<p>coldplay-- we visited UConn-- pretty briefly as the program in D’s field wasn’t a great fit. It’s a pretty campus and smaller than you might think, given the size. Everything looked great, it definitely feels alive and thinking. It is in the middle of nowhere. I mean NOWHERE. But it is said to be a terrific school and it certainly had that vibe.</p>
<p>Thank you, Gwen Fairfax</p>
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Hey, I am from NY and I know where Wooster is. Of course being 9 miles from the Mass. border I am actually probably closer to Wooster than Montauk. ;)</p>
<p>I’m afraid you are mixing your “Wooster” with you “Worcester”. Wooster, Ohio is the home of the College of Wooster, a lovely LAC. Worcester, in central Mass is the home of WPI, Clark, Holy Cross and many other fine institutions.</p>
<p>Yes, I was. Because we do say it that way. Who knew there were so many confusing place names. :o I am from Los Angeles, and still have a lot to learn about the East.</p>
<p>and you know what her dad was up to while Meadow was interviewing at Bowdoin…</p>
<p>Pomona - too small and empty. Didn’t like east la
Uc Santa cruz is in a Forrest
Lewis and Clark too small
Uc irvine commuter</p>
<p>S crossed off all schools in Rochester after visiting the city & seeing the snow poles & fences. He decided he’s more of a warm-weather urban kid. Ended up at USoCal but will be heading for his 1st “real” job now in DC/VA.</p>
<p>mnrmom-we live a couple counties away from Wooster and I tell people we live between Columbus and Cleveland. Wooster has a couple of great restaurants!</p>
<p>GWU
NYU
(didn’t want a “city feel” to the campus)</p>
<p>My daughter did not like Georgetown because “there’s not enough grass.” This made some sense because she had already fallen in love with some rural LACs. </p>
<p>The next day we toured GWU, which I thought was going to be a total waste of time. She spent the entire tour texting. After the tour, she said, “I love this; I’m definitely going to apply.” I pointed out that there was no grass at all at GWU, and she said she was excited about the idea of going to school in DC and having access to all kinds of internships in the city. I pointed out that she would have the same opportunities at Georgetown and she said, “No, Georgetown is too far away from D.C.” (This was after a day when we had walked from Georgetown to the White House.)</p>
<p>LOL simpkin.</p>
<p>I’m a current HS student who crossed has crossed off UPenn and Northwestern so far. Northwestern lacked the academic feel that I prefer, especially given that we had vistied UChicago the previous day. Worse, the tour guide was majoring in my intended major, but he could not coherently answer questions about the major. I’m not sure the specific reason I was turned off by UPenn, but I distinctly remember disliking the student union.</p>
<p>On the other hand, UChicago was wonderful, and Georgetown was also nice. I don’t particularly like our state flagship, as it’s too large, but it’s priced well enough and it has a significantly higher acceptance rate.</p>
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<p>Ditto, though I visited the two in the same day.</p>
<p>Well there you go. My son, a junior, thought U of C was too impersonal and he loved the feel of Penn. It probably helped that we were visiting friends at the campus and got a much more personal feel.</p>
<p>The whole college visit experience has been very interesting in my household. D crossed Ball State off the list first - too many buildings was her reason - which translates via my husband who took her - as too much concrete, not enough open, green spaces. He wasn’t impressed either. She also did not like Kent State. Akron was ok, she didn’t think they liked her all that much. She loved Slippery Rock!!! Think it didn’t hurt that there were so many Steeler fans that day.</p>
<p>I’ve been lurking and learning for a couple of months and really appreciate CC as a resource!</p>
<p>S and I toured Duke, Elon, Wake and Furman. I had also scheduled a stop at Wofford, but we arrived early and toured on our own.</p>
<p>S, H and I toured U of Richmond.</p>
<p>Impressions:</p>
<p>Duke: Stellar academic rep meant Duke doesn’t need to “sell” itself. No dorms were included and only saw inside of library and student center. S and I are directionally challenged, so we found the campus hard to get around. When I was FINALLY allowed to ask someone for directions, they had no clue as to where the UG admissions building was either. Our tour guide was very friendly and peppy - definitely the over-achiever type I would expect.</p>
<p>Elon: Was unexpectedly impressed. Was really surprised by the quality of the facilities. Our tour guide was very friendly and S seemed to enjoy talking to him. Because I requested, we were able to go inside McMichael science building, but did not see any labs.</p>
<p>Furman: Had much of the same feel as Elon, only more mature. Similar red brick Georgian architecture, fountains, lake, gardens, but more shade (mature trees). Felt more “stately”. Two Bio profs took time to answer questions about pre-health program and advising. Felt that academics would be very personal. Seemed terrific, but perhaps a bit too conservative for S.</p>
<p>Wofford: After touring Duke, Elon and Furman, this was a let-down b/c of its size. We walked around the science building, but nothing really stood out. This is off the list b/c the its size (<1500).</p>
<p>Wake: New UG admissions building is really nice! Our info session adcom was the best of any we’d seen. She really spoke from the heart about Wake and I wished I could be going back to school! Saw the new dorms (South) on the tour - fabulous - but I don’t know what the “typical” dorm would be. Campus had a great open feel to it, but without the “resort-type” embellishments of Elon and Furman. Still, a great place to spend four years. We also liked its size. Separate Chem/Bio/Physics/etc. buildings. Just wish Wake wasn’t so tied to the IBM thinkpad. S is a Mac.</p>
<p>URichmond: We knew it would be beautiful and UR didn’t disappoint. H and I really liked all the interdisiplenary options. As this was H’s first tour, he was very impressed. Only thing I could “ding” UR on was the dorm. Was not at the level of Elon, Furman or Wake. Dining hall seemed like it has a lot of eating options, not that S is too picky.</p>
<p>Tops:
UR, Elon and Wake</p>
<p>Still interested:
Furman and Duke</p>
<p>The big eye-opener of this search is the cost and the realities of what we should reasonably expect from Need / Merit Aid. For my H and I, it’s really hard to justify $55K a year out-of-pocket for Wake, Duke and UR, where merit aid is very hard to come by.</p>
<p>Simpkin shaking my head. My son loved American, tolerated Georgetown, and couldn’t get out of GW fast enough.</p>
<p>911C2S - that new admissions bldg at Wake IS amazing! I have never seen anything like it. I sent you a PM with more Wake info.</p>
<p>Forgot to mention William and Mary.</p>
<p>S and I knew about the geek-vibe going in, but they could not have done more to confirm it! The senior who presented during the info session gave great advice - pick a school where you find kids that you want to talk to, hang out with, etc. Unfortunately, S didn’t see himself here hanging out with kids who wear bow-ties and whose glasses match their yellow Chuck Taylors.</p>
<p>No doubt that academics are top-notch (and as a VA resident, great price!). Campus seemed shabby compared to the private schools we’ve seen, plus there seems to be a fair bit of construction.</p>
<p>The one academic building we entered had a lot of dark wood and dark green. Guide said it was her favorite building. S felt it seemed oppressive compared to the modern feel of Elon and Wake.</p>
<p>Overall, S did not like the architecture (too Colonial) and felt the school just seemed “old”. Duh…</p>