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Need help deciding what college to attend

iBookG4user said:
I haven't considered that, but living together before marriage is against my beliefs, so I really can't consider that.
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Get married then :p

I know that you said you would love to live within 10 minutes of her, but you should also consider this. If you live too close, you'll end up over there all the time... if you have a full course load of 4-5 courses, you'll have a lot of work to do and this might not be the best thing. Where if you live and go to school in Boston and have to drive like 45 minutes to where she is, you'll probably only visit on the weekends. This way you won't get distracted from your work, but still be able to visit enough :)
 
zioxide said:
Get married then :p

I know that you said you would love to live within 10 minutes of her, but you should also consider this. If you live too close, you'll end up over there all the time... if you have a full course load of 4-5 courses, you'll have a lot of work to do and this might not be the best thing. Where if you live and go to school in Boston and have to drive like 45 minutes to where she is, you'll probably only visit on the weekends. This way you won't get distracted from your work, but still be able to visit enough :)
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I would hate being 45 minutes away. Most of my extended family on my father's side lives less than an hour away and I probably see them 4 or 5 times a year at most. I know that my relationship with my Girlfriend is a lot different, but still 45 minutes is a long drive to me, it may not be to some people but I am used to 20 minute drives at the most for places I go to regularly.
 
furcalchick said:
what about the ACT's?

but other than that, that's what they are looking for.
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ACTs are good too, I actually found them easier and scored higher than what my SAT score would have been equivalent to. The majority of schools accept ACT scores, but it from experience the SAT is generally encouraged over the ACT if just for the sheer fact that more people take the SATs and it gives the school a better grounds for a direct comparison. For me, and most people I know who took the ACT, we just took it to show schools that we could not only score well on the SAT but the ACT too. It also gives you another way to make up for a lower than your schools average SAT score, score a little bit above the schools ACT average and it should give you a little bit better chance of being accepted.
 
jng said:
Also, schools tend to be strict about granting kids credits from other universities especially junior colleges, because schools do want to make money, you know.

Many schools thus have 8 semester requirement to graduate. Although it's possible to have junior standing when you enter, most (if not all) attain it through AP tests, IBs, etc, not through courses from junior colleges.
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Man, I dont know where you go to school but that sucks! Out here in Cal most students go to junior college and then transfer to a Cal State school or a University of California school. Also, most general education classes are transferable to CSU or UC schools and quite a few private schools (you still have to be carefull though, you have to check that the course is transferable and fullful all requirements for whatever major you plan to major in at the CSU or UC school). I also haven't heard of any major school out here that has an 8 semester residency/attendence requirement to graduate, thats absolutely ridiculous.

Also, not all schools are in it to make money; State schools aren't in it for the money and most private schools don't exactly rake in the profits even with expensive tuition.
 
rhsgolfer33 said:
Man, I dont know where you go to school but that sucks! Out here in Cal most students go to junior college and then transfer to a Cal State school or a University of California school. Also, most general education classes are transferable to CSU or UC schools and quite a few private schools (you still have to be carefull though, you have to check that the course is transferable and fullful all requirements for whatever major you plan to major in at the CSU or UC school). I also haven't heard of any major school out here that has an 8 semester residency/attendence requirement to graduate, thats absolutely ridiculous.

Also, not all schools are in it to make money; State schools aren't in it for the money and most private schools don't exactly rake in the profits even with expensive tuition.
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What can I say? I go to an elite institution.

I'm not saying they're in it for the money - and reputation. But in my opinion, that's the logic behind the rules.

The rule is you need to do 8 semesters (very few people are granted sophomore standing), 6 of which need to be completed on the main campus. So you're allowed to spend 2 abroad. Not sure how this works for transfers, but we have a lot of general requirements to fulfill and my sense is that transfer don't go abroad or if they do, they do it during the summer.

As for checking to make sure courses transfer. You make it sound like a piece of cake, which it isn't necessarily true. I was abroad on an official school program and it took me months to get a class confirmed for major credit - albeit via email. It was a matter of chasing the proper people down and that isn't always easy.
 
I just got an email back from my Girlfriend and she said that she would be fine going to a college in Boston or in New Hampshire. So, what are the best colleges for Graphic Design in the Boston area and how do they compare to Keene State?
 
iBookG4user said:
I just got an email back from my Girlfriend and she said that she would be fine going to a college in Boston or in New Hampshire. So, what are the best colleges for Graphic Design in the Boston area and how do they compare to Keene State?
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Thats good :)

Personally, I don't know which colleges in Boston have the best graphic design programs, but I do know that we have a ton of colleges here in Mass and you'll definitely be able to find one that you like. If you want, I'd suggest you go on College Board's website and you can search colleges in an area by majors offered and stuff. It might give you an idea of where to start looking.
 
in boston is:

Northeastern
Art Institute of Boston (AIB)
Massachusetts College of Art (MassArt)
Umass Dartmouth

and maybe a couple of others. of these programs i would say massart is probably the best. all of these schools spank keene state.

if you are willing to go as far as boston you owe it to yourself to apply to RISD, just to see if you can get in.
 
jng said:
What can I say? I go to an elite institution.

The rule is you need to do 8 semesters (very few people are granted sophomore standing), 6 of which need to be completed on the main campus. So you're allowed to spend 2 abroad. Not sure how this works for transfers, but we have a lot of general requirements to fulfill and my sense is that transfer don't go abroad or if they do, they do it during the summer.

