<p>I thought I would start a new thread here since my son and I just got back from Marquette and had a great visit at Destination Marquette, the admitted students day on campus. We arrived on campus at 5 pm on Sunday and my son was immediately whisked away to meet his host for the next 24 hours. I was directed to the parents reception which was lovely and friendly. (cpeltz and I met up and had a great talk!). Later that evening, I attended mass at the student union, a beautiful liturgy which was standing room only. </p>
<p>The next day, parents were invited to attend several presentations and have lunch on campus. My son spent the evening at O'Donnell Residence Hall, which is all male. He may have preferred a coed hall at first, but he had a great stay at O'Donnell. His host was very welcoming and he met many other residents and girls as well. The former cafeteria at O'Donnell has been turned into what is affectionately called "The Man Cave". It is a giant lounge with pool, TV, games, just a great place to hang out. He ended up helping his host with homework and then heading out to breakfast and classes the next day. He found the classes interesting and well taught. Also he was relieved to find out he was able to fully understand the subject material. He went to Spanish, Chemistry and Biology, all freshman level. </p>
<p>Overall, I would say he felt very at home. Everyone was friendly, funny and pretty laidback. He felt the students were serious but not over stressed. Most kids are involved in quite a few clubs or volunteer activities and all reported there was an much to do on and off campus. Later, after we reconnected, my son and I were given a tour of the basketball practice facilities which were amazing. There was lots of pride in the school, it was a great atmosphere. If my son chooses Marquette, our family will be very happy to send him there!</p>
<p>Hey, HeartArt, it was so nice to meet you! I’m glad your S had a good visit, and can’t wait to hear where he decides to go.</p>
<p>S stayed in Carpenter with his host and another prospective student. S had a good visit, they ate and played video games and got along well. S sat in on a Sociology class which he enjoyed, and we had an hour tour around campus. We saw Abbottsford, a room where the 3 boys had their beds and dressers crammed into one room, with the other having a couple of couches, desks, etc. Nice! Advice we got from our tour guide was “the further from the center of campus your dorm is, the nicer it is.” </p>
<p>The kids on campus all seemed very engaged, the admissions staff is friendly and helpful, the visit organized, and the school seemed - to me - a good fit. My son is still hesitant about the midwest vibe, but is open to it.</p>
<p>I forgot to mention that Milwaukee had snow last weekend, unusual for this time of year. cpeltz, I wonder if your son would have liked the midwest better if he had seen some flowers and grass! It was great to meet you too and likewise, I can’t wait to hear where your son ends up. </p>
<p>Oh and Montegut, I ate at the food court at the memorial union for lunch. They have sushi, mexican, subs, etc. You stand in line for the cuisine you want and I thought it was good. Son ate at an Italian cafeteria at one of the dorms which he also liked. There are many places and options in terms of food. The classes he attended were small, under 30 students. Only the large intro classes are big like Psych 101 but many of those have small group discussions to go along with the big lecture classes.</p>
<p>I also attended an information session on study abroad, Marquette has many interesting options and an active study abroad office. Although my son has not expressed any interest in doing this, I thought it would be good information to have.</p>
<p>I guess I’m not aware of the “midwest vibe”, since I probably give it off. What exactly do folks from other areas see it as? Enlighten me–and feel free to be painfully honest. </p>
<p>The weather the last two years now has been unusually harsh, but I can understand that Wisconsin winter would take some getting used to–especially off the lake. We visited for one of the scholarship testing days when the weather was horrid there, but tolerable once out of the city.</p>
<p>MBP – Check on the bottom of this page. All the rates are listed for the different rooms at different halls. There are three different meal plans. You should be getting all this in the mail from Marquette really soon, if not already:</p>
<p>I’m not sure S feels the midwest vibe or is simply resistant because my H (his stepdad) is from Wisconsin and we’ve drug him there a lot to visit with family. If there IS any vibe, it may be just “less cool?” I doubt S could put it into words, and I don’t think he felt it much at Marquette, but definitely did at a small LAC he visited earlier in the trip. My fingers are X’d that he’ll choose to be a Golden Eagle (or as my H insists, a Warrior!).</p>
<p>One tip from our tour host on the meal plans was to buy the smallest one they offer, as kids end up eating other places enough times that the big meal plans usually have unused meals that don’t carry over.</p>
<p>Thanks, dbwes! I got my acceptance package back in January, but haven’t received any other important information since. Is there anything else I should be looking for?</p>
<p>Also, I was wondering if anybody had any information on either Marquette’s International Affairs 5-year B.A./M.A. program. I’m thinking I’ll probably apply for it, and was wondering if anybody had any experience with it.</p>
<p>Then, has anybody done study abroad from Marquette? I’ve read about their different programs on the website, but I was wondering about outside opinions.</p>
<p>Marquette’s study abroad and internship/co-op opportunities are the big drawer for us.</p>
<p>There is a study abroad in Ireland for engineering, it seems, which son is hoping to get. He’s dying to go to England, and I think there’s one there as well, maybe not in engineering, though.</p>
<p>There is also a Les Aspin internship, which is in Washington, DC, and son is really wanting to do that, as his other college choices are in the DC area, and this would give him the best of both worlds, a Marquette education, with DC connections. </p>
<p>Good luck to you all as you make your big decisions this month!</p>
<p>Montegut: During the study abroad presentation, it was strongly stressed that students should come in asap freshman year (or even before) to plan out how to fit going abroad into their schedules, especially with majors like engineering, nursing, etc. But it requires some long range planning to make it happen. The various programs sound amazing, I think your son will find several that would interest him.</p>
<p>Thanks so much, Heart. I was looking more at a summer program that I found in Ireland, but you’re right, with coops and internships, should probably get an early start. Thank you again for your advice. </p>
<p>BTW, did y’all see AOL this morning with the most dangerous cities and states?</p>
<p>Was dismayed to see Baltimore, Memphis and Birmingham in there, as those are all possible relocation spots for us and possible college choices. Not surprised at all to see New Orleans in there, I believe at Number One.</p>