The Super Bowl happens the same time of the year as college football recruiting and as college players are deciding whether to stay in school or leave for the pros (and sometimes millions of dollars).
Can you tell we’ve got Super Bowl fever, here at CollegeBound?
What is pretty cool about this year’s Super Bowl quarterbacks is both of them graduated from college!
The New York Giants’ Eli Manning graduated from the University of Mississippi in 2003, with a degree in marketing. When the NFL Draft happened, he was the No. 1 pick.
The New England Patriots’ Tom Brady earned his degree in organizational studies from the University of Michigan, where he graduated in 2000. Unlike Manning, he was the 199th pick in the 2000 NFL Draft.
A few years ago, a television producer led Brady through a word-association exercise. A funny thing happened when the word “pressure” came up.
“Let me think about that,” Brady said, frowning. “I think that’s the pressure to grab a hold of something and obtain something that maybe a lot of ways … that’s a sh—y explanation. What the hell am I talking about?”
Then, after another failed attempt at an answer, he put his head between his knees and laughed.
“Oh, God,” he said. “I do have a college degree.”
Even some of the Super Bowl advertisers are playing up the college connection. A General Motors commercial expected to air during the Super Bowl shows a happy college graduate going crazy when he (mistakenly) thinks his neighbors’ sweet ride is his.
It’s the second half of our special Super Bowl blog looking at colleges and universities in the spots where fans abound.
MetLife Stadium, where the NFC Champions New York Giants play, is actually in East Rutherford, N.J., but since New York is in the team name, our lineup spotlights schools in the Big Apple. See why you may make want to make a play for one of these colleges as an applicant.
Number of students: 8,900 (at eight locations in New York and New Jersey)
Founded: 1931
Majors: Most popular majors are criminal justice, fashion marketing and management, management, and accounting.
Cool fact: Online students have access to online tutoring, career services, and student organizations, and also can able to participate in all on-campus activities.
Majors: The visual and performing arts is the most popular major, according to U.S. News & World Report.
Cool fact: The University holds a “Welcome Week” along with other festivities such as the Strawberry Festival (featuring NYC’s longest Strawberry Shortcake), the Violet Ball, and others.
Number of students: 480,000 (at 24 colleges and institutions in New York)
Founded: 1961
Majors: The CUNY Baccalaureate for Unique and Interdisciplinary Studies allows motivated students to design a field of study and earn their degree by working on an individual basis with faculty.
Cool fact: The University has hosted its own film festival, CUFF, since 2009.
Majors: Economics, political science, and history are most popular majors.
Cool fact: One of Columbia’s many traditions is Orgo Night. At 11:59 p.m. the night before the Organic Chemistry final exam, the marching band occupies Butler Library to distract students from studying before proceeding to other campus spots.
Are you headed to New York City for school? If so, let us know in the comments section below where you are attending.
-Lori Johnston (additional reporting by Delaney Young)
With the New England Patriots and New York Giants facing off in Super Bowl XLVI next month, we wanted to see where they stacked up, in terms of colleges and universities. Neither town fumbles with its wide array of schools, which have turned both areas into hubs for higher education.
The Boston, Mass., area – home to the New England Patriots – boasts elite schools including Harvard University and MIT (both in nearby Cambridge), private and public two-year and four-year universities, community colleges, and technical schools. The team plays outside of Boston, at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass.
Here’s our Super Bowl-worthy lineup of historic and innovative colleges and universities in Boston.
Founded: 1839 (It actually began as a Methodist seminary in Vermont and moved to Boston in 1867.)
Majors: Boston University has more than 250 fields of study.
Cool fact: Boston University has seven Nobel Prize winners, including Martin Luther King Jr. (who earned his Ph.D. from the school in 1955), and 22 Pulitzer Prize winners among its faculty and alumni.
Majors: UMass Boston has eight colleges and graduate schools, with the top five bachelor’s degrees awarded in management, psychology, nursing, criminal justice, and English.
Cool fact: The University has been recognized for its advocacy of human and civil rights, and works to promote social justice worldwide.
Majors: The largest independent college of contemporary music in the world, offers majors in composition, contemporary writing and production, electronic production and design, film scoring, jazz composition, music business/management, music education, music production and engineering, music therapy, performance, professional music, and songwriting.
Cool fact: Berklee alumni earned 30 Grammy nominations in 2011.
If you go to or are applying to these or other schools in the Boston area, we would love to hear from you in the comments section below. Look for schools in the New York Giants area in our next blog post.
-Lori Johnston (additional reporting by Delaney Young)
When LSU and Alabama vie for the BCS National Championship tonight at New Orleans’ Superdome, we’ll see again how they match up on the field as football teams. LSU won when it played Alabama during the regular season, back in November, with a 9-6 victory. This football championship and other bowl games that have happened during the holidays are times that students, alumni, and fans look forward to so they can cheer on their schools.
