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@city living, thank you SOO much for your suggestions. That's a great story about your experience at Plattsburgh!
I'll see how we can get that information from NP. Maybe attending the accepted students day would be the ideal information, the only issue is BOTH schools have this event this coming Saturday.
If you don't mind me asking, which degree did she get at ESF, BS or Masters? My husband's friend recently got a Masters in Environmental Studies and can't find any work, so it seems that the Environmental Studies side is hard to get a job in. It might be different for the Env. Science end or something like Biotechnology or some of the other specialties at ESF.
@city living, thank you SOO much for your suggestions. That's a great story about your experience at Plattsburgh!
I'll see how we can get that information from NP. Maybe attending the accepted students day would be the ideal information, the only issue is BOTH schools have this event this coming Saturday.
If you don't mind me asking, which degree did she get at ESF, BS or Masters? My husband's friend recently got a Masters in Environmental Studies and can't find any work, so it seems that the Environmental Studies side is hard to get a job in. It might be different for the Env. Science end or something like Biotechnology or some of the other specialties at ESF.
I think he should really talk to the department he is really interested in, even if he can't make it to accepted students day. Someone from the department would be able to answer questions about the type of research undergraduates can participate in, if they have internships available and if there are any type of connections the school makes in terms of what he is interested in---he can also find out this information from Stony Brook. If he does have particular things he is interested in, then he should also see if either of the schools focus on these things. Then again, his feelings can always change.
I know my sister did her B.S. at ESF I just don't remember in what exactly---definitely NOT related to biotechnology but more environmental studies based. But her eventual job has little to do with what she actually studied, although I guess it is technically related to the environment. I do think environmental studies is difficult to get a job in, which is why it would benefit him to know what types of jobs students actually get after graduating with a degree.
And, if he chooses one of the two schools and he really feels as though he chose the wrong one, he can always transfer. I transferred schools way too much but it was actually pretty easy.
@City Living, I absolutely know the feeling! I transferred only once but I changed my major 4 times. I ended up majoring in something completely different from what I originally wanted to major in but that was actually more enjoyable to me and a job is pretty much guaranteed (started as Communications, changed to Spanish, Political Science, CIS and finally chose Computer Science).
I'll speak with him this afternoon and see if he can call the schools. As per the schools website we kind of get a feeling more or less how they work in terms of research. You are 100% correct about the larger Research Universities. Stony Brook's website explains you must email at least 6 or 7 professors to ask them if they would sponsor you. They even say it might be better to go see them in person and ask, if you can. NP's site says they have an internal research program were any/all students can participate and you can ask the professors directly. So the interaction is completely different. However, since SB is a science school they also have more resources and do more research.
I'll speak with him again today and see which school he wants to visit on Saturday and ask him to call them both and ask about their opportunities or join the chat/blogs they have. I know SB has a chat coming up tomorrow night so that might be a great opportunity to ask this from them.
In terms of majors, I honestly think he prefers Bio or Environmental but not from the political side, more from the engineering/scientific side(Like building powerplants with new technologies, etc).
If he really wants to build power plants with new technologies then he should become an electric power engineer and forget bio and environmental studies. There are other schools that are better for that than either NP or SB, although family member did exactly that at SB.
Thanks folks for all the pointers and ideas. He chose New Paltz. He said there's always an option to transfer if it doesn't work out or if he finds he wants to do something NP can't provide. What sealed the deal was: he joined accepted students chats on Tuesday (NP) and last night for SB. He asked NP reps about research opportunities and learned that although they aren't known as a Science school they have lots of resources and conduct a decent amount of research. They have an Annual Student Research Symposium, summer research program sponsorships, work closely with the Mohonk Preserve (research and internships) and often award travel grants to undergrads so they can present their research findings at professional conferences. The professors are very assessable and have many research opportunities through the year and over the summer, starting as early as Freshmen year. If he goes the engineering route they also have a major in Engineering so even if he goes that route he might be able to stay there as well...
The class sizes and lack of accessibility to Professors at SB doesn't match his personality, at least not now. He's reserved in large groups but extremely outgoing and sharp in smaller groups. He thinks the right setting for him is a smaller school where he doesn't feel like a small fish in a large pond. We're going to the Accepted Open House for NP this Saturday to learn more. He's 17 so his "career path" changes each week or so (typical teen). He's not 100% sure what he wants to do in terms of ultimate "ideal job" overall, however, New Paltz is a better fit for him.
Lol, I was having this dilemma a few weeks ago when I got accepted to both. I decided on SB for a number of reason, (much different than your brother's tho).
Anyways, I hope he enjoys NP. From what Ive seen it looks like a good school in a beautiful location.
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