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OT: Applications for Rutgers NB have increased almost 40% for Fall 2024

Yeah one other person responded to him.

You were the first one to defend.

As always, I was right.

Has there ever been a thread where you were not absolutely owned?

This is definitely a top 5. Though not as good as when you got the McGill tuition wrong, or any CEsspool gem.
You were wrong about that as well. You still think college and university are synonymous in Canada? I mean not like my wife and all of her nephews graduated from there or anything
 
Except that didn’t happen. They actually went up after Covid. I love how people love to make crap up that fits their political agenda.

Year Applications Year-over-year change

2021 43,161 4.6%
2020 41,263 -0.1%


Source: Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System
did you also find 2019 and 2022, 2023 but choose to not post it?

It was 41,654 for 2022.. did you purposefully omit that because, and I quote you here, "that fits [your] political agenda?"
 
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Sorry to say you are off on a lot of your points but we can agree to disagree. First off , show me a school where the freshman get the best dorms. Freshman don't give a crap and love just not being home.
Livi apartments are not for Grad students. My daughter lived there Sophomore year. RU now has a priority point system for the dorms. You get more "points" depending on your grade level so Juniors and Seniors will usually get the dorms/ apartments they want.
Livi Apartments are some of the nicest at RU
The Yard on College Ave are also top of the line and of course the Honor College dorm
The STEM dorm on Busch is real nice .
Agree with Douglas / Cook not having nice dorms.

IMO Livi is great for Freshman. Dining hall is one of the nicest I have ever seen. Student Center , Movie Theatre, other place to eat are also nice. My daughter lived in the towers freshman year , had a corner room and had room for a couch and was typical for a dorm.

Son lived in Barr freshman year. Not a nice dorm, but RU was smart putting all freshman engineering students in the same dorm so they could study and bond together. Busch dining hall is probably the second nicest dining hall on campus.

You can argue that RU is too big and spread out. But I look at it this way. It is really 4 small colleges with their own "feel" . Cook / Douglas the hippie campus. College Ave the party campus. Busch the nerd campus and Livi freshman and Biz School.

Admittedly some of the older dorms are what they are are, dorm rooms. They have updated the River Dorms and the Quad on College Ave.

I will agree on one key point if you wand to take your kid on a RU tour. The bus tour sucks. Find someone to take walking tour with your kid. I have given at least 20 over the years and the parents really saw the difference compared to the bus tour.
I'm not off on these points. Livingston apartments are not for freshman...grad students and upper classmen according to Rutgers. And you made the point...your SOPHOMORE daughter lived there. Quite frankly, most schools only guarantee housing for freshman...so yes, they typically DO get the best dorms. In fact, RU does not even guarantee housing for freshman. We have a few nice dorms, but they are upper classmen/grad (Livi) or Honors (college ave). In my opinion, anyone who wants to live on Livingston doesn't value a college experience. There is nothing there. Gym stinks. Nothing to do...no town or city surrounding the campus. It's a wasteland aside from the new apartments and retail on ground floor.

Majority of dorms at RU are old and really really dated. They work, but the point was that in comparison to many other state schools they are not appealing and this is true.

And i WOULD argue that RU is too spread out. You can say they are 4 distinct campuses with their own personalities, but that's a stretch. Livingston stinks. Busch stinks. College Ave at least has a town/city and the feel of a college campus. Cook has very little to offer aside from some fields and a pond.

Awesome that you have given so many tours to people. I think it's a shame that RU will not give a good tour. The bus tour reinforces the spread out nature and makes it feel overwhelming. Get people into some of the nicer buildings and show off a bit. Rutgers is a great school and I love it. But there are a lot of warts and we can do better.
 
Lies and/or hyperbole with that 90% shit. I gave comparisons. You keep throwing out complaints and insults. Name the 90% of the dorms/housing you have visited.

Most academic buildings are beat up and ugly? More hyperbole and lies. You been on Livingston or Busch campuses lately? College Ave is being refurbished with new buildings. The Honors College area is awesome.

Buses? University of Michigan, Ohio State University of Wisconsin, Penn State and almost any flagship university has large, spread out campuses with bus routes.

