Best Colleges for Skiing?

Excellent Sno..

Please excuse what seems like bragging..Just a proud parent..My oldest daughter was accepted at MIT for the her Geotech Masters..

I might apply to MIT to transfer after my Clarkson School year.   Some kids who went to TCS got accepted into some elite schools.  In all likelihood I'll stay at Clarkson, but doesn't hurt to send out some applications and see if I can take it up a notch.

JasonWx wrote

Excellent Sno..

Please excuse what seems like bragging..Just a proud parent..My oldest daughter was accepted at MIT for the her Geotech Masters..

Very nice for her - the place is a grind though, no fun at all.

There isn't a party bone in her body...she loves the grind...

Congrats Sno!

Congats, Sno. I think this will be a positive experience for you. Keep us informed.

I'll keep everyone informed on this thread.  Thanks!!

At MIT you could kiss your dream of lots of skiing good bye

Coach Z wrote

At MIT you could kiss your dream of lots of skiing good bye

I hate to say because I've been trying to convince him otherwise, but that's a TERRIBLE reason to not go to MIT.

Is anyone familiar with SUNY Polytechnic Institute in Utica?

It used to be basically a transfer school for those with 2 yr tech degrees, and they had a few masters programs too. But they recently merged with SUNY CNSE (college of nanoscale science and engineering) in Albany. Now they are a full on engineering school, and supposedly have the most up-to-date Nanoscale Science, and engineering program. I think the new facility is supposed to open this Fall. They are the only SUNY school that is ABET accredit which means that they are held to the same standards and RIT, and RPI which are also ABET accredited. (Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology)

I visited there a few months ago, and it looks like there are some great programs, and tuition is 1/4 the price of a private school. I've been on several other SUNY campuses, and this school does not compare. The atmosphere, and student life is completely different. Not a party bone in the school. Although it seems as though students have plenty of time for other activities like skiing

Coach Z wrote

At MIT you could kiss your dream of lots of skiing good bye

He doesn't get it, but he will...
My daughter works from 9am to 9pm every day..it ain't no joke...Only skis during her winter and spring breaks..

12 hours multiplied by 7 days is an 84 hour work week.  That's basically 2 full time jobs and I call BS on that number.

If I'm taking 17 credit hours that's 17 hours in class each week.  The average college student these days spends 15 hours outside of the classroom per week on their studies.  If I double that and spend 30 hours a week studying, that's a 47 hour work week.  Basically a full time job, especially if you need to commute every day (which I wouldn't need to do at Clarkson).

My dad of course works full time and he skied 30 days this season and could've gotten more.  I got 50 days.  Jason's daughter spends every waking hour working because she wants to, not because she HAS to.  She only skis during winter and spring break because that's all she wants to do.  I'm willing to bet that she could've gotten the days my dad did if she wanted to.

snoloco wrote

12 hours multiplied by 7 days is an 84 hour work week.  That's basically 2 full time jobs and I call BS on that number.

 

If you think a 40hr work week is a full tie job you're in for a rude awaking

That's what both my parents work and you are wrong.

campgottagopee wrote

If you think a 40hr work week is a full tie job you're in for a rude awaking

If you work much more than that you are a sucker IMO.  Unless you really, really love your job and it's your life.

Honestly our standard work week should be more like 30-35 hrs and more people should be employed.  It's our greedy society and ignorant greedy people willing to work more hours for a tiny carrot that drives this.  Time spent does not equal excellence.

I never worked 9am-9pm every day of the week in college.  No way, no how.  And I went to an ABET school which was very demanding.  I graduated with a 4.0 on a 4.0 scale.

If you are smart, and work smart you'll do great.  Figuring out how to get there is tough.  Adding in extracurricular stuff that will make you more marketable and give you more real world skill will add in more time.  It's value added if you find something you like.  Skiing will not give you added value to the job market.

Her dream was MIT..She did what she thought she had to do to get in...

But most people do work a 10 hr day..Don't know many that don't...If you can work less , you should  kiss your boss on his or hers lips and thank them..

peace and love...

I really think it's an issue in this country.  It's the reason we're generally unhealthy both mentally and physically.

There's also no reason to work more.  Many studies to show your productivity drops immensely after 40-50hrs of work a week.  You are less happy, less healthy, less motivated.  The only ones that makes out are the ones at the top who can squeeze more blood from the stone and take away your healthcare and retirement to boot.

If you feel you need to work real hard to get ahead or wherever you are going, go for it.  Ask yourself if it's worth it though?  For me, I would have never considered MIT if I didn't think I was smart enough to get in and handle the requirements (and yes I did consider it for grad school but decided against it).  Some people seem to think hard work is a substitute for talent, in some cases it can make up for small differences, but I hate to say it, some people, no matter how hard they worked would flop in a difficult curriculum.  I'm all about finding what you like AND what you are good at.  Those two don't always coincide exactly, but it's much easier to exploit your unique talents than to tread water against those who naturally float.

OTOH, Boston is awesome.  I would love being there for 3 or 4 years and studying something I was really interested in.  Like I say, I'd make sure it's the right fit though.

One other thing for Sno - Senior Design I definitely worked a lot.  Almost like classes + holding down a real job.  It was fun though.  By that time you are learning real in depth engineering and using it to build stuff.



Welding, machining, soldering, testing... it wasn't like work, it was fun.  I did a few other big projects like this throughout school - it's a good thing.  Learned a lot and was good for getting a job.

I think I'm taking a very realistic view on how to balance my activities.  I plan to spend 40-50 hours on schoolwork over 5 days each week, about the same as a full time job.  I plan on skiing 1-3 days per week skiing, depending on workload and other factors.  I plan to also be in a bunch of clubs/extracurricular activities, preferably within my major.  Jason just explained why his daughter worked the way she did.  I don't have goals like that, so for me, that's unnecessary.  MikeK is pretty much correct on this one.  Too much work and not enough play is a bad thing.

Good luck with that Sno. All I can say is stay away from the top tier engineering curriculums, you won't be able to compete. They not only have the brightest students, they also have the ones that want to work their asses off.

Colleges like MIT, Stanford, or even Georga Tech have a lot of top notch students in engineering. At least when I went I did not have to compete with all the Asians that now go to these schools. Imagine trying to compete with the smartest 100 kids from all of China, India and Indonesia. These kids can virtually run circles around you in Math and they couldn't give two shits about skiing. All they want is your job and a path to stay in this country.
You better wake up in a hurry.

PeeTex wrote

Good luck with that Sno. All I can say is stay away from the top tier engineering curriculums, you won't be able to compete. They not only have the brightest students, they also have the ones that want to work their asses off.

Colleges like MIT, Stanford, or even Georga Tech have a lot of top notch students in engineering. At least when I went I did not have to compete with all the Asians that now go to these schools. Imagine trying to compete with the smartest 100 kids from all of China, India and Indonesia. These kids can virtually run circles around you in Math and they couldn't give two shits about skiing. All they want is your job and a path to stay in this country.
You better wake up in a hurry.

I think you are exaggerating this a bit.

Also one thing you'll find out... some of these kids from other countries may be good at math, but not all of them are good at APPLYING math.  Big difference.

Math is a tool just as a wrench or a screwdriver.  Just because you know how to turn a wrench doesn't mean you can design or fix an engine.

Learn how to use all the (useful) tools, physical and mental... you'll see what I mean by that later on.  You'll be exposed to a lot of stuff that is touted as engineering but only really works in a narrow range of conditions, or can be steered subjectively.

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.  And a crazy, unhealthy boy.  Trust me, my body and mind are POS from my genetics, but I made it work.