UVM or CU Boulder

[skatecow45]

so im gonna see if you guys can help me with this one. i strongly like both of these colleges and i know my grades will easily carry me into UVM or CU Boulder... but which one do i want! i want to major in science, i want to ski a lot, i want to meet a lot of people, and i want to have a great time.

can anyone give me some 411 on either boulder or burlington?

can anyone give me any idea which resorts are closest to boulder? how is that terrain... completly sick?

is CU Boulder unbelievably cold and not fun during the winter?



and just as a side not i was wondering if this scenario worked... granted, i live near boston in massachussets; therefore i am not going to get instate tuition fees considering they are state universities. albeit, once im accepted to one of these schools can i defer payment for a year, claim residency in that state and pay siginificantly less tuition fees? im hoping this would work, but not sure.

any other info on these two schools would be friggen sweet!!

[Art Vandelay]

What are you planning to study?

[CUBUCK]

i had the the same choice a few years ago. The answer is easy, CU hands down. Hotter chicks, better weather, better skiing, longer skiing season, Big 12 football, access to a major city (think concerts, pro sports etc) and far better weather and hotter chicks.

Also CU's best programs are science and engineering. They are oe of the top 10 research institutions in the country and receive a ton of federal grant money for projects.

[Mountain Freak]

Boulder doesn't get cold at all during winter (well maybe a day or 2 per year). It is very mild, cold winters are probably the biggest misconception about Colorado. As for skiing, Eldora is very close to Boulder (about 20 miles I think, but I've never skiied there). A-basin, Loveland and Keystone are a little over an hour from there.

Hope that helps.

[INDY GS]

Boulder will have a better year round climate than Burlington. As far as skiing, you are at least an hour away from skiing either place. Closest to Boulder is Eldora, but you would be better off going up to Winter Park, Loveland, or Scummit county areas. They have cheap passes and way more terrain.

The out of state tuition secnario won't work if you are enrolled as a student. You need to be a resident of the state for at least one year, and be employed or be a dependant of someone who is employed and living in the state.

Burlington is a cool town, kind of the same vibe as Boulder, but I have only visited the campus and town once and have no more info. I assume the closest skiing is Stowe and Smugglers notch? I am not sure on that though.

Good luck as you matriculate into Higher education.

[robokill1981]

can anyone give me some 411 on either boulder or burlington?

can anyone give me any idea which resorts are closest to boulder? how is that terrain... completly sick?

is CU Boulder unbelievably cold and not fun during the winter?

I've lived in Boulder for 13 years. It's a cool town. Use the search function and you'll find more info. than you need.

There are a lot of resorts within 2.5 hours of Boulder. More importantly there is a lot of backcountry, but you'll probably be riding the resorts for your first year or so.

Boulder is super mild in the winter. It doesn't snow nearly as much as the mountains. It can be anywhere from 60 to -10 degrees all winter, but is usually sunny and mild.

Deferring for a year is easy, and will save you thousands at CU. In-state tuition is nothing here, but out of state is really expensive. You should defer for a year and move to the mountains like Z.

[backpack]

is CU Boulder unbelievably cold and not fun during the winter?

Boulder will feel waaay warmer than Vermont. Seriously.

CU hands down, no contest.

Plus, you're from MA, so you should go for the more significant change of location. That's just my opinion, of course... I went from UT to MA.

[Below Zero]

Yep, it's way too cold in Boulder during the winter, you should probably just stay on the east coast.

[skatecow45]

wow, this board does rock for information. i go an eat dinner and have 6+ relies. any other people care to chime in???

i want to major in biology, or some specific field of bio. maybe a minor in business.

will the deffering situation work? i want to move out to Co. for a year. that would be awesome.

[dewey]

I went to CU, moved to Burlington after.

There is no contest on every factor you mentioned - girls, skiing, weather, science program.

I ski-bummed a year (Crested Butte - easily the best terrain <but not always snow> in Colorado) and saved thousands by getting in-state at CU. It's a double-whammy no-brainer.

I won't repeat what everyone just said.

I will offer a few reasons to still consider UVM, even though you should definitely go to CU. They are:
-Fall - if you thoroughly enjoy a New England fall, it doesn't happen in CO, and it happens like nowhere else in VT.
-Water - Lakes, rain, moisture in general are few and far between in CO. This becomes acutely apparent during the Summers there.
-Culture - While Boulder is bigger than Burlington, you have Montreal, Boston, and New York within reasonable driving distances from UVM. CU has Denver, which is OK, but just OK.
-East Coast vs. West Coast Mentality - UVM is derfinitely eastern (duh). It's got that edge, like in Boston, where people are a little bit prickish. But you know people aren't really being fake. At CU, it's more like California. Everyone's really nice and friendly, but there's an air of fakeness floating around everywhere. This isn't really an edge to UVM, just something to think about.

