Grand Forks, North Dakota

Surprising fact: Grand Forks, North Dakota (population roughly 30,000), has the 12th busiest airport in America. How is that possible, you wonder? Because one of the nation’s top aviation schools is located there. My son thinks he wants to become a pilot. And that’s why I’ve recently traveled to this small, cold, hard-to-reach town.  

And it was hard to reach! Our journey started at SFO with a 5:00 am departure to Denver. Only we didn’t depart. The plane filled up (at 5:00 am!), and we were left behind because we fly standby. (Airline employees “standby” for free, unoccupied seats.) We tried again on the 6:30 departure. This time we made it; however, we couldn’t get on our connection to Fargo, ND. So, I came up with the brilliant idea to fly into Sioux Falls, SD, and then rent a car to drive 4 hours to the University of North Dakota. Which we did.

My son is about to graduate high school, and UND is a serious contender -but not a clear-cut choice.

The pros: UND has a solid reputation with feeder programs into multiple airlines. It offers a laid-out path to a well-paying career. The school is somewhat affordable (once you get in-state tuition after a year). The town and campus are safe. 

The cons: It’s in Grand Forks, North Dakota. It’s freezing. It’s small. It’s very male (70%). My son doesn’t like those odds, not to mention the climate or the setting. 

My son can’t wait to go away to school. He’s ready. He wants the college experience, and he wants to have fun. UND ticks one of those boxes.

Choosing a college is a very difficult decision. The biggest decision he’s ever had to make and one that will help shape the direction of his life. That’s pretty heavy when he doesn’t even know if he wants to be a pilot. Or an architect. Or…? 

Or how much debt he wants to amass while figuring out those details. 

I don’t envy him. But I did enjoy our trip together to the North Pole. After a highly comprehensive campus/airport tour (from 9:30am until 5:00pm) and a delicious complimentary lunch in the dining hall, it was time to thrift. 

While my son and I were enjoying the thrift stores, Grand Forks and Fargo have to offer, I checked the status of our flight home in the morning. It turned out that there was a spring “blizzard” heading into town the next day. So our Fargo flight, once again, filled up. There was no way we (as standbys) stood a chance of getting on the plane. We had no choice… after a very long day, we drove another 4 hours back to Sioux Falls. 

In total, we took 4 flights and drove 8 hours. I think it’s fair to classify this trip as a road trip. I think we can also classify it as a success. It was important to see UND in person. And although my son is still struggling while weighing his options, I hope this experience has made him a little less confused.

No pressure: the decision deadline is less than 2 weeks away.