You done pissing on Rutgers yet?
Boy you take things very personally. Livingston is a dump. There are new apartments that are nice with some retail below, but rest of campus is far from nice. It's a wasteland. I have not been into Busch lately, but it's quite ugly in my opinion. Maybe a nice new engineering building. I took my son into sony werblin to show off the amazing rec facility (that's how i remembered it)...it's not good. Fitness facility is old and dated. I'm a Rutgers supporter...two degrees and have donated tens of thousands to the school...but when I compared to other state schools last year with my son, and this year with my daughter, RU's campus is extraordinarily lacking. This is not an insult, this is an observation. We look dumpy, dated, ugly. I'm sorry but it's true.
 
I was in the River dorms (don't recall which one) last spring. Now I've named a single dorm I've been to.
But you said 90% of the dorms. That's one dorm, and one of the oldest dorms at Rutgers. Nothing personal for me, just fact-checking. My kid goes to a nice private school in Connecticut, and he spent last week hanging out in a Rutgers apartment, and the thought the apartment was nice. Had another kid graduate last year who lived in an apartment on Busch in the final year, and said the apartment was fine.

Haven't been to Busch, and you are casting stones at it. There's more than a new Engineering building. There's a new chemistry building, a new biomedical engineering building (in addition to Engineering). But keep throwing stones at stuff admittedly have not seen. You sound like you have an axe to grind with Rutgers. That's OK, just admit it. People can have different opinions, but if you are going to have an opinion, at least make it an informed one on the dorms and Busch campus. Agree that the older parts of Livingston are not great. But they are not terrible. When we did college visits 3 years ago, we saw a lot of the same types of buildings and dorms, and some much worse.
 
Can you guys who say Rutgers look dumpy tell us which school you visited that had better dorms and why? I gave my experience at Villanova and Babson.
It's such BS and overrated. Most of the dorms are similarly sized and set up the same way- 2 beds, 2 desks and an armoire type closet.

My youngest is a junior and got into one of the nicest dorms at the small private college in CT. They could stay there next year, but the group opted to get an off-campus house, which isn't really that nice, but it saves them money, and they wanted to freedom of being off-campus.

Clemson Dorm, LOL:



Rutgers dorm-don't see a material difference. Like I said above, concrete block exterior walls and separating hallway.

 
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But you said 90% of the dorms. That's one dorm, and one of the oldest dorms at Rutgers. Nothing personal for me, just fact-checking. My kid goes to a nice private school in Connecticut, and he spent last week hanging out in a Rutgers apartment, and the thought the apartment was nice. Had another kid graduate last year who lived in an apartment on Busch in the final year, and said the apartment was fine.

Haven't been to Busch, and you are casting stones at it. There's more than a new Engineering building. There's a new chemistry building, a new biomedical engineering building (in addition to Engineering). But keep throwing stones at stuff admittedly have not seen. You sound like you have an axe to grind with Rutgers. That's OK, just admit it. People can have different opinions, but if you are going to have an opinion, at least make it an informed one on the dorms and Busch campus. Agree that the older parts of Livingston are not great. But they are not terrible. When we did college visits 3 years ago, we saw a lot of the same types of buildings and dorms, and some much worse.
How can you say Livingston (old part) is not terrible. It is absolutely horrible. Busch has no character at all. Livingston is horrible. College Ave feels like a campus. The topic of housing was with respect to freshman choosing Rutgers. The apartments you describe are not for freshman. Dorms are for freshman and they are not good. There are a couple exceptions, but dorms on Livinston, Cook, College Ave are generally horrible. Sorry I said 90%...I should have said "most"...that would be more accurate. I have no axe to grind with Rutgers at all. Season ticket holder, multiple degrees, donor for 19 years and I continue to. I am a Rutgers supporter but I've also seen what else is out there, primarily in the southeast, and Rutgers doesn't measure up in my opinion.
 
