Applying To Colleges

[California8429]

I'll throw it out there for some peoples' happiness, I got a mailing from University of Maryland saying I should apply.

[ilikeverin]

I'll throw it out there for some peoples' happiness, I got a mailing from University of Maryland saying I should apply.

As you should!

C'mon, take a look, it can't hurt!  Xahar and I will likely be able to pitch it much more effectively once we actually get there this fall.  You should probably talk to him more than me- as a grad student, I'll be in a magical other world (full of brains and phonemes and fun stuff like that), but Xahar will actually, like, be living in the dorms, and stuff.

[Хahar 🤔]

Phonemes!

Boris transferred from Wisconsin to Illinois, as I recall. It's not impossible or anything. The price issue is a much bigger deal; you have to be reasonably rich to survive.

[California8429]

Georgetown is awesome, both the campus and surrounding area. I had a great experience with a dean and a professor, though my tour guide was meh (apparently tour guide students only stay for a week instead of a month or summer at GTU).

I just graduated from Georgetown if you want to ask or PM me any questions. The campus and surrounding area are nice, though I think you'll quickly get sick of the Georgetown neighborhood. Luckily the rest of DC is pretty cool.

Thanks! I heard a rumor they are going to turn all the student off campus housing into faculty housing because the Georgetown residents are complaining that students are housing I guess. Well anyway, they have power considering there's no metro stop in Georgetown because of them.

[LastVoter]

Future Material Science & Engineering major here!(got accepted a couple weeks ago).

[SPC]

Obviously I'm a few months late, but is anyone going to UCLA?

[California8429]

The list is being cut still.

Duke
Yale
Harvard
Princeton
Stanford
Brown
Tufts
Georgetown
George Washington
UVa
William and Mary
Michigan
Denver
American
Cornell
Hamilton

Bolds are up on the cutting block.

[Kaine for Senate '18]

Don't cut UVA!  It has one of the best Politics Departments in the country; definitely better than William and Mary or American!

[ilikeverin]

Instead of cutting Michigan you should add a "State" to the end!

[California8429]

Don't cut UVA!  It has one of the best Politics Departments in the country; definitely better than William and Mary or American!

I know it is better than William and Mary, but I'm not sure if I like such a huge campus. Though after a year I'd probably be extremely bored at WM...

American is just way easier to get into since the admissions rate is like 41% and I calculated out of state for UVa and it is like 23% or something. Why does it seem like everyone but Virginians want to go to these Virginian schools? haha

I'm probably going to have to choose between Michigan and UVa. Michigan is larger, so that's a negative. They'd both be in battleground states which would be fun. Michigan has a really good PS department as well though, but I may be thinking more grad than undergrad.

[Psychic Octopus]

So, this week, I'll be in Southern California, interviewing at Occidental, Pomona, Claremont McKenna, and USC. If all goes according to plan, that is. My trip to the East Coast, unfortunately, has been postponed until the fall...

My list, as of now, is as follows:

Claremont McKenna
George Washington
Georgetown
Johns Hopkins
Occidental
Pomona
Princeton
Reed
Stanford
Swarthmore
University of Chicago
University of Southern California

The list is being cut still.

Duke
Yale
Harvard
Princeton
Stanford
Brown
Tufts
Georgetown
George Washington
UVa
William and Mary
Michigan
Denver
American
Cornell
Hamilton

Bolds are up on the cutting block.

Don't cut Princeton. Awesome politics department and great program in political history. Also, Robert George is the man.

I wasn't aware you loved conservative Christians.

[ilikeverin]

So, this week, I'll be in Southern California, interviewing at Occidental, Pomona, Claremont McKenna, and USC. If all goes according to plan, that is. My trip to the East Coast, unfortunately, has been postponed until the fall...

My list, as of now, is as follows:

Claremont McKenna
George Washington
Georgetown
Johns Hopkins
Occidental
Pomona
Princeton
Reed
Stanford
Swarthmore
University of Chicago
University of Southern California

Like every Washington school but Maryland?  Xahar and I cry all the tears.

I loved Swarthmore!  (And I liked Pomona enough to apply there.)  Ridiculously debt-inducing, though.

[Yelnoc]

Man, you guys make me feel dumb.  My list consists of UGA, Georgia State, and the lesser Georgia public schools I'd rather not think about.

[California8429]

Man, you guys make me feel dumb.  My list consists of UGA, Georgia State, and the lesser Georgia public schools I'd rather not think about.

George State I've heard is a good school. Are you looking at Georgia Tech? My sister's friend is the only person I knew who went to a Georgia school, he's crazy brilliant. He went for a degree with something related to physics and astronomy but is now in a Ph. D. program at Johns Hopkins...for poetry.

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

Man, you guys make me feel dumb.  My list consists of UGA, Georgia State, and the lesser Georgia public schools I'd rather not think about.

