<p>So now we’re having a big negative party!
Honestly, I think it can be helpful to see the cons of certain schools. Might be more helpful to present the top three pluses and minuses…in the interest of balance. Not my thread though…and it’s still fun to read :)</p>
<p>Well it’s my thread and I’m only soliciting negatives 
No, tuition doesn’t count, that’s too universal.
and, dwhite, if you can’t think of anything mean to say, don’t say anything at all! :D</p>
<p>I love Michigan so much that I rarely get to vent about my few complaints without feeling like an idiot, so I am happy for a chance to be a bit negative-- plus what is small potatoes for me may not be for someone else. I could write a book of positives but I doubt anybody needs to read that!</p>
<p>Sorry, Billy Pilgram.</p>
<p>I’m not limiting to top 20, that was just the quote which prompted the thread. Let’s just say the schools that are commonly discussed here. Can even be one of the CTCLs. After all, change isn’t always positive!</p>
<p>I think this thread is a fabulous idea. This is a great counter balance to what tends to be ‘too positive’ about those with vested interests in colleges: all the nice videos, the tours, the brochures, the rankings, the websites, and the comments from parents and kids who, if only through cognitive dissonance alone, are going to be overly positive about their school. </p>
<p>It’s a refreshing and valuable change to hear some specific downsides to those that attend. It also reminds us that no place is perfect and helps to keep expectations in check. Better to go into a school hearing about the pros and cons— and not just the pros if you ask me. NO place is perfect. </p>
<p>I think we can all realize that a complaint is just one person’s perception. But it’s no less valid than all the glowing comments we hear about one’s particular college from one particular parent all the time on CC. And what is an issue for one is not necessarily an issue for another (heck, some things that people don’t like are things others will love). </p>
<p>I think MORE information about colleges- not less- is what people need. Information of all kinds from those that actually have direct experience with going there or paying for it. It gives way more of a balanced perspective and helps people make better choices in the long run.</p>
<p>I agree with Starbright. Something might not be a deal-breaker to one family but would be to another. For example, no one really thinks of Penn as having a large Greek presence because the statistics don’t indicate such. However, a large number of the more socially-oriented students DO pledge and many of the parties are at the frat houses. It’s just something to know…</p>
<p>USC</p>
<p>Since I pay full price I look for the value involved. I don’t think the school is worth it and wish child had gone somewhere they wanted to give him money. Also find the administration very unsupportive of the student</p>
<p>^^^</p>
<p>*Also, my d’s 4-year merit scholarship and alumni scholar status came with benefits that were taken away from her in years 2-3 and 4. It was unethical of them not to freeze benefits for those current students. *</p>
<p>I’m not even sure if this is legal, unless there was some fine print in the scholarship offer that the scholarship might be reduced in the future.</p>
<p>I’m not talking about a situation where a scholarship is reduced/eliminated because the student didn’t maintain grades or hours. This sounds like a situation where the student kept her end of the bargain, yet the school did not.</p>
<p>The enticement was made (scholarship offer proffered), and your D (likely) turned down other offers, the school should follow thru.</p>
<p>Syracuse for letting slum lords list their properties on your off campus housing site.
NYU for having “dorms” in so many places that some kids commute to class.</p>
<p>Bring on the negative - HA! This is helpful to us parents who are on that college search for the first time. I don’t know what questions to ask sometimes - college experience has changed a lot in 20+ years. I get so much great info on CC, this will help me be on the look-out for things I would have not thought about on my own.</p>
<p>So bring it on…</p>
<p>Well, I hate to say it, but I hate the way Dartmouth charges for food, and for “fees” for certain courses. For the food, one chooses a particular meal plan – basically, Small, Medium, or Large – but the food itself is charged a la carte!! So, for example, my son has realized that the fruit salad is hugely expensive, so he doesn’t get it much. Since he’s a big boy and a big eater, we get the “large” meal plan – but then he runs out of “cash” on his Dartmouth card two thirds of the way through the semester, so we have to put more cash on the card.</p>
<p>I much preferred S1’s experience at Connecticut College, where there was one cost, for one meal plan, and you could eat anything you wanted at meals.</p>
<p>Dartmouth also charges “fees” for studio art classes. Seems to me it’s just extra tuition.</p>
<p>But I do think S2 is getting a terrific education at Dartmouth.</p>
<p>Bard. I didn’t know I was going to have to add the cost of a car to the tuition. Haven’t bought one yet, but D’s profs seem to think everyone on campus has a car (and therefore can drive to (for example) the photo store half an hour away that would take 4-5 hours by bus) and every single stressful moment she’s had so far would have been resolved by the availability of transportation.</p>
<p>However, D loves the school and is having a great experience, even while having to wait for the shuttle driver to come off his 2 hour break between 4 and 6 pm.</p>
<p>Now see, that info about Bard is very helpful. This isn’t simple negativity–that would really affect my non-driver daughter. I’ll have to remember to ask this question when we do our final visits.</p>
<p>^^^</p>
<p>I think every school that has a decent number of students without cars should either have a tram that makes frequent trips to downtown shopping, or offer Zipcars for rent.</p>
<p>this thread should have it’s own forum…what a great idea!!! keep em coming…</p>
<p>Cornell–</p>
<p>They seem to have an an additional cost for everything. Students have to pay to use a gym to workout, ride the bus on campus (free for first years) and go to the health center. Some classes have an additional fee. It seems we are always getting bursared for something.</p>
<p>^^^</p>
<p>Pay to use the gym??? Pay to ride the campus tram???</p>
<p>How much do they charge?</p>
<p>mom2–Can’t remember. She actually got a job working for the gym(s). (There are numerous gyms on campus.) Part of her compensation is gym membership for free. However, there is also an extra charge for the climbing wall, and I don’t think that is part of her “free” membership for being an employee. She has also lived off campus for several years, so I am not sure if the cost of a bus pass is the same for on campus and off campus.</p>
<p>Love this thread. Hope someone will add more about the LAC’s in California.</p>