@publisher Thank you for taking the time to read this thread… I have been finding it immensely helpful. The admissions landscape is brand new to us, so the advice of experienced pros, parents, and students is greatly appreciated!
UAH… I haven’t heard of this one and it’s off my geographic radar. Can you tell me why it could be a good fit? Does it draw many students from out of state?
@MMRose @Publisher Agree! Here’s what I like about CWRU:
Comfortable distance from home
General admit, easy to study across majors
No supplemental essay (as you said)
Proximity to hospitals (if BME is an interest)
Fantastic webinars, lots of dept specific info
Size (I’ll put that last due to the great size debate 
There may be other positives I’m not aware of just yet.
If it helps with CW, the kids who have compared it to U Rochester say the main difference in feel is the urban feel. CW is more urban. URoc has a campus bubble. Both are right next to hospitals. Both are excellent in science, etc. Similar size, freshman retention rate, and graduation rate. It depends upon the student as to which one receives better aid.
For you, the distance might be different. For us, it’s similar (5 1/2 hours to either).
For Midwest (Illinois), definitely look at Iowa State - it also has formula-based admission and merit. I don’t know enough about the differences between Univ of Iowa and Iowa State for STEM, but for an Illinois resident, both warrant a close look.
@creekland That’s good to know… We will visit both CWRU and Rochester to nail down his location preference. From the aerial views of CWRU, it looks like there’s a major road running through campus, separating the dorm from the academic buildings.
Thank you for all the great suggestions on flagships and midsize stem focused schools. It sounds like he should not close the door on engineering by going to a small LAC. Is there any reason to keep LACs on the list? He would study some sort of math, science, or computer science. Small class sizes? Grad school prospects? Or is it just too hard to get a job coming out of a SLAC?
Another mid-size private might be WashU. Has overlap in applicants with Case and U Roch, though more reachy. Offers some competitive merit and is need-aware though also meets full need. A lot of premeds. I would intuitively guess that BME is solid. WashU has some interesting dorm arrangements accessible to freshmen, such as singles configured within suites. Great reputation for dorms, food.
If your son would respond well to a very “hands-on” curriculum, you could look at Olin College of Engineering (super small, quite new, and apparently very well thought of) and also Cal Poly SLO, which has a “learning by doing” m.o. that I have heard employers really like.
@evergreen5 Thank you for the suggestion! You bring up a lot of positives about WashU! I like the sound of singles within suites. Could give access to friends while allowing for personal space.
We have access to Naviance and a lot of data from our large high school, including 2020. Like other reach schools, he’s below average for WashU. He has solid but not stand out ECs, probably not enough to differentiate him from the pack. Reading some of the ECs on CC is mind blowing.
@MMRose Olin sounds amazing. I don’t know anything about CalPoly. Hands-on learning would work well for him. He loves a good design/build scenario. My only concern with Olin is that he would have to survive the applicant’s weekend, or whatever it’s called, which is like a giant interview!
That would be tough!
Also, I just sent you a PM.
Oh, and no essays for Cal Poly SLO!
If he applies to CPSLO, be sure that he enters all high school level math (algebra 1 and higher) and foreign language taken before high school into the application. The point system counts semesters of math and foreign language, but apparently does not assume that lower levels are completed if only higher levels are shown.
Here is a web site supposedly based on an older version of the CPSLO point system: https://mca.netlify.app/ . It is different now that CPSLO like all CSUs is test-blind, but should give an idea of what it looks for. Note that admission is by major.
About 25% from out-of-state.
Engineering is the top major; next is business, then health professions; computer science; biology.
Automatic merit scholarships based on one’s numbers.
Huntsville is different than the rest of Alabama. Lots of highly educated tech residents.
The UAH website lists the automatic scholarship amounts.
Lots of fairly introverted science/tech type students.
Should offer lots of internship opportunities.
@Search2022 , in addition to what Publisher mentioned, Huntsville has the distinction of being home to NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center. The MSFC is the largest of NASA’s centers across America and has over 6000 employees. That and the associated businesses in the area provide plenty of internship opportunities for Engineering students at UAH.
