
<p>I know the education might not be equivalent to say NYU due to resources, but we make do with the most of what we got.</p>