Quote:
Originally Posted by artplumber
So what she really needs is a good liberal arts college
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^^^ this
Unless a student is incredibly focused/motivated/mature, choosing based on one particular program is a mistake. I was actually pretty mature, having taking 4 years off after high school to be in the real world, and I entered as a music major and left with a chemistry degree. I am a huge fan of small liberal arts colleges, especially for kids that haven't quite found themselves. Given the rising costs of public schools along with the inability to get courses in a lot of areas (leading to a longer stay in college), the cost difference isn't as great as it used to be. Down here in SoCal, I'd look at Occidental, Claremont Colleges (where I used to teach), LMU, etc.
The "vibe" of a school is important, but again, for an 18 year old that will be a moving target. For undergrad I chose based on location and the fact that I knew the head of the music department (lived around the corner from my parents). I went to a Catholic university and it ended up being a great fit. I avoided the Greek stuff and commuted so it was different than if I'd lived on-campus, but I still was involved in intramural sports and was always on-campus in the lab, studying, etc. For grad school I based it more on specific faculty I wanted to work with, but that is a different deal. Also I did make a good choice in that regard - have a backup plan. If there is only one person you're interested in working for, you could be stuck if they are a prick or don't have room. Better to go somewhere that has a variety of interesting people. For me I was having a tough time deciding for grad school between MIT, Princeton and Berkeley. That was until I visited Caltech. I almost turned around when I hit LA traffic (was driving up from San Diego), but I stuck it out. Within 30 minutes of being on campus I knew that was where I wanted to go.