North by Northwestern

I decided to make a brief flashback to my college visit to Northwestern for my last blog post of the semester. I visited over Spring Break this year (2012) and was overly impressed with what I saw. We arrived there (Evanston, IL) around 6P.M. in the evening on a delightful Saturday afternoon. It was somewhat dark, so we decided to postpone actually walking around campus until our scheduled tour the next day. Instead, we parked a few blocks from the heart of campus in what reminded me of an upscale botique version of UIUC's notorious Green St. In this area, we found what look to be a lively Asian restaurant with a modern look. The place was packed. We waited for a short while before being seated. What followed was perhaps the best Thai/Korean/Chinese meal of my life. The food was excellent. The restaurant was called Joy Yee Noodle, and it pretty well set the tone for the rest of my tour of campus: a combination of expected and unexpected.

Our campus tour began the next day with a hasty trip from our hotel 25 minutes away to the parking garage on Hinman Avenue in the beautiful Chicago neighbor of Evanston. The neighborhood surrounding Northwestern was anything but the covertly concealed squalor around UChicago.

Our tour guide was an engineering major, who had also at one point been a pre-med major. She was doing a unique 5-year, extremely rigorous program that allows students to choose to work in an actual engineering firm during their fifth year, as part of an agreement between the company and the university, and if the company likes you, chances are you'll be asked to stay on after you graduate.

I was impressed by a number of other things at Northwestern besides the campus and academic climate. On my list of notable features were the numerous recreation centers, beautiful lab facilities, class-act performing arts center/art museum, and steep traditions. I always love when a school has traditions, because that's something that spans the oft-growing generational gap. Our Northwestern tour guide introduced us to the ritual of 'painting the rock,' which is exactly what is says. Basically, there's a large rock close to the old Main Hall of the university. It's lit up at night, and different organizations post guards around the rock, while other members of the organization paint it to celebrate some event, day, or other activity on campus.

Another thing I've come to look at on college campuses is the union. I'm not really sure where I'll end up doing the majority of my studying, but I definitely want to have places scoped out before I come to the school to do so. Conveniently enough, Northwestern's student union overlooks Lake Michigan and sprawls behind a large expanse of green space and running trails which separate it from the lake.

Finally, the one other thing that I think of, reflecting on my trip to Northwestern (and perhaps its just because winter is approaching) is that it gets some major snow. Yes, that lovely snow, which has for a year and a half now been eluding Champaign-Urbana. It's been a dismal month of November and December, thus far, without snow.

To the left is University Hall (old Main), which serves somewhat as the center of campus.
Overall, I loved Northwestern. One of my best friends siblings went there and really enjoyed her four years in a 'healthy living' dormitory. And I could definitely see myself passing my undergraduate years researching at the medical school or running along the lake or painting the rock.

Deadline Woes

I decided to take a brief hiatus from my normal college review flow this week in order to address the notion of college deadlines. While I was fortunate to have no December 1 deadlines this year, some of my classmates weren't so lucky. To be quite honest, I find the rolling admissions offered by schools like University of Michigan and University of Wisconsin to be an excellent idea. Students don't feel as much pressure, then, to have applications in by a certain date and can feel free to take adequate time, instead of hastily throwing something together that may or  may not reflect your best persona.

I'm applying to 8 schools, all of which have deadlines on or after December 31st. Needless to say, it could potentially be a VERY long winter break. Maybe I'll just end up hibernating..

.Anyways, my parents have been all up in my grille, so to speak, about getting all my apps done on time and done well. And I completely agree with their sentiments. Something about sitting down to try and describe myself, or my extracurricular activities, or my soccer experiences, or my summer mission trips with my church, or any number of things, over and over again just isn't enticing. What do I say? How do I convey who I am? In only 250 words? It's overwhelming to think about. Each college wants something different. They can be asking similar questions, even, but the context of the university subtly mandates that you put a different spin on the same story.

One of the most frustrating parts of the application process is the word limit. Applying to schools, it seems like an unfair deal. I go to visit these schools because I want to know as much about them before I spend the next 4-? years of my life there. I've always thought of that as the school telling me what is is academically, socially, etc. And on top of it, they can send me nearly unlimited literature about them. And me? What do I get? I get 250 words (if the school is generous) to tell them about my 17 years of life.

I'm sick of hearing people tell me that having only 250 words to tell a school who they are totally changed the way they viewed important moments in their life; that having so few words allowed them to focus on what was really important. This is ridiculous. With so few words, I can't help thinking about how much more detail I could give with additional words, and all the experiences that can't justly be summed up in 250 words.

