Colleges in FL

[GalDisney]

Do any of you attend University of North Florida? My reason for asking is I am thinking of returning to school and am researching colleges in Fl. From what i see, it looks like a good school. My next choice would be Flagler college, then UF. Any opinions/experience with any of these?? Thanks!

 

[BeenieFL]

It all depends upon what your major is and what your are looking for when you choose a college. I do not attend the University of North Florida but I have been up there a few times and it seems like a good school, I do not really care for Jacksonville very much though. Many people from my high school goto or went to UNF though. Flager College is a very good school, but I believe it is a private institution and very expensive. It is in a beautiful city, St. Augustine. I am kind of biased when it comes to UF though, I was accepted to UF but for my major UCF was the better choice. I have been to Gainesville more times then I can count and I would have loved to attended UF. Honestly though, I rarely hear anything bad about an Florida Colleges, and any of your choices would be a good school, but it all depends on your major. I hope this helps! Good luck with your decision!

 

[GalDisney]

I am thinking of majoring in Business. And i would like a smaller college. Not a school with 50 thousand students, one reason i am not even considering UCF at the moment, anyway And Flagler is not that much more expensive than state colleges in FL, surprisingly. I need to do the first two yr at community college so i have a while to make a decision.

 

[G8RFAN]

.......And i would like a smaller college. Not a school with 50 thousand students, one reason i am not even considering UCF at the moment, anyway .....

Although SanteFe CC is close by to UF, I don't think UF would pass your "smaller college" criteria. However, the campus is still very endearing compared to the concrete jungle of smaller city colleges. That said, their College of Business is one of the best programs in FL. But I am biased.

 

[GalDisney]

Right, I know UF would not meet my criteria for a smaller college, but it is one of the alternatives i am considering

 

[leilani11]

I grew up in Jacksonville and have friends in all those schools. If I had to choose between those three schools, I'd say Flagler. It's a small school and the people I know there really like it. Not to mention, it's in St. Augustine, near the water, really pretty areas, etc. Oh yeah and everyone that goes to UNF says it stands for U Never Finish. That can't be a good sign...

 

[GalDisney]

I grew up in Jacksonville and have friends in all those schools. If I had to choose between those three schools, I'd say Flagler. It's a small school and the people I know there really like it. Not to mention, it's in St. Augustine, near the water, really pretty areas, etc. Oh yeah and everyone that goes to UNF says it stands for U Never Finish. That can't be a good sign...

wow..that sounds ominous lol

 

[leilani11]

GalDisney, have you looked at Jacksonville University? It's also a private school, but I don't think it's horribly expensive. My mom went there and got her BS in Business about five years ago. Took night and weekend classes. It's a nice campus and pretty small. Just an idea since you were looking at the North FL area.

 

[DisneyGuy77]

Do any of you attend University of North Florida? My reason for asking is I am thinking of returning to school and am researching colleges in Fl. From what i see, it looks like a good school. My next choice would be Flagler college, then UF. Any opinions/experience with any of these?? Thanks!

If you are interested in attending a small school for business, you may also want to look at Stetson. There main campus is in DeLand. They also have a school of business in Celebration. I’m sure they have other campuses with business programs, though I can’t think of their location off hand. Stetson is a private school, and as a previous poster stated, prepare to pay through the nose. I too am planning on going into business. My focus is hospitality though, so I am applying for my masters at UCFs Rosen college of Hospitality. It is on its own campus, and has a private school feel on a state school budget.

 

[Sehsun]

UF is the 3rd largest university in the U.S.. It is a huge campus, too. As far as academics, they offer a wide variety of majors and minors. Dorm life is okay, I lived on campus for my first two years and found that it was the best way to get to meet people and get acquainted with the school. There are so many ways to get involved in campus through clubs, organizations, and volunteering. If you have a special type of interest, I'll bet that there is a club/organization for it.....if not, you can make one. Not to mention we have great sports too. If you have any specific questions, feel free to PM me. Good luck in your college applications!

 

[Sabbie]

I attend UNF. S'pretty good school. Good for networking and meeting people.. plus close to Disney

 

[GalDisney]

Yes, Stetson is in Deland just about 30 mins from me. I have looked into it, but don't think i can afford it. My neice actually attended and graduated from Stetson and is now a CPA.