Try out LACs, they're well-suited for you and if your parents are low income, you'll get a large amount of student aid that will make it comparable to a in-state public (probably not in Georgia though considering that scholarship program).

Don't select schools based on prestige, it's a recipe for self-loathing for many.

[Bacon King]

Man, you guys make me feel dumb.  My list consists of UGA, Georgia State, and the lesser Georgia public schools I'd rather not think about.

What are you thinking about studying? If you're interested in Political Science at all (or Public Management and Policy, which has its own school at GSU) definitely consider it over UGA even though it's a good bit further down in the overall rankings and lacks a lot of UGA's tradition. Being located literally next door to the State Capitol and very close to a bunch of state and federal agency headquarters, awesome internship opportunities are basically a dime a dozen.

[California8429]

Well I'm still debating between applying to Michigan and UVa. Though I might/probably drop Stanford and I have dropped Hamilton.

[Kaine for Senate '18]

Well I'm still debating between applying to Michigan and UVa. Though I might/probably drop Stanford and I have dropped Hamilton.

Choose UVA!  Two days on Grounds has convinced me even more that I made the right choice; at least come and visit.

[California8429]

Well I'm still debating between applying to Michigan and UVa. Though I might/probably drop Stanford and I have dropped Hamilton.

Choose UVA!  Two days on Grounds has convinced me even more that I made the right choice; at least come and visit.

I did visit, it just wasn't that great of an impression. I'd be fine there...but it's not my favorite (not bad in any sense though like how I felt with Columbia). I even took a class, awesome professor, but the entire class had no idea about anything related to politics and there was some annoying kid in the back trying to prove himself to be a genius every 5 seconds when really he would die against any forumie match-up. It was campaign finance, basic stuff, the beginning of the summer schedule...but still...I felt underwhelmed.

[Citizen (The) Doctor]

Just finally filled out the Common App, finished a draft of the personal statement, then I open the Yale Supplement and I cry a little to myself.

Yeah, I know trying to do Yale is sort-of insane, but because they have a restricted early-action program anyways, I figured why not. I actually liked New Haven, and after being able to take classes there and getting a feel of the campus and the school system, I honestly think it is exactly where I want to be.

But after Yale, the list is pretty undecided. Is it even worth it to apply to the UC system considering I am beyond a shadow of a doubt getting the hell out of California?

[Хahar 🤔]

Yes, it is. You'll be hard pressed to find any better place to live than Northern California.

[後援会]

The UC's are cheap. That's a reason to consider them. A place like UCB or UCLA gives you a pretty damn good deal (though technically, you could say that you've already paid for your tuition at the UCs through tax dollars, whether or not you go).

That being said, college visits are a pretty useless usage of money. Every college presents an inaccurate, sanitized, saccharine-land of wonder tour for you when you visit. Even students. I've never been actually been a college tour myself (too expensive), but having seen people give out college tours, they generally seem pretty unhelpful.

You could always be like me - be a lazy-ass and having visited no colleges ever, only apply to colleges without Common App supplements.

[SPC]

Just finally filled out the Common App, finished a draft of the personal statement, then I open the Yale Supplement and I cry a little to myself.

Yeah, I know trying to do Yale is sort-of insane, but because they have a restricted early-action program anyways, I figured why not. I actually liked New Haven, and after being able to take classes there and getting a feel of the campus and the school system, I honestly think it is exactly where I want to be.

But after Yale, the list is pretty undecided. Is it even worth it to apply to the UC system considering I am beyond a shadow of a doubt getting the hell out of California?

I would apply to the UCs. I thought pretty much the same thing before I got my admission decisions from the top Ivy Leagues. After that, UCLA looked pretty appealing.

[Kaine for Senate '18]

I did visit, it just wasn't that great of an impression. I'd be fine there...but it's not my favorite (not bad in any sense though like how I felt with Columbia). I even took a class, awesome professor, but the entire class had no idea about anything related to politics and there was some annoying kid in the back trying to prove himself to be a genius every 5 seconds when really he would die against any forumie match-up. It was campaign finance, basic stuff, the beginning of the summer schedule...but still...I felt underwhelmed.

But that was the summer semester!  You need to visit during the Fall, to get a sense of the school at its best!

[California8429]

I did visit, it just wasn't that great of an impression. I'd be fine there...but it's not my favorite (not bad in any sense though like how I felt with Columbia). I even took a class, awesome professor, but the entire class had no idea about anything related to politics and there was some annoying kid in the back trying to prove himself to be a genius every 5 seconds when really he would die against any forumie match-up. It was campaign finance, basic stuff, the beginning of the summer schedule...but still...I felt underwhelmed.

But that was the summer semester!  You need to visit during the Fall, to get a sense of the school at its best!

Well if the people become smarter in the fall...I'll take your word for it! I'm probably going to put off Michigan and UVa until the end and most likely do both...but if I really only have time for one I'll choose then...waaaaay in November/December.