<p>My d was accepted and really wants to go to UPS - likes the small classes, more personal atmosphere, etc. But, wow, the cost is so much more than a UC or other state school. What comments do you have on why it is worth the extra $.</p>
<p>We ruled out UC's for their size, class size, mentoring, being able to get to know staff and teachers on a first name basis. We have one son, a senior at UCSC. And while he loves Santa Cruz the college is not as easy to deal with as a private school. You get what you pay for sort of thing.
We had a great degree of difficulty in getting the dietary accomodations, covered by ADA law, he needed, to the point he moved off campus where he didn't have to worry about needing the cooperation of a large one size fits all system.
The private schools offer a better teacher to student ratio, better mentoring, better services and more flexibility for individual needs. The teachers and students get to know one another and build a bond that I think is better for learning.
After our experience with the UCSC staff we knew we would never send our second son to a UC or any state school for that matter. In my view, just my opinion, my child is more important on a personal level to a private school than the state school. Based on our meetings with private schools, except for Wilamette who was very rigid, we found staff willing to work to satisy our son's medical and dietary requirements. They also offered the atmosphere he learns well in. </p>
<p>Plenty of profs from Berkeley love to teach at SCU for the class size and the atmosphere and amenities of SCU over Berkeley. Thats what they said to students in the classes my husband took at SCU's MBA program. </p>
<p>We think based on our needs and experience the price of private school is quite reasonable.</p>
<p>My D has always had small classes, allowing for a lot of interaction with other students and the teacher. It's her preferred learning style. The intimacy of that type of environment, and relationships with her teachers -- where the teachers see her -- bring out her interest in learning. Not all kids are like that, but she is. When we were visiting UCSB she asked me if I thought this meant she couldn't learn in a UC-type environment, and would it be character strengthening for her to try. I'm sure she could succeed at a UC, but I want her to thrive, and I'm not confident she would thrive at a UC. That's what I think the additional money will buy for my D -- small classes, more interaction with professors, more opportunity to be nurtured/mentored, better chance for the right fit. I've spent a lot of money on private school already, and I am very concerned about the cost of private college, particularly since she may not have the numbers to get much merit aid. But I am not about to pull the plug now. I hope four years from now I feel I did the right thing.</p>
<p>Best wishes. It is expensive to pay for private high schools and then private college on top of that. The other concern I have is the length of time it can take to finish at a UC. Son will have to wait until this fall to get a particular class he needs to finish, as it is not offered this spring. I will say he does like the school, but it does come with drawbacks.</p>
<p>Another thing to think of when weighing state schools vs. UPS or other small schools is that if your child is planning to apply to graduate school she/he is more likely to have developed relationships with professors (and thus get good recommendation letters) if she/he has attended a small school for undergrad.</p>
<p>agree with all of the above, after years of private, S initially wanted public, went to UCLA last summer, unlike high school,received #1 rank in his classes, ( granted they were basic classes but students were 90%UCLA fr and soph) Although his classes were much easier than HS and great grades, S came to appreciate the far superior level of teaching and class discussion, etc. at his private HS. nonetheless, put in his UC apps,recently toured nor cal UCs . husband and I were quite impressed BUT the lovely student tour guides at 2 of the 3 campuses were both nearly teary eyed as they described their fabulous senior year seminars(diff than earlier large classes). Both commented " it was almost as if we were attending a private college --only 18 in a class." ---S admissions to UCs have been far higher than expected, tempting but more likely that he will thrive at the right private. mentoring etc is extremely important. In addition, S is not the type to join ECs unless encouraged. at a good LAC, greater chance he will partcipate in sports, theatre etc. the only 2 privates UPS & santa clara he applied-- to due to preoccupation with certain locations and other factors -- Strong likelihood he will attend UPS, if he feels comfortable. FROM what I have heard:IF it turns out small LAC not the right choice, he can always transfer. Usual scenario if small lac is wrong choice, S or D bored with campus or whatever but classes are good, grades usually good etc. easy recommendations,very easy to tranfer to large state school. the opposite scenario is usually, S or D lost in big school, no need to attend class, gets behind etc, much harder to change to good small LAC --- i will be in seattle this wkend, visiting UPS on mon with sis -law who taught there 6 yrs ago and lives in area. if any one has any questions re school or area let me know , i will try to find answer</p>
