<p>This thread is covering a lot of the same ground as <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-miami-florida/564740-how-school-going.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-miami-florida/564740-how-school-going.html</a>, so I’ll crosspost.</p>
<p>My son graduates from UM in less than two weeks. He had his share of first year blues but stuck it out because he loved the professors in his area of interest, (Marine Sciences), as well as the opportunities he was offered because of his scuba diving experience. </p>
<p>At first he struggled to find “his group”; it was easy to point to the party atmosphere and the “rich, snotty” kids because they made for easy, stereotypical targets. The fact of the matter is that college is not high school. You aren’t surrounded by people all from your part of town and you aren’t seeing the same people in the same classes 5 times a week for 9 months in a row. I told him that going away to college was like moving to a new city for a job change. You’re not going to know many people and your day to day schedule will make it hard to consistently connect with people having the same interests as you. It takes effort to find people you want to hang out with.</p>
<p>Some people never get comfortable and they choose to transfer; for them the grass will always be greener someplace else. But just remember that there are students transferring into and out of every college in America, including the likes of Harvard and Stanford. Contrary to the “wisdom” spouted on CC, there is no perfect school, only places and situations that are personally better or worse for you. But every transfer resets the clock for the new student. You will be the new guy, without the common experience of freshman year or the built-in if small circle of friends. BruinsJEW tells a a cautionary story about how he has attended three colleges in three years and now feels he made a mistake leaving Miami. My suggestion is to find the place that best suits what you want to study and then try and make the social side work. As you move up the ladder of a particular department you will start to see more and more familiar faces in classes and the friend making will get easier.</p>
<p>Socially, Miami is no better or worse than any other school. But socializing is only a part of college, but it isn’t the most important part. The sooner you come around to that realization, the sooner the situation will get easier to deal with.</p>