<p>Drexel University
Duquesne University
Depaul University
University of Dayton
Xavier University
Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania
Chestnut Hill College
Rider University
St. Bonaventure
Roger Williams U
Suny Albany/ Suny Plattsburgh
Siena College</p>
<p>Thanks for your help.</p>
<p>Yep. What do you want to know?</p>
<p>Erin’s Dad has or has had a child…maybe Erin herself…at Dayton</p>
<p>I know few who went to Xavier and Dayton - very satisfied with both, (both colleges are religious, girls graduated from Catholic HS). Majors related to medicine with plans to attend Grad. school.</p>
<p>I know a bunch of kids at Drexel, but only one of them (a freshman) well. It is a great place for practical and/or tech-oriented kids who want a practical, career-focused education that is still academically challenging. The majority of students, I believe, are in engineering or business-related majors, although there is also a full range of traditional majors and courses. There are some excellent nugget-like treasures – a music industry program that includes business, recording technology, and audio engineering; a fashion design and marketing program. The campus is immediately adjacent to Penn’s (effectively one large campus – unless you are paying attention, you won’t notice the border). Very urban – walking distance from the main Philly business district, lots of big streets and traffic, “bad” neighborhoods not far away, very public-transportation-friendly. Not for kids who want/need a defined campus with rolling green lawns, majestic trees, and buildings that represent the aesthetic code of the 14th Century. A great option for B-students who like to be challenged and are motivated to take responsibility for their educations.</p>
<p>Chestnut Hill College – Know (not that well) one faculty member, no students. Know the campus well, live nearby. Sleepy, former-all-female Catholic college. Came very close to dying a while ago, but is in an expansion mode now. Lovely campus, suburban in feel (technically, it’s in Philadelphia, but it is right at the edge of the city, and there’s a big creek running right alongside it, and a large park, golf course, and arboretum adjacent, so completely unlike Drexel above). Less convenient than you might think – the nearest commuter train station is a couple of miles away, only one bus line serves it (and that goes mainly to the burbs), a trip by public transportation anywhere in Philadelphia beyond walking distance could take 1-2 hours. Has dorms, some of them new, but still mainly a commuter school, with a fair number of older students, night classes, etc. Effectively open admissions. Does an excellent job of remedying deficient high school preparation, giving students practical education for ground-floor type jobs.</p>
<p>If you are interested in both Drexel and CHC, I would recommend also checking out some of the area colleges that sort of fill in the gap between them – St. Joseph’s, LaSalle, Arcadia, and if you have particular industry interests Philadelphia University (fashion, textiles, business) and University of the Sciences in Philadelphia (health care, pharmacy).</p>
<p>thanks. I’m just trying to learn how the students feel at these colleges.</p>
<p>Yeah, it would be helpful if you would be more specific about info you’re looking for…my son has visited and will def apply to Xavier…know several people who have gone to Dayton…</p>
<p>Well, a little more info would be helpful. What specifically are you looking for?</p>
<p>I know a few kids at Drexel as well. They love it and they love Philly. They don’t mind the “neighborhood” at all and have really embraced the city.<br>
I also know a young lady who went on a fantastic scholarship, did nothing but play video games her first semester, lost her scholarship and flunked out.</p>
<p>Bloomsburg - the kids I know who have gone there have loved this school.</p>
<p>Again, I know kids who go to Dayton, mostly business majors. They seem to really like it there.
DePaul is a city school, kind of artsy, strong business and communications. Kids really like Lincoln Park but there is less of a cohesive campus life. Most people live in apartments, some way off campus, by sophomore year. Not sure what the percentage of freshmen living on campus is, but it’s not as high as others.</p>
<p>Dayton has a “student neighborhood,” full of university owned houses. Seems to be a strong point.</p>
<p>If you are checking out Dayton, Xavier, and DePaul, you should definitely check out Marquette in Milwaukee (shameless plug.) Very cohesive, pretty urban campus, lots of strong majors, LOTS of school spirit.</p>
<p>Thanks for the help. I guess I could have been more specific. How are these schools when it comes to history majors/political science/philosophy? How’s the financial aid? How do the student feel at the campus? Are the parties decent?</p>
<p>I don’t think my parents would allow me to go all the way to wisconsin for college lol. I live in new york. Thanks for the advice though.</p>
<p>Are you looking for financial aid or merit aid?</p>
<p>Yes abasket.</p>
<p>I live in Dayton and we regularly hire interns (and grads) from UD (both DDs actually attend different schools). UD has good scholarship money for desirable students. I’m sure the parties are good, and so is the education (though I don’t know much about the majors you mentioned). The student neighborhood is very much a strong attraction for students and the U is expanding right now. NCR is moving to Georgia and UD is in discussions to take over that land. If you have any specific questions PM me.</p>
<p>abasket’s question was either/or. Do you require need-based OR merit-based aid. I assume you haven’t calculated your EFC.</p>
<p>I’ve heard good things about Drexel computer science. Wouldn’t particularly recommend it for a liberal arts major.</p>
<p>^^^ Right. If you’re looking for merit aid, amount of $$$ at each school will depend on your stats…which are???</p>
<p>If fin aid is of major concern, what do you feel you/your family can afford? Have you estimated your EFC? Each school will “meet” need differently. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, none of this is cut and dry. It usually based on lots and lots of facts, if’s, and’s and but’s…</p>
<p>I know a very happy history major at Roger Williams. He is succeeding academically and enjoying an active social life. I believe he entered as an undecided major but was taken with a history class. The family did not need FA so I can’t help you there.</p>
<p>S and I were very impressed with UDayton when we visited. There was a real sense of community.</p>
<p>Chestnut Hill was fairly generous with merit aid. We never visited, S just applied because of how much merit money they said they would give him. His stats were average, probably 3.0-3.1 UW, 3.6 W, top 30%, about 1550 SAT. They kept sending him mail that they would give him $10,000 in merit money. When he actually applied, they offered $9000. Still quite a bit for his stats.</p>
<p>We visited Siena and Rider. Siena was not as generous with merit money and you would need very good numbers to receive it. But both my kids really liked Siena. Rider offered more than Siena for the same stats, but Rider had a higher cost of attendance to begin with.</p>
<p>I don’t know a lot of aid details. I am pretty certain that Drexel plays the merit game, but I don’t know specifics.</p>
<p>History/polisci at Drexel is kind of an interesting proposition. All of the kids I know there are in engineering, business, or a few in science or specialized programs. But I know that they have a fairly large history department, and I think poli sci, too. It really does have an identity as a tech school; there can’t be that many majors in those fields. But faculties here tend to be high quality – they can commute easily from NYC if they want. So I wouldn’t write it off for history etc.</p>
<p>Bloomsburg is a third-tier state college. I would be surprised if it had money to attract out-of-state students beyond whatever the feds pay for. Its financial aid will be its lower COA to start with.</p>
<p>My GPA is low… 2.8</p>
<p>MY ACT score is a 26.</p>