This concludes my somewhat brief rant about college application deadlines, and just college apps in general. We will now return to your regularly scheduled programming. Thank you for listening.

Oh, Ohio

Who names a school in Ohio "Miami"? No, seriously, who does that?

For all my qualms about the name of the place, Miami (OH) turned out to be one of the most beautiful schools I've seen thus far in the country. Similar to Carleton, which I talked about in my first post, Miami was pretty far out there. Nestled between a couple of major interstates (neither of which run anywhere near to the town of Oxford, where the university is), Miami was truly a diamond campus in the heart of the Midwest. I really didn't have much idea of what to expect at the school. One of my cousins attended, majoring in business. He was the preppy sort, but also played club soccer there, so I decided it couldn't be THAT bad. What originally was just a pass-through turned into an unexpected pleasure of a school.

We rolled into town at about sunset, which was lovely. It had been raining for a half hour or so on the way in, so I was kind of in a bad mood. I mean, let's be honest here, we were driving to some college I knew virtually nothing about, in the middle of what I surmised to be a rural town. It was anything but. Oxford reminded me of a pleasant New England oceanside town, complete with cobblestone streets and old churches built into small plazas. The admissions lady was friendly, although there was a large fraternity gathering with members coming from all over the U.S. for a weekend retreat of sorts. Speaking of which, there were a large number of fairly interesting sorority and fraternity houses, somewhat removed from the center of campus. They were nowhere near as elaborate or fancy-looking as the ones on the U of I campus, but the admissions lady informed us that Greek life is popular with around 30% of the student body. The quad was great, as you can see in the picture above. It was so cool during the evening, but evoked an air of immense excitement and anticipation for the bulk of students to arrive back from summer break.

I also really liked the athletic facilites present. From what I could tell, there was two large rec centers on campus, and one unbelievably nice football field. I guess something I've always looked forward to in the college experience is being able to go watch a big football team play. One that is D1. While Miami is D1, they're typically a weaker team. But that didn't keep me from being impressed with their field. It was like something out of a classic movie, Remember the Titans.  Nestled in a valley, Yager Stadium reminded me more of an intimate high school football field, where I have so many soccer playing memories. It was quiet, yet you could picture it bustling with activity on gamedays. Imagine the picture at the right, but with all the trees in the background color brilliant shades of red, orange, and yellow, or better yet, covered in snow.

While the campus absolutely fascinated me, I was curious about the academics. The ACT range is 26-30, but is expected to rise to 27-31 this year. So Miami is by no means a second-rate university. Students know how to both work hard and have fun. Pictures on the virtual tour show students having fun playing football in the quad, listening to lectures, and throwing snow at each other. And that certainly seemed to be the atmosphere when I was there too. Students were all too willing to talk about the university in a positive light. All the labs seemed relatively up to date and well-equipped, which is something that I, who am looking to major in biology, found especially nice.

And every students' biggest concern, food, was rectified. We ate in downtown Oxford, a VERY easy walk from the heart of campus. I have to say, in comparison to some somewhat nice other small towns, Oxford was lovely. Cobblestone streets, colonial houses, and lots of red brick storefronts, all which fit in with the surrounding collegiate buildings.

Overall, Miami offered lots for a school of it's size in the Midwest. I forgot to mention, earlier, that you can also automatically get a $5, 000- $10, 000 scholarship depending on your ACT/SAT score and your GPA. I really loved the campus, the relaxing, yet professional vibe of the school, and the allure of many good times to come.

Under the Arm, Pitt

The University of Pittsburgh. Nestled in a valley, in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania, outside the booming steel and iron-forged city of Pittsburgh. I decided to visit because my uncle, my mom's brother did his grad school there. Additionally, Pitt is excellent for premed, as it is next to a whopping 7 major hospitals. the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) is ranked 9th in the country, behind such as UPenn (Pedleman), and Harvard (Barnes Jewish).

It took us forever to navigate our way across the bustling city of Pittsburgh, past Heinz field, where the Steelers (and Pitt football) play, through the metropolitan area, which looks both modern and reminiscent of the industrial revolution, which brought prosperity to the city. Pitt has an upper and lower campus, and, unlike some other universities, these titles mean exactly what they mean. The lower campus, home to most undergrad programs and dormitories, is located at the base of the hill, in the Oakland neighborhood of Pittsburgh, while the upper campus, which has varsity athletic facilities, and some med school buildings, is located on the top of the hill. Right down the street is Carnegie Mellon University, and the two schools collaborate on any number of projects. Our tour guide mentioned that some Pitt professors hold adjunct professorships at Carnegie Mellon and vice versa. Some notable collaborations include the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center and the Pittsburgh Life Sciences Greenhouse at the Phipps Conservatory. Both schools also have access to the Carnegie Library, Carnegie Museum of Art & History, and the Phipps Conservatory & Botanical Gardens, which  dominates the lower part of the Oakland neighborhood, close to the Allegheny River.

