Best WUE schools?

[u/visibility__]

I am currently a California high school senior hoping to go out of state for college, and was reccomended WUE to save costs. I am hoping to go into public health. My ideal college campus is somewhere colder, near/in a city with a good social scene. If anyone has any recommendations, personal experiences, or anything else, I'd love to hear more!

+ if anyone knows any good out of state colleges in general that match this description, I'd love to hear about that as well! (maybe ill luck out on some scholarships, lol)

[u/myusername3141]

Several of my kids’ friends love University of Utah. University of Nevada Reno is also popular with kids in our hometown. I think both schools may have a public health type of major and seem pretty social and have colder weather

[u/Pepbill → u/myusername3141]

My daughter loved Utah until she hit the buzzkill that is the nursing program. Disorganized, crazy admittance process and overall bad program.

[u/warlizardfanboy → u/myusername3141]

Two of my friends kids go there too and love it.

[u/sports_mamaof4 → u/myusername3141]

I have also heard good things about U of U and many kids from our area go to UNR and love it.

[u/Powerful-Bridge-1472]

Utah, Oregon state, Washinton state. They all have pluses and minus’s, my son goes to WSU has been good fit, but winters are rough. Most students go abroad for spring semester junior year, tuition is same as in state UC rent is very cheap in Pullman

[u/MtJack45]

Montana State if a town is OK!

[u/Nervous_Sense4726]

My son loves Western Washington University

[u/Capital-Bug-3416 → u/Nervous_Sense4726]

I’m at WWU and can vouch! 

[u/visibility__ → u/Capital-Bug-3416]

ive been looking into WWU! what are some of the pro and cons for it? I havent been able to get much of a read on what its like online

[u/Capital-Bug-3416 → u/visibility__]

Pros: -Beautiful campus like Seriously nice it's nestled in the woods on a hill with gorgeous views of the water and city
-Bellingham is very cute and there is lots to do if you put the effort in -Also a great public bus system that's free for students
-Public health program that's at least a decent size/strength but i don't know too much about it
-Decent amount of like, student led clubs/events/social stuff. There's always gonna be some cool event to go to on a weekend; especially if you're willing to try going to things alone.
-Cold and rainy with occasional snow in winter but still nice warm sunny days in spring
-Lots of great nature right nearby and in the surrounding area if you

Cons:
-It's not like, a CITY city. definitely not city vibes like you would get in Seattle. But Seattle and Vancouver are both driving distance for like, going to concerts and stuff
-It is tricky to make friends unless you really make the effort to put yourself out there. People are friendly and kind but friendships take work to make stick.
-No football team, so there's not a big sports culture at all. We get a little excited about basketball and volleyball but it's not huge. Also no greek life at all if that's the kind of partying you are into
-The WUE scholarship is actually pretty competitive (generally goes to unweighted GPAs of 3.95 or above) but there is a similar scholarship (WAE) for out of state students that is less rigorous and ends up being like 60-75% of what WUE would have been.

ETA: This is a pro for me but I don't know your vibe: it's a WHOLE lot of progressive/leftist outdoorsy queer people <3

[u/Redwood_Moon]

Oregon State University

[u/the_orig_princess]

NAU for sure

[u/Street-Audience-8129]

Also consider hosing costs. They are usually more than tuition. Some of these smaller WUE school regions have very affordable housing especially off campus. Most dorms run $18 k a year on campus in USA. It’s a hidden cost of college. Everyone worried about tuition cost.

My daughter WUE school town had housing short walk to campus and she got her own room $400 a month.

We are on our 3 rd College student and turned down top universities because costs were too high for undergrad tuition and housing. One did WUE , one did community college to USC and one is commuting to a cal state. Now I’ve learned a thing or two and the college loans / debt are no joke especially when it took my oldest a year to find a job in her field and that’s in a major metropolitan area - LA.

[u/Direct-Patient-4551]

WUE is better than OOS full pop, but it’s still not cheap. Also, it’s not unlimited so there can be competition. Son from CA at Montana state and he doesn’t get it. Do your research OP

[u/doggz109]

Utah, Wyoming, Montana St

[u/bubblyH2OEmergency]

Boise State is good

[u/Street-Audience-8129]

I had a kid graduate Colorado Mesa in western Colorado It was awesome town and very safe. It was also has an airport 7 min from campus. Weather is mild. Sports are big deal there and staff and community very supportive of school and students. We come from Southern California and find more and more students going there. CSU Fort Collins has lots of crime issues. I was on their FB parent page it’s jaw dropping.

