<p>It’s not the size or the length of the dreadlocks on the head of the rastaman that defines the vibrations.</p>
<p>Figures, typical CC. “prestige” is the second most important factor…lol</p>
<p>Good vibes…felt at home.
hands down. that was the ONLY thing that mattered to me, besides that it had to offer education as a major which most schools do.</p>
<p>A school that offers something that you are looking for and no other school has it: a combination or rare major, study abroad from first year forward and low cost.</p>
<p>Up through the mid-1970s, most colleges required a serious “core curriculum” that covered the key areas of knowledge important to being an educated citizen and participant in Western Civilization. Harvard led the charge in junking these requirements, which most schools went on to do–in the name, supposedly, of multiculturalism. But in fact, Western Civilization is as much the heritage of African-Americans, and immigrants who have chosen to live in the West, as it is the inheritance of that tiny percentage of Americans descended from the social elites. Teaching the Core to masses of newly educated people was a great populist, democratic initiative, which when it was abandoned gave way to consumerism, narrow specialization, and mediocrity. </p>
<p>As editor of “Choosing the Right College” ([Intercollegiate</a> Studies Institute](<a href=“http://www.isi.org%5DIntercollegiate”>http://www.isi.org)), I use as my first criterion in evaluating a school whether it imposes a Core Curriculum, or at least decent General Education requirements.</p>
<p>definitely the vibes…USC has a program i like but the vibe…not good. UCSB on the other hand, seemed good.</p>
<p>I’m looking for a college/university with a strong geography department. So I can continue in a graduate program. Also, it needs to be close to a major ski area.</p>
<p>Lol - prestige. Welcome to cc, prestige whore capital of the world.</p>
<p>Oh dear, for all of you who really mean “prestige,” so very sad. Your undergraduate experience is a time for growth, yes intellectual, but also very definitely social and emotional. There is time enough later on for honing your professional swords. You need to choose a place where you can be yourself–and become even more yourself.</p>
<p>Take it from an old hand with three degrees and a professional qualification whose educational experiences included Vassar, Harvard, and the University of London: prestige means very little. My most outstanding educational experiences were not at any of those institutions. Better to pursue an undergraduate education that adds to your foundation as a human being and world citizen, enriches your personal growth and development, and is a source of inspiration and FUN. </p>
<p>You are living your life–who in the world cares how others view you? Go for quality of life.</p>
<p>I don’t see any way around affordability being the most important factor. If you can’t pay the bill with some combination of savings, earnings, loans, gifts, financial aid and merit scholarships, nothing else matters. After that it’s fit, an overused term, but still crucial: the right academic match, a size, location and culture you like, availability of majors you think you might want. Although imperfect, overnight/classroom visits can be quite valuable for finding pros and cons of a school. Sit down in the cafeteria with a group of students and identify yourself as a prospie; see how they react.</p>
<p>I’d disagree. Affordability is important on the front end.</p>
<p>The single best assessment is “value-addedness”, i.e. how much constructive value, change does the specific college environment and/or experience have upon individuals. Scholars, notably Astin and his mentor Robt. Pace have attempted to study this phenomenon for decades, recognizing that certain institutions have significantly greater impact upon their collective students than do others. </p>
<p>And much to the chagrin of elitists everywhere, their research suggests that it most often has little to do with “prestige/reputation”, endowments, research of the faculty, etc. To the contrary, they’ve identified a number of no-name places that are often much lower in cost and visibility that make a far greater impact than the Ivies and many others. In fact, many of those places we might think of as the campus cat’s-meow have some of the lowest impact, i.e. add lesser value than many others. </p>
<p>Also they’ve found that despite lots of hoopla, places like the big-name mega publix that tout themselves as superior, are deemed to be among the poorest facilitators of change in students. And way too much of the learning experience is passive, lecture learning, which most agree is one of the worst ways to nurture learning. Much preferred is the word of the present time …ENGAGED. Interactive. Participative. </p>
<p>Now to the point. Unfortunately, value-addedness is a far too complex, expensive measurement with too many variables to control for. So, one much more pragmatic alternative they offer is simpler and more measureable. TIME.</p>
<p>How do undergrads spend their time. Especially relative to thinking, intellectual, interactive pursuits. Those reporting students, whatever their initial intellectual levels, spending TIME on task, develop and grow the most. </p>
<p>Thus my nominee for the single factor: TIME and more specifically, what a campus culture does to cultivate more students spending more time in engaged learning. </p>
<p>And while that is not a simple idea or measure to capture, it’s amazing when one begins to look at it from that point of view, how obvious it becomes to recognize and make some evaluation.</p>
<p>Whistle, I think you’re exactly right in terms of identifying an important factor relating to the quality of a school; given accurate measurement of this factor, schools could then be ranked by it. The job would then be to find the right match of the factor for a given student, or, alternatively, of schools that are appropriate in other ways, use this as a tipping factor.</p>
<p>I agree completely that this is important, but I’m afraid that few students will give it much weight. :(</p>
<p>Different students want different things. </p>
<p>For me, selecting a college is all about “fit” and $$$$.</p>
<p>Actually u r right.</p>
<p>That you can pick up on the palpable joy and excitement on campus because if you’re not happy, you can’t perform, and these are the last 4, carefree years of your life.</p>
<p>And all the ivy, in the world, growing on that Gothic-architecture building at _____ university isn’t going to mean much if are mismatched to the school and unhappy.</p>
<p>I know it’s not one of the choices, but for me a BIG decision maker is diversity, in all aspects. I don’t want to go to some school where everyone is the same in every way. I mean, isn’t college also used to meet NEW people, and not just variations of you?</p>
<p>Completely agree with Doctor. But its isn’t just having diverse students. I’d like a school where they interact. I’ve been living in UC Central all my life. Berkeley, LA, Riverside, SB are all known for their diverse student population, but a lot of the times everyone hangs out in cliques. Asians with Asians, Blacks with Blacks, International Students with other ISs. </p>
<p>For me, one of the large factors is how the school views the individual and what it does to allow the individual more freedom. Open Curriculums, building your own majors, etc., and anti-bureaucratic elements are ideal in my mind. I’m not entirely concerned with potential career outlooks, values, prestige, etc. I want a place that fits my unrealistic style of learning for learning’s sake. And the place should still manage to be fun.</p>
<p>Consider Carleton, Grinnell, Oberlin, Reed, Swarthmore, UChicago. They don’t all meet all of your goals; you may have to compromise a few. :)</p>
<p>Carleton and Swarthmore are on my list for sure. I was thinking about UChicago, but I visited and I wasn’t fully feeling it. Maybe I just went on an off day because everyone else loved it when they were there. I might have to take another trip up there. Thanks so much though.</p>
<p>can someone explain what “greek life” is exactly? yeah…i dont know what it is so dont give me smart ass answers</p>