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I went to accepted students day with my son last spring. They took us through dorms on college avenue. The honors dorms are probably the only nice dorms on all of rutgers. If not in honors dorms, you could end up on any of the NB campuses...and they are all pretty much terrible. My son went to a basketball camp at Rutgers several years ago and stayed in the Livingston dorm...whoa it was like a prison...maybe worse. Not ragging on Rutgers, but sharing examples of how Rutgers does not show well when compared to a ton of OOS publics. When you tour a campus that is very appealing it gives the impression that there's investment in the overall university....that the state is supporting it....and there is quality. I have to admit...and again I have two degrees from RU and have donated tens of thousands to RU....I bleed scarlet....when I toured with my son and compared to other schools, RU fell down the list very quickly. 15th Ranking is a very great thing, but I honestly believe there are a lot of factors that go into those rankings that have nothing to do with the academic outcome and more to do with social and other factors. I am proud of my RU degrees, but don't believe a RU education is significantly different than most public university educations....you come out just as smart and ready at any of them. It's what you put into it and what you take from it.
Livingston Apartments and B.E.S.T in Busch are very nice.
 
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The new dorms (apartments) on Livingston look nice. But they are for continuing students and grad students. Pretty sure freshman don't get into those apartments. Freshman would not get a look at them. That new area they built with the retail on ground level is nice. But look at the rest of the campus...looks and feels like a couple worn out buildings sprinkled in an open field. It's ugly and has zero character...worse than a 1970's corporate park.
Freshmen can get into the livi apt if they choose the international roommates program.
 
How can you say Livingston (old part) is not terrible. It is absolutely horrible. Busch has no character at all. Livingston is horrible. College Ave feels like a campus. The topic of housing was with respect to freshman choosing Rutgers. The apartments you describe are not for freshman. Dorms are for freshman and they are not good. There are a couple exceptions, but dorms on Livinston, Cook, College Ave are generally horrible. Sorry I said 90%...I should have said "most"...that would be more accurate. I have no axe to grind with Rutgers at all. Season ticket holder, multiple degrees, donor for 19 years and I continue to. I am a Rutgers supporter but I've also seen what else is out there, primarily in the southeast, and Rutgers doesn't measure up in my opinion.
Opinions vary. Livingston is improving more each year. It is not "absolutely horrible." For someone who bleeds Scarlet, you really don't like what Rutgers has to offer.

Wouldn't send any of my family members to a school in the Southeast for a variety of reasons. Cost and proximity to internships and quality of education in many subjects is well below Rutgers. You have your opinion, and others have theirs. All schools have their rough spots.

Just got off the phone with our oldest, who confirmed the Silvers apartments on Busch were absolutely fine.
Overall experience for our oldest (graduated 2023) at Rutgers was superb. Graduated with a fantastic job at a top medical software company in the midwest that recruits heavily from Rutgers for software engineers. Total cost of the Rutgers education for 4 years was $25K. No, the experience would not have been better at Clemson or Florida State because their campus and/or dorms were purportedly "nicer" and would not have gotten anywhere near the quality of education at those schools or the opportunities on graduation. Clemson and Florida State are not even in the same universe for computer science as Rutgers. Many kids are career-focused, and don't give a crap if one school has really nice dorms. As noted above, it's a bed, a desk and place to store your clothes and stuff. 🤷‍♂️
 
Those stats accurately represent my students who are accepted to BU post-Covid.

The reality is the last GPA averages are really pretty useless because everyone uses a different scales, and weighted GPAs are very inflated at many schools.
Accepted? Yes…but did they end up going there? Sounds like the BU official is saying those are the figures for the students that chose BU, which I can say with confidence that a the average student at U did NOT have. Anything near a 4.4 GPA with a 1500 SAT.
 
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As are the Sojourner Truth apartments. Guy is going off half cocked on a hate spree, without seeing all the nice stuff. Has some sort of agenda.
Knight Shift I have no agenda. I think RU is a good school. I'm proud of my degrees from Rutgers. But I also think the campus is unappealing in so many ways. I've said it before, dorms should not be the determining factor, but they are a factor for many 18 year olds. The campus in general is not nice, too spread out, ugly architecture, poorly laid out/planned, most campuses are on an island with nothing surrounding them, etc. I'm not saying people should not choose Rutgers...just comparing what I've seen in the last year+ as compared to many other schools. RU is not appealing. That's not an agenda, it's an opinion. Sorry if I'm mistaken, but I thought message boards were for voicing opinion.
 