Pitt is home to two buildings on the National Register of Historic Places, but the most famous, and perhaps the most well-known landmark on the UPitt campus is the Cathedral of Learning (Common Room pictured above).The 42-story, Late Gothic Revival style building was constructed in the early 1930's (first class was held in it during 1931), after being commissioned in 1921 by Chancellor John Bowman. The Cathedral has over 2,000 rooms for study, making it the largest educational building in the Western Hemisphere, although most of these rooms are used for offices. The basement through 40th floors are used for educational purposes, while the remaining floors house mechanical and electrical equipment and additional offices. After big football wins and others such events, golden lights shine upon the upper portion of the Cathedral, known as "victory lights." Inside, I was stunned by the Common room, which reaches two stories up in the center and is used for quiet studying. No supports are used on the concrete arches. The room itself was entirely paid for by Andrew Mellon.

To the left is a view of Pitt's campus from the top of the Cathedral. Pittsburgh's campus was pretty walkable, from what I could tell. Something that I've learned to look for on a quality campus is new construction, which signifies life and industry. There was plenty of it on the Pitt campus.

The dorms, too, impressed me. We went to the ones called Litchfield Towers (seen at right), which were supposedly some of the smaller ones on campus. Not only were the rooms gigantic, but they had singles! For those of you juniors that have no idea how incredible that is, I hope you have some wisdom imparted on you before this time of year next year. Additionally, the dorm had just undergone a fresh paint job, which supposedly happens every year. The dorms had 3 eateries underneath, plus two smallish exercise rooms on the ground floor. The only thing I disliked about them were the communal bathrooms. But hey, that's college for you.

Overall, I marveled at Pitt's urban feel, proximity to great medical facilities, and central location in the East, close to New York City, and not too far to drive to Boston, etc. Additionally, I was impressed by the dorms, unique frat life (all of which are located in high rise apartments), and welcoming atmosphere. For people looking for good money at a midsized, respected research university, I'd definitely recommend UPitt.

Tiger Prowl (Princeton University)

When my mom announced that she wanted to stay in Jersey for the night, I have to say, I was pretty shocked. Until I heard the reason behind her decision, that is. "Freddie, we're this close, we might as well visit Princeton." My mom has been one of the driving forces behind my family's rigorous college visit schedule this past year. From my perspective, I enjoy visiting places I'm fairly confident about getting into, rather than stigmatized Ivy League schools, such as UPenn and Princeton. Princeton would only reinforce that notion.

Princeton, for those of you unacquainted, was founded in 1746 by the New Light Presbyterians, who originally named it the College of New Jersey and used it in order to train clergy/ministers. John Witherspoon, the president from 1768-1794 changed the focus of the university to training future leaders of America (pre-revolutionary war). During the Revolutionary war, the main building on campus, Nassau Hall, was occupied by British troops briefly. Additionally, you can still find cannon ball imprints at the bases of some of the older buildings.

The day started off fairly well: free parking, close to campus. I was impressed by Princeton's small-town feel. Botique shops, designer clothing stores, Eastern eateries, and best of all, froyo shops, lined the streets. The town captured a charming New England atmosphere, complete with a Christian monastery/study hall down the street (which at one point was affiliated with the university). Additionally, I managed to get my picture with the infamous Princeton Tigers, which guard the entrance to campus.

After indulging in some delicious froyo at a place called The Scoop, we headed over to campus, which was surrounded by a small brick fence topped with wrought iron. Right as we stopped to look at a map of the campus to figure out where the student union was, the sky, which had been growing increasingly overcast all day opened up in a downpour.We tried to wait it out under the awning of their art museum, but were afraid to miss the tour, so we made a mad dash to the visitors center. We were met by a large group of people, equally annoyed with the sudden change of weather, and equally as desperate to find the tour departure location (Nassau Hall, the first building erected on campus).

All the buildings, though beautiful, had begun to look the same. Finally, we happened upon the place where the tours were to leave from. The tour guides were incredibly friendly, some even taking their shoes off to splash through the puddles on campus.  What our particular guide, Jenny, lacked in enthusiasm, she made up for with an unbelievable knowledge of the history of the school and an incredible gratefulness to Princeton for providing her with a fabulous education that she would not have been able to afford had it not been from a generous "no-payback" grant from the Financial Aid office.

