Why parents love NU!

Colleges and Universities A-Z Northwestern University
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<p>Reasons why we (as parents) love NU:
*Sending a child off to college is difficult for parents, but it has been so much easier than I anticipated because our daughter is thriving at NU.<br>
*She is intellectually engaged and stretched on a daily basis whether it is by attending a fireside chat in her dorm, by her professors, or by her peers. This constant exposure to new/different ideas results in some fascinating telephone conversations, including one last week after she attended a presentation on the dangers of pornography.<br>
*Her fellow students are an amazing group of young adults who give me faith in the future. We’ve been lucky enough to meet quite a few of her friends and they are intelligent and caring, yet not pretentious or smug.
*It is easy to get cheap plane tickets to Chicago. We’re already looking forward to picking up our daughter in June so that we can go to the Chicago Blues Festival and try another one of the many restaurants in Evanston! With hindsight, I’m very thankful that our daughter was adamant that she didn’t want to go to a school “out in the middle of nowhere”!
*And most importantly, with all of the challenges that will face your generation, we are proud to see that our daughter is becoming an adult who will be able to contribute to the world because NU is providing her with the necessary knowledge and the critical thinking skills.</p>

<p>Good luck to all of you as you make the decision about which college is the best choice for you. Let your intuition guide you, not the college rankings or someone else’s opinion. </p>

<p>A few ideas that will help your transition to NU:
*Participate in one of the pre-orientation programs (Project Wildcat, Freshman Urban Program and CATalyst).
<a href="http://www.norris.northwestern.edu/csi_wildcat2.php%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.norris.northwestern.edu/csi_wildcat2.php&lt;/a>
*Apply for the dorms which best suit your personality. The residential colleges organize lots of events throughout the year.
<a href="http://aepi.northwestern.edu/services/dtecs/browse.php%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://aepi.northwestern.edu/services/dtecs/browse.php&lt;/a>
The above link is for the 2002-03 dorm evaluations so some of the information is not correct.
*Research the various activities/clubs at NU and then go to the activities fair at Norris during the first week of school and sign up for a something, maybe an activity that you wouldn’t have considered trying in high school. Our daughter’s choice baffled us but she had a wonderful time experiencing something completely new! </p>

<p>I’m sorry that this is so long, but we’ve found that NU doesn’t do the best job promoting itself. This could be due to their Midwestern modesty ; ).</p>

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<p>Thanks so much! I now think I can actually convince my parents to let me go to a college that is more than 10 minutes to our house. I live in southeastern Pennsylvania and my parents actually set boundries on where I can go to college!!!!!!!!!!!!! I fell in love with NU the minute I saw it! I think I can get them now to consider this wonderful schol! Thnaks so much!</p>

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<p>mitchellheckman, my daughter is a freshman at NU and is extremely far from home. Of course it's hard to have her so far away, but like you, she fell in love with NU during her first visit there more than three years ago. I was sceptical about her certainty, but it held up through an intense summer program at NU after her junior year. The more we learned about the school, the more it seemed she was making an excellent choice. After a great deal of research we allowed her to apply ED, and have never regretted that decision. </p>

<p>I agree with everything liland said before, especially that the students at NU are "intelligent and caring, yet not pretentious or smug." I am extremely impressed with them, and with many other aspects of the school. I honestly can't think of any other school I would prefer for her now. NU might not be the right place for everybody, but it is for her and she knew it from the start.</p>

<p>On the other hand, I can understand your parents' reluctance to let you go. Due to our location, I have long known my daughter would go away to college and worried about the distance. Like liland, NU has made it much easier for me to let go than I thought it would be. It's hard to mope about our empty nest when our child is fortunate enough to be exactly where she needs to be. </p>

<p>Whether you go to Evanston, or stay home, it's your life, and as you start taking responsiblity for your adult decisions, your parents will have to step aside and let you do that. However, if they can see that you understand their concerns, maybe it will be easier for them. Really take the time to talk with them about their concerns and feelings. Reassure them in meaningful ways, and show them that you understand how to take care of yourself. This will be a massive transition for them as well as for you, so let them know you look forward to being in touch even when you're gone.</p>

<p>Do you have a family cell phone plan with unlimited calling between family phones? That helps a lot. Also, my daughter and I started IM'ing occasionally even before she left. It was a little silly to be in two different rooms in the same house talking over the Internet, but it was nice to establish something we both knew we would still have when she was gone. </p>

<p>Let me know if I can answer any questions for you or your parents. Good luck!</p>

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<p>Funny, my mom also said she finds the students at Northwestern to be a refreshing combination of smart and unpretentious. At some other schools kids almost seem defensive about claiming that their school is the greatest. Northwestern students are just clearly content and not worried about seeling the place, as far as we could tell.</p>