As for LSU (ranked No. 1) and Alabama (ranked No. 2), both are in the Southeastern Conference and have a recent history of performing well in football (recently, LSU was national champion in 2007, Alabama in 2009). Here’s a look at how else the schools match up:
Famous alumni: Former President Hubert Humphrey, political strategist James Carville, basketball player Shaquille O’Neal, composer Bill Conti
If you’re watching a game, see what you think of the school’s commercials, or tell us if you’ve liked any other school commercials during the recent bowl games!
One of the things we love about college is that when it comes to style, you can be yourself. But on college campuses this fall, some students are getting attention for their unstylish garb. It’s not just students’ gossiping, but enraged football fans complaining about some of these fashion faux pas. That’s because certain college football players are wearing new Nike and Under Armour uniforms with questionable color combinations and non-traditional designs.
In their defense, these players have no choice – it’s the decision of the school to have them wear the new jerseys, pants and helmets, sometimes for one game, but possibly throughout the entire season.
U-G-L-Y This ain't got no alibi. It's ugly!
The buzz about these college football uniforms is bringing even more attention to longtime college football powerhouses and nationally ranked teams. Boise State (a rare all-white look), Georgia (some said they looked like Power Rangers), and Oklahoma State (especially the all gray ensemble) are among the schools whose new uniforms caused negative comments from fans. Others, like Navy, Army, and LSU have avoided the same type of outrage.
Whether people love the uniforms or hate them for being so ugly, we love that the furor over football fashion is giving more attention to schools like Maryland, which isn’t known for their football programs. Some thought Maryland’s odd garb (see photo above), with the helmets and jerseys split down the middle to reflect the state flag, looked like the colorful attire of the knights at Medieval Times – the joust-filled dinner venue. The uniforms – seen during a nationally televised game in early September – was just one of 32 different combinations from Under Armour, and more than a few spectators got dizzy looking at them.
Of course, one would hope that you’re not going to choose a school based on a football uniform or even how fashionable students are on campus. But consider the fuss over football uniforms as just one more way to learn about more schools and college life.
What do you think? Offensively ugly or much ado about nothing?
I’m staring at my incomplete NCAA men’s basketball tournament bracket, trying to figure out which teams I’m going to select, leading up all the way to the national championship game. I don’t have much time, as I need to fill out my bracket today or tomorrow to compete with my friends and even strangers (even President Obama filled one out last year!) who are hoping to be the one with the best bracket by the end of March Madness and the national championship game on April 4.
Choosing a college can be a lot like filling out an March Madness bracket. You’re pitting schools against each other, too, in making your decision. Call it your own college choice bracket. Sure, you probably don’t have 68 colleges to choose from, like those competing in this year’s NCAA men’s basketball tourney (it is March Madness, after all), and maybe you’re down to your sweet 16 or the elite eight or the final four. Maybe you’re at the point where there’s just two schools vying to get your enrollment, just like the basketball tournament. Only one can win–but which one?
Here’s what you need for a winning bracket, which also can relate to your school choice:
1. Knowledge of the schools. Just as with the basketball tournament, those filling out brackets this week need to research which teams can make the cut. You’re also looking at which colleges are the best fit for you and how they compare to others you’re considering. For the tournament, we’re looking at the quality of players, experience they have had this season and strengths and weaknesses as a team. In making your college decision, you need to look at the reputation of the school and its accreditation, what programs it offers that of are interest to you, and what makes it stand out in its student life–dorms, activities, and yes, athletics.
2. Location of the games. If a team has to travel all the way across the country, like Washington is having to do when it plays in Charlotte on Friday, the long travel time can be a factor in the team’s performance. It’s the same for you – you have to consider whether attending a school far away from your family will hinder your ability to thrive despite homesickness–or whether it’s just what you need to gain independence.
3. Underdog status. You don’t want to immediately discount the smaller, less-well-known schools in the bracket or your college choice. Teams such as Morehead State University, Wofford College, and Oakland University, described by The New York Times as a mostly commuter university in suburban Detroit, may not have the big-name recognition as others, but they could still give their opponents trouble in the tournament. Those underdogs that continue to perform well are referred to as the Cinderella team–a group whose talent is underrated, but just might result in a happy-ever-after ending. So if you are weighing a larger versus smaller school, look past the size and focus on what else besides an enormous campus.
4. Gut feeling. When it comes to two teams where they both have the same amount of strengths and weaknesses, I have to go with my gut. That’s what makes filling out the NCAA tournament bracket so much fun – and so nerve-wracking! But with your college choice, you should feel confident in knowing that there are many schools that will give you a wonderful education and college experience. Where your gut comes in is in knowing which school feels like a better fit for you at this time.