Knight Shift I have no agenda. I think RU is a good school. I'm proud of my degrees from Rutgers. But I also think the campus is unappealing in so many ways. I've said it before, dorms should not be the determining factor, but they are a factor for many 18 year olds. The campus in general is not nice, too spread out, ugly architecture, poorly laid out/planned, most campuses are on an island with nothing surrounding them, etc. I'm not saying people should not choose Rutgers...just comparing what I've seen in the last year+ as compared to many other schools. RU is not appealing. That's not an agenda, it's an opinion. Sorry if I'm mistaken, but I thought message boards were for voicing opinion.
At Rutgers, I took a business writing course. The class met in the basement of one of the river dorms on George Street.

One assignment: Write a paper describing how to improve the university. After the assignment was handed down, I walked across George Street through the alley between Demarest Hall and the no-name building with the computer lab, student accounting, and a post office. The contrast between Demarest Hall and the surrounding buildings was stark. I felt like I was on the grounds of a military camp. Cognitive pain.

So I wrote a paper on campus beautification. Rutgers - and New Jersey in general - has a lot of room for improvement here.

On a positive note, the transformation in the 1/4 mile radius around the New Brunswick train station during the past 20 years has been phenomenal. This is the front door to Rutgers.
 
At Rutgers, I took a business writing course. The class met in the basement of one of the river dorms on George Street.

One assignment: Write a paper describing how to improve the university. After the assignment was handed down, I walked across George Street through the alley between Demarest Hall and the no-name building with the computer lab, student accounting, and a post office. The contrast between Demarest Hall and the surrounding buildings was stark. I felt like I was on the grounds of a military camp. Cognitive pain.

So I wrote a paper on campus beautification. Rutgers - and New Jersey in general - has a lot of room for improvement here.

On a positive note, the transformation in the 1/4 mile radius around the New Brunswick train station during the past 20 years has been phenomenal. This is the front door to Rutgers.
I had this thought when driving through the Univeristy of Tennessee this summer. You can save any posts about their academics, job prospects, etc. I’m simply saying they do an amazing job of making a building from the 1800’s look like exactly like the new Jamba Juice next door. There’s so many opportunities to do this at Rutgers
 
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I think the different campus offers something for everyone. If you like more urban feel, go to college Ave. want more typical campus setting, try Bush, Cook or Livingston. It may not be what some want and that’s ok.
 
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I had this thought when driving through the Univeristy of Tennessee this summer. You can save any posts about their academics, job prospects, etc. I’m simply saying they do an amazing job of making a building from the 1800’s look like exactly like the new Jamba Juice next door. There’s so many opportunities to do this at Rutgers
Not sure what you mean. That sounds awful
 
Knight Shift I have no agenda. I think RU is a good school. I'm proud of my degrees from Rutgers. But I also think the campus is unappealing in so many ways. I've said it before, dorms should not be the determining factor, but they are a factor for many 18 year olds. The campus in general is not nice, too spread out, ugly architecture, poorly laid out/planned, most campuses are on an island with nothing surrounding them, etc. I'm not saying people should not choose Rutgers...just comparing what I've seen in the last year+ as compared to many other schools. RU is not appealing. That's not an agenda, it's an opinion. Sorry if I'm mistaken, but I thought message boards were for voicing opinion.
No need to apologize I have said multiple times we have different opinions. My issue is you have a very strongly negative opinion based on what appears to be based on not seeing the better parts of the individual campuses. And I have pointed out too that many prospective students choose Rutgers based on the reputation, proximity to outstanding career opportunities in NJ and NYC, and strong ties to major industries and corporations. These students are career focused and not going to choose a college because it is more aesthetically pleasing or the dorms are purportedly nicer. Just like our opinions differ, students' reasons for choosing a college differ. Many have pointed out Rutgers is improving on the building and aesthetics, but they can't change the existing infrastructure overnight. I saw nothing in those Clemson videos that was particularly appealing to travel that far and pay more to attend college there, especially when it is not in the same league as Rutgers for many programs.
 
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The whole campus has the same character. Picture Old Queens but everything matching, new and old. Not awful at all
I guess that’s a preference thing. I think if you are adding on to an old building, it should be done to match the period. But a new stand alone building should look modern and different. It sounds like you and @ScarletDog just prefer the suburban campus setting. I think they are pretty and kind of the traditional definition of a college campus. Rutgers is definitely not that.
 
