The financial safety schools are the challenge in your sons situation. His credentials should get him in to a number of highly ranked schools where you will be full pay.
Getting merit aid will begin at schools ranked in the mid to high 20’s and get progressively easier and more generous into the 30’s, 40’s and above. I am not suggesting you care about rankings I am just providing my opinion for context.
We also had to drag our daughter to SUNY Binghamton, she had been accepted there in their Scholars program, it wasn’t even close to her first choice but she liked it well enough that she could see herself there.
Her other SUNY safety was Geneseo and she could have seen herself there.
She received varying amounts of merit aid offers from $15,000 a year at The University of Richmond to $40,000 a year at Lafayette College.
Our strategy was SUNY safeties and several colleges where good merit aid was likely. Her list was reach heavy and she was admitted to three reach schools and is attending one of them. We are full pay.
Your son needs to determine what college environment he would be most comfortable in. Then identify schools that have the academic program he is interested in.
Common Data Sets our your friend in determining the potential liklihood of merit aid awards. You would be looking to see where your sons credentials put him in to the higher echelon of the accepted students at any particular school.
Your son sounds like a neat kid and it is clear that you and his father are looking to do all you can for him.
Best wishes!
After having just reread my post I am concerned that it may have come off as being insulting to SUNY Binghamton. That was not at all what I was looking to convey.
I am a product of the SUNY system, two years at a Comunity College and two years at SUNY Albany.
When I was our daughters age I would have been delighted to go to Binghamton, the reality is that my academic credentials would not have been sufficient to have me gain admission.
To some extent my kids didn’t even know what they wanted until they visitied a few campuses. I deliberately took my son to a small and largish LAC on his first college trip even though he thought (and ended up at) a college “larger than his high school”. There were things about those two LACs that he looked for in the colleges that stayed on his list and in fact the larger LAC stayed on his list.
Thanks for all this great advice!
One more Q: S took SAT first (2100). His GC said try again, but then he took ACT (34). Should he even try SAT again?
Do any schools make you send both if you took both, or can he merely send ACT?
You only need one, and the ACT 34 is great.
You choose which to send. Personally after accomplishing a 34, I would just let that one stand. Unless, he wants to do better on the SAT, but it should be his choice. Also, I think it was mentioned earlier on the thread, but make sure he has at least 2 SAT II tests under his belt, as top schools require them. Somehow, that info never floated to the top for us until spring of Junior year, and it foreclosed some options to apply to higher ranked schools for my S (he refused to take 2 SAT II’s his senior year!!).
Frankly, D1’s first notion was “as far away from home as I can get.” Later, she refined that to “big Greek scene.” Laugh with me, that was very early on. We drove through some places that were on our path when we went somewhere- sometimes, just a drive in and out. Other times, this was more targeted. She figured out what she liked and what was a show stopper. Eventually her prime consideration was more academic. (She had a major not well supported at many schools.) For her, the turning point was a Saturday morning at Wesleyan, seeing the library was jam packed with kids studying. She was impressed- didn’t apply, but it made the search more real for her, more exciting. I know some families visit, eg, college labs with their STEM kids, when the labs will be active. Or schedule to be able to sit in on a class of interest.
The GC had reassured me how they grow between junior year and fall of senior. And then between September and 12/31. It was true. D1 ended up at a school a 3 hour drive, no Greek scene, lots of hard working peers, but also plenty of her kind of fun.
About Bing, Michigan: I remember having a trip planned to VA, deciding to take D1 along to see UVa-- and worrying a lot whether seeing that school would throw off her perception of every other college. I did take her, she loved the school, but decided to stay up North. But after that, we did visit some less spectacular schools/towns before the more spectacular ones. I thought that was what lostaccount meant about the sequence of some travel plans. Sometimes, you let them evaluate without the picture of a Mich or UVA in mind.
Some colleges do request scores for all SAT/ACT taken. But ime, they are only concerned with the best set or best scores for the individual portions. See what they say on their web pages. A 2100 will not stop them from seeing the 34. They know the two tests play to different strengths. And some do not require Sat2’s, if you are submitting the ACT results. Gotta check.
For undergrad business, in your area it would be hard to beat NYU Stern, money being no object.
