<p>Son knew all along he wanted Purdue: in-state public school, had competed there every year through H.S. w/Robotics team and toured campus several times, academically excellent engineering program, larger size, very well respected in the engineering business community, merit scholarship, opportunity to interview for internships, co-ops, etc. Currently a soph. and couldn’t be happier; living in fraternity, majoring in ChemE, had 6 (!) interviews w/very large, well-known companies for summer internships through their “Industrial Roundtable” this past fall (at 19 yrs. old!), and was offered a “co-op” this past Oct. and is currently working that this semester. Will work for this same company for a total of 4 semesters through this co-op program, alternating w/semesters in school. Couldn’t have been a more perfect fit!</p>
<p>My D applied to the college she now attends (along with seven others) after researching colleges and reading about the school. This was the only college she applied to that she had not visited. (It was late coming to our attention.) Every interaction she had with the school over the next four months (she applied regular admission) piqued her interest (maybe most critical was the alumni interview; the interviewer was very convincing and apparently my daughter made a very good impression on the interviewer): emails to professors, queries to the admissions office, on-line research about the school, a winter visit where she attended a class, and the admitted students day sealed the deal. I was thrilled my D was so personally engaged in her college search. She is a freshman now and loving her choice. She will say she chose her school because the other students were very smart and interesting, the school had lots of traditions and history behind it, and because no one she knew went there (she wanted her school to be her school).</p>
<p>In the end both D’s visited the schools then had a gut feeling yes or no. That gut feeling is, I am sure, based on both conscious and subconscious feelings and plenty of rationalization.</p>
<p>Big D1 football school, prominent Greek Life, good merit aid with 2/3 scholarship, Southern and SEC school, well regarded major, good law school, whats not to like? ROLL TIDE</p>
<p>S1 had 2 choices. Decided to go to one for a year and then transfer to the other based on the 2nd school not allowing students to apply for major until Sophomore year. I think worried he might not be accepted into major and then what would he do?<br>
Main Factors: Major (Music Technology), Skiing.</p>
<p>S2 is still in the process awaiting several admission decisions but these are his factors:
Major (Game Design & Development)
Major well-rounded, offering both CS and Art courses
National reputation in Major
Projects, Internships, Co-ops, Hands-on opportunities
Music and Foreign Languges, plus other LA offerings (not just a tech school)
Smart students
Outdoor/Adventure sports
He likes every school he applied to. Three are top choices, four are next tier. If he is only accepted into the next tier schools, then it will be a difficult choice among them.</p>
<p>I need help to decide which college… M from India… My choices r ucla or umich… My brother and his wife live in la, so my parents prefer la, coz I won’t be alone… and honestly I think that’ll be good too, but umich is a better ranked uni than ucla, according to usnews, so I waver and start thinking maybe umich will be a better choice… So I need advice.</p>
<p>Caffrey,</p>
<p>Both great choices but don’t worry about the rankings. Think of other things, like what will you be studying? If its Eng for example then Michigan should be a clear leader. Michigan may be particularly strong in certain areas and UCLA and others. Also will the weather bother you in Michigan? Vast climate differences obviously.</p>
<p>In the end, especially with these two, do not worry about rankings. Go where you think you would fit in well. Also consider the area of study, the finances and the family considerations. You have great choices!</p>
<p>Fit, fit fit. Both s’s loved the schools when they visited.</p>
<p>Wow, as a HS student I’ve found this surprisingly helpful.</p>
<p>Thanks for the help… I m gonna study business in umich, and business Econ in ucla… And the weather, another reason to prefer in Cali…</p>
<p>I feel that being in a big city like LA would give you more research/internship possibilities.
But don’t worry about the rankings, as both schools are well regarded :)</p>
<p>Criteria for weeding out schools:
- Accepted or not
- Stay on the waitlist?
- Financial aid
Left with 4 schools.
Chose UChicago over UCD, Vassar, Wesleyan due to greater resources for research, classes, and internships. Proximity to city, intellectual idealogy of school, quirkiness, and architecture/campus all helped me pick over the others. Students seemed more seriously focused on academics here than UCD or Wesleyan, I didn’t visit Vassar. I also love the Core here, I know I’m getting a strong education and I like more who I imagine myself being after graduatingfrom UChicago than Vassar or Wesleyan.</p>
<p>Caffrey,
I think of Ucla and Michigan as being in the same tier as each other and thus similar or interchangeable in rank. It doesn’t matter what actual unnwr ranks in a particular year. For example, this year, Stanford is ranked #10 on usnwr but I still think of it at a top tier school. Throw away your usnwr! The personalities of both campuses on campus are fairly similar but the community living around the area are quite different. Weather. Ann Arbor is quite a college town unlike Ucla. Also think about where you might want to work. If you want to stay in the west, Ucla prob has slight better connections and Michigan for Midwest.</p>
<p>For my D: First school - freshman year - she wanted a small LAC in the south, and she chose her school based on fit (and a really good scholarship). She decided to transfer after freshman year to a medium-sized school in the south that had more academic opportunity for her. It was a bit less of a social fit, but it worked out very well for her.</p>
<p>For my S: First school - freshman year - he was sure he wanted to be a pharmacist, and he wanted a 6-year pharmD program. He got a great scholarship at an in-state school with a well-respected pharmD program. He quickly realized that he wanted a biology degree instead, and the school he was attending was not the place to be for that. Because it was spring of freshman year when he decided to transfer, he went to a local U the following fall, intending to transfer to UMich after a semester or two. However, he ended up liking the local U & is finishing up his junior year there. For him, fit was no big deal … he isn’t into the whole campus scene. School is something he is doing because he needs to. He spends his spare time making music, which is what he likes best.</p>
<p>Thanks guys… I have a better perspective of what to choose now… I was too manipulated by the ranks earlier…</p>
<p>My son: What had been his first choice proved to be unaffordable. He then visited his second choice for the first time (it was further away) on an overnight trip and loved it. They also have a well-funded program in his major, in a newly renovated building. He also realized that there were many more activities at his chosen university than at most of the other colleges he had considered.</p>
<p>My daughter: a great program and newly renovated facilities for her major, a large merit scholarship (which made a private college much cheaper than an in-state flagship), fantastic theater facilities (which is her hobby not her major), and an ability to play her favorite sport on the varsity team. (She would not have made the team at a bigger college).</p>
<p>Major and specific program, opportunity to play on the baseball team, location in Southern CA, merit aid made a private school affordable.</p>