College choice

[SEPKA]

Sign... So my procrastination (or perhap the P trait) got me again and I decided to take a gap year because I still cannot decide on an US college to study in.

I intend to study in MIT but after reading comment by people on the student's life there I find it would rather suffocating for an INTP (inefficient bureaucracy, professor do not interest in your ideas, elitism, people competing for grade, inflexible rules in dorm, etc.). So I figured out maybe that was not that much of a good idea.

I really hate school as of now because of its conservativism, but I still want to do research as a carreer, so I hope college would be different (best if it fit my INTP personality, but if extrovertion and schedule is required I think I can take it)

Anyway, for any of you who have take a college, how did you choose which college to go to? Do you know any good college for an INTP that offer at least an international recognized degree? Even better if you can refer me to resources that give me insight into the education system in different colleges in US.

Btw I'm not a US PR.

 

[INTPINFP]

Anything thats cheap, and easy curriculum. Most of all the people should be friendly, not stuck up elitists.

 

[Latro]

In my case I was intending to go to the University of Virginia or the College of William and Mary; these are pretty much the top universities in my state and pretty freaking solid universities in their own right, albeit not quite comparable to Harvard, MIT, etc. Most of my IB classmates wound up there.

A mental breakdown around the time of applications left me only applying to my backup school, which is where I am now. Monetary concerns kinda keep me here instead of transferring to one of the better schools (like UVA). ($2000 a semester vs. $7000 a semester, and the numbers happen to add up almost exactly with the $2000 a semester such that I have no debt at the end).

 

[INTPINFP]

Community colleges average 1000$ a semester so that's not bad.

 

[del]

Don't worry too much about what institution you go to until you get to graduate school.

IME, for undergraduate work you're probably best off going to a smaller state university because it'll be cheaper and if your department isn't saturated with graduate students you'll actually get a chance to do research as an undergrad.

studentsreview.com used to be a good website for profiling colleges.

 

[Vrecknidj]

If you know what field you're interested in, research all the universities that are known for excellence in that field.

Apply to the ones that seem most interesting to you.

Once you get your acceptance letters, do some more research by looking into what students there actually think and feel about the place.

Pick the one that seems the best fit.

Dave

 

[Da Blob]

Do not choose a University noted for research as the college for your undergraduate work! There are very few gifted researchers that are also gifted teachers. Plus, even graduate students are treated as sub-human at some of the top schools, undergraduates are beneath notice. You may find that many courses taught to undergrads at a research-oriented school are taught by grad students just a few years older than you, with no experience at teaching or communicating to students.

Choose a school that has a reputation for quality instruction where those who graduate do make into quality grad schools. I went to the University of Chicago, one of the top schools in the country for research and I also attended a local teacher's college. The quality of education was much better at the local school. Few of the professors dedicated much time to research any longer and could focus on the students and most offered really good quality instruction concerning the basic college curriculum. Of course at the University of Chicago I was 'taught' by brilliant grad students that could not even speak English very well...

There is a second trap involving GPA and colleges. It is fairly simple to get top grades at a non research school. However, it is much more difficult to get the top grades when one is surrounded by peers of equal ability. Graduate Schools look at the GPA and do not weight the grade point average based on the difficulty of the curriculum. It happens that a student with a 'B' average from a top school will not get into a good grad school, but a student with an "A" average from a mediocre school will get into a good grad school. That is just one facet of the failures of the American system of education...

 

[asdfasdfasdfsdf]

(best if it fit my INTP personality, but if extrovertion and schedule is required I think I can take it).

to be honest, if you are anything like me, you want to go to a college which is hyper involved with students with an extroverted environment, as you probably dont get out much or talk much.
some time in your life you are going to want to meet people, make friends, maybe get a girlfriend (assuming you area boy).. and it would make it much easier at an extroverted campus.

 

[SEPKA]

Thanks for all the reply. It is a bit helpful to me in choosing the college. I guess because I don't live in US so some of what you said sounds unfamiliar to me.

used to be

What had happened to studentreviews.com?