<p>I think that for B students with very low sat scores fairtest.org is the first place to start. There are so many good schools that do not require sat scores for admission.</p>
<p>In California, we have the cal state schools, Whittier, UOP, St. Mary's, USF, Mills, Menlo, maybe these 4... LMU, Chapman, Redlands, and Santa Clara. Also, there is a shot at UCSC, Merced, and Riverside. </p>
<p>I'm probably missing a few.</p>
<p>Thanks, dstark! You named a few that I'd forgotten about. Will be looking over the next year or so for sophomore D.</p>
<p>lots of these colleges are not even in the big fat college directories.>></p>
<p>Susan, You might want to get a hold of the US News Ultimate College Directory, or even a premium subscription to the US News online college section. All of the schools mentioned so far are covered in both.</p>
<p>Also in California, Dominican University of California, Azuza Pacific, Pt. Loma Nazarene, Westmont.</p>
<p>Some of the schools Dstark mentioned are more for B+ students, rather than B students --- specifically, Santa Clara, Redlands, Chapman and even LMU are iffy for B/C students these days, especially if test scores are low. Another great option for B+ students and above is the University of San Diego. Pitzer also takes some B+ students.</p>
<p>i've seen syracuse brought up a few times. I think that a B student does have a good shot there. The 'more selective' programs are in the Newhouse school of communications. Here, it's quite a bit more competitive than the rest of the school, and tends to make admissions look alot more competitive than they really are. I know a few people with C+/B- averages in high school who are attending Syracuse. Another college in the central new york area is LeMoyne College. SUNY Oswego is good if it's the best you can do. I'll be honest, the people that went there were the party animals in HS, and they proudly continue that tradition today. One of my friends transfered to binghamton from oswego citing the "academics were a complete joke ... more like the 10th grade all over again." Other SUNY schools worth checking out are Albany, Buffalo, and Stony Brook. Niagara University is also a solid choice for the B student. </p>
<p>Also, fendergirl - i have an original '62 sunburst strat sittin in my room. At home are 3 of the custom v-shop fenders, a Gibson 335, Taylor 810, a LesPaul custom historic reissue, and a handfull of other guitars ... all of which rock through three Marshall stacks (JTM45, DSL100, MGsomething) or my twin reverb or my Mesa Rectoverb combo. It's a recipe for complete audio fun!</p>
<p>For the solid B/B+ student with solid SATs, recommendations and good EC activities:</p>
<p>Hartwick - <a href="http://www.hartwick.edu%5B/url%5D">http://www.hartwick.edu</a></p>
<p>Muhlenberg - <a href="http://www.muhlenberg.edu%5B/url%5D">http://www.muhlenberg.edu</a></p>
<p>Ursinus - <a href="http://www.ursinus.edu%5B/url%5D">http://www.ursinus.edu</a></p>
<p>Hobart & William Smith - <a href="http://www.hws.edu%5B/url%5D">http://www.hws.edu</a></p>
<p>Allegheny - <a href="http://www.alleg.edu%5B/url%5D">http://www.alleg.edu</a></p>
<p>Washington & Jefferson - <a href="http://www.washjeff.edu%5B/url%5D">http://www.washjeff.edu</a></p>
<p>Chocolate , my D had SAT of 1190 , and although she did a few APs in HS , she was a solid B student , and she received great financial aid from Hiram College in Ohio ( they seem to get a lot of New Yorkers ) . My freind's D just finished at ( Hobart ) William Smith with much happiness . </p>
<p>If you are staying NY , did you consider St. Bonaventure or Ithaca or Alfred ??</p>
<p>Carolyn, thank you for pointing out a directory that would have more info. on colleges not in the Princeton Review or Fiske directories. It is particularly tricky with students who have far lower SATs than some of you guys are even talking about. I do have the SAT optional schools. Finding schools with low low stats and very particular majors/programs is something I'm in the midst of at the moment. Thanks again.