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I’ve never been a fan of the monotony of campuses where every building looks alike. Rutgers has a great variety of architecture on the campuses.

Also for those participating in the bitch fest about dorms at Rutgers, you need to consider that Rutgers has the largest student housing system of all schools in the entire country. There are many different options at RU. Of course some are dated and tired. Others are new and fresh.

This thread is about the huge surge in applications to RU. Reading it makes one think it’s about why nobody applies!
 
I’ve never been a fan of the monotony of campuses where every building looks alike. Rutgers has a great variety of architecture on the campuses.

Also for those participating in the bitch fest about dorms at Rutgers, you need to consider that Rutgers has the largest student housing system of all schools in the entire country. There are many different options at RU. Of course some are dated and tired. Others are new and fresh.

This thread is about the huge surge in applications to RU. Reading it makes one think it’s about why nobody applies!
New to the board? 😀
 
I’ve never been a fan of the monotony of campuses where every building looks alike. Rutgers has a great variety of architecture on the campuses.

Also for those participating in the bitch fest about dorms at Rutgers, you need to consider that Rutgers has the largest student housing system of all schools in the entire country. There are many different options at RU. Of course some are dated and tired. Others are new and fresh.

This thread is about the huge surge in applications to RU. Reading it makes one think it’s about why nobody applies!

New to the board? 😀
bitch fest? Moi? I thought the back and forth between scarlet dog and me was fairly measured. I was pointing out exactly what @Scarlet16E said above about the many varieties of housing at RU and provided real feedback from real students on what they thought. 🤷‍♂️ But sometimes what is typed out and what how it is being conveyed may come across as salty. Again, I'm reminded of meeting a number of people on these boards who I thought I would not get along with, and in person, they are the complete opposite of what I had thought. Sometimes bro hugs were even exchanged. Go figure.
 
I guess that’s a preference thing. I think if you are adding on to an old building, it should be done to match the period. But a new stand alone building should look modern and different. It sounds like you and @ScarletDog just prefer the suburban campus setting. I think they are pretty and kind of the traditional definition of a college campus. Rutgers is definitely not that.
Tennessee is in Knoxville, not a suburban setting. You have no idea what you are talking about. Campus is amazing. Take a walk into Rutgers student centers...disfunctional and not a gathering space for students as the should be. Take a walk through the libraries...not inviting at all. The point is, Rutgers is not appealing...not that it's not a good school. Our campuses are not nice.
 
No need to apologize I have said multiple times we have different opinions. My issue is you have a very strongly negative opinion based on what appears to be based on not seeing the better parts of the individual campuses. And I have pointed out too that many prospective students choose Rutgers based on the reputation, proximity to outstanding career opportunities in NJ and NYC, and strong ties to major industries and corporations. These students are career focused and not going to choose a college because it is more aesthetically pleasing or the dorms are purportedly nicer. Just like our opinions differ, students' reasons for choosing a college differ. Many have pointed out Rutgers is improving on the building and aesthetics, but they can't change the existing infrastructure overnight. I saw nothing in those Clemson videos that was particularly appealing to travel that far and pay more to attend college there, especially when it is not in the same league as Rutgers for many programs.
Agree with your point here. I've never seen Clemson's campus and my kids did not apply there. But there are a lot of factors that go into why a kid (or family) will choose. Academics and career need to be a major part of it, but there are a lot of factors that go into the choice. Campus, culture, cost, quality of degree, alumni network, and on and on. I love Rutgers, but we are lacking in some of those areas. Much of the discussion I've been part of here has been around housing and campus. This was because these areas are glaring weaknesses that i noticed during the last year+ with my kids. I will never doubt the quality of education and the value of the degree in this market (and others). And I agree, we have some newer buildings and spaces on the campuses that are nice. But we've generally neglected most of the campuses and this includes many of the amenities that have been upgraded quite nicely at other schools and their campuses often seem to have had a master plan along the way such that the spaces are appealing and inviting. That's all for me on this topic. I think we agree that RU is a great school and we have a strong bond with RU. It is good that we all care enough to have the discussion. That's enough for me...hope you have a good rest of the weekend.
 