<p>UC2006-- Can you post a trip report on your impressions of UPS, students, area, when you return?</p>
<p>UC2006: Son is showing strong interest in economics and finance, could your sister in law compare SCU with UPS econ? He is not 100% committed to this course of study, so being at a school where he could change his major without changing schools is important. I have enjoyed your insightful comments and look froward to hearing from you again.</p>
<p>Just thought some here may like to know, we got S's fianacial aid offer from UPS today. It is cheaper for him to go to UPS than a UC!! They were very generous and met 100% of need with very tiny Stafford loan and tiny work study, BIG grant and the 6000 Presidents scholarship. He is rethinking his choices. Meanwhile his friends who are getting into UC's will be paying more. It came as a shock to them I think.</p>
<p>Mine was great too, it is significantly cheaper than a UC, even with Regents scholarship. I have Wyatt Trustee (9000) and National Merit (2000), plus a big grant. They are covering 25,000 plus a small Stafford loan. Total cost per year for my family: 11,000. Way lower than a UC. My dad has been working with the UPS admissions office and finaid office, and has been treated SO nicely and helpfully. It's making me reconsider as well.</p>
<p>You know they have a new President. He came from Trinity, a top LAC if not the top LAC. I get some of them confused</p>
<p>mom's report from recently visitdue to business trip,very impressed, it was sunny, 1st day back from vacation, so campus filled with students, i spoke with about 20 nice kids , bright, mostly from CA, COLO, Minn.,Oregon, Alaska, Hawaii, one from Mass., had picked UPS over many UC's, santa clara, gonzaga, whitman, lewis and clark and their respective state schools, reasons- small size of classes, the international econ program, english program, some of the sciences,whitman much too small town, location- tacoma ok, seattle train, car or bus ride away, mountains close,beauty andsize of campus, liked climate, all liked profs, several were seniors, male senior from mass accepted to georgetown law for next year, worked in senate one summer due to school connection with HAWaiin senator, 2nd summer interned NIH, loved UPS(probably one of their best), observed profs chatting with students, S into ART, so spoke in depth with art students, hadtour of Tacoma from sis law-downtown somewhat interesting, UW tacoma undergrad starts this year, lots of changes, drove to seattle twice, took about 40 minutes max-- complaints re traffic but compared to Bay area, minimal ; overall very positive, i think it wpould be much better for my S than his options UCs (D, irvine, SB, SC) as he would benefit from mentoring, due to his intersts may be better than santa clara and cal poly SLO BUTnot my decision, he needs among other things to get over the fact that some people will have have never heard of UPS</p>
<p>I went to UPS on a football scholarship from a high school in Alabama (back in the '70s when it was a D-II program) and my parents spent four years explaing to people I wasn't driving a truck.</p>
<p>It is a great place and Ron Thomas is making it a better school everyday.</p>
<p>UPS grads must be nearly everywhere. Met one from the class of 75 at the SCU preview day Sunday. Her daughter was choosing between SCU and a LAC in New York I think. Spoke with her breifly about what she liked about the school, all she said was she had heard it has changed alot since she was there and that she had also heard good things about the current President. She was originally from Colorado when she went to UPS.</p>
<p>UPS is a great choice and you can't go wrong by going there.
All the people I have talked to say they received great financial assistance, which lowered the tuition to at or below that of the state schools.</p>
<p>As I live in the Tacoma area, I am familiar with the campus and I know many of the professors. The school has excellent academics, the campus is clean, safe, and beautiful. The housing is also good. As a liberal arts college, its offerings are more limited in comparison to the state schools. Make sure you know if UPS offers what you are looking for. </p>
<p>Although Tacoma has a bed reputation, UPS is located in a very nice, safe part of town. However, there's not much to do around the campus. I'd definitely recommend bringing a car, to travel around Tacoma and to Seattle, which is 30 miles away. </p>
<p>If you are looking for small classes, and an excellent, affordable education, UPS is a great choice.
