A case ... for Case?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Case Western Reserve University
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<p>My son, who has applied to 13 schools, has been accepted into 10, and is still waiting to hear from three, has, with our collaboration, narrowed down his choices to his top 5. We felt that we needed to get down to 5 to focus on where to take a second visit.</p>

<p>The interesting part of this exercise, when we looked at our son's list, was that it really lumped into four groups:<br>
(1) research-intensive universities (Rutgers, Ohio State, Minnesota, Stony Brook)
(2) STEM focused schools with a "geeky" feel that my son likes (NJIT, UMBC)
(3) small schools (under 6K undergraduates) with a more personal experience (Loyola, CUA, TCNJ) and
(4) those with a strong co-op program (Kettering, RIT, Drexel)</p>

<p>Twelve of the thirteen schools were relatively easy to put in a single category (or two at most), but in looking at Case, it seemed to combine the best of all four categories. </p>

<p>Thus Case is in the top five.</p>

<p>My question: does this analysis make sense? Is Case really a great synthesis of all four worlds? Is it worth the 7.5 hour trip from home and the fact that, even with my sons scholarship, it is at the limit of our budget?</p>

<p>I would love to get some feedback on this.</p>

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<p>I would agree that it fits into all four of your categories. Those were some of the primary reasons we first looked at CASE for my DD and then ultimately why she choose to attend there after we looked at all of the schools she had been accepted to. So I do think if you can afford the trip, it is well worth the time.
That being said, if you are concerned that CASE will be within the budget based on your son’s financial aid offer, then perhaps not. Although fit is very important, affordability is most important before you waste time and $ on a visit.<br>
It really is a great school and my daughter is enjoying it more and more as her freshman year continues. But we did have to cross off a school or two on her selection list that I am sure she would have enjoyed equally is well because they did not offer her as great of a financial aid package.<br>
My point is, in hindsight, that we stressed so much about college choice. The fact is that my dd would do well in any decent school and I wish we had stressed a little less during the process.
If you do decide to visit then make sure that your son has an overnight in the dorms. It really was a beneficial part of the visit for my dd to know that she would feel comfortable at CASE. Best of luck to you both!</p>

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<p>Thanks, Blue Poodle. This is exactly the type of input I’m looking for. The one thing that I wonder is whether the school really has a small, personal feel. I’ve read some comments on the board that suggest it has the same sink or swim type of feel as a larger public university. Any thoughts on that?</p>

<p>Oh, and the cost is not a big issue, since it is within budget – just at the top end of where we hope to be. But all of the other schools in the top 5 are $10K cheaper per year or greater (NJIT is a full ride), so we want to ensure that we’re getting value for what we’re paying.</p>

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<p>I totally disagree that it is a sink or swim feel. Everyone has been very helpful. One of the most surprising things has been the willingness of everyone (especially the upperclassman) to help. That being said, your son will have to make it known that he needs help. He can not expect people to just reach out to him.<br>
My daughter was during her first semester, a varsity swimmer. She had to drop because she either needed to drop a class or drop swimming to keep up. She decided to keep her 16 credit hours and drop varsity swimming. So she was struggling in one of her classes because of that. She met with each of her professors to get feedback in places that she needed help. She meet with tutors (some better than others). She goes to most if not all of her SI groups, which is an option group with students in the class and run by one or more TA’s (although they are called something else). Here she can also ask questions on homework and get additional feedback and assistance. She has used every resource available and feels comfortable in asking for help. Sometimes, she is the one helping another student as well. So it is very collaborative. But again, that is because she makes a point to reach out, ask for help and be a part of the extra (optional) parts of the class work.
She likes some profs better than others but again, that would be the case anywhere. As long as your son is willing to reach out to others…I think he would find CASE to be a great place to live and study.
I’ll add…on the personal feel note; yes, it is small enough to feel part of a community. My DD mentions that even though you may not know everyone, after a while, you recognize faces and see pretty much everyone. It also means when someone new shows up on campus, you sort of know that they are a stranger. Which for me is a plus because I was concerned sending my D away so far and by herself to cleveland. I want to make sure she is safe and knows her community fairly well.</p>

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<p>I don’t know if I would say that the school has a sink or swim type of culture. As BluePoodle states above students need to reach out if they need help. There won’t be anyone there coddling them but if they reach out they will find that the faculty and fellow students are more than willing to provide as much support as necessary.</p>

<p>My son does not tell me that CWRU has a cutthroat feet to it. He is always working with friends and receives advice from upperclassmen.</p>

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<p>My son is also a freshman with an 8+ hour commute, and it’s well worth both the commute and the cost. He really likes the size of Case, since is getting to know a good percentage of your fellow students (he came from a small NYC public high school). He wouldn’t describe the feel at all as cutthroat, although he’s not the kind of kid to seek a lot of help. One thing that impressed my husband and me was the warm feeling we got from the admissions staff. Not only did we see the admissions director, Bob, several times during the search and admit process, he was the first person we saw when we moved in (he was helping to unload cars). Kind of indicative of the “family” feel we got at Case that we didn’t see elsewhere. Good luck to your son!</p>

