Applying To Colleges

[muon2]

I can't go to UW because of my lack of an performing arts credit which I didn't factor into my schedule this semester. According to their website, Speech & Debate "generally is not accepted". I'd expect that from a LAC but really from a public state univerisity? What is this nonsense, I get punished for not caring about something that's useless?

I already applied to University of Idaho as a massive safety but because of free apps I'll be applying to:
Tulane (sup Bacon King)
Case Western (sup TJ)
Carleton

I'm not going to spend money applying to schools I don't necessarily want to go just in case.

Carleton as in Carleton U, where the K stands for quality or...?

perhaps Carleton College of MN, a personal favorite.

[muon2]

Did anyone else take the PSAT today? If so, how do you think you did? I think I got a few wrong on the math section (I skipped one due to time constraints), but I think I nailed the verbal and writing sections. I'm hoping I qualify for the National Merit Scholarship, but I had no time to study and my surgery over the summer prevented me from doing anything for two months, so...

My son did. Does that count as vicarious testing?

[muon2]

Why do you guys WANT to be done with undergrad? Once you get to grad school, you realize how wonderful undergrad truly is; going out every night, not having to work all the time, studying for exams a few days before instead of weeks before. I was like you all in the sense that in May of last year I was ready to graduate, but now I just look back on those days and wish I had done more with my time there, not wasted 2 years dating the same girl, not forgoing an opportunity to go out on a Tuesday, having one more PBR than I should. It's things like that you can't do in law school all the time. Cherish your time in undergrad. You will miss it when you leave. Trust me.

Try to do them problem sets, kills 3 or 4 nights a week.

Depends on the problems ...

[muon2]

I'll put in a plug for SLACs. I'm a graduate of one for my BA (Carleton - MN) and another for my MS/PhD (Brandeis - MA). I found all the opportunities I could want without the downsides of size. And I'm quite familiar with the effects of size since I teach at a school with 23,000. There's very little problem going from a SLAC to a larger uni for a graduate degree if that's the path one wants.

[muon2]

I'm trying to finalize my list of grad schools to apply to. I'm for sure applying to UW and WSU, plus two or three from a list of California schools: UCSD, UCLA, Cal, Stanford, UCSB, USC. I will almost certainly apply to UCSD.

If all your time has been on the West Coast I'd recommend looking at grad schools in other regions of the US. I grew up and went to college in the Midwest. One of my best decisions for grad school was going to New England. I not only got a good education in my chosen field, but learned a lot about the country through the eyes of another region.

[muon2]

You build better state schools on the east coast...and California.

Says who?

California Schools, Michigan, UNC, UNC Chapel Hill, U Penn, Wisconsin Madison- are some of the best schools in the nation. What western, non-pacific, school is equally accredited?

U Penn isn't a state school, despite its name.

Furthermore, Michigan and UW-Madison are definitely not East Coast.  It also depends on what you mean by "western, non-Pacific"; off the top of my head Minnesota, Iowa, Iowa State, Arizona, Arizona State, UC-Boulder, Kansas, and UT-Austin are all fine schools.

Don't forget U Illinois Urbana Champaign. For public universities it ranks as an equivalent to UT-Austin and ahead of everything else on your list.