The Spring Break College Trip: Santa Clara University & Stanford

   I'll post a few pictures & thoughts. What a blistering trip. I won't pretend it was easy. We flew the longest legs. Good choice. We should have asked those in the know about LA to help us do a bit more planning. Poor choice on our part. The Venice Beach rental was lovely, but the area SO not us. However, we really liked the Venice Beach Canals, and catching up with my nephew who gave us a tour of Phase Four where he is working on space propulsion.

   We went to see some of these schools because they are on our consider list and others we were just curious about. It was all worthwhile. Seeing schools and regions in person really does change and form perceptions and awareness and take some of the mystique away. It's all about FIT for your student. What a haul though. Her gut melted down after an intense Mock Trial season and some other travel plus other strains on her system. She is such a trooper and so resilient, but her story is not mine to tell. That said, finding a college where she can fly (i.e., eat well) will be critical. I'll post a few thoughts about the schools from my notes.

   First stop Santa Clara University which has been voted #1 most innovative university in the west. We enjoyed our visit, but since school was out, we did not get a real sense of the place. The area did not really appeal to her, but her brother enjoyed the visit. Campus was mostly populated by international students and the soccer teams. Nice compact campus. Dean of Engineering is across the street from main campus. People drive fast in the area, and food selection was okay. Airport very close by.

 Stanford

One of the best admissions discussions we attended.

97% of students will live on campus all four years.

Barns were to die for. 

7k undergrads & 10k graduate students.

Decent size campus, really pretty large.

There was a sense of cooperative teamwork, not an eat you alive attitude like some Ivies.

Internationally known design school.

50% study abroad paid for by school.

Can't find your club? Propose it and the school will pay for it. 

EE maker space labs are open 12 hours a day/6 days a week.

Palo Alto felt very expensive and not very appealing.

We did have some very good hummus in town.

The college itself felt like a safe welcoming space. That said, crime is becoming an issue in visitor parking lots specifically during break times when they know many visitors are on campus.
Keep your valuables locked up and out of sight in your trunk. 

Some families found they had stolen suitcases, lap tops, etc....

Bill Gates on campus for an AI symposium while were visiting.

Food was good. She could eat here, but the lines were long at lunch.

Many housing options available.

Out of all the schools we visited, she could see herself here.

Likely to apply for kicks and giggles with no expectations.

 There's more than one way to explore a campus.

More schools coming soon....