<p>With all of the colleges in the United States, and even across the globe, it is impossible to visit all of them. Still, no matter how many schools you narrow your search down to, you’re bound to find one that prompts a great big “DO NOT WANT!” (Sorry for my meme reference.) It becomes increasingly easy to find a bad apple when you actually take the time to visit schools physically. So, I would just like to hear others’ stories of collegiate disappointment. I’ll give my story first.</p>
<p>I’m from a podunk town in Missouri and, in my search for the perfect college, I found a need to apply to a back-up school. Somewhere I knew I would be admitted and could afford. While I knew it was far from what I was looking for in a college, I decided to look into Missouri Western State University. It is an open-admissions school with a very low price tag. In addition to the academic scholarships I’m sure I would receive if I attended, I would also be a legacy, prompting additional scholarship money. With the help of outside scholarship money and a job, I could probably graduate with very little debt (if any).</p>
<p>When my mother and I walked into the main hall, where the information sessions were held, I immediately knew something would be off. I wasn’t disappointed. They started the session by forcing the unenthusiastic crowd to chant “MWSU.” Yeah. Try to make that roll smoothly off the tongue. And why were we expected to have spirit for their school when we walked in? Isn’t it their job to actually make us like them before we are prodded to cheer? Afterwards, we had to sit through about a 90 minute power-point presentation that talked about their affordability and community service awards. Academics and classes weren’t even mentioned once.</p>
<p>Later, we were all herded into groups for a campus tour. MoWest is infamous for two things: hills and wind. We were all exhausted and we couldn’t even hear what our guide was saying. Programs other than sports were largely ignored, including the school newspaper, the only extracurricular offered at the school that I was remotely interested in. After turning us loose, at an abrupt tour end, we decided to go eat lunch in the cafeteria. Big mistake. Long story short, when I got home, I had a massive headache and fluid was exiting my body through every opening it could find. After this tour, which I omitted much of for sake of space (there were a lot of other terrible things), even my parents, who both attended, decided this was the school of last resort. And when I say last resort, I mean after skipping college and failing as a stripper. In the end, I decided that Truman State is a much better plan for an affordable school.</p>
<p>So, that’s my story. What’s yours?</p>