Hello CC!
Since I’m almost done with high school, I have focused my college choices on these three schools: York College of Pennsylvania, Rutgers (NB), and Rowan University.
The thing is though is that I am undeclared, and when people ask me what area of interest I am leaning towards I’m not sure how to answer as I have been making wide leaps between computer sciences, art, and a lot of liberal arts. For the longest time I’d thought I’d major in history or English, but after taking some introductory classes to CS this year, the more I think about programming as another option (though I’m not sure what specific path I’d take from there). I am from central New Jersey by the way.
I know that York is really proud of how they give one-on-one attention to students (especially undeclared), but they don’t have a computer programming major if I finally settle for that, and transferring, although an option, is a long and complicated process from what I hear. Professors seem really passionate, but it’d also be great if the school were more diverse like where I’m from.
Rutgers on the other hand is a much larger campus. Lot’s of things to do, and the idea that I can minor in something almost completely different from my major is enticing (I’d love to minor in art at least), but without that same personal attention. There’s also the issue that I didn’t qualify for any of their scholarships. My parents say they “have money” but I want to keep in mind that my younger sibling will be applying to colleges too in about three years.
And then there’s Rowan. I originally applied here because they have a pretty good liberal arts/ education department, and earlier in the year I thought for sure history would be the right path for me. Obviously I’ve been throwing myself in loops since then but the students here seem very nice, and the facilities look amazing. Clearly there’s a lot of room to explore here as well. However, my doubts come from the open house I went to back in autumn; they said their curriculum makes it more difficult for students to transfer in or out if I remember correctly. And at this point some people still scoff at me for applying here, saying I could “do better” despite it being one of the more affable schools I’ve visited, so I keep wondering about the kind of education I’d be getting.
In any case, any advice would be sincerely appreciated!