You will find that everyone you meet at Boulder almost went to Burlington, and vice versa. They even have this wierd Church St./Pearl St. wrinkle in space where on any given day you really might as well be in either place.

Enjoy college.

[72Twenty]

If you can afford out-of-state at CU, you mind buying me a new car?

What about CSU (Ft. Collins), UW (Laramie) or Utah (SLC)?

[dewey]

I'm sure if you surf around the CU-Boulder website, it will explain the requirements for in-state. You will want to become independent as soon as possible, I believe. Then, as soon as you get out west, get a CO address, driver license, a job, pay taxes, etc.

[sftc]

If you are going to try for in-state tuition in Colorado the first thing you need to do is get your parents to stop claiming you as a dependent on their tax returns starting this year. Then you need to get a job in Colorado, file a Colorado income tax return, get a CO driver's license, register to vote, etc. I got it eventually, but it wasn't easy. You basically have to prove that you are totally independent of out-of-state parental support. The school will ask you for stuff like your tax returns, your parent's returns, a copy of your lease, and your bank statements. They don't want to see any fat checks coming in from Mommy and Daddy.
One good option is to go to a community college like Colorado Mountain College for a year or two, because you can take basic classes, ski and make some decent money in a ski town.
IMO, it's not as easy as some people make it sound. The school knows what's up and they love to stick you with out-of-state tuition because it's lsomething like $15,000 more then in-state and they need the money.
Other then that, CU is a great school, and most of the science departments are strong. They have had 2 Nobel science prize winners in the last 15 years and more astronauts have come out of CU then any other school.
And the chicks are way hotter then the hairy legged apes you see around Burlington.

[Viva]

CU has a nice bio program and there ought to be ample research opportunities for you there. You'll get an excellent education there should you choose to. The football sucks, though.

Also, CU is not one of the top research institutions in the country. At least not in the biomedical sciences. But they are good.

[dewey]

Also, if you play football real well, CU will try to get you to go there for free by offering you coke and whores.
But that's only if you play football.

A related third-tier perk at CU is the very real possibility of pulling bong hits with a future NFL player.
Rashaan Salaam was always borrowing my buddie's 3-footer.

[sftc]

Molecular, cellular, developmental biology (MCDB) is one of the hardest majors at CU, right up there with engineering. I don't think the community college plan is an option if you want to have an MCDB major, because it's basically a 4-year pre-med program, but I could be wrong on that.

[Below Zero]

Rashaan Salaam was always borrowing my buddie's 3-footer.

Dang man, a Heisman Trophy winner can't even buy his own bong. That's pretty sad.

[Squirrel99]

Years back I found myself in the same situation. Both very cool locations to be, but there's just something about Boulder. I'd give just about anything to go back, (well, almost!).

I also visited CSU among others, and the minute I walked onto campus in Boulder- it was no competition. CU has the entire package. So many great experiences there, I wouldn't know where to start. And there's so much to do. Most students either buy:
1) Abasin/Keystone/Breck pass (plus 10 days at Vail, I think)
or
2) Winter Park/Copper

Most those places are an easy 90 minute commute from CU. Boulder is very much like a college mountain community. With the Flatirons right there, you can walk just a few blocks literally and be engulfed in the mountains. Fkn sweeet. And although the Big 12 North sucks right now, I think the Buffs will have a good season. Maybe 8-3? I dunno. Either way, it'll be fun.

As for academics, a lot of what was said above. The Aerospace Engineering program is continually ranked in the top 5-10- with more astronauts attending CU than any other college, including MIT. MCDB makes me cringe- I wasn't smart enough for any of those majors! I think they also have Thomas Czech (sp?) and maybe another prof (can't remember who) that have won Nobel Prizes that call CU home. Cool stuff, but I was always more into the 'mountain scene' anyway

[Anxious Mo-Fo]

I will offer a few reasons to still consider UVM, even though you should definitely go to CU. They are:
-Fall - if you thoroughly enjoy a New England fall, it doesn't happen in CO, and it happens like nowhere else in VT.
-Water - Lakes, rain, moisture in general are few and far between in CO. This becomes acutely apparent during the Summers there.
-Culture - While Boulder is bigger than Burlington, you have Montreal, Boston, and New York within reasonable driving distances from UVM. CU has Denver, which is OK, but just OK.
-East Coast vs. West Coast Mentality - UVM is derfinitely eastern (duh). It's got that edge, like in Boston, where people are a little bit prickish. But you know people aren't really being fake. At CU, it's more like California. Everyone's really nice and friendly, but there's an air of fakeness floating around everywhere. This isn't really an edge to UVM, just something to think about.