UAH is definitely worth more investigation if not consideration.
Olin is not a great choice for a kid who is a maybe engineering, maybe applied math, maybe something else kind of kid. The curriculum is designed for kids who are passionate about engineering. Even the “traditional” engineering/tech schools- WPI, RPI, MIT- offer more flexibility than Olin.
Case- excellent option, kudos to the poster who mentioned it, I should have. Big enough so you can find your “peeps”, small enough to make it homey by sophomore year.
Thanks for this distinction. There may be plenty of high school juniors who are solidly grounded in their passion for engineering, but I wouldn’t put my son in that camp. In fact with 1:3 likely to drop off of engineering, having lots of alternatives seems pretty wise!
He’s done a couple PLTW classes and relevant extracurriculars, but the true test will be immersion in a particular subject area. I like the sound of open curriculums (ie Rochester) and think he would benefit from some self-exploration.
Case is a great example of moderate size, potentially similarly minded kids, and plenty of doors to open.
@ucbalumnus @MMRose or anyone else…
Since CalPoly has been mentioned, do you have any thoughts on Santa Clara? Or further thoughts on Cal Poly? I’m looking for insights on how specific schools might be suited to an introverted kid who has strengths in math and science. Engineering and computer science are on the table as well. Residential learning communities and excellence in advising and career services would be helpful.
Thanks!
If your son has done so well in a HS environment that is a bit of a pressure cooker and requires lots of group work, is it possible this is not as much of an issue as you think it may be in the school environment? Socially, yes especially if he has not interest in joining any clubs, even ones that are in his area of interest. My introverted son found his people in the gaming club and quiz bowl team.
Besides ADD, does he have other challenges? If he has an anxiety disorder, it would be very helpful to sort that out before college (does he need meds, is he at risk for depression?).
Personally, I would look to a mid-sized U and not be as worried about level of required participation or even perceived competition. He will figure it out. Even in a larger U, advanced classes are likely to be smaller (unless he picks a very general major). As you have been advised, there are advantages and disadvantages to large, medium and small Us. U of Rochester may be a good fit for him, but I wouldn’t count out CMU if he can get in.
I also think all of this will become clearer over the next year. Visiting may help a bit, but it is not always easy to really get a feel for a campus on a tour (especially on a weekend morning when kids are not up and out yet).
@mom2and Great points! Thank you fir taking the time to read my concerns and the wonderful advice given. Please allow me to respond to your points…
Making a prediction on how he will fare at college based on his success in high school may depend on how similar the college is to his high school? (I can see many automatic differences between high school and college in general). However, in terms of the competitive/success oriented (pressure cooker) nature of his current school, yes, he’s doing fine, but is he thriving? Not really, but… covid. What would make a difference? Not sure! The atmosphere (and size imho) of his high school paired with his personality and learning style has caused anxiety and avoidance. Even before covid, he did not want to join clubs or be at school any longer than necessary. So, for college, academically, I feel like he would be fine and could probably rise to the challenge of most schools. Bigger picture, how would his comfort level be? Would he find his people? Would he engage in academic and club-type opportunities?
He does have generalized anxiety and has not explored a wide range of medications. A long time ago, a mild SSRI made no difference. He has been screened for depression and really doesn’t show any signs. Covid hasn’t changed all that much in his internal world. He’s actually a very happy kid when he gets to play video games and decompress. Thank you for checking… agree that mental health should be well examined before shipping a kid off into the great unknown.
Mid-size= Goldilocks size? Sounds good to me! Intro classes at Case are 100-200, WPI can be 100, so even at a small-midsize school, we’re not talking about classes of 30, which was my worry point. And as @momofboiler1 kindly shared, her daughter at Purdue has a variety of large and small classes, so class size is not hinged on university size.
We’ll try to visit on weekdays and likely informally, as tours aren’t running right now. Mainly, I would like my son to feel the campus on a sensory level and see what his dorm-class commute would be like.