So fill out your college choice bracket and recognize that you’re a winner just in making the decision to attend college!
I stopped by a pizza place in my college town recently and ran into a high school junior who, despite being a strong local tennis player, was not being highly recruited by colleges. Although he lives in a town where there’s a major state university, the high schooler mentioned that he is looking at a couple of smaller colleges elsewhere in Georgia.
Why? Because there’s a greater chance of him being able to actually play tennis and receive financial assistance to do so at those schools. He and other students who run track, play softball and baseball, and compete in other sports recognize that larger universities often save their scholarships and funding for top players in the country and international students.
If your dream is to compete athletically in college, you’re probably also making your college choice based on who will give you the greatest chance of playing and getting financial aid for athletics.
The reality is that few students get enough in athletic scholarships to cover their entire college cost. A New York Times analysis a couple of years ago found that the average NCAA athletic scholarship was $8,707, while annual tuition at NCAA institutions can be more than two to five times that much.
How many students receive athletic scholarships? Only 2 percent get a Division I or Division II scholarship, according to CBS MoneyWatch.com. The MoneyWatch.com expert also provides six tips for pursuing a sports scholarship.
Do an Internet search and you’ll find plenty of websites set up by recruiting companies who make money helping students get athletic scholarships. You’ll want to be careful about paying one of these companies too much and not getting the results you desire. You will want to research these companies’ reputations and those of the schools, too, to learn where you could have the advantage as an athlete.
Your New Year’s resolution (or your parents’ resolution) might be to save money in 2011, but how is that possible if you’re heading to college?
While there’s still the burden of tuition, books, room and board, and other necessary school expenses, there are some financial perks to being a college student. Here’s a look at a few freebies and discounts you’ll be enjoying in college:
Movies and more
Flash your student ID and you’re likely to get discounts to movies and museums, making it more affordable see the latest Harry Potter or Twilight movie with friends. And most campuses offer movie nights and concerts that are free for students – and sometimes there’s free food too.
Sports and recreation
Admission to school sporting events can be at no cost for students, and schools also often offer discounts on amusement park tickets, ski passes, and rounds of golf. It’s enough free or discounted stuff to make you forget about studying … almost.
Banking
Banks in your hometown or college town often will offer free checking and other perks, getting rid of another monthly or yearly expense. Some require a monthly balance; others don’t. And if you’re wanting to do online banking, that’s often a free option, too.
Career help
Free job databases, job search consulting, resume help, and more are offered by school’s career services departments. A new college grad told me this weekend that she was surprised to learn she would continue to have free access to her university’s career services assistance.
Laundry
At least one school – Davidson College in North Carolina – has a perk where students can drop off their laundry to be washed and dried for free. Students can have their dress shirts and blouses pressed and returned on hangers, and sheets, pillowcases and mattress covers are washed too.
Legal representation
If you’re in trouble with the law, battling with your landlord, or need another type of legal assistance, your status as a full-time student allows you to seek help from school’s Student Legal Services office. If you can’t afford to pay for an attorney, it’s a much cheaper alternative. It’s offered by schools such as Indiana University-Bloomington and University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.
Be sure to check out what other types of freebies and perks are offered at your school or the schools you’re applying to.
The annual U.S. Open tennis tournament taking place this week and next in Flushing, New York reminds me that some of my favorite memories from college are the late-night tennis matches my friends and I played on campus, allowing us to get some exercise and take a break from studying.
My skills weren’t good enough to play on my university’s tennis team and definitely not to play professionally in a tournament like the U.S. Open, but that didn’t stop me from getting out there and playing under the lights at the courts on campus for fun.
Maybe you enjoy tennis, but your skills aren’t strong enough either to earn a scholarship or play on your school’s official tennis team. But here’s something cool – check and see if the school you’re applying to (or just started classes at!) is part of the USTA’s Tennis on Campus program.
More than 500 colleges and universities are involved in the program, offering sport club tennis teams, intramural tennis leagues and tournaments, and recreational and physical education classes. That equates to more than 30,000 students involved in Tennis on Campus. The teams even get the opportunity to compete regionally and nationally in the USTA National Campus Championship, where 64 co-ed teams compete for the title. (You can also find out more about getting involved on the Tennis on Campus Facebook page.)
If tennis isn’t your thing, ask students and those leading the campus tours on your visits this fall what they enjoy doing to keep active and healthy during college. Maybe it’s rowing, baseball, flag football, softball, hitting the weights at the gym, or another sport you’re interested in. And don’t think you have to be the next Roger Federer or Maria Sharapova to pick up a tennis racquet–a good dose of energy will do.
Studying will strengthen your mental skills, but don’t forget about your health, too!
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