fairygemgirl

My native SoCal daughter wants to go to a New England college so I have time-traded for a week in Falmouth during the second week of November so we can see a few of the colleges. Will anything be open and will we be able to get around or have I just made a major mistake? All opinions greatfully accepted!

gomiki

What is she thinking LOL!! Seriously, what colleges do you want to visit? Falmouth is well over an hour from Boston or Providence. I'm not sure you are in a central location to view several schools.

Restaurants and shops will be open. It is a year round community. Weather can be lovely and "crisp" or cold, wet and miserable. (The joy of New England weather). Bring warm clothes to layer. Go to Wood's Hole and West Falmouth for the scenery.

Will answer other questions if I can.

fairygemgirl

I didn't think it would be central but in the vicinity was desirable. That's the problem with combining agendas- college shopping, sight seeing, and using up time-share weeks. Daughter is looking at colleges in Bridgewater and Smithfield RI, New Britain and Hamden CT, Salem, Boston, Dartmouth and Amherst MA, and Manchester NH. I have no dellusions of seeing them all but was hoping to get to some. Being from SoCal, spending 2-3 hours on the road didn't seem like a big deal to get to a college. I had forgotten about small, windy roads and ICE! Now I am wondering about the advisability of driving since its been 20 years since I driven on anything but dry or (occasionally) wet roads. We live in the middle of a desert so the biggest mission is for daughter to experience many cold, windy days in a row. LOL! But if all we do is enjoy Cape Cod - I won't be heart broken! Thanks for responding!

lvk

This is funny, fairygemgirl. My SoCal son (age 10) says he wants to attend a MA college too. But I think it is only because his big-kid uncles (my brothers) live there. We were in Southern NE for Thanksgiving last year, and I was surprised at how much fall color was left at that late date. A little bonus for you . It might be rainy and dreary, but there shouldn't be any ice.

Are you sure that the Bridgewater school isn't in MA? If so, you can definitely do both Bridgewater and Dartmouth, MA in one day trip from Falmouth. (Most of these colleges are ones that myself and my friends attended, so I have made many of these drives).

You can probably do Salem and Boston on another day. Or you could plan a whole day in Boston to see the city and MANY schools there, and get a taste of the city. You could then hit Salem on the way to Manchester, NH on another day.

Amherst is a tough one to combine - you could go through RI and hit Bryant (the only college I know of in Smithfield RI) on the way up there. Coming back to Falmouth from Amherst will be a long trek, though.

My advice would be to have your daughter make a priority list of which schools are "must see" and which are "like to see"

lvk

oops, posted by accident. Maybe the weather will be cold and dreary enough to change your daughter's mind. UC Riverside might not be looking so bad, after all

Another good thing about going in November would be minimal traffic coming on and off the Cape at that time.

Also, if you're a member of II, the Marriott's Custom House in Boston is usually available in November, and would be much more centrally located for you.

Sounds like a fun trip. Enjoy!

gomiki

lvk has good suggestions. Don't worry about ice and most of the roads will be four lane. Just watch out for the Massachusetts drivers!

Jacqueline1212

Sounds like your daughter is looking at state colleges. If so, then Bridgewater is in MA. I would not be that enthusiastic about UMass Boston. It is mainly a commuter school as there are no dorms and it is not in a good area. If you can, try to get out to UMass Amherst. Huge school but great location and is the flagship of the UMass system. Look at a map and group your must see's according to location and plan from there. Even Amherst is doable as a day (long) trip from Falmouth. Remember that MA is really tiny compared to CA. Unlikely but not impossible to have snow and ice that time in Nov. Less likely in southeast MA and RI. It will probably be cold though so bring warm clothes, hats and gloves and winter footwear. Be aware that Nov can be pretty bleak in MA bcs we're between fall colors and snow so everthing is dull brown and gray. Don't let that "color" your opinion. (Can't believe I made such a bad pun!). Hope you enjoy. Hundreds of thousands of students come to college in MA and many stay after graduation bcs they love the area.

Anonymous

I agree with what others have said -- icy roads are very unlikely n November, UMass is a commuter school and has no on-campus presence and mostly adult students.

Does your daughter have any reason for focusing on public schools in MA? They have lots of hidden fees and extra charges, and can end up being as expensive as private schools, even for in-state kids. Some of the ones she's named are small (e.g., Salem) and as we've said, UMass Boston would probably not be a good fit for a recent HS grad from out of state. Maybe she needs to do a little more research, there are so many great schools.

fairygemgirl

Hey thanks everyone!

She actually has been looking at a combination of public and private schools. She's a good student but school cost will be an issue, which is why public schools tend to look better. Her top choice is Quinnipiac Univ (before seeing any) and UnivMass Amherst is another top 15 choice. In Boston she is looking at Suffolk Univ and in Rhode Island- Bryant. She was also looking at Southern New Hampshire Univ in New Hampshire. She's gone to a small private school so she was looking at smaller colleges too. Thanks for all the feedback!

