This is easy. I like others would pick a woman’s college. Of course I am a straight male. The 18 yo me would have dreams of grandeur. The old version of me understands what the reality would be.
I had to think for a minute and then I knew exactly what I’d choose - Oxford. I’d go study 18th Century Literature and I’d read all the time, everywhere. I’d drink tea by the boatload and the evening I’d go out to pubs with my buddies and argue about things that matter intensely / don’t really matter at all.
Faber College…
That, too@CaMom13. If only we had nine magical lives 
Hahaha! @GKUnion , toooo funny!
I change my answer. Cambridge! So much prettier than Oxford, and I love England. Thanks for the inspiration, @CaMom13 .
Or maybe I’d go to Bates and totally live my kid’s life. Polar opposite from my commuterville experience at CSULB, lol.
Notre Dame.
@GKUnion, had to look that up… Good one! I think I did go there, as my alma mater is said to be one of the schools with the dubious distinction of inspiring the movie. I did learn to avoid those frat parties, lol.
@inthegarden–For a second I thought I wrote your post #39. Miami U./Peace Corps, and William and Mary was one of my fantasy schools. But I was not on an archaeological dig that summer before Peace Corps–I was working temp jobs in Cleveland.
My ultimate fantasy school is Wyoming Catholic–a very small/unusual school. Great Books in the wilderness. Star gazing, mountain climbing, horseback riding. Graduates wear cowboy hats–I love that.
Harvey Mudd, no other option comes close. ?
Any above average school in Boston. Every time I go to Boston I just love it. Always have, though as a kid it was maybe a once per year trip from Maine to attend something (Red Sox, Ice Capades, Barnum and Baily Circus, Science Museum, etc.). But I always loved it. Going to school there at 18 was not an affordable option (that’s a whole other story).
UChicago or Swarthmore. Study abroad at University of Edinburgh.
H and I have played this game many times! Although we met and fell in love at our big state flagship, we have both said we would now chose a smaller school. After living vicariously through both of our kid’s experiences (at smallish privates) we realized how different/better their 4 years were in comparison to ours. Thus, I would chose either of their alma maters or, since I love NYC, maybe Columbia! My H’s pick in this game is usually Princeton.
I absolutely loved almost every minute of my college experience, and I really blossomed at WashU in a humanities double major with a year abroad, so it would be hard not to choose it again. However, my primary regret as a 50-something is that I never pursued formal art training. I was talented but was discouraged by my parents from choosing that path. Right now almost everything I do as a hobby and some of what I do for side income is all creative/artistic activities that would have benefitted from formal training.
So I probably either would go back to Wash U as an art major or I would pick something like the Brown/RISD dual degree program.
I would go to UT-Austin all over again. Fun university with one of the best engineering schools in the country. A no-brainer.
Coincidentally, I walked across campus last week one day. On another day, I took my daughter and niece through the beautiful private dorm I stayed in all four years of college. I wouldn’t mind going back and getting another degree if I could live there again!
The University of Michigan all over again. Like @intparent, for me, no other option comes close. Ann Arbor is pure magic. Go Blue!
@Riversider: My answer depends upon whether the colleges & universities would be as they are today or as they were decades ago when I was in college.
Brown. After an official visit when our son was being recruited to play football there, my husband and I wanted to sign up ourselves.
Our son, on the other hand, didn’t see the charm, even after receiving a likely letter and lots of attention from the coach and admissions department.
I loved my time at Boston University, and going to college in Boston is the best. But I would choose Northwestern (as a theater major) because they rejected me back then. I’ve always wished I’d lived in Chicago, if even for a short period of time.
Wow, @atomom, I would also adore Great Books in the wilderness. Imagine those conversations around the campfire under the stars. Love the Rocky Mountains, have to look into that!
@“one+two” and @ChaosParent23 I went to W&M, loved it and would choose it again without pause.
If the challenge is to pick somewhere different, I would pick a women’s college like @mamaedefamilia But which one?! Gorgeous, classic Wellesley has a sailing team . . . Mount Holyoke with Mountain Day, Vespers, Laurel Parade, and a lovely location. But I might choose Bryan Mawr due to the bi-co with Haverford, access to Philly, and the feel which I think of as cozy-brilliant.