I chose Boulder when I had to make that decision (a long time ago), but Dewey makes a bunch of good points. They really busted my balls about the in-state/out-of-state thing, but since my father had moved to Denver three years earlier, I nailed the cheapskate tuition.

Oh yeah, and for the mandatory first year on campus, choose Kittridge. You'll thank me when you walk by all the hot trim in bikinis around the pond.

[warthog]

I went to CU, moved to Burlington after.

There is no contest on every factor you mentioned - girls, skiing, weather, science program.

I ski-bummed a year (Crested Butte - easily the best terrain <but not always snow> in Colorado) and saved thousands by getting in-state at CU. It's a double-whammy no-brainer.

I won't repeat what everyone just said.

I will offer a few reasons to still consider UVM, even though you should definitely go to CU. They are:
-Fall - if you thoroughly enjoy a New England fall, it doesn't happen in CO, and it happens like nowhere else in VT.
-Water - Lakes, rain, moisture in general are few and far between in CO. This becomes acutely apparent during the Summers there.
-Culture - While Boulder is bigger than Burlington, you have Montreal, Boston, and New York within reasonable driving distances from UVM. CU has Denver, which is OK, but just OK.
-East Coast vs. West Coast Mentality - UVM is derfinitely eastern (duh). It's got that edge, like in Boston, where people are a little bit prickish. But you know people aren't really being fake. At CU, it's more like California. Everyone's really nice and friendly, but there's an air of fakeness floating around everywhere. This isn't really an edge to UVM, just something to think about.

You will find that everyone you meet at Boulder almost went to Burlington, and vice versa. They even have this wierd Church St./Pearl St. wrinkle in space where on any given day you really might as well be in either place.

Enjoy college.

Whoa- almost verbatim what i woulda written.

Pearl St. and Church St. were designed by the same guy, or so I've been told.

My dad went to med school at UVM, and I lived in Boulder for a while. I have had the pleasure of getting to know both towns very well.

I would give UVM the vote for closer skiing (excluding Eldora-just cause it doesn't seem to be what he is looking for, but it is a cool little mtn), and Boulder the vote for better skiing.

Factor in the amount of other activities you can do in Boulder, year round, and it wins. Just take a drive up Canyon any fall, summer, or spring day, and you will be sold on the place. The healthiest place I have ever lived. Just watch your weight, cause the rumor is that they don't let fatties in.

Plus, Boulder has the Scumdowner.


edit- I forgot to tell you to fuck right off for the four(?) years of absolute bliss you are about to experience. I really hate you.

[bagtagley]

In Boulder the hippies are much richer, that's the only difference. Oh, and it's warmer.

Edit: Boulder has more people from New Jersey too, so you can still get your "prickish" fix if you need it.

[shmerham]

Just to play devil's advocate, if you can easily get into CU or UVM are you sure that's where you want to go? Neither is a top-tier school, or second-tier for that matter. Choosing where to go is complex, of course. A top-tier school doesn't guarantee a bright future, nor does a non-top-tier school mean a bleak one.

All I can advise you to do is to give it plenty of thought.

[3pin]

I believe the Church St/Pearl St pedestrian shopping center wrinkle in time has something to do with one guy working as a civic planner for both cities. At least that's what someone else told me.

[Viva]

And although the Big 12 North sucks right now, I think the Buffs will have a good season. Maybe 8-3? I dunno. Either way, it'll be fun.

I think they also have Thomas Czech (sp?) and maybe another prof (can't remember who) that have won Nobel Prizes that call CU home.

So long as gaRy barNett is HC, CU will underacheive.

You're talking 'bout Tom Cech, who won the nobel for his work on catalytic RNA, i.e., ribozymes. Cool stuff! He's one of the reasons that I applied to CU for grad school back in...let's just say, a long time ago.

Yo, Cowman. Why not Utah? Don't know about the undergrad there, but they do some very good research in the biosciences and the skiing is okay.

[MOHSHSIHd]

In Boulder the hippies are much richer, that's the only difference. Oh, and it's warmer.

Edit: Boulder has more people from New Jersey too, so you can still get your "prickish" fix if you need it.

i resent that comment....


on topic though:
boulder hands down

-warmer in winter (were talking days where there is 12 inches fresh at the basin and you are wearing shorts and a t-shirt in boulder...that NEVER happens in freeze your sack off burlington
-MORE SUN: boulder has like 300 days of sun a year...i dont know exact figures but i would say burlington would be in the 200 range at best (could be wrong though)
-Fresh powder from late September-mid June....
-Once the snowpack gets safer there is a multitude of year round skiing possibilities VERY close to boulder
-RMNP
-HOTTIES
-The number of wooks is starting to decrease, and that is good
-420 on farrand field, if you are into that kinda stuff

from 2003: