<p>Hi, Im an athlete and the above schools Ive been recruited by and been offered 90% to full rides for all of them. I have three weeks to commit to one before I start losing money, given the nature of my sport(Track and Field) scholarship money goes by very quick, so the sooner you commit the better. Ive taken official visits to all of these schools and theyre all on a somewhat even plane for me as far as interest goes. </p>
<p>Im asking everyone to help me with this decision by placing pros and cons of each university, comparing them if youre familiar with more than one, or commenting which one is overall a better university for the very rare athlete who actually seeks an education. Also if you are or were a student athlete familiar with these universities could you give as much insight as possible on the academic support, and other experiences. By the way my major is in the range of History, Intnl Relations, Sociology, and Political Science, so if you know about the strength of these majors in these Universities that would help. </p>
<p>I did take visits to these schools, but basically the school only tells you whats great about their university never whats not great, so Im asking for your insight because this decision will effectively determine the next 4-5 years of my life directly and the rest of my life indirectly.</p>
<p>Base off your decision off what you’re trying to accomplish by going to college. Are you wanting to keep running and do it as something you really love and enjoy? Or are you trying to get the best education possible and come out strong? That should get you where you need to go. And dont worry, anyone here would be lucky to have the chance that you have right now.</p>
<p>well i want to be the best runner I can be but i also don’t want to lose the opportunity to receive a great degree and get a great job upon graduation.</p>
<p>I am fortunate to be friends with several track&field athletes from UVa that I met while I was there(graduated in the spring) and not only were they - for the most part - all great students, but they were a fun and interesting group of people. I would tell anyone who passed up an opportunity to be a UVa track and field student-athlete that they REALLY missed out.</p>
<p>I can also speak, in part, to the political science and sociology opportunities at UVa. While I majored in neither (econ), I took several courses in each, as social science is my thing.</p>
<p>Sociology: of the Family, Pop Culture, of Childhood<br>
Politics: Intro to Amer. Politics, Mass Media and Amer. Politics, VA Govt and Politics. </p>
<p>Every professor I had in these courses was great, the material was interesting and valuable, and the workloads were absolutely manageable.</p>
<p>I did have a history professor for an adviser for two semesters and he was very pleasant and insightful. </p>
<p>To correct one misconception about Penn - as a student, I would certainly say Penn is anything but boring. Penn is known as the social ivy, and I have found this to be completely true. It sounds to me like you just had an unfortunate official visit.</p>
<p>Your other con - that Penn’s track team is less competitive - is certainly true when compared to the other schools you mentioned. That being said, Penn has had plenty of all-americans this decade and two ncaa national champions. So, you certainly can be successful on a national level in the program, but yes, the ivy league is certainly less competitive than the big10, acc, or pac10.</p>
<p>So, when deciding about Upenn, you are really deciding how much you are willing to sacrifice athletically for your academics. As far as social life goes, Penn can hold its own with the other schools you are looking at.</p>
<p>I disagree that you would question a degree from UCLA. They are one of the highest ranked public colleges in the country, and one of the most beautiful. I would choose UCLA, partially because I am a bruin fan myself and their track team is phenomenal. If I am correct, the UCLA sprint coach was one of the sprint coaches at the Olympics in 2008. They always send runners to the Olympics and are constantly winners in NCAA competitions. UCLA is an incredibly well-respected school when it comes to academics and athletics (they are the first school to win over 100 national titles, and I’m sure track helped a lot in that count)</p>
<p>UVA has a great coach, Jason Vigilante, who transferred from Texas I believe. All the student-athletes on the track team work really hard, on and off the court. They’re always in the JPJ study room, which is right below the athletes’ dining hall that serves great food. You can request tutors for any classes and guarantee that the coordinators will find one (usually a graduate student) within days.</p>
<p>my brother is on the distance team at penn and could not be happier. the coach is an amazing coach and person who has coached many national-caliber runners. his teammates are his best friends and he enjoys the challenging academics and sports scene. while there is not as much competition in the ivy league as would be at uva, michigan, or ucla, there is still enough that you would not walk in as a freshman and be bored for 4 years with no one to challenge you. as for your concern about everyone studying all the time, it’s not true. yes, they take academics seriously, i am not suggesting that penn students are slackers. but upenn is known as the “social ivy.” they are known for partying more than other ivies and i mean, all of the schools listed take academics pretty seriously. that shouldn’t be a deciding factor - there is plenty to do on upenn’s campus in terms of parties and off the campus, because well, you’re in philly! and one reason to go to penn is franklin field. now i know that is not a reason to choose a school, but pertaining to your concern about the lesser competition at penn, the penn relays are held at penn! so obviously there will be some very competitive meets. </p>
<p>and, on a side note, my brother met el guerrouj yesterday at franklin field while on a casual morning run. pretty sick if you ask me.</p>
<p>Penn’s track team is awesome. I know a lot of the guys and they’re always having fun, but they definitely do work hard at the same time to balance their schedule.</p>