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<p>BluePoodle - Did your D find the swimming to be more demanding than she expected? While she was in it, did she enjoy it? Or did it just detract too much from her studies?</p>

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<p>I think it is worth looking at it. especially if your son thinks that it is the best fit for him. i applied to case knowing nothing about it but when i got in with a scholarship (good size scholarship i might add), i realized that it had everything that i wanted and i also would have to make a 8 hour drive buts its ok…every rose has its thorns :)</p>

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<p>VMT ~ The varsity swimming was at the level she was used to. The workouts and number of hours she was swimming was what she had experienced as a USA swimmer. The difference was that she was homeschooled through a consortium before and had more time to independently do her homework. </p>

<p>She has had to learn how to study differently at CASE. And I am probably not explaining it well. But she has had to use the SI Study groups and Tutor’s more at CASE which requires more time than just the lectures and homework. She was only getting about 3 - 5 hours of sleep when she was on the swim team and trying to keep up in class and in her work was overwhelming her. She had to decide on dropping a class or swimming, she chose swimming. She is in her second semester (she dropped swimming half way through her first semester) and she is still adjusting. </p>

<p>She is loves CASE and she knew going in that Math and Science did not come as easy to her as literature but she wants a career in BME. Plus she is learning a foreign language (Mandarin) so she has taken on a big load. She dropped swimming (which emotionally was very hard for her to do) but has gone Greek so she is getting to experience something new. She plans to volunteer or take a pt job next year in one of the labs or at the hospital to get some hands on experience. She may reduce her class load as a result, she’ll have to decide. But either way, she is happy that she has chosen CASE.</p>

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<p>mt27…congrats to your son on fabulous acceptances! We are just going to start our search for junior son (actually TCNJ) this weekend. Considering some of same on your list…did your son decide? Could you share thoughts on UMBC…may have to add that to the mix? Wasn’t sure if worth considering due to lack of OOS merit. Thoughts? Thanks!</p>

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<p>^ I would say my son is down to 4 – Rutgers, UMBC, Stony Brook and NJIT. Case is still under consideration (we’ve already visited it and he has sent in his mid-year grades, as requested) but it, along with TCNJ and Ohio State are on the periphery. </p>

<p>Here are a summary of his thoughts on the top 4, plus Case and TCNJ (he typed them and I added my edits along with his estimated COA (tuition, fees, room and board net of scholarships) in [brackets]):</p>

<p>Rutgers: Large, AAU university that has a near-unmatched number of opportunities and majors, and two excellent honors colleges. Provides a wide variety of college experiences due to number of opportunities and different campuses. Fantastic location (close to Philly/New York) [He got a $3,500 scholarship for both SAS and SOE and is waiting to hear on the Engineering Honors Academy; estimated COA ~23K/yr]</p>

<p>UMBC: Fairly large, research university that excels in undergrad teaching and getting students into graduate school. Excellent location (close to D.C.) and Freeman Hrabowski III is an amazing educator. Great Honors program. Continuing to improve itself. [He was accepted into the Honors College and has a $22K OOS scholarship; estimated COA ~10K/yr]</p>

<p>Stony Brook: Large AAU research school that has a great location (near NYC), basically as strong as Rutgers in opportunities and networks, and has a fantastic scholars/honors program. [He was accepted into the University Scholars Program and has a full tuition scholarship; estimated COA ~13K/yr, but since scholly is full tuition, it would rise with inflation]</p>

<p>NJIT: Technical school that has excellent location (near New York), an excellent honors program, and is on the rise as far as program strength and opportunities. [he has been accepted into the Dorman Honors College and practically has a full ride; estimated COA ~2K/yr]</p>

<p>Case: Basically the best of all worlds - academically speaking it already has the strength of an honors program, it has an excellent location, excellent research/internship opportunities, and the networks formed are incredible. [distance and cost – it’s right at the edge of what my wife and I are willing to pay and we do not want him to take on debt – may be limiting this one; estimated COA ~30K/yr]</p>

<p>TCNJ: Nice liberal arts focus, great location, people are happy there. Not in the top 4 because it is not as strong in engineering. [I really liked this school, and he liked it enough to apply, but he doesn’t have the same enthusiasm for it as the others; estimated COA ~23K/yr]</p>

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<p>mtown27…thank you so much for your overview! So helpful! You have some fabulous offers…anxious to see what he decides.<br>
We just got home from TCNJ…our first tour…and were very impressed! A good starting point. Sounds like a trip to UMBC will definitely be worth our while. What did you think of the NJIT campus? We are close to it so I think just the thought/stigma of Newark gives us/son hesitation. Again, thank you!</p>

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<p>^ so that we don’t get off topic in this forum, I responded in the NJIT forum. See; <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/new-jersey-institute-technology/1478359-thoughts-njit-campus.html#post15679370[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/new-jersey-institute-technology/1478359-thoughts-njit-campus.html#post15679370&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Also, I would definitely give UMBC a look. A lot of people who applied EA to Case also applied EA to UMBC.</p>

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<p>Thank you mtown27…keep us posted on your son’s decision!!</p>