About 60 percent of Broncos traditionally attend ASU, UofA or NAU

By James “Buffalo” Saint Amour ’10
THE ROUNDUP

Every year at this time the thought that is on every senior’s mind is “where am I going to college?”

This year Brophy’s seniors are heading to a variety of schools in each of the four corners of the country.

But do students seem to prefer out of state schools over the institutions that are here in Arizona?

Bryan Saba ’10 is one of many students who will be attending an out-of-state school as he heads to Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

“I wanted a private, Jesuit institution, which are two things I could not find in state,” Saba said. “I also wanted to have a change, and that meant that I wanted to move away.”

Brandon Parrone ’10 felt much the same as Saba.

“I really like going out of town and exploring new places. I’m tired of Arizona and I’m really excited to go somewhere new.”

Students such as Rhoads Mikkelson ’10 who will be attending Northern Arizona University believe staying in state is a better option for them.

“In-state is the financially responsible choice,” Mikkelson said, “NAU is also a great fit for me because it is close but not too close to home, and more importantly because of its esteemed School of Forestry, my intended major.”

Even with these reasons, the idea of going somewhere foreign gives many students a sense of adventure, crossing the theoretical threshold and stepping into the new light of college life.

This idea is one that is certainly prevalent throughout this year’s senior class.

This seems to be the case with Ryan Tiglas ’10.

“Schools in this state are fine, they have their pros and cons, just the pros and cons of some out-of-state schools fit me better,” Tiglas said.

Planning on heading to Texas Christian University Tiglas also said, “I want to broaden my horizons and there are more opportunities out of state.”

According to Ms. Mary Novak from the counseling department, traditionally about 60 percent of Brophy students will attend college in state, but those numbers fluctuate from year to year.

Ms. Novak also said that the current situation with the economy and the relatively new Barrett Honors College at Arizona State University could have more graduating seniors looking at the in-state schools.

In a Roundup poll, 26 out of 50 seniors said that they would be attending college in state next year.