If you want the authentic "college experience" I wouldn't recommend it.</p>
<p>I have several friends whose kids are at UPS, including one whose son is graduating from there this year (his younger brother applied but was rejected). All have been happy there & have enjoyed their education. UPS is near the mountains & cool. A collegue & her husband both attended UPS. Her two older daughters are current UPS students & the youngest is seriously thinking of enrolling there as well. </p>
<p>My son did not apply to any UCs also because of the reasons set forth above in other posts. He will be attending USC, which has been generous to him in merit aid. He was also seriously considering SCU, but they were not willing to work with us on his health issues and USC has commited to working with us so we're choosing them. The merit scholarship USC has offered my son has made it much less expensive than if he went to a UC as an OOS student. USC has also indicated that they will consider continuing students for merit aid.</p>
<p>A retired UH dean indicated that some prospective grad students had a hard time with their applications because they were supposed to include recommendation letters from professors in their major but they explained they had NEVER been taught by a professor because they were attending state schools & had been taught exclusively by TAs! I know/hope this is not true at some/many state schools, but it does happen at some as well.</p>
<p>"If you want the authentic "college experience" I wouldn't recommend it."</p>
<p>Curious what you mean about the authentic college experience?</p>
<p>If you are looking for:
- tons of school spirit
- football games (where everybody goes)
- division I athletics
- homecomings
- large Greek scene
- a "college town"
- ethnic diversity</p>
<p>...then go to the larger, state schools.</p>
<p>If you receive scholarship money and are looking for:
- small classes
- spacious dormitories
- homogeneous (upper-class, white) student population
- solid liberal arts</p>
<p>...look into UPS</p>
<p>Being a major in the Politics and Government department, I was browsing through the departments blog and it directed me to this site and I thought that being a current student I might be able to voice my opinion for students who might be looking at UPS.</p>
<p>I am from California and I, like a few here in this discussion board, struggled with the decision to attend a private college or a public university. My cousin is at UCB and he loves it, but it has taken him five years to graduate. Something that I knew I did not want to do. I felt that for me, it was important that I be able to complete my undergraduate education in four years because I want to go to graduate school and adding another year getting the undergraduate would be a waste of time. In the end, I did apply to a few state universities as safeties but after spending long hours of discussion with my parents we came to the decision that academically, if I was accepted into the private university, and upon visiting them felt comfortable, that no matter the cost, we would make it work. In the end, my choices were narrowed down to UPS, Skidmore, and Cal Poly SLO. My brother and cousin had attended Cal Poly so I knew that I could be happy there if I picked the school so I spent two weeks traveling to Washington and then to New York. After visiting Skidmore and UPS, I decided that they were on a level playing field, both have very similar programs and I knew then that it did not matter which I would choose in the end. </p>
<p>I picked UPS though because the financial aid office was very understanding of certain situations that had arisen and worked not only with me but also with my family to make sure that I had all the resources available at my disposal. They were friendly and I felt comfortable. I am happy here at UPS, I have a great group of friends and my teachers are always there for me when I have questions, they make themselves available! I go in to speak to my advisor quite frequently and he has been able to help me with a recommendation for study abroad and been there for advice on papers. I trust that when it comes time for me write my senior thesis that I can rely on him to give me the guidance that I need. </p>
<p>Another area in which I have found that the administration has been extremely helpful is in my endeavors to study abroad. They have been there with me and have helped me pick the program that will best suit my needs as well as helping me get ready to leave in the fall. This is all important to me because I feel that when I came to UPS I did join a community that supports me unlike some of my friends who feel so alone at the larger UC schools that they decided to attend. Therefore, although there is more money involved I feel that I did make the right choice in going private.</p>
<p>I am a parent of a UPS student class '07. I also was referred to this site by the PG Department's blog. I echo much of what has already been said about UPS. Great financial aid staff, wonderful professors, small classes, lovely safe campus, remarkable food, etc. D visited all the big UC schools, including Pepperdine and USD. Also visited UW in Seattle; briefly considered Gonzaga and CU Boulder. Got accepted to USD, UPS and CU Boulder. Selected UPS. We were delighted. School has great orientation program for freshman in Preludes and Passages. Students have a great opportunity to develop while in school. Daughter handled some situations through Student Government involvement that many seasoned professionals would have found daunting. Got great support and advice from administration. Served as RC, campus tour guide, etc. Spent a semester studing abroad in Dijon, France in fabulous program coordinated by Chair of French Department. Many of her HS friends from Colorado also did "study abroad" programs - didn't even compare. She lived with a former three star Michelin restaurant chef and family. Just an incredible experience. We've attended some classes with her and were delighted with the sophistication, friendliness and intelligence of her classmates, and the academic rigour of the program. I could go on and on. The best part is that the school teaches student to serve. UPS gets some mileage out of sending more students to the Peace Corps than any other school of it's size. The real story is that they teach students to be responsible citizens. We are grateful.</p>