UA or ASU or NUA-PLEASE HELP PICK (Phoenix, Tucson: environment, loans)

[arizona_chic]

university of arizona?

arizona state university?

North university of arizona?


PLEASE HELP WHICH ONES THE BEST? tell all you know?

[scottie]

Im from Ohio and am going to be going to college next year and have spent many weeks in the Phoenix metro area and only one week in Tucson and I am seriously considering ASU, but not at all considering U of A. I didnt really like Tucson that much but I really like Tempe and the Phoenix metro area. ASU also has a good program in what I want to study. Its either ASU or Ohio St. for me, but I cant make a decision

[Ponderosa]

Originally Posted by arizona_chic

university of arizona?

arizona state university?

North university of arizona?


PLEASE HELP WHICH ONES THE BEST? tell all you know?

UofA is considered the best academically, but that is more of a grad school concern.

UofA has the nicest campus by a long shot. ASU and NAU are a hodge-podge.

ASU has the best off-campus environment in Mill Avenue. 4th Ave in Tucson is not in the same league. NAU has nothing comparable to either.

ASU is located in a safer, cleaner, more desireable part of its town than UofA is.

ASU has the best school-season weather. Flagstaff has a REAL winter, believe it!

ASU has the best reputation as a "party" school.

Phoenix is more fun than Tucson or Flagstaff is. There is more of everything.

NAU has the nicest town overall.

ASU has the best football program, but UofA is a perennial basketball powerhouse and the city and students are more into the teams than ASU. ASU sports used to be the hottest ticket in Phx, but with all the pro teams nobody cares anymore.

There are more jobs in Phoenix if you decide to stay after college.

I think if I did not care about a particular major, I would pick ASU. You can get a decent education and have a good time there too.

BTW: I am a graduate of UofA (undergrad) and ASU (graduate). In my experience, the UofA was clearly the better of the two for academic excellence.

[WantingoutofAz]

I attended NAU, graduated in 1997 with my bachelor's and 2000 with my Master's. I absolutely loved it up there. I am born and raised in Phoenix and my only time away was to attend college in Flagstaff. Flagstaff was a little cold for me but the summers are absolutely beautiful. The campus is beautiful. My husband went to U of A for one semester and hated it due to the huge class sizes and the impersonal feelings in his classes and transferred up to NAU which he loved also. The classes are much smaller. Flagstaff is a smaller college town.

But, I think that one determining factor for you will be what you want to major in. There may be something that is a major at one university that isn't at the other.

Hope this helps,
Angie

[steve22]

If you had to pick based on the town, the weather, and the overall quality of life, NAU without a doubt. Flagstaff rocks. But of the 3, it's the weakest academically with the fewest options in terms of majors, & not much in the way of grad programs or employment opportunities beyond graduation.

U od A is the strongest academically, & Tucson's not a bad place; I certainly like it much better there than Phoenix/Tempe (ugh). Tucson feels much more organic, like it's integrated into the desert rather than paved over it. There's much more culture there, with academically more numerous options, & a solid job market post-graduation. Just more cerebral on the whole. And the summers there are much more bearable as well, as opposed to Phoenix.

Under no circumstances would I ever recommend ASCC or Phoenix to anyone- sorry, that's just me. It's a degree factory party school, and Phoenix... well, you know how I feel about this place. Just trash. Tempe is Phoenix East, although I would say that downtown Tempe is probably the nicest part of the Valley, as far as a real downtown, hip, happening buzz with interesting people & culture. But it's still somewhat generic, with chain restaurants on every corner.

I guess, on the whole, I'd ask you: why in the world, with all the terrific educational institutions out East, would you ever want to go to college in Arizona? Nothing here can compare to the SUNY schools, let alone the private schools in N.Y. or the surrounding states. You'll pay more money & get less out of it. I guess I don't understand, myself... try to think about the long-term. An education at a top-notch school back East, or perhaps in California if you get accepted, I think would be a better idea.

[arizona_chic]

Thank you , i guess UA kinda sounds the best in the long-run. about the schools in NY- yea i thought about it, and have been accepted into some, but as I might have mentioned-i love arizona. just everything about it. but before i head into anything i'm going this summer to check it out for myself. summer especially since the summer is the worst of the worst. if i can handle the summer-i know i'm making the right choice. also the UA is less expensive then any other school i've been accepted into (stanford, Stonybrook) i won't be paying off it for the rest of my life like i will stanford or stonybrook and i will get a good education-maybe not the best. but good

ny annoys me now- lived here too long; the city life just upsets me and the high crime rates make me scared to walk out of my apartment at night.

[irwin]

Originally Posted by arizona_chic

ny annoys me now- lived here too long; the city life just upsets me and the high crime rates make me scared to walk out of my apartment at night.

The crime situation here in AZ is not good. Depending on the numbers you look at, it is worse than NY.

If you got into Stanford, I would go there. You may have to take on debt, but in the long term it will be worth the investment. Trust me. It will open up so many more opportunities and, if you so choose, you can walk into any job in Arizona and look a lot more impressive with a Stanford degree. Hands down Stanford. Don't pass this opportunity by, it won't come again.

[arizona_chic]

yes, but i'm goign to be in serious debt. and i mean serious. my parents are not paying for college, me. and i have absolutely nothing to pay forth to stanford-yes it's an excellent college and yes it will look better in the long-run but in the future after i got to UA i can go there for my masters, or something.

but i am not going into debt for a long time-i really am not

it's a good college but financially i will not be able to support myself.

i can get into UA kind of-it will be less to pay of than stanford and once i have a good job base and a flow of money going in maybe i will go to stanford; but for now-no.

[arizona_chic]

i also have a scholarship to UA-not to stanford.

[irwin]

Hey, we all get to make our own decisions in life. But, I went through a similar choice when I was looking at undergrad. I had to pay for most of expenses myself (although my parents did help me out a bit). I got into Princeton but turned it down and went to University of Texas because of cost. I have regretted that decision ever since.

Don't get me wrong, UT was a great school and I got a good solid education. It is normally ranked pretty high as one of the nation's top public schools. But what I missed from not going to Princeton is difficult to imagine. There are certain employers (big finance, big consulting, etc) where pedigree matters A LOT. Also, when you attend those schools you are just exposed to such educated, worldly people that you just can't get anywhere else. You may say to yourself right now that you are not interested in jobs that require a pedigree or you don't care about rubbing shoulders with the world's elite. But mark my word, that may very well change. You just don't want to cut yourself out now.

Education loans are cheap and you can apply for a lot of federal grants and programs on a need-based status. The federal loan program has all kinds of protections for you as a student and thus is relatively easy debt to manage. Also, there are tons and tons of scholarships out there. Many of them go unclaimed. All you have to do is search. I know there are websites that serve as central clearing houses for some of them.

Anyway, you do what you feel is best. But really think about this. You don't want to regret passing up a once and a lifetime chance and then regretting it for the rest of your life. Carpe Diem.