Advice on College picking

i've been told that if you are planiing on being someone in the world that has a life with many openings and a very good lifestyle then it doesnt matter what school you go to it matters how you enjoy yourself during that time

word i live in chicago but come fall ill be going to college at montana state

yea i want to live on the west coast after college so i wanna go to school out there.  My mom thinks thats a bad idea cause id never be able to come home but w/e

wanna get outta ohio next year. still trying to get my parents to let me go to CU Boulder

Let me just say from my own personal experience DO NOT pick a college based only on how good/close the skiing is, I did exactly that and ended up spending 2 1/2 years at a school I shouldn't have gone to in the first place and was not right for me at all;  I can't say it's been all negative, I've skied a huge amount (over three years of 60+ day seasons skiing, travelling and skiing  some of the sickest mountains and backcountry in North America), but academically I am not where I should be and I have a lot of catching up to do, becuase I decided to go to a rediculously competitive and hard engineering school when I never wanted not do i want to be an engineer and am awful and math/physics, I stayed at the school for so long becuase I kept telling myself it would work out and I would do O.K in the end [The Colorado School of Mines in Golden, Colorado, if your curious...], but really I just dug myself into a deeper hole.... I realize this is partly my own fault for not being as studious as I should have been and skiing a shitload instead, but regardless, even when I busted my ass, I just wasn't getting anywhere.  Now I am finally transferring to a program that's right for me; and while I might not be skiing as much, I want to finish my degree and get the hell out of school, that way I can AFFORD to ski the rest of my life.... anyways just a few words of caution.
    -Phil.

Yah i came out to CU from vermont and its been amazing, i cant wait to get back this weekend...and i wish i could ski 7 days a week damn man.

yeah next year im going to colorado college, right now i live outside syracuse and its 70 fucking degrees. but yeah cc is a dope school n i only have to take one class at a time and i already know some kids there that will drive me up to the mountains where we will ball on skis. my mom was like cry cry cry dont leave your family cry cry go to uvm, but you gotta do what you feel is right. a part of me wanted stay east near my family but a way bigger part of me knows that i would just be pissed off knowing i could have been out west.

I almost went to CUB from ohio. decided on going to school that really cares about its students though, CU isn't that great of a school. I went to northeastern in boston and love it here and its close to skiing and everthing.

that is what i did left indiana for colorado, only regret i have is going home for christmas and thanksginving

if I can give anyone a piece of advice, it would be to move away for school and spend your first year in dorms. I regret I never did. Sure there are pros for staying home but go out, live your life. Homes always there, but your first year of university is only something you can experience once.

Can I suggest a school... Westminster College in Salt lake City. Very very good school academically, 20 min from the mountains 3 min from U of Utah, 10 minutes from downtown salt lake. Samll school only 2,500 but small classes so you get to know the professors and its a really cool vibe. Look into it, not many from the east know of this school. Oh but its expensive

My advice, go where you want to go don't do it to be with friends or because your parents want you to go. Also, get away from home. All of my friends said they still feel like they are in high school still and whenever i go home it feels like high school again, which is cool but at the same time its awesome to get to know new people in a different area.

I'm sorry you had a shitty experience, but you shouldn't be telling people not to live near skiing if they want to ski and go to school.  you could've moved to summit county, gone to cmc, and skied 100+ day seasons for two years. 

the main point is to ski, so go to a school where you can get your core classes out of the way for a couple of years and ski.  After those two years of skiing and going to school, you'll know what you really want to do; be it stay in the mountains and go pro or go to a university to get your degree in engineering. 

the other option is to go to a ski town, be a ski bum, and ski everyday for a year or ten.  then, if you decide you want to go to college later. go.

don't base your decision off what everyone else is doing.  do what you want.  if other people don't like it then fuck em.

peace

Yeah dude haha I guess I'm just bitter cuz I suck at  engineering... but yeah you have a good point, just go out and live your life with no regrets and do what you want.... I can't say my time in Colorado has been negative at all; hell it's been freakin amazing, I've gotten amazing jobs/internships both on campus and all over the western U.S, met some of the coolect, most badass friends ever, skied a huge amount at some of the best resorts in the world, and had a ton of fun.  Life has been amazing and I have no regrets, I just need a change now is all.

I pretty much agree with all of this post and do wanna add a few things.  If you are stuck at school where there isnt much skiing around and every winter you are really craving it, take winter semester off and move out to where you wanna be and get a job on or around the resort.  I did this last year at keystone and it was great.  It will let you ski almost every day, and you dont have to worry about grades or anything.  Also, I made up all the classes in the summer so it wasnt even like I took off at all.  Next thing is that you should pick a major you want not what your parents want.  My bro did engineering and it is now his 5th year and it doesnt look like hes gonna graduate.  He hates it but hes sticking to it cause he just wants a degree and hes pretty close to being done.  He wishes he would have done journalism because he loves soccer and writing about it would be his dream job. 

You can use the days that your high school will excuse you to visit colleges and then while you are in the different region, hit up a new mountain.

When visiting colleges, make sure to do three things for sure:

1. Stay overnight. This will allow you to meet the students that aren't part of the Admissions staff, and see what life is really like at the certain college. This is the best test of the atmosphere, and made all the difference for me.

2. Attend some classes. Pick some in the area that you are thinking about studying, and if you aren't sure then that's ok too. This will allow you to get a feel for the class sizes, as well as how they are conducted. Some of the state schools I checked out have huge classes, which I would not do well in at all. I wouldn't have known this if I hadn't visited those classes.

3. Visit with an admissions counselor. If you have any IB/AP/college credits, they can tell you how they fit in at the university, as well as other information you might have questions about. If you haven't been admitted yet, the counselor meeting can be very important, as they record what they think and remember  when deciding whether or not to admit you.

Don't be afraid to go outside your comfort zone, or check out places that you aren't very sure about. You may find the perfect fit, and can also better your ski opportunities at the same time.

thats so true. dont follow your gf to school somewhere you dont want to go because chances are you're gonna break up and then be stuck in a shitty place. just go wherever you want.