9.05 California dreaming?
9.05 California dreaming?
Sitting in New York, waiting for the major storm that is hard on the heels of last week's "bomb cyclone," we are feeling just a tad envious of students in places like--San Diego, California!In the video below, Athena Mentor reports from the University of San Diego, which Dr. Corcoran visited recently
Curious about what's beyond the palm trees? Click here for the Athena Mentor video of the main campus: https://youtu.be/Kz_fkZCy2wE
Athena Advises
Can you tell the difference between the University of San Diego (USD) and University of California, San Diego (UCSD)? It's easy to confuse these two institutions, if all you know is their names. And yet these two universities could not be more different from one another! This is a great example of how important it is to study a university's website in detail.You won't get lost in the crowd at the University of San Diego. There are fewer than 6,000 undergraduates and 9,000 students in all. Things could not be more different at University of California, San Diego, which has a total enrollment of over 35,000 students!I hope this has convinced you of the importance of studying the facts and figures on the websites of universities you are considering. A key data point is the number of students enrolled. When you visit colleges, be sure to correlate the number of students enrolled--which you will have noted in advance--with the look and feel of the place. This will help you as you continue to research possible schools for you. You'll develop a better understand of what it means for a college to have 5,000 students--or 50,000!But will a small school have sufficiently extensive course offerings in your proposed area of study? There, too, the best way to answer that question is to research the course catalogue. Athena Mentor recommends that you do this before you visit the school.Another important factor might be: Does this university have a strong religious affiliation? The University of San Diego is a Catholic institution with a clear mission statement. You would do well to read it.Don't immediately write off a small Catholic university! I visited USD with a high school classmate of mine. Her son had transferred to USD as a chemistry major. "The class selection was excellent," she remembered, and "he liked the smaller size and more personal attention." Did I mention that they are Jewish?So do your research--and do it with an open mind. Dr. Marlena CorcoranFounder and CEOAuthor of Year by Year to College, on amazon.com, amazon.de and many national amazon sites