Julie Muhlstein, in her Nov. 16 column, “UW Bothell students have ideas for a better branch,” spends more time discussing UW Bothell students who would rather attend class at the Seattle campus than she does discussing UWB students’ ideas for the new UW North campus.

In her 732 words she only described two student suggestions, which were an on-campus athletic facility and a better food court. Some mention was made of the appeal of UWB’s small classes, but the column left the impression that UW Bothell was simply a last resort for students who could not make the cut for the Seattle campus.

Perhaps in her next column, Ms. Muhlstein could travel down to Seattle and talk to UW Seattle students about the universities they did not get in to. Why does a column about life on the UW Bothell campus and student suggestions for the new UW North campus have to continuously mention that UWB was not every student’s first choice?

The professors and lecturers at UW Bothell are second to none and their desire to see their students succeed is evident to anyone who has attended a class at UWB. UWB’s facilities are state of the art and students have access to all of the resources of the other UW campuses.

Scheduling options at UWB are conducive to working full-time while also attending school full-time, which is a must for many of my fellow students. Without UWB, many of us would simply not be able to further our education.

Please stop giving the impression that UWB is simply a second choice, second rate school for students rejected by UW Seattle. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Liam McGivern

Lynnwood