Susan</p>
<p>however, I'll second the mention of PA state system schools (Millersville, IUP, etc.--NOT Penn State or Pitt) for those with decent grades and low SAT scores. I have a few friends and a lot of close acquaintances who are freshman and sophomores at various schools in the state system and they all seem very happy. That said, many of the schools (I don't have the knowledge to discuss all of them) are not the place to go if you want an exceptionally intellectual environment. There are some very studious people, but unless I am very much mistaken in my impressions, there's also quite a substantial portion of the student population that really likes to have a good time.</p>
<p>I was the one who originally started this thread--last December! My son is a happy freshman at Quinnipiac in CT. He is working hard and has joined several organizations on campus--something he would not do in HS. It was a good choice for him, and probably many other B students as well. He has a lot of contact with professors, and has used the learning center to improve his writing skills. He has totally reinvented himself--we couldn't be happier. If you are looking for a good school for a B student, you should add Quinnipiac to your list of schools to visit.</p>
<p>Some of the schools mentioned here are real reaches for "B" students..Geneseo, U of Del. , Northeastern,Penn St. and Syracuse are schools that even with a 1200 SAT "B" students are only around a 25% chance of admission.</p>
<p>Chocolate: Thanks for posting the update on your son. It is great that he is doing well and encouraging to hear. Quinnipiac has become very popular in our area and I hear that students are very happy at the college.</p>
<p>A couple of people have mentioned LeMoyne. We visited with S last spring and liked it very much. The staff went out of their way to make the visitors feel welcome. It does seem like a good choice for a solid B student. The student body appears to be close-knit and there seem to be good student supports. A former student who now works for my H speaks very highly of LeMoyne. It is a Jesuit college which is a plus for my S. The facilities are pretty nice. My S will apply there and revisit if he gets admitted. </p>
<p>We also looked at Hartwick. It is in a very picturesque setting on a hill and the facilities are great. They have a popular J term course with interesting trips abroad that are led by department profs. It is expensive though and not covered by tuition. Nice college town and SUNY Oneonta is up the street. However, it is far for us and kind of isolated. Not a lot of transportation options. It is another good choice for the B student.</p>
<p>The Premium U.S. News college edition online is very useful and worth the subscription, IMO.</p>
<p>Carolyn, Thanks for the additional California schools. Sophomore D looks to be a solid B-plus (3.5 to 3.7 weighted gpa) student and, while she hasn't tested yet, I'm guessing she would be in the mid- to upper-600 range on her SAT tests. She's on the honors track and will take several APs junior and senior year, but she has to work hard at her magnet public high school to get B's. She's also a varsity swimmer and year-round competitive club swimmer, which is probably why her grades aren't a bit higher (9-11 workouts a week = a time factor!) Her ECs are not really academic, just swimming and volunteer work, for which she does have some leadership experience. Her future interests are possibly counseling or teaching. First-choice school so far -- and we haven't really started looking much -- is UCSB. We visited, she fell in love. I'm an alum and also two of her grandparents, but it's gotten pretty hard to get in (average GPA of admitted students is now 3.9) so we are trying to be realistic. Any idea if the UCs take into consideration legacy status the way privates do? My thinking is, no.</p>
<p>Carolyn- Can you think of any private schools in Ca or Arizona that aren't christian and would be possibilities for a straight B student with fair SATs, I will have more of a clue when we get the PSAT back. He tends to get A's in some subjects but has a few C's thrown in and 1 menacing D+. Probably end up with between 1-3 AP classes depending on his schedule next yr. I am hoping my son finds somewhere that is smaller then the Cal States but I don't think he wants to go far from home.
Any info on Monterey Bay? Has anyone visited? I was born on the Fort Ord army base many years ago and haven't seen it since the transformation.</p>
<p>mom2inca, my wife went to UCSB for a coule of years and liked it too. </p>
<p>She has a very good shot at UCSB. Also UCD.</p>
<p>Have you seen this from Arcadia high school in Southern Calif?</p>
<p>It will probably be a little harder to get into the school than this as more people apply over the next few years, but this is a good guide.</p>
<p><a href="http://sonicpixel.net/ahs05/%5B/url%5D">http://sonicpixel.net/ahs05/</a></p>
<p>That 3.9 gpa is an average weighted grade of people the school accepts. </p>
<p>Legacies don't count.</p>
<p>Thanks Carolyn, I got the subscription.</p>
<p>Mom60, I don't have a first-hand report but a good friend visited Monterey Bay a month ago with her D and the mom fell in love with the school. Gorgeous. But probably best for certain majors. She also liked Sonoma.</p>
<p>dstark,
Thanks for the scattergram. I agree, it's only going to get tougher. D's class is apparently the peak of the baby boomlet. :(</p>
<p>Sonoma State is definitely worth a look for B students who live in Cal. Beautiful campus, and the school has about 8000 students. You can get personal attention if you want it.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.sonoma.edu/%5B/url%5D">http://www.sonoma.edu/</a></p>