As for checking to make sure courses transfer. You make it sound like a piece of cake, which it isn't necessarily true. I was abroad on an official school program and it took me months to get a class confirmed for major credit - albeit via email. It was a matter of chasing the proper people down and that isn't always easy.
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That just blows my mind, 8 semesters, dang, even Harvard is only 4. Out here it is easy to make sure courses transfer, its denoted in your course catalog at the majority of the junior colleges that I have friends going to and that I have taken classes at, even at the private college I attend it isnt terribly hard to transfer classes. Generally speaking though, it is somewhat harder with private colleges, but not as difficult as it sounds at your school. Do you mind if I ask where you go to school at?
 
For iBookG4User:
Ceneter for Digital Imaging Arts at BU: http://www.cdiabu.com
Art Institute of Boston: http://web.lesley.edu/aib/default.asp
New England Institute of Art: http://www.artinstitutes.edu/boston/
Media Arts at Emerson: http://www.emerson.edu/media_arts/
School of Museum of fine Arts: http://www.smfa.edu/
Mass Art (which has media): http://www.massart.edu/index5.html

If you can, I would try to get into a school like BU, a great liberal arts school so that just in case you decide to change your career goals, you'll have options.

Somebody else mentioned Northeastern, but I don't know too much about Northeastern.
 
rhsgolfer33 said:
That just blows my mind, 8 semesters, dang, even Harvard is only 4. Out here it is easy to make sure courses transfer, its denoted in your course catalog at the majority of the junior colleges that I have friends going to and that I have taken classes at, even at the private college I attend it isnt terribly hard to transfer classes. Generally speaking though, it is somewhat harder with private colleges, but not as difficult as it sounds at your school. Do you mind if I ask where you go to school at?
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from http://ase.tufts.edu/bulletin/liberal_arts.html

For students entering the College of Liberal Arts, the degree of bachelor of arts or bachelor of science is awarded after four years (eight semesters) of full-time study and with successful completion of the equivalent of thirty-four full-credit semester courses... Up to two semesters of full-time study after matriculation at Tufts may be spent at other approved four-year institutions or on approved foreign-study programs. (See Residence Requirement in the general information section for details.)
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They make exceptions though, but rarely. A friend's father passed away and she had to take a semester off to be with her family. But she's still graduating with 34 credits, but just not with the 8 semesters.
 
shecky said:
in boston is:

Northeastern
Art Institute of Boston (AIB)
Massachusetts College of Art (MassArt)
Umass Dartmouth

and maybe a couple of others. of these programs i would say massart is probably the best. all of these schools spank keene state.

if you are willing to go as far as boston you owe it to yourself to apply to RISD, just to see if you can get in.
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Thanks for the suggestions, but RISD is too expensive. Out of state tuition is expensive enough, but over $110,000 is too expensive for me. Right now I think I might go to The Art Institute of Boston, if I can't get into there then the Massachusetts college of Art, with Keene State as my backup.
 
honestly, i'm not sure if i would go to an out-of-state university for a gf. i think UC is an awesome institution (okay, maybe except UC Merced) for the money and you should take advantage of it. also if you are planning on going to grad school, i think it makes sense to attend a UC to maximize undergrad experience while keeping the tuition cost reasonable.

you probably have some really compelling reasons to move to NH. the decision was not easy to make and you've probably considered all the pros and cons. but as one of my best friends once told me, "people come and go in life except your family," i'm not sure if i would actually move out of state if i was faced with the same situation.

iBookG4user said:
but over $110,000 is too expensive for me. Right now I think I might go to The Art Institute of Boston
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college is expensive, ~$100K is about right for undergrad. :)
 
jng said:
For iBookG4User:
New England Institute of Art: http://www.artinstitutes.edu/boston/
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under no circumstances should anyone ever, EVER go to an Art Institute. it is the most craptastic excuse for an education anywhere. its the art equivalent of ITT Tech.

iBookG4user said:
Thanks for the suggestions, but RISD is too expensive. Out of state tuition is expensive enough, but over $110,000 is too expensive for me. Right now I think I might go to The Art Institute of Boston, if I can't get into there then the Massachusetts college of Art, with Keene State as my backup.
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the problem with RISD is not so much that it is expensive (which it is), its that there is very little financial aid available at all, so if you go, odds are you are paying almost the whole thing.
 
shecky said:
under no circumstances should anyone ever, EVER go to an Art Institute. it is the most craptastic excuse for an education anywhere. its the art equivalent of ITT Tech.
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Heh. I've never looked into the school, but its name is in my head cause of all those tv commercials :p

iBookG4User:
100k is actually starting to look good with many schools approaching 200k for four years (including room+board). Don't not apply to a school just because of the cost. If you know RISD doesn't provide a lot of aid, which someone here just said, fine okay. But apply to a school like BU, which does offer aid, in a mix of need based and academic based.

You never know, what they offer you might just surprise you.

Btw, Mass Art really focuses more on fine arts I think. Most of the people I've met from there are into fine arts. I don't think they really do graphics arts.

Also, I really think you shoud look at CDIA at BU (http://www.cdiabu.com/index.php) if you really want to do JUST graphic design, web design etc. It should be significantly cheaper (at full price) than going to "college" because you're not really getting a degree, you're getting a certificate or certified I think, which also only take 2 years as opposed to 4. And in that industry, a solid portfolio counts highly as well.

Ask them to send you a catalogue (that's free! Do that with all schools you're even remotely interested in) before you rule any schools out or in.
 
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