LVK, I did notice that I got Bridgewater wrong and you must be psychic - she is desperately trying to avoid UCRiverside except as a last alternative cuz it is just too close to home. I thought if I took her to see some other big schools, smaller, warmer and closer might look better.

I definitely feel better about driving around to see the campuses so I appreciate the shared knowledge!

fairygemgirl

And gomiki -
thanks for the suggestions on Wood's Hole and West Falmouth - I definitely want to enjoy the trip too!

Anonymous

"She's a good student but school cost will be an issue, which is why public schools tend to look better."

If your family has any genuine financial need, the private schools can be a better buy. They have scholarships, grants, and discretionary aid funds that are unavailable at the public schools. Total cost at UMass for out-of-state students is over $24K. Whatevr you do, don't decide not to apply to a school purely because of its "retail" cost.

girlonthego

Read the post and had to laugh. My husband graduated from Quinnipiac in the early eighties!!It was A LOT cheaper back then. He really liked his college years spent there. I believe they have added many wings since then. Good luck on your searches.
Oh and both of my brothers went to college in Boston and had the time of their lives. They would not have gone anywhere else.

Dreamer2

While you're here, check out Stonehill College. It's just between Boston and Providence with easy access to the Cape. Very New England-y campus, great programs. And yes, if you qualify, Fin Aid can make many private school tuitions equal to public schools. However, state universities usually award scholarships at higher levels to out of state students to compensate for higher tuition. As for the vacation part - maybe you can add in a stop in Newport, RI! Have fun! Best wishes...

lvk

fairygemgirl,

I'm not psychic, just put SoCal + Desert together and came up with the only University I know of in the area.

I second the suggestion of Newport, RI. While you are there, you can check out Salve Regina College. Some of their buildings are converted former Newport mansions.

I hope you post a trip report when you return. I'll be interested to read about your impressions.

lvk

oops, Salve is now a University. Check out the virtual tour of some of their cool buildings at www.salve.edu. Just a tad different from the UC schools, don't you think?

Zoom

Hi...

Thought I should mention to you that Hamden and New Britain, CT are a good 4 plus hours driving from Falmouth. There is also about a 45 minute - 1 hour drive between Hamden and New Britain as well. Probably not possible to drive Falmouth to CT (to see both these areas), tour the campuses and get back to Falmouth all in the same day unless you left the Cape early like 4 a.m. and started your CT day at 8 a.m. Your best best would be to drive to Hamden/New Haven tour the college, stay overnight in the New Haven area, then head out to New Britain the next morning, tour that campus and then head back to Falmouth (you would probably return early evening if you got back on the road to the Cape at noon.

Also, just a suggestion to anticipate the commuter traffic between CT and the Cape. Hotspots are Hartford, New Haven, Providence.

But here is a vote for visitng the Cape in the off season. If you luck into a few days of sunny, cool weather you will be rewarded with wonderful quiet stretches of beach for walking, picturesque scenery, easy access to restaurants, a quiet Cape experience....

Barbara_in_CT

New Britain is about two 1/2 hours from Falmouth via the Mass Pike and Interstate 84. From New Britain to Hamden, it is less than an hour via Interstate 91. From New Haven back to Falmouth can be about 3 hours via Interstate 95.

If she is interested in Quinnipiac, Central Connecticut isn't going to measure up. Transportation, twice a year is going to be an additional expense.

Good luck and enjoy your trip.

molly4669

I don't think staying in Falmouth is so bad, at least you have a base to work out of...it's only 1.5 hours from Boston and there are a ton of colleges to see. If you need specific info, I live on Cape Cod about 30 min from Falmouth and just did the college thing this past year, email me with specifics if necessary [email protected]

fairygemgirl

Hey thanks so much! We are definitely going and will try to prioritize schools and distances. Frankly, just getting to the area to make sure my daughter has a realistic idea of what to expect is my major agenda, since I don't want to get her into a good school, only to find she is miserable because it isn't what she expects. I actually have an aunt who lives in Hartford CT, although I haven't seen her in almost 30 years. After making the reservations, I started to think I had no hope of negotiating the roads or having anything to see on the Cape, but now we will be fine. I will definitely let y'all know how it turns out- thanks for the help!

And Zoom, I may take you up on the offer as we get closer and more positive on where we are going. It's great to have the input!Thanks!

stellablue

If you haven't booked the airfare yet, you could fly into Hartford's Bradley Airport, stay with your aunt, and see UMASS Amherst, Central CT and Quinnipiac in a couple of days. Then head east to RI, see Bryant, move on to Dartmouth the same day on I-195 and then head to Falmouth for your home base. Then Salem, Boston and NH are within 2 hours (in November, weekdays). And back to Bradley airport is just under 3 hours, depending on time of day.