We walked past some beautiful residential houses for students on campus. Princeton divides up incoming freshmen into residential colleges, where they can live for all 4 years. Undergrads typically live on campus all four years, while around 70 percent of the graduate students choose to do the same. You don't necessarily eat at these dorms, and there are a variety of 'food houses,' also known as "eating clubs" that serve everything from Asian cuisine to American burgers. Typically, these houses are invite-only, and provide a way for students to socialize and share/expand culinary expertise.

On a somewhat random note, I also stopped to talk to a Chemistry professor. Not only did the man actually resonate with me, but he wasn't at all stuck-up about the fact that he was teaching at one of America's top universities. I was kind of surprised when he told me there were around two dozen actual professors of chemistry at the university. For a campus of around 5,200 undergrads, I thought this was pretty impressive.

One thing that impressed me as well that our tour guide happened to mention was the iPrinceton app for iPhones, which was designed by Princeton computer science students. The app features athletics scores, campus news and email, access to BlackBoard (the same software running Compass at the U of I), as well as a laundry feature, telling you which machines were available. 

Overall, I enjoyed Princeton, although not as much as I thought I would. Whether it was the weather or just the daunting challenge of trying to get into an Ivy League institution, I was sure after leaving that it was probably not somewhere I'd consider applying. However, for those of you looking for a beautiful campus, challenging academics, and a rich educational tradition, Princeton may be the place to look for you!

Going East (Villanova)

After Notre Dame, expectations were running high. I had done a lot of research ahead of time on Villanova University, a smallish university of around 6, 500 students located in the suburbs of Philadelphia. For all of you shoppers out there, it's also located near the King of Prussia Mall, the second largest outlet mall in the U.S. Based on our experiences in Philly (a traveling meth lab was found in our hotel downtown), I didn't have high expectations for Villanova. As it's down the street from Haverford, as well as in the vicinity of Swarthmore, it often gets less attention than its two more selective liberal arts counterparts.

I was pleasantly surprised. Driving there, the atmosphere was totally different than downtown. Rolling hills, freshly manicured lawns, and gurgling streams graced the Pennsylvania countryside. Villanova was beautiful, embracing both urban and rural environments. There was ample green space on campus, which I definitely appreciated so close to a major metropolitan center. What really impressed me were the two train lines, one to downtown Philly, and another that ran to New Jersey and New York. Both were on campus and readily available to students. Since many basketball games are played in downtown Philly, students will often take the trains in. Our tour guide also pointed out the convenience of having them when she wanted to fly or drive home for the holidays.

The labs were nice, and the library was small enough that one could focus studying, and not large enough to have trouble finding your way around. The university just recently got done building a state-of-the-art engineering lab, which was fantastic. Work was being done on everything from chemical cures for cancer to a full-scale model of a more fuel efficient, aerodynamic Formula 1 race car.  I was also impressed by the quality of the dorms, which had air conditioning. In addition, the campus had a Catholic church (following my trend of Catholic universities). According to the tour guide, around 65% of students identify as being Catholic, although the university embraces a multi-religion feel and seemed plenty ethnic, which I enjoyed immensely. There was an emphasis on collaborative learning and living-learning communities within dorms. It reminded me a lot of Uni, except cleaner, bigger, and in the shadow of a big city.

One of the highlights of the tour was the guide. Originally from North Dakota, I felt sure I could identify with her. We spent a good half hour or so talking to her. She wasn't Catholic, and yet she chose to go to college at Villanova, and her brother to Loyola of Chicago. She knew quite a bit about the pre-med track, as well as the foreign language programs, since she was a Spanish major.

Overall, I enjoyed Villanova. It was a great blend of urban living and good academics. Additionally, with strong programs in the arts and sciences, it matched my conceptions of a "good fit" school. Unfortunately, my mom says it's too far away. But for anybody looking for a truly underrated college with a beautiful campus, it would be fantastic. OK, I don't mean to end my blog post sounding like one of those people advertising a good home for a lost dog, but you should check Villanova out. Next week, I'll talk about my adventures at a nearby "true ivy," the infamous Princeton University.

The Middle West (Notre Dame)

Yup, so this one's about Notre Dame. After the visit to Carleton, I NEEDED something big, something for me. Thus, heading to my dad's alma mater was what happened. Notre Dame has been ingrained in my memory since I was a young kid. My dad probably bleeds blue and gold. Naturally, this wasn't my first trip to the beautiful South Bend, IN, where the university is located. We rolled in off the Indiana Toll Road towards dinner time, driving through the well-kept neighborhoods surrounding the university, we finally arrived at our hotel, which was across the road from Notre Dame's grounds at St. Mary's University. Both St. Mary's and Notre Dame were founded by the Order of the Holy Cross. At one time, Notre Dame was all male, and St. Mary's all female. My dad, of course, began recollecting the 'mixers' between the two schools. Since my dads graduation, Notre Dame has become co-ed, while St. Mary's remains more of an all female junior college.


