Earlier this week, Henry and I went Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington, to check it out, and we both loved it. It's the right size, has a great college feel to it, takes academics seriously and has a rockin' sports culture (at least for basketball). Every single person we met during the day was helpful and nice. And the soccer coaches, facility and program are top-notch! Keep your fingers crossed for him (next year).
I didn't bring my camera, but I did do a little sketching, including this one:
Did you go to college? Did you visit before you decided where to attend? What made you choose your school?
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Today, I'm participating in Abi's "Operation Speak Out," which encourages people to come out of lurkdom and comment on blogs. So, look for me to comment on your blog.
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We went through the whole college visit trawl early last year and after visiting the ones that we thought she would like the best Gracia choose to go to one that she hadn't visited = the one that was 5 hours drive away but in the States I would think you look on that as a local one.
Back in the day when I was choosing which University to attend there was not a norm of visiting. In Scotland at that time the main choice was stay at home or move to another city. i moved (most of my school friends stayed). Then I chose by city.
Nowadays Universities arrange visit days and talks from students and faculty. My youngest nephew chose his University entirely because of one of these visits.
I'll be doing this for D in a couple of years - scary thought. I can remember trawling around with my Dad and rejecting Sheffield because it was a grey horrible day and it looked too grey. I then visited a few years later in the summer and it was lovely. No telling a teenager is there :0)
I found out which 2 were best for what I wanted to study,visited them both...and then picked the one I liked best.
DD1 only visited 1 uni.....Canterbury....loved it so much...that she never bothered to look anywhere else....luckily she got in there!
When it was time for my daughter to go to university she visited lots. WE visited lots and then she chose one which is 150 miles away. Seemed like a very long way from home for us, but think you would consider that 'close'! My son, visited about 4. Didn't want us to go with him at all. We were ok to provide him with a lift there, just so long as he looked round on his own. They are SO different! And after all that, he ended up in the same city that his sister went to. They were never there together though, he started the year she left!
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Good luck to your son - hope he makes the right choice and has a blast!
i stayed at the same school for 6th form but when i went to nursing school i went to lots of different places and went for the place which i felt was the most right fit for me and had been the most friendly at interview. my parents wanted me to go to 2 other places but i stuck to my guns and have never regreted training at the london, it was an amazing experience.
jo xxx
We did college visits my junior year. I got into the big deal university in our state but chose a small women's junior college for my first two years. I felt much more at home and comfortable at a small school coming from a small private prep school. After graduating there I did move on to a large university with a great program in my major. Good luck to Henry!
I'm definitely keeping my fingers crossed for him. We are having very similar discussions here. Lots of discussions. This stuff is hard! Best of luck Henry
I didn't visit the college I attended prior to my orientation. There was never any doubt I was going to go there. There were 3 colleges within 20 minutes of my hometown, including one actually in it. No way was I going to any of them. They were too small & too full of people I'd known all my life. I was leaving town, getting away from those people & being wild & free at the large state university.
The fact that it was the #1 party school in the nation at the time have NOTHING to do with. :)
Ahh, I remember it well. For Matt, Cornell ended up being the only school he applied to after finishing two years at Finger Lakes Community College. Sarah and I visited nearly 10 schools in Massachusetts. She chose Boston University, but hated being in a metropolitan area and transferred after a year. Then we did the whole visitation thing again for seminaries. I actually loved the travel and the undivided time we had together. For seminary, once she saw Columbia in Decatur, GA, that was the only school she applied to.
I applied to three schools, and visited the two I didn't know. My father had a rule you had to be at least 4 hours from home. His theory was that then you couldn't run home if things got tough.
Keeping my fingers crossed! It's great to find one you love so early in the process.
Thank you so much for joining in Rinda! I am applying to college at the moment. We call it university! I am going to one in the very north of england called Durham! It was stressful trying to choose which ones. I would so encourage looking around. I visited one uni that looked great but I visited and for me it was all wrong. It was a good learning curve! xx
I like how you sketch while you're traveling. Sounds like it was a good college visit.
I knew the only way I could afford college was to work & attend the local university, which I did for 7 year to earn my BBA.
Hope you don't have to make too many visits before Henry makes his decision!
Alison xx
it is a hard decision, I visited uni's and thought I would like one but actually fell in love with another! So visiting was very important for me. Good luck to you all with the decision. I am jooining in OSO and have left nearly 50 comments today!
That's a fearsome looking animal - and a soft and pretty sketch!
my parents told me what college they would pay for me to go to - university of idaho - which was instate and comprehensive. that pretty much decided it for me! i'm glad you liked gonzaga so much. i have a place in sandpoint, idaho, not far from there.
I was stuck at home for my first 2 years but was about to transfer to UCSB when a friend came over and suggested UCSC as enrollment had opened up. I had never seen the campus but I lived Santa Cruz so it was a no brainier. At the time the town had a population of 60,000 and the university 6,000. One of the best decisions I ever made. I loved it. I hope Henry gets into Gonzaga (if he decides he likes it). Great school.
I like your sketch. Simple but lovely. I like that idea of Operation Speak Out. Sounds like fun. I'll check it out. Happy Easter Rinda, take care.
I didn't go to college, but we have been through it all with Ben four years ago and have just finished going through it with Penny!
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