Quote:
|
Originally Posted by Eugenia Gabrielov
Thanks for these words of wisdom.
I think a lot of the confusion comes from the way students handle the college search, and decide where they are going to apply. I had the fortune of having visited 5 of the 7 schools I applied to before I started the process, so I feel I was at an advantage. However, I want to quote someone who said something very wise about her own search. It deeply impacted me even after I had finished the process - let's just say that since there are people with this mindset, I think things are going to be OK:
Can be found in context here . |
I appreciate your reference to my post Genia.
I am very tired, and I want to go to bed soon, so I think I will make a longer post regarding the subject of this thread at a later date. However, the fact that Genia brings up my post warrants a quick response in regards to it on my part.
I was talking to a good friend on line tonight, who told me that there were a few people who were offended by the post I made about my college search. They felt that I was "stereotyping", making "generalizations", and undermining the hard work that they put into making into the "elite" schools such as MIT, Caltech, etc.
I want to take this opportunity to clarify the intentions of that post, because it is relevant to this thread topic.
My intention in writing that post was not to insult anyone. My true intention was to point out that the Ivy League isn't necessarily the best place for all "bright" students. Many times, students hold the misconception that the more "competitive" the school is, the better the education they will receive there.
The above statement does NOT mean that I believe the elite schools can't offer any students a good education. There are many different types of learners, and I happen to be the kind who doesn't do well at strenuous academic work, but
excels at hands-on, non-competitive work. However, there are certainly students who excel in the atmospheres that the Ivy League schools provide. It's all a matter of whether or not your work habits are compatible with the environment that is offered by the school.
In writing that post, I wanted to offer an alternative perspective to the students out there who are similar to
me - those who don't do well with "academics", but love learning anyways. I wanted to explain to future college students that the highly competitive schools are not necessarily the BEST place for them to get an education. Just because a school is well known doesn't mean that it will be conducive to your work habits. In my opinion, choosing a school for it's "name" (not its characteristics), is just as bad of a choice as picking a school because "your friends are going there." There is just no guarantee that it will be the best place for you. I realized that the highly competitive schools weren't the right place for me, and I am encouraging all prospective college students to consider what the best environment truly is for them.
No matter what school a student gets into, the same amount of congratulations and respect should be given to anyone who recognizes and chooses the school most compatible with their learning style. I am just as proud of the friends of mine who got in to Dartmouth (because it was the best school for
them) as the friends of mine who are opting to do to community college (because it was the best school for
them), and you should too.
If you take issue with either of my posts, I am sure it is because I am not explaining it well enough. If something bothers you, please PM me, and I will do my best to clarify my statements.
-- Jaine