Anyways, we spent probably an hour sitting in the hotel room at the Inn at St. Mary's, before I went down to weightlift and thing about the college situation. We went to a delicious Italian dinner at a place called Parisi's. We got there a bit before closing, but the waitress still served us. Man, the place was decorated like the holy grail of Notre Dame football. Signed posters, footballs, helmets, you name it, were everywhere. A lifesize picture of coach Brian Kelly hung over the door to the kitchen. Looking out the window, you could see the sun setting, glistening off the top of the infamous Golden Dome. We drove by Notre Dame stadium on the way home, and it was picturesque. Row upon row of empty seats, shining in the moonlight. Everything about it screamed 'COME HERE.' And I hadn't even taken the tour yet. I don't know if any of you readers have watched Field of Dreams,  but it's one of my favorite movies. Driving by the stadium, I imagined ghostly appariations of Notre Dame greats running around on the field. I've always dreamed of going to football games every weekend, dressing up in school colors. The other athletic fields were pretty impressive as well; a 5,000 seat soccer stadium that looked like it could have been the football stadium at another school, 4 or 5 baseball fields, basketball gym, etc.

We woke up the next morning to go on the official tour. I kicked off the day by dropping toothpaste on my otherwise immaculate polo, which may or may not have impressed the admissions reps (most likely the latter). The tour, which was my second, and first officially (in which the admissions office is able to use the fact that you visited as a sign of 'potential interest'), was great. My tour guide was a Psychology major in the Pre-Med track with a Spanish minor. The labs were nearly brand new, and the lecture halls were both comfortable and modern. At some of the other places I went, namely, University of Pittsburgh, which I will discuss at a later date, the lecture halls were like some kind of weird kindergarten classroom, with plastic seats and writing stands. Honestly, as a prospective college student, nothing is more welcoming than a cozy lecture chair. One of the more interesting features of Notre Dame is the 14 story Hesburgh Library, named after one of the most revered university presidents, Father Hesburgh. The library gets progressively quieter, each level you go down. On the side, and visible from the stadium is a mural known as "Touchdown Jesus."

I should mention that, being Catholic, I definitely go to my fair share of Catholic college visits, Notre Dame being perhaps the most prestigious Catholic university in the country. If you're not really into the religious aspect, I guess it's kind of hard to avoid at Notre Dame. Religious presence in the form of Christianity is definitely prevalent on campus (grotto to the Virgin Mary, multiple churches, religious symbolism). A lot of the administration is affiliated with the Church, and a number of brothers live on campus. On the other hand, a lot of Notre Dame isn't pertaining to religion.

One of the things that impressed me the most was the housing arrangement and the overall fitness of the student population. There are 29 single sex housing dorms on campus, which become your teams for intramural sports, and closest friends, hopefully. My dad lived in Lyon Hall when he was there. When you're not in your dorms, you can gorge yourself at the South Dining Hall, perhaps the best campus food eatery I've ever experienced. There was everything from pasta, fruit, and Chinese food to self-serve ice cream and fudge. It's safe to say I stuffed myself with food, especially the absolutely fantastic marinara rotini. Something to definitely take note of in a college or university is the food selection. It'll be the difference between healthy habits after college and gaining weight astronomically.

Literally everyone I saw on the ND campus was in shape. And that's something that's really important to me. Healthy students produce good scores, a good environment for learning, and staying in shape. Notre Dame has multiple gyms for students (make sure when you visit campuses that the students' athletic facilities are separate from the collegiate athletics training facilities), but my favorite gym at Notre Dame is the Rockne, also known as "The Rock." My dad used to work out there when he was a student. Named after perhaps the winningest in ND football history, the Rock is like Kenney with a $5 million reno. Somehow, it manages to capture the old legacy and the new, state of the art equipment perfectly.

Aside from the dorms and food, the other parts of campus were incredibly pretty. Notre Dame's campus is nestled near two lakes, St. Joseph's and St. Mary's. It was probably around 80 degrees when we were visiting, but didn't feel overly hot. One of the things that I'm looking for in a college, no matter how insignificant it may seem, is similar seasons to here in Champaign, which I've become accustomed to. Notre Dame has pretty intense winters, due to the fact that it's situated in the Lake Michigan Snow Belt.

Yeah, perhaps I'm a little bit biased, but Notre Dame was everything I expected and more...next week, I'll talk about my visit to Penn, my first experience with the notorious Ivy League.