I have a senior at UR who has absolutely loved her Richmond experience. However, I follow the posts here and have to say we have received not one penny of financial aid. We currently have another child who is now in college, and still didn’t receive any aid. My husband and I both work, as well our UR child works on campus and in the summer at home. This is a wonderful school with super smart kids, but there is definitely a lot of extremely wealthy, preppy, private school kids here.
Yes. I was going to say that, if only 40 percent demonstrate need, then 60 percent are paying full price. That’s a lot of kids. Now whether they act entitled is a different story. I went to a competitive private college and many kids were wealthy private school kids and I was not. I certainly felt a bit more naive than these kids and just different in general. I made so many good friends by the end, though, and most of them were from wealthy families who expected their kids to work and to give back to their communities. I would be thrilled for our kids to meet more kids like that. I’m just not interested in a country club college where kids are driving fancy cars and carrying expensive bags etc. I think we may have to visit ourselves and have our kids decide what they think!
UR does also award a lot of merit aid as well, and 67% of students receive some sort of aid ( need and/or merit based). Many of the students receiving merit aid, like mine, do also actually have financial need, but since their merit aid exceeds their need, they do not show up as part of the 40% receiving need based aid. At any rate, there is a variety of students at UR, and my kids have many nice friends from a wide range of income levels.
I’m following this thread closely as well. UR is high on my D’s list. We will need lots of FA as well. Along with concerns about economic diversity I am also a little concern about the East coast culture there. I wonder if a girl from the Midwest will feel uncomfortable in a school on the East coast.
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@stlarenas We are from the midwest as well and I think our son is VERY midwestern in that he’s pretty sheltered growing up in Chicago suburbs. We’ve traveled and he’s been all over the US and to Europe but that doesn’t make him any more cultured per se. I met many prep school east coast kids when I was in college and, boy, I couldn’t relate at all. They were a particularly fast group of kids in all ways and seemed much more worldly and grown up than me. I eventually found my people but, with a roommate from Long Island, I was a bit worried at first and it took some time. My school was bigger, though, at 8000 undergrads. Still think the only way to really know if UR could be a fit would be to visit and spend time there.
When looking at schools, things that are important to us include diversity and a down to earth student body. Midwestern friendly. Not uber-competitve (even though our S19 is terrific student he wants collaborative attitude). We like that UR is a on the larger side of LAC with 3000 kids, in a temperate and beautiful area, and have heard it’s not considered a cut-throat type of environment. Just trying to figure out the rest.
Having grown up in New England and now residing in the Mid-Atlantic, I am not sure what you mean by “East Coast Culture”, lol:), but I am definitely curious to hear how we easterners are perceived by mid-westerners!
if you are willing to elaborate on some specific concerns, perhaps you can get some more detailed feedback to guide your decision about UR.
I can say that college is a unique time of life, during which it is a good thing for young adults to interact with new people, and experience different viewpoints, activities, academic challenges, etc. As @guineagirl96 has stated, and my daughters as well, UR really does have a wide variety of students (are there some snobby, elitist, wealthy students? yes, but many more who are not.), and UR students are able to find “their people”, and build a circle of friends. UR has great academics and advising, along with many clubs and activities, which allow students to find out what they are truly passionate about.
My husband and I both attended a large, public U in New England (we also attended public primary and secondary schools, as did our children, as well). We really did not know what to expect from a small, private college like UR, but it has been phenomenal, providing great opportunities for our kids, both in and out of the classroom.
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@mamag2855 “East Coast Culture” for me definitely does not include the majority of kids on the east coast. I’m sure many of them grow up in families like our, in a suburb of a big city (Boston, NY, DC, etc).
When I think of the East Coast Culture I’m trying to avoid, I’m talking about elitist prep-school type kids who will show up with their Kate Spade bags and their Mercedes freshman year…and who have been around many more drugs as a result of prep school. You may be laughing now, but I know these kids. There were a lot of them where I went to school. Kids who brought fancy, expensive, illegal drugs to school and who boasted that their checking accounts have five figures in them just in case of emergency while they were at school. Kids who had WAY more experience in the “relationship” area if you know what I mean. They also have the attitude that only the coasts count - east or west, take your pick, but the Midwest is not a place they respect.
I think what I’m saying is that our S19 will still be very impressionable and wholesome by the time he gets to college. Of course, I want him to meet all kinds of people, but I also want him to recognize himself a little bit in his classmates. I don’t want the overwhelming vibe of a school to be that prep school vibe. Maybe I’m worrying about nothing. Maybe that group exists at most schools. At smaller LACs, though, I understand that there is generally a certain kind of feeling. I know what it feels like at Oberlin or at Grinnell. Just trying to get a read on UR.
@homerdog sounds like we have similar criteria in schools for our kids. My D is apply this fall for fall 2017 - So I think we are a yr ahead of you.
We need lots of FA and most of the 100% need schools are on the East Coast. So we are going to gamble with a few apps and visit if she is accepted. (UR, BC, Lafayette, Lehigh, Wake Forest). My D also has very limited experiences with Prep School kids and big cities.
@mamag2855 Frankly I haven’t spent much time on the East coast, so my concerns are really just based on preconceptions/rumors. (fast paced, uppity, rude/abrupt, intense, more emphasis on looks/clothing, professionalism vibe). I fully admit these are gross generalizations and purely preconceptions however I do think there is probably some truth to the fact that the cultures are very different.
@homerdog I did not find UR very preppy. The kids I saw/met there looked to me to be from Suburban DC (eg, Montgomery County MD/Fairfax, VA). Basically middle-class and upper middle class kids, smart, polite and sporty (to generalize a bit!). Definitely not the New England or Manhattan prep school snobs who would fit in well in a Whit Stilman movie. I think that Washington & Lee is probably better known for the kind of kids you want to avoid.