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Accepted? Yes…but did they end up going there? Sounds like the BU official is saying those are the figures for the students that chose BU, which I can say with confidence that a the average student at U did NOT have. Anything near a 4.4 GPA with a 1500 SAT.
Yes, it does match with those who attend. The reality is a 4.4/1500 is not a rarity at my school, or at many suburban schools in NJ. There are 65 seniors in my school alone that meet both of these stats (and 1/4 of the class (over 125 students) has a 4.4 - weighted GPAs are a nonsense number). 2-4 go to Ivies and the others go to assortment of Rutgers and primarily T50 schools, including BU and Northeastern.

Remember the 1500 is average - so just as many 1450s as there are 1550s.

Of course remember that stat is only for students that submit SAT. More than half the students that apply there don’t submit scores.

For my school, the most common cross apps with BU are: Ivies, NYU, UMich, Duke, UNC, Northeastern, Georgia Tech. And Rutgers, because more than half our senior class applies to RU (more than 300 apps).

The Clemson crowd is a different crowd, and the kids getting in there are around the 1/3 rank in our school, with some honors and AP. All CP kids midway through the class are not getting into Clemson in 2024 (or 2023).
 
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Tennessee is in Knoxville, not a suburban setting. You have no idea what you are talking about. Campus is amazing. Take a walk into Rutgers student centers...disfunctional and not a gathering space for students as the should be. Take a walk through the libraries...not inviting at all. The point is, Rutgers is not appealing...not that it's not a good school. Our campuses are not nice.
You are right. I don’t know anything about UTenn. Glad you like it a lot. Like I said, it’s a preference thing. Knoxville is a tertiary market. I guess my definition of urban vs suburban is a little different.
 
Applicants for undergraduate admission to Rutgers University-New Brunswick:

Year Applications Year-over-year change

2022 41,654 -3.5%
2021 43,161 4.6%
2020 41,263 -0.1%
2019 41,286 -0.1%
2018 41,348 7.7%
2017 38,384 4.7%
2016 36,677 3.8%
2015 35,340 10.6%
2014 31,941 4.3%
2013 30,631 7.0%
2012 28,635 0.1%
2011 28,602 -3.1%
2010 29,532 3.2%
2009 28,624 -3.1%
2008 29,547 4.7%
2007 28,208 2.4%
2006 27,560 8.2%
2005 25,462 4.2%
2004 24,434 -10.5%
2003 27,311 2.4%
2002 26,678 -1.5%
2001 27,074

Source: Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System
Note: 2001-2022 compound annual growth rate = 2.1%
 
From a financial perspective, all kids should go to community college for 2 years, study and do well, get auto admit to RU (assuming in state), get a really good education and come out with not too much debt (assuming mom/dad aren’t paying). RU offers just about every major, solid name, and you can be very successful with an RU degree.

Once you accept that, every other situation pretty much comes down to justifying the college decisions for your family. I’m good with that. I know everyone wouldn’t agree with the decision(s) we’ve made.
 
From a financial perspective, all kids should go to community college for 2 years, study and do well, get auto admit to RU (assuming in state), get a really good education and come out with not too much debt (assuming mom/dad aren’t paying). RU offers just about every major, solid name, and you can be very successful with an RU degree.

Once you accept that, every other situation pretty much comes down to justifying the college decisions for your family. I’m good with that. I know everyone wouldn’t agree with the decision(s) we’ve made.
Now back to reality 😀. I wasn’t that smart at 18. Would’ve told my parents no thanks.
 
Now back to reality 😀. I wasn’t that smart at 18. Would’ve told my parents no thanks.
True story, my sister friend, our next door neighbor was class valedictorian in HS. She probably had numerous scholarships but her parents were very religious. They didn‘t want her to go away for college and that included Rutgers NB because she would have to live on campus. She told her mom she wanted to go OOS or she‘s not going college. She went to a secretary school. 30 years later, my sister saw her at the supermarket and talked to her, she lived in a low income town and gave up a chance to do something with her life by fighting her parent just wanting to go OOS. Her parents got divorced about the same time that she graduated high school which might have severely affected her.
 
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