Here's the deal...from my perspective.
A year ago I decided that community college in PA was boring as fuck...I wanted to ski...and go to a real school. I'm a graphic design major. Without a doubt it's one of my passions in life (next to skiing), and I'm really stoked to have that be my career path. So I looked into schools out in Colorado, and without much thinking, I picked RMCAD in Lakewood (15 outside of denver). Overall I've been satisfied with my decision. It's a good school, good teachers, small classes. Only downside is that I can't ski as much as I imagined. I still ski a lot, I work my schedule around it. Next semester I'll be able to ski max. 4 days a week, which is pretty good considering I go to school full time. Plus, living in lakewood, I'm about an hour from keystone without traffic...not to bad, but still a commute, especially with my shitty subaru and I-70 rise in elevation I burn through gas like no other. Needless to say I'm satisfied with my out west living, of course I want to be able to ski everyday, but that just isn't realistic if you want to get an education as well.
CU, CSU, DU, Metro State, etc. are all good colleges...some of them are GREAT schools. If school is your thing, Denver/Boulder has some really good options. BUT, if you want to be a ski bum...be a ski bum. CMC is trash, along with many other mountain ski town schools. They're expensive as fuck for out of state students and the level is usually very sub par for what you pay in tuition.
If you want to do the school thing...denver/boulder is great, but the drive to summit isn't so much. If you want to go to a good school and live in a dope clean city then denver is great. Otherwise, look into SLC and some Utah colleges. SLC is dope, you can live in a city atmosphere, pay cheap/reasonable rent, go to school, and be 20-30 minutes from PC, The Canyons, and Deer Valley. I may consider doing that a little later in life.
If you want to be a ski bum, it's easier than you think. Hop on vail resorts asap when they start hiring seasonals for next season. You get a free pass, a job that pays sort of decent, and the option for employee housing. Liftee jobs and rental shop jobs usually give you 1-2 hours during your work day to ski too. Only thing that sucks is that summit county rent is expensive as hell if you don't cram 5+ people into a 2 bedroom. I know a few people that work at PC also and have a cheap place in SLC...just figure out what resort you want to work at the most and apply ASAP. You'll be close to the mountain and be able to ski a fuckload...but on the downside, you wont really be doing much with your life, haha.
If you need anymore help with getting out here...hit me up. I'd be glad to help out. Some people make the decision too quickly and wind up getting fucked big time.
