College Decision

[U N Owen]

I recently got my college decisions back and the schools I am deciding between are UVA William and Mary and Penn State. I was wondering if anybody has either been to these schools, are thinking of going to these schools,or knows how LGBT friendly these campuses and surrounding areas are.

[Chip]

Just out of curiosity, how'd you end up with those three in particular? All are excellent schools, but for someone from Alaska, two schools in Virginia and one in Pennsylvania...

To answer your q, I've visited all 3. Used to live in northern VA and had a lot of friends that attended UVA and W&M. My impression is that W&M is a little more button-down conservative than UVA (or Penn) but that may have changed over time.

Also, while all 3 are very highly regarded, UVA and Penn have a very slight name recognition edge over W&M; the former two are considered ivy league, while W&M is just a splinter below in prestige, and while Penn and UVA will be recognized everywhere in the US by almost any employer, W&M is more known on the east coast than on the west coast. In the end, it doesn't matter much, as the education will be excellent at any of them, but depending on career, the highest name recognition can make a tiny bit of difference if you're applying for jobs in a very competitive marketplace.

Do you have a particular area of study in mind? That could make a difference in which one you choose.

[Flyers2011]

I know UVA and Penn State are great Ivy League schools. I think that Penn might be a little bit more LGBT friendly, because it's farther north. I've heard horror stories about Virginia (the state, not the college) being not so LGBT friendly.

What is your planned major? That'll be a good deciding factor. It was for me, I went to college A for high school and college credit. I loved it. But college B (which I also love) is better for my planned major so I decided to go there.

Have you visited these places? I've heard great things about UVA and PSU's campus, that is beautiful and well laid out, but I've never been there myself.

Oftentimes colleges will send you info if you request it. I did that for Duke, UConn, University of Toledo, Bluffton, and many others. That helped me make my decision too.

Plus, you can always transfer if you hate whatever college you go to. It can be a pain in the ass, but there's always a way out.

[U N Owen]

Thanks for the responses. I have family in Virginia and New Jersey which is why I am considering these schools. I am interested in majoring in engineering but am not entirely sure. I am also interested in political science and environmental science. I realize W&M does not have engineering but rather a 3/2 program with Columbia. I am currently visiting my relatives in Virginia and have toured all three of the schools already. I have a slight preference for W&M as it is the smallest of the three.

[Chip]

W&M is a great school, and of course Columbia is also an excellent school. If you're serious about engineering and W&M, I would suggest spending some time in NYC at Columbia... for someone from Anchorage, the transition to NYC might be a little intense. Of course you might love it, but a lot of people from less urban places find it just a little too much.

The other thing to keep in mind is you aren't locked into whatever you choose... if you start at W&M and decide you really want to do engineering, you can always transfer to a really topnotch engineering program. And there are quite a few schools with great poly sci programs, and a number of excellent programs for environmental science.

I'd also suggest you think pretty carefully over the next year about not just the degree, but the career you're thinking about. While an undergrad degree is almost always a generalist degree (not specifically preparing you for a career), engineering and environmental science are more career-focused than poly sci. And if you're leaning in the direction of poly sci, you should also think about what you might do with it... a lot of people go from there on to law school, or into politics, so if neither of those areas interest you, you might also take that into consideration.

You have time to decide because your first year is all about trying out different areas of study and seeing what motivates you. I also recommend the excellent book "What Color Is Your Parachute" which is a great resource for helping you find what motivates you career wise. There is an edition specifically for college students that's probably worth adding to your summer reading list.

[starfish]

Chip makes a good point. Engineering is a very diverse field. Even with in the different disciplines there is a lot of different career choices.

Even if a school has a good engineering department their may be a better school for your career choice. A good thing to look for is proximity to companies in your career choice. This will make it easier to get internships, which will give you a leg up when looking or a full time job. Once your hit your Junior year there are a lot of Internships that pay well and allow you to work part time while going to school.

The college I went to had a decent Engineering school, but was in the middle of large area with lots of Tech and Engineering jobs. So finding a job was much easier. Among my peers about 70% of us were already working in our field by our Junior year. That came in handy as when we graduated we already had 2+ years of work experience.

[TheRoof]

Originally Posted by Chip

Also, while all 3 are very highly regarded, UVA and Penn have a very slight name recognition edge over W&M; the former two are considered ivy league, while W&M is just a splinter below in prestige.

Originally Posted by Flyers2011

I know UVA and Penn State are great Ivy League schools

Ummm hello? How are UVA and Penn state ivy leagues? UVA definitely is not, and so is Penn State. I think you are confusing with UPenn, which IS ivy league.

In any case, I'd say UVA seems like the best school out of three, just in terms of reputation. W&M is a great liberal arts school, which is tad different from research universities like Penn State or UVA. Penn State is decent, although I wouldn't say it's exterior reputation, at least in the strictest sense, holds against UVA or W&M.
Also W&M being a small liberal arts school, I think you are going to have an easier time transitioning, as opposed to big research university. Also 2/3 program with Columbia sounds pretty amazing.

PS. Chip is making a good point in taking various classes that interest you; that's what freshmen year is for. I think I have a clearer idea of what I want to major in because I took diff classes that I thought I was interested in, but then I didn't enjoy it at all when I actually took it so yea.

[Chip]

UVA is considered a public Ivy these days. What's interesting is, when I was in high school, UVA was a "safety school" which is definitely not the case now.

And yes, I was wrong about U Penn and was thinking of Penn State.

[Lexington]

You should totally go to William and Mary. Just so you can tell everybody "I went there because the gay cartoon gargoyle told me to."

Seriously, I have no info on these schools, so I can't offer much advice as to which one to pick. But I should say that having a great college experience is an option at EVERY single college, so don't think your life, your career or your happiness hinges on picking the right one.

Lex