College choice?

I’m curious as to why you feel the need to limit yourself to Northern VA.

True, there are many excellent schools there, but there are many fine schools elsewhere in this wonderful country, and around the world.

September 1, 2008, 8:04 PM EDT

I know University of Maryland has a good criminology department with ties to Washington but no kids of mine have gone there so I don’t know what the culture is. It is a very large school so there are probably all kinds of people there.

You don’t say how long you’ve been at WVU. Maybe if you’re just in your first or second year you should try getting involved in something that interests you and see who you meet there. If you find other friends to hang out with, your roommates won’t matter so much. Sometime it takes a year or two before you can evaluate whether you are in the right place. However, college is too precious and too expensive to spend being miserable. If you’re serious unhappy with the school for a long time, it’s worth looking into a transfer.

parents want me to stay at least some what local

it is my first year here, and I thought that i was in the right place, its where i wanted to be for 18 years, but i honestly think its too big and i dont have the self confidence to really put myself out there =/

I would suggest you find someone to talk to – like an RA or counselor. Freshman year has a lot of ups and downs, and it takes a while to find a few friends. Maybe you can ask someone in one of your classes if they want to study together. Once you have a few friends, the place won’t seem so big, but talking to an advisor is a good place to start.

Make sure that you want to make those changes. Be very clear with yourself. You are talking about changing where you go and what you study. That is a lot. There are consequences to the moves.

Should you do them? Only you can decide that after careful analysis.

The school year has just started. What if you first looked at changing dorms or housing? Do you have hobbies? Maybe join a club on campus or a service organization so that you can meet people. Make some smaller changes to try to improve your immediate situation first while you evaluate for the longer term.

Then see how you feel at the end of first semester (or second quarter).

If you decide to switch, U Va has a great law school.

If you are trying to switch schools, GMU has a decent computer engineering program, I hear.

Talk to counselors about your feelings. They may be able to help you find your feet.

You’ve only been there a week! Give it a chance.

In general, I really don’t advise transferring.

I have to agree with those that say it’s too soon to consider a change. What no one tells you, starting school (college) can be difficult! You have to adjust to sharing a room with a stranger and they are not always the perfect match! Do talk to your RA and/or the counselor.

It’s important to get involved and put yourself out there.

Try to see if it’s just the freshman blues and it’s only about adjusting to a different stage in your life. One week is not enough to make huge decisions like changing schools.

lol ive been here for close to a month already kids lol

i guess i just need more self confidence…. i dono

my daughter’s a freshmen in Chicago…same situation as you. Think it’s normal for all freshmen. Her dorm mates are 1) a gospel singing good girl and 2) a pot smoking model.
My kids into horror and alternative stuff. She just broke up with her bf and is miserable.
BUT, it gets better every day…or so she tells me.
Give yourself more time. You’ll find other ppl like yourself.