Chicago colleges (Naperville, Oak Park, Elmhurst: home, neighborhoods, high school)

[jennifer_cw]

Hi, I'm a high school student from West Virginia. I have several friends who have lived in Chicago or were born there. Everyone seems to have a high regard for the place, but I have never travelled there. I am in the quest for a college to attend after high school, but I would like to go to a large city. Chicago is an option on my list. I have looked at several colleges, but I am not sure if there are any that fit my needs. It doesn't have to be in Chicago; it may be in a suburn or surrounding city. I am interested in journalism and travelling namely. Those two subjects would be crucial in my search for a college.

My friend is going to attend Kendall Cooking College and his father graduated from Northwestern, , but neither of those are appropriate for my interests.

Did anyone here graduate from a Chicago or surrounding area college? Can you give me some advice?

Thanks,
Jennifer

[Shoteka]

I am considering University of Illinois-Chicago in the fall. It would be an option for a school directly in the city. I don't know if they have a journalism major or not. Also, my friend graduated from Columbia with a BA in Journalism a few years ago and she had a wonderful experience. University of Chicago and Northwestern are excellent schools but very selective (I don't know what your grades/SAT/ACTs look like) Loyola is a Catholic school and private. I would suggest using a web-based browser like www.petersons.com to specify search criteria that you're interested in. good luck!

[jennifer_cw]

Thank you for the info! I definitely realized that Northwestern was selective. I am in the top 10% of my class, but I don't think I have the scores to make it into those schools. I am mostly interested in finding something I like personally. It doesn't matter to me about big names or anything. I'll definitely look into the ones you mentioned, though. Thanks a lot!

[hawkfandan]

The area around UIC (Univ of IL @ Chicago), has really boomed in the last few years. Plus you're a stones throw from downtown.

It's a great area within walking distance of Little Italy & Greektown.

Mmmmm...Rosebud.

[domergurl]

Don't forget DePaul. It's in the Lincoln Park neighborhood, a great place, very close to downtown. Like Loyola, it's a Catholic school. The main campus of Loyola is in Rogers Park, which can get kind of dicey. UIC, same thing ... nice, but can get a little scary at night.

[j33]

I graduated from Loyola (graduate school) and thought it was an excellent school. Although I admittedly no nothing about their journalism program. I'm surprised you said Northwestern wasn't appropriate for your interests, the Medill School of Journalism is renown (but as you mentioned, very selective).

[HollyhockGarden]

Hello - Try checking out Concordia, in River Forest (next to Oak Park), Elmhurst College, in Elmhurst, and North Central College in Naperville. These schools are all smaller, and are all near public transportation so you can go to downtown Chicago if you wish to. They all have dormitories for students to live in. I have also heard good things about Bradley University, which is not in Chicago but is a couple of hours south.And Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa has a good reputation.

[mdz]

Concordia University, in River Forest, is well known as a teacher's college but also has liberal arts programs.

Dominican University is also in River Forest and is a Catholic liberal arts college. Excellent library sciences program.

[Drover]

If you're looking to go into journalism, you should check out Columbia College, which specializes in media communications. They also accommodate study-abroad agreements if you feel like travelling. As for domestic travel, of course Chicago has two international airports, an Amtrak station, a Greyhound bus terminal, and 7 interstates in the metro area (3 of which go right to downtown) that provide direct access to anywhere from Seattle and San Francisco to Boston and New York plus several points in between (St. Louis, Memphis, New Orleans, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Cleveland, Milwaukee, Detroit, et cetera).

Columbia is is right in the middle of downtown, and the entire city and regional transportation infrastructure is geared toward getting people downtown. This means you can live in just about any part of the city and even in certain nearby suburbs and have convenient access to school. Columbia does provide some housing, but quite honestly there isn't a lot of entertainment and nightlife options in the immediate area, and what entertainment/nightlife there is downtown is not geared toward college-age students. For that you'll want to look into some of the North Side and Northwest Side neighborhoods such as Wrigleyville, Bucktown, Wicker Park, Lincoln Park, and the Southport area of Lakeview.

That said, Seven out of the eight CTA's "L" train lines have a stop within three blocks or less from campus, so again, you really have the option to live in any part of the city. Plus you ride the CTA trains and buses free as a full-time student. ("Free" is relative because it's actually part of your student fees. But they charge you for it whether you use it or not so you might as well get your money's worth.)

As always, pay a visit before seriously considering attending shool here. It can be a bit of a culture shock. The closest thing to West Virginia that would even begin to give you a clue is Pittsburgh, and Pittsburgh is a flyspeck of a hamlet compared to this place -- Chicago is literally ten times bigger. If you've been to New York, you have an idea.

[cdrobert]

I knew some one who went to UIC. On his way home (2 blocks from campus) a gang of peurto ricans beat him up and took his wallet and his cellphone.

This did not matter to my friend, you see he was born and raised in suburban glen ellyn. So when he got jumped, he took it as his offical innitiation into becoming a chicagoan.