Weather makes a huge difference for those who have it. Should I mention that I am in Boston now?
Well we are headed off to two admitted student days this weekend - and one is where it SHOULD be spring and the other is near Boston where it should ALMOST be spring. Instead, there will be snow tomorrow for at least one of the visits. Snow and April do not belong in the same sentence. Weâve already been to at least 10 college visits in the past year that involved snow, freezing rain and/or bitter cold. This was supposed to be a spring visit. Monday we were in Richmond and it was 80 degrees and sunny. The tulips were in full bloom.
One more school off the list today. At the accepted students day my S heard in a session that if kids were interested in the branch of engineering he wants that the school is not the place for them. Surprisingly, this came in a session about study abroad/international experiences.
Needless to say we left halfway through the day to drive to our second event of the weekend. I had I hopes for this second school, but apparently my S is already in âmehâ mode because of the size. Doesnât help that my wife hasnât said a positive thingâŠso much for helping S keep an open mind.
Weâre down to this school and one other which we saw last weekendâŠthat one lacks the one thing heâs continually said he wants in a school. I guess weâll see what happens tomorrowâŠ
@crowlady: congratulations! Fwiw, my S wanted cold weather and has just committed to his southernmost school. The honors and study abroad options sold him.
Congrats @petrichor11 .
We are in Delaware at the moment waiting for an accepted student day tomorrow, which might seal the deal as her choice. Highs are supposed to be about 42 with wind and snow showers, so if she chooses it over her Southern option she does so with eyes wide open and winter coat on.
Study abroad is something they sold her in during her Scholars Weekend last month, seems to be a major plus to most kids, though truthfully I donât think we have been to a school that didnât offer it.
@Skates76 I hear you on the study abroad being offered at most schools but not all schools offer programs everywhere and what is offered can vary significantly in cost. Ask also about the living arrangements for the students. Do they live in dorms, with host families or in a house with others from their university? Those details may get you closer to a decision.
Also ask about how tuition is affected , how her scholarship is affected ( if at all ) and if it typically lengthens the amount of time needed to graduate @Skates76 . Youâre right though. Co ops and study abroad seemed to be big draws for a lot of students , but when we looked closer, every school we applied to offered similar programs.
I am confused about the emphasis placed on study abroad opportunities. Not because I donât value study abroad, in fact I think every student ought to study abroad, but because I donât see what difference it makes that your university has programs available, other than ease of logistics
Back in the day (and we all know that was eons ago) I did my entire junior year abroad at UCL-SSEES. I arranged the program myself because my home university did not have a program that would meet my needs for my major. I contacted the foreign university, found compatible courses for my major, got the approval from my home university for the courses, applied and was accepted as an international student, got a tuition waiver for the home university, paid the local tuition for UCL (which btw was much cheaper than paying tuition at my home university) packed my bags and enjoyed my year in London, to lived in a dorm with other UCL students, took classes at the London School of Economics (outside of my immediate college), travelled a bit on school breaks, and navigated life in a big city all on my own. I ever actually spoke to another American student while I was there.
My husband did his entire junior year at U of Edinburgh on an arranged study abroad program between Case and Edinburgh for Chem E. So other than not having to arrange the credit transfer for courses or pay the local tuition study abroad experience was very similar to mine. Well, expect that he roomed with his friend from Case while in Edinburgh.
Of course I can see that it might have been nice to not do all the leg work myself, but I am not sure that I would let the study abroad details be a deterrent to attend at school. Of course it is important to see if how your tuition is handled and if the program effects your graduation schedule. Many of the âstudy abroadâ opportunities that school are taunting today are more like educational trips or field trips \ than study abroad opportunities. Maybe I am just confused by the use of terminology?
For D, when looking at the study abroad- the important question was whether students in her major (engineering) were able to integrate a study abroad opportunity without significantly prolonging graduation. Many programs said you could meet gen ed requirements abroad-- but as she has many AP credits, her gen ed requirements are partially met already. The program she was interested in at the university she chose specifically focuses on engineering in emerging regions- so the study abroad is a required component of a minor she would like to pursue.
Maybe I need to have my morning cup of coffee because my above post seemed a bit preachy. Sorry, I did not mean it as such. Study abroad opportunities were a huge check mark for my D16 too. But, given her 6 year course plan, study abroad is going to be nearly impossible to fit in, so the educational field trips are going to have to suffice as her way of ticking off that check box. Although we have been discussing the possibility to work in study abroad by shadowing a physiotherapist in England/Scotland/Ireland it is on her list to talk to her advisor about during her summer preview visit.
I am just saying that it is possible that you can create your own study abroad program that fits your needs specifically.
sorry @labegg I was just trying to share a different perspective to understanding the study abroad perspective-- there are many types of study abroad-- many are widely shared and available to all students at every university-- but others are particular to a specific major/department/focus and not widely available. So I think its important to pull back the covers on what students mean when they say the want study abroad and what a university can and does really offer to see if there is a match.
I think many schools use the study abroad programs as a profit center. Most expensive private schools we toured assured us that you just pay your tuition to us like usual when you go abroad and then your FA would apply too. Itâs all very easy, no need to worry. On the other hand, many public schools told us that OOS students could actually save money by going abroad because the programs were less expensive than the tuition. So whatâs wrong with that picture? The actual cost of the program is less than public school tuition, yet the privates will charge full price? No wonder they promote it so heavily.
Study abroad was not a huge draw for my son at this point, but heâs really interested in doing something in DC with the government . His school has a very active International Scholars program that seemed to be a big draw at interview weekend.
@me29034 - Yes! That was one of the points I was attempting to make. I actually paid less to attend the foreign university then I paid my home university. It was cheaper. Those universities are sneeky smart - why not collect $40k in tuition send a kid off to uni abroad pay that school $20K and the home university pockets at cool $20k.
So on a light note, did any accepted students packet have something fun included? We liked the marketing mailings that were out of the ordinary, just curious if any schools extend that to their âCongratulations!â packets.
@piesquared We received lots of pennants and flags. Also received an embossed portfolio folder and pen. We didnât receive this in the mail, but on my sonâs interview weekend , he received sunglasses, a water bottle, decal, beach ball and beach towel from the CS department from College of Charleston.
The profile image change says it all. My future Sun Devil has made the call.
After a college search that went far and wide (none in our home state), she chose Arizona State (Barrett Honors) for its strength in her major, NMF perks, big-city location and energetic vibe. (Sheâll be in the downtown Phoenix campus.)
ASU wasnât even on our radar as a possibility 18 months ago, but my D16 made a well-informed choice â and the whole family is looking forward to its first dead-of-winter trip from the the frozen north.
@MidwestMomTo2 ASU Barrett was on our long list, and believe me, I spent a lot of time daydreaming of visiting Phoenix in the winter! Congrats!
Congrats @MidwestMomTo2