<p>Hi, Im an athlete and the above schools Ive been recruited by and been offered 90% to full rides for all of them. I have three weeks to commit to one before I start losing money, given the nature of my sport(Track and Field) scholarship money goes by very quick, so the sooner you commit the better. Ive taken official visits to all of these schools and theyre all on a somewhat even plane for me as far as interest goes. </p>
<p>Im asking everyone to help me with this decision by placing pros and cons of each university, comparing them if youre familiar with more than one, or commenting which one is overall a better university for the very rare athlete who actually seeks an education. Also if you are or were a student athlete familiar with these universities could you give as much insight as possible on the academic support, and other experiences. By the way my major is in the range of History, Intnl Relations, Sociology, and Political Science, so if you know about the strength of these majors in these Universities that would help. </p>
<p>I did take visits to these schools, but basically the school only tells you whats great about their university never whats not great, so Im asking for your insight because this decision will effectively determine the next 4-5 years of my life directly and the rest of my life indirectly.</p>
<p>Penn:
(Pros)
+ I Loved the Strength of The Degree
(Cons)
- Seemed Boring based on my official visit
- Track Team is not super competitive. </p>
<p>UVA:
(Pros)
+ Beautiful Campus and Great Atmosphere
(Cons)
- Seems like its in the middle of nowhere</p>
<p>2 things it may depend on are how competitive you hope to be in track/field in college as well as how smart you are. If you’re a smart kid who might’ve gotten in w/o track and track isn’t that important to you, go to Penn because their track team is not top notch. You will get a good education at all of them because they’re all very strong schools, but i see it coming down to difference in environment (east vs. central vs. west and hot vs. cold and campus vs. no campus) as well as quality of the track program.</p>
<p>UCLA has much, much better looking women . . . if that makes a difference to you. If I were a recruited athlete, it would make a huge different to me. And you’re not limited to Westwood. There are girls everywhere in LA. From this perspective, UCLA is like this enormous buffet with every delicious dish in the world, whereas Penn, UVA, and Michigan are like McDonalds, White Castle, and Arbys.</p>
<p>I can run, ranked 13th in the nation.Choosing a competitive track school is about equally as important as choosing a great academic school. Besides i think Penn’s track team is getting alot better.</p>
<p>Lol I guess that was a dumb thing for me to say. It’s obvious you can if you’re getting recruited. Go to ucla. From there you can go to a good graduate school and be on a good team. And the women are hot. </p>
<p>If not Michigan. Same reasons as above. Except not as hot </p>
<p>If not Penn. You’ll get a great education. And the penn relays are pretty cool. But the team isn’t the same caliber. </p>
<p>no penn was not boring at all! think of all the stuff you can do in philly.</p>
<p>so i spent 4 weeks at umich (for debate camp) and i quickly got bored and wanted to leave. lol. i think u would have a better experience at Penn. idk about UVA though.</p>
<p>I lived in MI (6 years) before coming to NJ…so basically during my tenure there, I lived/breathed/ate U of M (woot!!). </p>
<p>First off U of M is a “public ivy”, a great school to get a great education. Obviously Penn’s education is unmatched as you interact with some of the brightest people in world, however, you cannot look over the great education offered at U of M. The atmosphere at UMich is absolutely ECCENTRIC. Especially during football season, though they suck the past couple seaons =[</p>
<p>UM has great athletes and students, and overall a great atmosphere. Although not considered a big party school, you must take into factor that the “Naked Mile” tradition was established at U of M! </p>
<p>As for UPenn…
You will probably get the best education here, while not completely losing out on a fun-filled social life. It is typically considered a “social” ivy and the atmosphere is also wonderful, although not comparable to UM. Also, keep in mind that Penn competes within the Ivy League, while UM competes within the Big Ten [[WAY more competitive]], so if you’re a fairly talented athlete expect to do a notch better versus the competition you face at Penn, when compared to UMich. </p>
<p>I don’t want to sound sexist or anything, but what good is a social scene when the girls are not that great? All four schools have high academic standards, which means smart but not that attractive girls. This means you need a social scene where the school isn’t the only source of women. UVA and UM are out on that basis alone. Have you seen the women in Philly? Thank goodness for cold weather and bulky coats. LA is the complete opposite. If women were water molecules, LA would be the Pacific Ocean. </p>
<p>Dude, you’ll be at you’re sexual peak at college. These next few years will either be Nirvanna or a wasted opportunity. Don’t be stupid.</p>
<p>Yeah the Big 10 ACC and Pac-10 are way more competitive but in track you rarely compete exclusively in your conference and many times you compete with schools from various conferences. So getting good compettion is possible anywhere at those schools but a little less at Penn.</p>
<p>Track & field is one of those lovely sports in which it doesn’t really matter if the rest of your team is great. It’s not like football or basketball in which being surrounded by mediocre teammates can hamper your own performance You can run a 47.39 400 whether your teammates run a 48 or a 98.</p>
<p>You should definitely go to Penn. And unless you visited during exam season or a dreary rainy day, I don’t see how ANYONE could call Penn boring between the 6 trillion on-campus groups/events, the party scene, and the entirety of Philadelphia at its disposal…</p>
<p>my host studied almost during the entire time i was there plus i came from sunday to tuesday. everyone says penn kids have fun but alot seemed stressed, but maybe thats just freshmen</p>
<p>i did hear great things about spring fling though. are there any history/poli sci/etc. majors that know about some of the jobs that are gone into upon graduation.</p>
<p>Based on your unique circumstance, I would strongly recommend UCLA. Heres why:</p>
<ol>
<li>California trumps the northeast in terms of weather, atmosphere, culture (this is debatable), and hotter chicks. You’re 4 undergrad years should be fun! and the fact that you’re a recruited athlete shouldn’t hurt chances with the girls ;)</li>
<li>A degree from UCLA is nearly as prestigious as a degree from Penn. Both will open doors upon graduation.</li>
</ol>
<p>Whatever job you want? Penn students with these degrees and tons of others go on to jobs in the top banks, consulting firms, TFA, international companies (that’s me), or the best grad schools…what sort of job were you looking for?</p>
<p>Also weather is subjective. I personally grow weary of warm weather all year round. I like seasons, with the bright leaves of autumn, snowball fights, and gorgeous spring days…</p>
</p>