 

[Jules76126]

I went to the University of Tampa for a while. It was a nice small school and I met a ton of nice people. It also has a really nice school of business. However, it is a private school so you will pay a little more and one thing to remember is about 80% of the students were from out of state (Like I was).

 

[GalDisney]

Are there any older, adult college students here? Or any 'Independent " students? In other words, anyone who doesnt have parents paying their way or any of their costs. I am wondering how you are paying for school and living expenses??

 

[Tide27]

Depending on your income, you can apply for a pell grant. Many independent students are able to qualify for this as they will have reduced working hours due to college.

You can apply and see if you qualify for student aid and a pell grant by filling out a FAFSA online. Should only take a week or so to know.

Also you can get student loans with a low interest rate. As an independent student, I qualify for $5500 a semester in loans that dont have to begin repayment until I graduate.

A college degree will certainly help your chances in obtaining a much better job than if you didnt have a degree. I firmly believe that the student loans are the route to go if you cant afford it.

You will gain benefits greater than your initial investments in loans and it will pay off in the long run.

Hope you find some of this info helpful.

 

[JerJan]

Have you given any thoughts to ON-LINE college course?

 

[GalDisney]

Have you given any thoughts to ON-LINE college course?

Yes, I have thought about it, and have taken a few in the past. But I prefer the way of traditional college ie going to a campus and having clases onsite.

 

[leilani11]

Scholarships. Some sure you need the good grades, others are based on essays and nothing else. There is so much free money out there. Scholarships have paid for all of my tuition, room, and board. I can't tell you how many I applied to, everything from ethnicity, to women, to major based scholarships. If any family member ever worked in the government or is a vet, they have tons of money for college students too. It may not pay your way, but every couple thousand helps. Also, within a single school they offer yearly scholarships or fellowships. My boyfriend had one where his university gave him $10,000 and a Dell laptop to team teach a 9th grade science class at an Orlando school for a couple days a week for a year. It's a lot of annoying paper work, but sometimes it's worth it.

 

[teddebear86]

My boyfriend is a recent grad of UNF. His degree was in business management, which I see is something you are interested in. He really enjoyed his time there, as it is a smaller public school and had really great professors.

As with any school, you have to be careful when planning your courses. I am currently at UCF, where the slogan is "U Can't Finish". There are these types of slogans everywhere you may go. Knowing which semesters the courses are offered is a major plus, as some are only offered during specific times throughout the year. Honestly, I'm looking at graduating about a semester more than exactly 4 years at UCF. My boyfriend did this at UNF as well. You will have to take summer courses, but these are the best considering you have about 6 weeks in the courses and you really do not have many projects, if any!

Scholarships have helped me out a lot. I did receive the Bright Futures 75% scholarship post high school graduation. I also received a nice package put together by each university I was accepted to, helping to defer the costs. Since my father's income is lower, I am also receiving the Pell Grant, after filling out the FAFSA each year. However, my income has increased significantly the past year so I highly doubt i will be receiving this grant this coming year :-/ Other than that, i currently work part time to pay all of my other bills and have done so since I moved out of my father's house almost 3 years ago at 18 y/o. It makes me feel so good to be so independent in this manner and be able to support myself.

Anyways, good luck hunting and I hope I have been a help in some way!

kristin

 

[druidia]

FWIW, there are some graduates of "U Never Finish." I graduated in 1998 from UNF. They do have a well funded business school and a somewhat prestigious music program. I don't think the classes are too big, particularly not in comparison with UF and UCF. My brother attends UCF, and I have several co-workers who are getting a business degree online with UF right now. UF has also become rather selective lately with all of the recent national attention. One bad thing about UNF is that they don't have a lot of distance learning or accelerated options right now.

I have friends and family who have graduated from JU. At the risk of offending someone here, it seemed to me that their undergrad programs were not very challenging. I think my courses at UNF were a lot tougher. And JU is quite pricey, as it is private.

I found UNF to be fine for the money; I didn't want to go away to college at the time, even though now I wish I had.

And we are only 2-3 hours from Disney!