[bruinaphi]

Hey newbie, sorry you're having such a tough time with your parents! My parents are very similar about schools, it's all about going to the best schools. I haven't looked at Fiske in a couple of years but does it really distinguish b/w UCI, UCSB and U of A all that greatly?

I was lucky b/c my parents always thought my choices were the "right" ones but one of my sisters had some problems with my dad when she applied to school b/c she would have gotten into most of the Ivys and she wanted to go to Amherst. She made a list of all the schools she was applying to, divided into far reaches, slight reaches, attainable and fall backs and wrote down what she liked, disliked, etc. about each school next to their statistics. She made my dad go back to Amherst with her and visit so that he could experience it first hand. It totally swayed him. The fact that she had done all the research and cared so much really impressed him and the visit to the school really impressed him. I don't know if there is any reasoning with your parents on this issue, but sometimes it helps to go in prepared for battle.

You might also want to talk to your dean or college counselor at school about the problems you are having with your parents. He/she can probably help you develop arguments or may meet with them to talk this through.

Good luck!