Full disclosure: my sister, my parents, and several of my aunts and uncles went to the University of New Hampshire. And I grew up twenty minutes from the school. So, basically, I know UNH and it’s a pretty special place.
Twenty minutes inland (everywhere in New Hampshire is twenty minutes from everywhere else in New Hampshire) from the Atlantic Ocean is a beautifully charming little town called Durham. Durham is one of those one street towns that exists solely for the college and its students. The main street is always filled with UNH students, walking to and from class, to and from Durham House of Pizza, and to and from ultimate Frisbee. UNH also has an incredibly strong Greek system and social scene that shocks most people because it’s such a small town. See, that’s the great thing about college towns; since there’s no big city near by, the kids participate in all the events that the college puts on, creating an incredibly lively on campus community. It’s a common misconception that in order to have things to do in college you need to be near a city. Trust me, there’s never a dull moment or lack of things to do on a campus like UNH.
The students live for their loveable mascot, the Wildcat, and UNH Ice Hockey has a fan base that rivals any Big Ten school any day of the week. In fact, I went to countless games with my parents growing up. The coolest thing about going to a Wildcat hockey game? After UNH scores its first goal, the fans toss a giant fish onto the ice. That’s right. A giant fish.
But UNH is more than just pizza, charming shops, and dead fish. WSBE (Whittemore School of Business & Economics, pronounced “whiz-bee”) is an extremely well respected business school, and their engineering department is incredibly strong.
I called my sister in San Francisco to ask her to sum up her experience at UNH. “I LOVE UNH,” she said. “It was basically the ultimate, all-American college experience.”
“And what was it like growing up with me, Lauren? What is it like being Meghann Murphy’s younger sister?”
She paused. “Unpleasant.”
For more information on visiting the campus, go to http://admissions.unh.edu/visit-campus/
