Soon to be university student looking to go out of state? [CO]

[7120]

Hi, I'm from Colorado Springs, and looking to move out of state for college, preferably remaining in the west.
I would like to find a chill, walkable city, I don't have a car yet.
I'm not too big on nightlife and partying wildness. I'm really into nature and forests. I'm in the digital arts, film, gaming, and design field, so it would be nice if there was a good industry for that.
I'm also a pretty shy person, and sort of mixed race if it matters. I'm not the type to really care or group up by race but I don't want to live amongst really overt racism.



Basically, CO Springs but with a better digital art scene and more walkable.


Here's the areas I'm looking at:
SOU in Ashland, Oregon

Utah Valley in Orem, Utah

Weber State in Ogden, Utah

CWU in Ellensburg, Washington

Colorado State in Fort Collins, Colorado

and University of Alaska, Anchorage

[march2]

Overt racism is very rare. You should do fine anywhere.

[Bubb Rubb]

Go to where you think you'd get the best alumni connections in your proposed industry would be. Don't worry about being shy - a ton of people in college are. You'll be fine anywhere

[GeoffD]

As a practical thing, Colorado State is the closest but still "away" since it's on the other side of Denver. In state tuition. Housing costs are reasonable if you're not in the dorms. The Front Range is right there just like home and you can be in Estes Park/Rocky Mountain National Park in a hour. There's the reservoir and lots of outdoors/hiking up the hill from town. If you ski or snowboard, it's not a great location. It certainly meets your chill-walkable criteria. Not as upscale as Boulder and nowhere near as crowded.

[TheTimidBlueBars]

Is College Confidential still big? When I was in the college search phase a decade ago that was where everyone went for advice about schools themselves.

The only one of those towns I've been to is Ellensburg, so here's the general vibe I got. It has a sizable working-class contingent and doesn't feel as wholly student-centered as some other college towns I've been to. Nature-wise, you're pretty close to the Cascade Mountains and the Columbia River - but you'd need a car to get to those; there's not much "nature" to speak of within biking distance. Most of the town is walkable, although a lot of businesses are situated along Canyon Rd, which leads from the town core to I-90 and is a typical suburban thoroughfare-type road.

Seattle is only a couple hours away, so if you have a friend with a car, you could take easy trips there - but then, the main reason college students do that is to party. I think a bigger advantage of being close to Seattle would be that tech is huge here, so networking in Ellensburg could get you some connections to companies in the city and you'd probably have a bigger leg up on getting internships there than students living in other states.

I think college towns in general will have less overt racism than the rest of the country besides major cities, although I'd suggest trying to reach out to students of color at each school - I'm sure their diversity offices could connect you with someone.

[kyle19125]

Colorado State University and Fort Collins in my opinion are by far your best option of those provided, based on the criteria listed.

[snoopygirlmi]

Anchorage is not especially walkable. You can get around w/out a car, but it's kind of difficult. Hopefully things have improved in 20 years since I did that, but I just don't have enough information to fill in that gap.

I've always thought it was one of the better places I've been regarding diversity. Racial issues are talked about a lot because of issues of regarding Alaska's native people and they are a huge portion of the population. And there's a huge army/military population, so it's not particularly weird to see non-white people around. You aren't shocked when you see someone who's not white. Race really isn't thought of in the same ways in Alaska as it is in the Lower 48. In a lot of ways, it's just a different culture. Yes, I'm sure there are bigots there, but I never ran into them. Overt racism is really not something I'd worry about there. (But again, I'm not a racial minority, so others may have different stories/experiences to share.)

I live in the Detroit area now where there are distinct racial overtones to every thing around here. Conversations can easily devolve into a discussion about the 1967 race riots if you aren't careful about what you say. In Alaska, you just don't find that kind of attitude. You'll find people who are bitter about all the services that the Natives are entitled to, but other than that - the discussion really isn't the same as the black/white stuff you find down here in the Lower 48. (And - again - I don't know if that attitude has changed since I lived there 20 years ago, so......take it for what it's worth).

[elchevere]

Absolutely agree.

Originally Posted by Bubb Rubb

Go to where you think you'd get the best alumni connections in your proposed industry would be. Don't worry about being shy - a ton of people in college are. You'll be fine anywhere

[cornsnicker3]

Is there any financial information that would allow us to make a better recommendation? This seems like a slam dunk decision for financial reasons alone. I see almost no reason not to suggest CSU given instate tuition.

[TCHP]

Agree CSU will give the option of in state tuition, if this is a concern. However, the Western Undergraduate Exchange agreements means tuition in 16 western states will be near instate levels for over 160 participating colleges. If cost is a concern, certainly recommend you look into this. I assume you've zeroed in on these selections for their ability to provide you with your desired major. If you haven't done this yet, then I certainly recommend you do so.

FWIW, Colo Spgs is unique in that it has a higher percentage of mixed race persons than Denver, Chicago, or even LA. Its unlikely you will find a similar mix in a smaller university town. However most campus' will have a very tolerant outlook on this. I'd say the area surrounding the schools will need examination since its unlikely you will spend four years just at the school. Recreation and exploration will lead you into surrounding areas, so how these feel to you will require some research as well.