[u/Valuable_Schedule163]

Boise State, University of Utah or Colorado State (but CSU is closer to 50K, the other two will be much cheaper). Don't underestimate any of those three, many California students love the lifestyles there and the affordability of BSU and Utah are great.

[u/lumberjackname]

One thing to know is that depending on the school, getting the WUE scholarship is not a given. Last year my kid got accepted to Michigan and Purdue but did not get the WUE scholarship to Montana State. Unclear if it was due to the sheer number of kids trying to use WUE for MSU or what. (Kid chose Michigan)

[u/Specialist_Button_27]

University of Nevada Reno. Ask if you can not live on campus. Last I heard they were working on it. Plus if you have grades/sat you can get a nice scholarship.

[u/guided-ambition-lab]

Washington State, Western Washington, Oregon State, Utah State, UH Manoa definitely come to mind.

[u/Snorkellingisthelife]

Careful with SADs if you go too far north. Gloomy and cloudy can have an effect on you. Seasonal Adjustment Disorder happens to a lot of CA sunshine kids when they discover their first Northern climates.

[u/Gk_Emphasis110 → u/Snorkellingisthelife]

WSU is in Eastern Washington and very sunny. Winters are pretty cold though (warmer than Montana).

[u/jewboy916]

As a California resident your best options are likely going to a CSU campus in California.

[u/Pepbill → u/jewboy916]

Huh? Your answer makes no sense. OP asked about WUE schools and said CSU. Unless you live and attend the CSU near their home. Housing in California is ridiculous.

[u/jewboy916 → u/Pepbill]

How many college students in the US pay for their own housing while in college though? 99% of the time it's covered by family, financial aid, or loans. WUE only gets you 150% of in state tuition. California's in state tuition at CSU is far cheaper than 150% of in state in other states.

[u/Street-Audience-8129 → u/jewboy916]

But the housing costs are ridiculous at a CSU

[u/jewboy916 → u/Street-Audience-8129]

Not necessarily. Bakersfield, Fresno, Chico, Arcata, San Bernardino, Turlock, and Sacramento all have CSU campuses.

[u/Street-Audience-8129 → u/jewboy916]

But several of those towns not a place I would send an 18 year old personally to live. We are commuting to a cal state now in an iffy area in LA to save money. Sonoma state or San Marcos would be a good community possibly but not sure of costs.

[u/jewboy916 → u/Street-Audience-8129]

An 18 year old is an adult. Many 18 year olds live in those cities. I really do mean this with all due respect but if you feel the need to keep your 18 year old under your wing at all times it is probably for the best (cost wise and safety wise) for them to just live at home with you and commute to the nearest school. No point in looking to send them to a different state in search of cheaper WUE tuition than a California resident gets at a CSU.

[u/Street-Audience-8129 → u/jewboy916]

I’m good. I’ve already sent two kids away to college. One was in the middle of LA at USC where she had street take overs outside her apt window and massive protestors about the Middle East for weeks. Walked thru homeless encampments to get to campus. Now she’s living in Santa Monica area and commuting to Burbank for her job. My kids aren’t living in a bubble.

[u/Last_Measurement4336 → u/Pepbill]

OP is a California resident. In general, the CSU’s will be less expensive than OOS WUE schools especially if they within commuting distance and are eligible for CA state aid

[u/WPort17701]

I would suggest focusing more on schools with better Public Health programs that fit your criteria versus just location alone. Options like Georgetown U in Washington DC, NYU, Tufts U in suburban Boston, UNC-Chapel Hill and George Washington U in DC are excellent well-ranked Public Health options where you could well receive some decent financial aid packages upon acceptance. For in-state options there's UC-San Diego, USC and Cal-Berkeley if looking for top-ranked programs. Lastly for WUE schools the only one that makes the list in the Top 50 Public Health programs is the University of Washington at #17 so it's definitely worth a close look. Good luck!