If you are living in the North Shore of Chicago and your son gets on well, IMHO, I would think he would be okay at UR.
In addition, my daughter, who is extremely bright, didn’t receive any merit aid. Merit aid, from those students my D knows who received it, is for the few. All of the UR kids are all extremely bright, smart kids. She is one among many.
Richmond offers 45 ish Richmond scholar awards, full rides/full tuition to freshman students each year, along with some $15K presidential and trustee scholarships, as well as some departmental scholarships. According to the UR website, 27% of students receive merit aid.
With average SAT/ACT scores and other stats rising each admissions cycle at UR, it does mean that many very bright students will not receive any merit aid, but UR is more generous with merit than most other meets full need schools. The 45 full ride/full tuition scholarships offered each year to Ruchmond Scholars are not the norm for a school of it’s size.
Hey @guineagirl96 how much weight do you think the SAT score carry for a junior transfer? Because I have not taken it ever before in my country and will take and probably score very high.
Also, is University of Richmond trying to build an international reputation? Because being an international transfer student myself, I only want to apply to schools that cherish internationals. Any advice is appreciated. Thank you!
@Preppyintlboy I’m not that well versed in transfer admissions, but I would suspect that they would carry very little weight, especially since you’d be taking them as a college student. UR does not require SAT scores for transfers and you may want to contact admissions to see if they would consider yours before you take the exam, because some colleges won’t accept SAT scores taken in college (the test is designed for high school students).
In terms of international reputation, yes, UR is trying to build its reputation oversees and values students from diverse backgrounds and cultures.
Chance me please
3.75 W GPA (Trending upward, poor freshman year, 3.83 last 2 years, currently 3.9 during 7th semester).
31 ACT (33 English and reading, 29 Math and science)
6 AP Courses Taken (Macroeconomics, comparative politics, U.S. government, Physics, Statistics, Environmental Science).
Most likely political science and or Business major
White male from Grand Rapids, Michigan.
National Honors Society
DECA
Senior Advisory Board (similar to stud gov group)
Basketball for 2 years
Many hours volunteered with Kids food basket, Grand Rapids Home for Veterans, local soup kitchen, cancer hospital of Grand Rapids.
Letter of recommendation from teachers are both outstanding and give very in depth personal description.
Letter of recommendation from a state level senator
Nominated to United States Naval Academy by my district’s house of reps member. (Notified admission counselor about receiving it and had it added to application).
Honest answers greatly appreciated, rather have a realistic idea than be overconfident from kind but not true responses.
Any input would be tremendous
Thank you
@guineagirl96 I have a question about the Richmond Scholars Program, specifically the Science Scholars. Can you major in a science major such as computer science and also double major in something else such as business? Thanks!
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@guineagirl96. My D is applying ED2 in a couple of days, any tips on this spider essay, anything the school is xtra proud of or new building they are excited about? Also, how much do you think the admissions % goes up ED? Heard anything about that? She has a 4.3 gpa weighted, 8 AP classes, A in each of them (including the 3 she’s now taking), 5’s and a few 4’s on the exams, however her tests scores are not so great as math & science pull her down. Her ACT is 29 but she got 34 & 35 on reading & writing but lower 20’s in math & I think a 25 in science. Same thing on SAT just a composite 1230. History & art history double major, SAT subject test 750. She was denied at W&M but we are OOS in SC. What do you think her chances would be at UR? I know we’ve chatted a bit in my other thread but she has decided to use her ED at UR, but I worry it’s still too much of a stretch. Would love an honest assessment from you when you have time, thank you!
@USPanther Yes. The science scholar requires you to major in at least one STEM field (bio, chem, math, CS, etc). Many students at UR double major and/or have minors, science scholars included. I actually know several science scholars that are CS majors (since that’s one of my majors) and they have/had double majors in a lot of other fields, including business (and math, math econ, physics- to name a few of the popular double majors).
@cloudysmom I’m not really that well versed in the spider essay, since that topic was introduced the year after I applied. I do know some underclassmen who did the spider essay and they didn’t all use it as a “why richmond” essay, since that is another topic (unless they removed it? I don’t really know what the topics are anymore). People have written about their fear of actual spiders and gotten into the school. If she wants to talk about something at the school, she might mention the museums and exhibits we have on campus, since she is interested in Art History. This past semester, we had a Rodin exhibit at the museum in the Modlin center, which is a huge deal for a school of our size. ED does definitely help with admissions (acceptance rate overall is about 30% and just ED is about 45%- you can google richmond common data set to see the actual numbers). As I mentioned on your other thread, I think she has a really good shot, especially with ED. The ACT score will be her weakness, but I don’t think it will make a difference. For what its worth, I had a lower GPA (although very high rigor- took all honors/AP at a STEM magnet school), comparable SAT to her ACT (although math was my strength), a higher but also skewed ACT (I think I had a 33 composite with all 35s or 36s except a 25 in reading), and was waitlisted W&M instate, but I’m a Scholar at UR, so they obviously look for different things.
@guineagirl96 Thank you, this is really great information, super helpful! Very impressive about Rodin, esp for a school that size, she was excited to hear it. I so hope you’re right about the scores, it is her weakness. Funny you 2 had the reverse. Very strange you were waitlisted at W&M but a Scholar there. I keep reading that W&M can be a bit odd in their decisions. She’s working on the essay, will be glad when it’s sent, been so stressful! Thank you!!
How does the pre engineering program work? Would a student graduate during the same time with Richmond students and then attend another school for their second degree? Or do they not graduate with their fellow classmates at all?
So I have read this on the website:
The Coordinate Colleges: Richmond College and Westhampton College
But what does it actually mean on a daily basis for the students?
Are men and women separate other than dorms and living situations?