OP, I typically would tell someone not to retake the SAT with a 34 on the ACT. However, if your son is going to apply to some super-selective schools that require SAT Subject Tests, then he may want to retake the SAT because a few of those schools say that if you submit any SAT tests, they want to see all SAT tests taken. If he’s willing to prepare for it, then I’d consider it. However, he might be cutting it close for deadlines if he still has to take SAT Subject Tests. Is he signed up to take those in June?
“Do they require them even if you use the SAT? (sorry I’m naive in how it works!)”
You should submit his ACT. The subject test requirement varies by school. I would say that given his interest in math, I would want to submit a Math 2 subject test, even if it is not required. Some will require it, and many schools will consider it.
Penn has an excellent economics department and it is only slightly more selective than Duke. Also, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Indiana could be excellent safety schools for him to consider. They have good business programs.
He will have a good chance at Michigan and they have EA, which is good. However, he will have to apply separately to the business school. Most students apply after freshman year, but a few are directly admitted into the program as part of their initial admission.
I spoke to S about subject tests. The only one that he was interested in where it is required even with ACT was Georgetown. But he lost interest so he’s not taking any subjects.
His list is fairly realistic in scope. He’s not applying to all the ivys. He did not like Princeton campus, why I dont know but he spent 3 weeks there at a program.
Right now, his list looks something like:
Reach:
Cornell
Duke
Target:
U of M
UVa
Lehigh
Boston U
U of Rochester
Northeastern
Match or Likely:
Miami (OH)
Tulane
Elon
Binghamton
With the reach, he would go to either if ED. So there’s a choice to be made. I would pay full at many of the Target schools, but not all.
I went to NYU long ago. It’s not something he’s interested in. Plus I just think it’s a waste tuition wise.
I would suggest you read the requirements carefully. I just looked at Duke and Cornell…and I saw a requirement for subject tests for some colleges at Cornell, and for all at Duke. And I didn’t see anything that excluded them if you took the ACT. I could have missed something…but check carefully to be sure your son is correct about those subject test requirements.
tThey both say “ACT plus writing Or SAT plus subject tests”. I’ll ask on those boards to see if past applicants know if it is either or, or eother test and subjects regardless of which.
This is what Duke says:
“If I take the ACT, can I also submit SAT Subject Tests?
Although we do not require or expect SAT Subject Test scores from candidates who take the ACT with Writing to fulfill our testing requirement, we do accept them and will consider them as an additional demonstration of subject proficiency.”
http://admissions.duke.edu/application/instructions#testing
I would guess that many Duke applicants will submit subject test scores since they will have taken them for other colleges, but I am just guessing here.
Cornell’s requirements vary completely by college.
http://admissions.cornell.edu/apply/first-year-applicants/application-checklist/applicant-checklist-tips#sat
Agree with the above post. Looks like Duke will accept the ACT with writing and no subject tests are needed at all.
Here is what is on the Cornell site:
Thanks all. I checked the 2 colleges at Cornell and neither require them. It’s funny, S is just “done” with testing. Burned out he says. So I’m glad he doesn’t need them!
I wonder why not on ACT? Do they look at the ACT breakout instead? His Math and English wrre 35.
CT raises an important hint: it really helps to haunt the colleges’ web sites. It’s not just about learning, say, what their test requirements are. It’s also about learning their values, seeing the sorts of student energies and intellectual approaches they tout, getting behind the curtain, so to say. All towards understanding the school and the self-presentation that will support your application. Many schools now have a “What We Look For.” Look at that, at what else they seem to be saying, and, again, the students they highlight.
HRSMom “I wonder why not on ACT? Do they look at the ACT breakout instead? His Math and English wrre 35.”
I think it is because so many to midwestern students did not take subject tests. Even top students. I think they would prefer to see subject tests, but do not want to reject midwestern kids who don’t have it.
@HRSMom ,
It’s correct that schools that take the ACT (all of them) will typically not require SAT Subject Tests. My D was admitted to Duke submitting only her ACT scores, though she had taken the SAT and Subject Tests. She chose not to submit the SATs. But, if you send one SAT score (and some kids do to bolster their application), then school policy required her to send all SAT test scores.
But, before you put the lid on all further tests, check the colleges where your S might apply to confirm that certain schools within the college or majors do not have a separate Subject Test requirement. This can be tricky and you do not want him scrambling to take Subject Tests in the fall because of missing requirements.