Girlie AGDee's College Search Thread

[AGDee]

Originally Posted by GammaGirl1908

We sure are! Go Blue!

But seriously, if that is where she goes, it's a great place where everyone can find their niche. I could have gotten a great education at any one of so many excellent schools in this country -- and I attended other schools for grad school, so I've gotten a good slice of life at a couple of excellent colleges -- and I remain very, very glad I chose U of M.

It's no accident that we have such massive school pride -- it's because it's a place worthy of such pride!

Don't get me wrong, like any large institution it has its pros and cons for darn sure (just tonight, a young friend of mine who's gotten in there for grad school -- and who went to a very small undergrad school -- complained to me about them not having sent her some information she wanted. Me: "Errr ... you should get used to hunting down information on your own. There is very little handholding there. This is how it is, not a glitch."), and there are plenty of ways it might not be the right place for someone ... but if she feels at home there, she will have a blast.

From the first time she stepped foot in Ann Arbor (to meet "Lemony Snicket" for a book signing at Borders), she loved it. She just wants to escape this state and I can't blame her for that. U of M would be the easiest for me, for sure. It's only 45 minutes away...lol. She knows she would be happy there. She loves the restaurants, coffee shops, stores, central campus, etc. She really just wants to leave the state.

[IndianaSigKap]

Originally Posted by AGDee

From the first time she stepped foot in Ann Arbor (to meet "Lemony Snicket" for a book signing at Borders), she loved it. She just wants to escape this state and I can't blame her for that. U of M would be the easiest for me, for sure. It's only 45 minutes away...lol. She knows she would be happy there. She loves the restaurants, coffee shops, stores, central campus, etc. She really just wants to leave the state.

One of my sisters felt the same way. She had grown up in Bloomington and her father worked for the university. She had a very unusual last name, so everyone on campus knew who her father was, and at times he was not all that popular on campus. She was determined to go out of state until she realized that neither her car nor any of her friends would be going with her and that she would have to fly to and from school which meant fewer trips home. :-) She ended up very happy at IU even though it was the "home" school.

[GammaGirl1908]

Originally Posted by AGDee

From the first time she stepped foot in Ann Arbor (to meet "Lemony Snicket" for a book signing at Borders), she loved it. She just wants to escape this state and I can't blame her for that. U of M would be the easiest for me, for sure. It's only 45 minutes away...lol. She knows she would be happy there. She loves the restaurants, coffee shops, stores, central campus, etc. She really just wants to leave the state.

I feel her -- I wanted to leave Michigan by the time I was done at UM, too, heh -- but you know what? The rest of the world still will be there 3-5 years from now. If the one and only thing wrong with UM is that it's not in Pittsburgh or Miami or DC or Seattle, she can sprint to any of those places with a puff of smoke behind her after college! (... and she'll have the strength of the largest alumni base in the world behind her when she goes.) I know it's hard to think that far ahead when you're 18, but it's so important to try to think long-term when making this decision.

[als463]

Originally Posted by GammaGirl1908

I feel her -- I wanted to leave Michigan by the time I was done at UM, too, heh -- but you know what? The rest of the world still will be there 3-5 years from now. If the one and only thing wrong with UM is that it's not in Pittsburgh or Miami or DC or Seattle, she can sprint to any of those places with a puff of smoke behind her after college! (... and she'll have the strength of the largest alumni base in the world behind her when she goes.) I know it's hard to think that far ahead when you're 18, but it's so important to try to think long-term when making this decision.

I know that Penn State touts the largest DUES PAYING Alumni Association in the nation! I think PSU passed U of M around 2009 or 2010. Penn State also has the largest student-run philanthropy in the world (THON). Too bad AGDee's daughter wasn't interested in becoming a Nittany Lion but, I wish her all the best!

As far as attending schools--I was set on Temple for the longest time (not sure why). I didn't want to attend my alma mater, at first, because I had family members who had worked for the school and growing up I was tired of hearing about how great PSU was. As I got older, I was able to appreciate everything Penn State had to offer. Attending a Big Ten university has definitely opened doors for me and I hope it will continue to do so in the future. Good luck to your daughter!