I am confused. Help

Alley:

If staying in Ohio is not an option for you perhaps going to college elsewhere might be what is best. Get your education first. Visit the USVIs for now (on vacation). As a 16 or 17 year old high school student your feelings and desires will change in the next 5 years. The USVIs will still be here.

F.I.

Well, I definately want to go to school there, or maybe new york. because I'm interested in stuff like music, and marine biology would be cool to learn about. Does the college at St. Thomas provide music classes?
The thing is I have to pay for most of my college myself and I won't be able to go as soon as I graduate anyway, I have to keep a good job first, which was my plan. Get a good job, move, get another job, go to school.
But altogether, how much would a vacation cost? I want to visit before I decide to move anyway
I want to have the experience of living there cause its my kind of place and I have my heart set on St. Thomas.

Alley:

The cost of a 7 day vacation could vary significantly based on the time of year and type of accommodations you book.

Your components are: Airfare, lodging, on-island transportation, food/drink and excursions. If you travel with someone you can share the lodging expense. Putting a dollar figure on this is difficult. It's something that you would need to research.

As for your plan....get a "good job", move, get another job, go to school......perhaps it should read like this: Go to school, get a good job, move for a better job........having a college education will greatly increase the quality of your life. In 5 or 6 years the islands will seem much better to you when you have more dollars in our pocket to spend because of your better job.

btw: A Marine Biologist is a great idea...or for that matter any science occupation is a great idea.

Good luck.

F.I.

Alley:

Heed what others are telling you. Get your education first then think about relocating. Having a college degree will increase your chances of finding a good job so you can adequately support yourself. That bit of advice is helpful no matter where you decide to live.

You've said you've been doing research but the questions you are asking are very basic so that tells me you need to do more research and research is not just asking someone else for answers, it's much more than that. You can find answers to many of your questions just by reading the various threads on this forum. Also, go to this forum's home page and follow the links for literally tons of information about relocating to the USVI's. There's so much information available it will take your days if not weeks to read everything. Get a copy of the Settler's Handbook (you can order it by using the link at the top of this page) - it is a must read for anyone contemplating a move to the VI's.

As for "How much will a vacation cost" - well that can vary from several hundred to several thousands of dollars. It depends on many factors. Check airline prices from your hometown, add in the cost of the type of hotel (you get this from hotel or travel websites) you want to stay at, budget for meals, transportation, etc.

Get your education, do your research, save your money and it will be much easier to identify and follow your dream.

I know a guy who is a Marine Biologist. He was a college student in Chicago and was sent to St Croix to do his MB program. He's older now (40), but it sounded so cool and he said it was all part of his college program. He told me that STX is a popular place for MB students to study.

Even if you have to pay for college yourself, there are ways to do it - financial aid (need based scholarships), named scholarships, student loans, work-study. Everybody can go to college. Don't believe anyone who tells you otherwise. Check out collegeconfidential.com.

Thanks, I will check out that site now. And I was really only thinking of marine biology as a second thing. Do you know if the college at St. Thomas provides music courses? Because I was thinking about looking into that school.

Thank you! =)

Check here for the catalogue: http://www.uvi.edu/pub-relations/uvi/home.html

I don't believe that St Croix has a Marine Science program, although if you are a graduate student, you might do research there.

E.E.:

I know that my Alma Mater, Fairleigh Dickinson University, had a Marine Biology/Oceanography extension on STX in the 70's. I don't know if they're still there.

F.I.

Future Islander,
As an alumni of Edward Williams College (FDU) in our alumni news letter back in the late 80's or early 90's. The University Closed the St Croix Labs/Campus, as well as their Wroxton Campus in England. The Baton was handed off to NOAA. During the same time period they closed the Rutherford NJ Campus as well. This was all part of their reorganization plan ( The University is Broke)

Lizard:

Edward Williams College?

I would have loved to go to the STX campus for a semester....but I didn't have the $$$ to do it then. Too bad it closed. The Wroxton Campus was pretty much for English Majors.

F.I.

Future Islander,
Edward Williams College is on the Teaneck Campus now called the Metro campus. It's the only 2 year program FDU has that offers AA programs. It was also easier to get into back in the day when you needed higher SAT Scores (not that mine were all that bad ha,ha). Then allowed you to transfer to a four year college, within FDU or any four year college. It was kind of the not so great of a record in high school back door approach. Great School, even today ! Small class size lots of one on one stuff.

follow your heart,there is no comparrison with NY and the islands though, i agree with the suggestions you got from the board i must say.good luck

Hi Alley!

I took a year off after high school and lived in Europe for a year before going to college. It was a great experience! If going to college is a goal of yours, I see nothing wrong with taking some time off first, but it may be hard to find a job here that will allow you to save up some money for college. If taking a year off to have fun in the sun is your goal, then there is nothing wrong with that, as long as you stay on course. You could easily get a job waiting tables or even more fun, as crew with a day sail excursion company.

You can find out on the college's website if they have music classes - I'm assuming they don't though. If music is something you really want to study - I would suggest going to NY. NYC and St Thomas are WORLD'S apart from each other. The music scene is very limited here as compared to there.

Good luck! At your age, you are going to get A LOT of advice, whether you want it or not. Listen to it, but also follow your heart.

thank you dear