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College search: city universities that aren't too big or too urban?

Sweetie Darling — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 20:20:44 -0800

College search: city universities that aren't too big or too urban? We're starting to plan a spring break college-exploration trip with Little Darling, who's a junior in high school.

She has identified Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond as her #1 choice so far. We visited there last fall and while I liked it more than I was expecting to, there's a part of me that thinks she hasn't thought through its size (23,000 undergrads) and its relatively low barrier to entry (she is in honors/AP courses and while not a Type A, takes school seriously and is impatient with those who don't).

I think what she responded to was the idea of going to college in a city, as opposed to the self-contained bubble of a more rural/isolated campus. She liked that the academic buildings and dorms were around the corner from cafes and cool shops and she wouldn't necessarily need a car.

I'd like to take her to see some colleges where she might be able to have an "urban" experience but where she could also benefit from a smaller, more nurturing campus environment with a bit more selectivity (although not elite/highly selective - she doesn't have the profile).

We live in NC and she won't consider Chapel Hill (because "everybody goes there"). I will probably ~~drag~~ take her to look at NC State and Asheville because while money is not a huge consideration, it would be great for her to fall in love with a state school and its in-state tuition. She hated UNC Charlotte, Wilmington, Greensboro and App State. She's more interested in mid-Atlantic or Midwest rather than further south - so we'll probably target Virginia, Maryland, New York(?), Pennsyvania, Ohio. Maybe South Carolina, maybe further north into New England. (Maybe more than one trip!)

Ideal school size would be around 10,000 undergrads or smaller, moderately selective, with a residential student body rather than commuter, in a city as opposed to a college town. Not too snooty or homogeneous, but not so diverse that there's no sense of community or identity/school spirit.

Hopefully this question isn't a terrible combination of too much and not enough information. Thanks for your suggestions.

transportation planner post-college

elephantsvanish — Fri, 28 May 2010 20:45:35 -0800

what jobs are out there in transportation planning for the liberal artsy type just out of college + wandering back home to Boston? I'm gradually falling in love with transportation systems. I'm in Tokyo, in awe of the massive&intricate railways, and feel myself wanting to help people, whether daily commuters or special needs students, get where they need to go. And I want to do this work in or near Boston, where family lives.

What entry-level jobs are available in the field? I am less interested in driving or conducting, and far more of a planner/writer type. However, I would be willing to try various things out. My dream criteria for work is that I want to serve a community in some sense, and have an outlet for situated creativity (ie not freelancing poetry, but problem-solving in a way I can feel immersed in and proud of.)

I am currently still an anthropology major in college, and will be done next year. I may intern with a district planning council in my college town in the fall and (hopefully) work on a youth bus project; I also just finished a year internship with a cooperative business planning/education council. Yada yada, resume. But I want to jump out of the interny framework and better understand the spectrum of possibilities in Boston, perhaps in a longterm-career sense. I also would like to avoid becoming an NGO nomad, and instead, work with civic/governmental infrastructure directly.

Any particular types of jobs come to mind? I'm considering grad school but want to give it a little while. If I should think smaller (or about serving chai-mocha-whatevers at Starbucks) for the time being, you can let me know that, too.

Should I move to New York City or Seattle for city life as well as outdoors activities?

biochemist — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 13:51:47 -0800

Does New York City or Seattle offer the better mix of city life and outdoorsyness? Hello. I'm trying to choose a city to move to for undergrad. I'm stuck between New York and Seattle, and unfortunately I don't have the funds to visit before college starts. I'll be living in dorms, so apartments aren't an issue right now.

I would prefer somewhere that I can live long-term, because I don't like to move around frequently.

My original choice was New York City, because I love the big city atmosphere. However, I believe that Seattle may be a better mixture of city life and outdoors activities. I have read that NYC has a lot of outdoors activities as well.

I'm also concerned that it seems as if with my projected salary, I won't have a comfortable life N.Y.C. This wouldn't bother me much, except that I love animals and I wouldn't be able to have dogs in an apartment.

My one worry about Seattle is that it's far away from the music scene I'm used to. I live within a five hour drive from Cleveland, Columbus, Chicago, and Detroit, so I'm used to having a lot of options for concerts to go to. I'd like it to stay this way, but I don't know anything about the availability of concerts in/near Seattle.

I would mostly enjoy "natural" outdoors activities... for example, going hiking instead of a tour through the park.

A little more about me... I'm female, liberal, and I'm interested in the Aerospace industry. I'm a fan of windy/rainy days, but I also love the summer. I'm from Ohio, so I would prefer the weather to be similar to here, except cooler.

Anyway... hope this is enough information to help with the advice. I'm open to suggestions of other cities, as long as they match the original criteria (no small cities). Thanks in advance!

Buying a new bike

Aanidaani — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 19:21:22 -0800

I'm going to be at U Colorado in Boulder for the summer and I'm interested in buying a bike. I'm willing to spend about $200 on a new one (which I'll take back to my school after the summer) and I'd preferably like a city bike that I can also occasionally take off-road. Since I got my last bike when I was in middle school (I'm 20 now), I wanted to see if anyone could offer advice or a guide on buying a new one. I know that there are a lot of great bike paths around Boulder and I'd like to check them out. I'm by no means a hardcore biker (as should already be evident), but I want to ride some trails and at the same time drive around CU's campus comfortably. Can anyone suggest a good place to buy a bike? Also, what types should I be looking for and is there anything I should be aware of? Thanks!