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<p>Mitchellheckman, I have to admit that I’ve traveled a long road since this time last year! I cringe with embarrassment whenever I remember a heated conversation with our daughter about where “I” thought that she should go to college. She looked at me and calmly said “Mom, I could almost not like you right now.” Fortunately, her comment made me come to my senses and realize that this wasn’t my decision. Whenever I think about how happy our daughter is at NU, there is always a fleeting thought of “what if” she would have gone to a different college just to please me and wasn’t happy there. I am so relieved that she held firm and is at the college that is the perfect fit for her. </p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

6

<p>My daughter's decision came down to the University of Florida or Northwestern. I thought it was a no-brainer. As a Florida resident, the state pays all tuition, labs, and has allowances for books and some other expenses -- so it would cost practically nothing. Besides, I'm a Florida Gator alum so it would give me time to visit Gainesville more often. Gainesville is a wonderful place. And besides, Florida is a pretty good school and very difficult to get into.</p>

<p>So here was my plan. We would visit Evanston for 5 days and hopefully a blizzard with 50 mph winds would make havoc of my daughter's Florida "winter clothes" and I would not have to hear about Northwestern again.</p>

<p>Well, the joke was on me. First, for most of the week temperatures were in the high 60's to low 70's and beautiful. Then I was introduced to the university. We were given free access to classes - mostly engineering. We had many discussions with the staff and professors at the university but the most amazing thing was how down-to-earth and friendly the students were.</p>

<p>My daughter got to stay at two different dorms, one arranged by the university and another by a student who attends the university. I had lunch with members of the NU Band color guard and my daughter will be participating. She's also excited about bringing her flute with her because she can be a member of the band during basketball season and play during games. BTW, participation in the NU community seems to be the norm for most students.</p>

<p>But what impressed me most of all were the classes I attended. I want to go back to school! So, I go to NU hoping to change my daughter's mind and it's mine that is changed! I was especially impressed with the McCormick School of Engineering which she will be attending.</p>

<p>Go NU Class of 2010 (& Gators too...)</p>

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<p>*cheap tickets to Chicago...</p>

<p>That's funny, considering that you're paying 48000 to go there...</p>

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<p>d70mac, I had to laugh when I read about your plan for the weather to change your daughter's mind. We visited NU on three separate occasions and each time it was an absolutely gorgeous day!</p>

<p>You'll have another opportunity to attend some classes with your daughter during Family Weekend 2006. Just be sure to book a hotel room sooner rather than later because the hotels in Evanston fill up fast.
<a href="http://www.northwestern.edu/parent/familyweekend.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.northwestern.edu/parent/familyweekend.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

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<p>The hotels fill up <em>extremely</em> fast.</p>

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<p>Would you rec hotel around NU?</p>

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<p>Four places in downtown Evanston: </p>

<p>1) Hotel Orrington -- very nice, upscale; basically next to campus
2) Hilton Garden Inn -- nice; pretty close to campus
3) The Homestead -- charming, good service and GREAT restaurant (Trio), nice given its age, but old; pretty close to campus
4) Holiday Inn -- standard fare, walkable to campus but further than the others</p>

<p>There are a bunch of places near Old Orchard mall in Skokie right off of I-94 (Edens Expressway), about 10-15 mins. drive from Northwestern</p>

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<p>D70mac,</p>

<p>Wow, that is exactly what happenned to me, only I was in your daughter's position.</p>

<p>Since I am going to graduate in a mere 5 weeks, I am starting to wax nostalgic about this place.
NU really does have a great deal to offer. Having to give up that bright futures scholarship in exchange for a ton of student debt still stings when I think about it, but whenever I visit my old friends at UF during breaks I realize I can't imagine myself having gone anywhere else.</p>

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<p>Pavs,</p>

<p>So how did you survive those cold winter nights. From what I hear, the winter quarter is the quarter to tackle the tough courses since there won't be much to do except study. (lol)</p>

<p>I also remember my freshman year at Florida - huge classes in a huge campus. My 3rd and 4th years were much better but those first 2 years were a "survival of the fittest" obstacle course. The freshman classes I attended with my daughter at Northwestern were very impressive.</p>

<p>I still remember a math course I took my freshman year. The class was taught by a professor on a TV screen -- he had died the year before. I often wondered if his wife was getting residuals... (LOL)</p>

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<p>The Hilton Garden Inn also has a little pool and jacuzzi, which came in handy when my family came to visit...it was a great way for my 3 yr old brother to blow off steam, and I got to spend some time in the jacuzzi. ;)</p>