Great perspective! Thank you.
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Genetic Counseling uses a match program. Feel free to message me if you would like to chat.
In the meantime I would choose a school with access to volunteering, etc.
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Much appreciated! I may reach out.
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My daughter was a bio major also.
If you had to narrow down the list to 5 faves, which would they be? Looking for best education, student experience, payback on COA, job placement prospects.
This is what you wrote - and I think when you say best education, student experience, payback on COA and job placement prospects - the first three can go any and either way - thatās based on your student. These are all fine schools.
For job placement, you can seek stats from each school - but the way hiring is done today, it likely doesnāt matter where your student goes - so much is on line - even schools that come to campus. My kid is in engineering at Bama and he canāt keep up with the # of interviews heās getting.
I think ultimately, you need to find where your student feels best. I suspect you wonāt get what you think aid wise at Purdue or U of SC but youāll get close to that at U of SC.
U of SC is different than Purudeā¦weather wise, city wise. Miami is flat out ruralā¦very nice though. UMASS has top food - always underrated as many kids struggle with food and thus get low blood sugar and bad moods. My point is these schools are vastly different in many ways. And those differences should be considered.
So I think your list is great - but you have to figure out - which environment is best for your student. Size. Weather. Access to city etc. I donāt see- a significant difference in schools - other than Lafayette which doesnāt fit - but you noted was on there. These are very solid flagship types schools. Honors will be roughest at FSU ā¦moreso than U of Sc And UGA based on my daughters experience.
Good luck.
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All of these schools will provide a very good education. I would focus on social fit for your daughter, who you describe as an introvert who does not want to join a sorority. Keep in mind that she can find friends at many schools- large, small, Greek life or none, etc. Does your daughter want to join clubs? I would search for schools where the clubs are active, as that is a great way to make friends (if she is interested).
All of these schools have biology majors. I would investigate the ease of doing undergraduate research (if she is interested), the volunteering experiences that are on campus and nearby, etc. I would take a look at the classes, internships, research positions etc. I would look at the jobs that biology majors get after college - getting into GC programs directly out of college is hard, and many schools value gap years to work, gain additional experience (doesnāt need to be in genetics) etc.
Your D will be with premed students. Mine was premed and was still thinking about applying to med school after graduation. She also strongly considered attending direct entry NP. She changed her mind as her interests became overwhelmingly clear.
Your D might decide she loves genetics and wants to be a GC, or she may change her mind and pursue something else. I think all of the schools on this list will allow for those changes, and I would focus on where she feels comfortable and where the transition to college is the smoothest. That is really the first step.
Is it worth it to pay more? That depends on you, what you can afford, whether your daughter is thriving, etc. Grad schools wonāt care which of these school names is on the diploma- they care about what your daughter did while there. Keep in mind that if your daughter pursues GC, it is a match program. If she applies to 10 schools she will have to attend the school she matches to (she may or may not match the first time). She may match to the most expensive program. Other types of degrees are also expensive.
Some of your merit numbers look a little high to me, but I could be wrong and you will know soon enough.
One step at a time. Good luck!
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Really appreciate your perspective! Thank you.
Is the coursework, grading, and competitive environment overly onerous or challenging at some of the schools listed versus the others?
I have heard Purdueās grading is particularly tough. Maybe the case with others.
Does that impact the ability to get into graduate school?
Are some biology programs much better than others in preparing students for careers or graduate school versus others?
I want to make sure my daughter has a good education but doesnāt suffer through an overwhelmingly difficult experience. She has to be able to enjoy college as well as be prepared for a career.
Thoughts?
The only sequence of classes my D took at Purdue where grading seemed wonky was calculus. While the school activity is known for working against grade inflation, it still seems very fair.
My Dās friends who went on to grad school all seemed to have no issues.
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I canāt speak for any of the schools on your daughterās list. My D was accepted to Binghamton but chose a different school (Bing is an excellent school).
If your daughter is a biology major she will be taking classes with premed students. Keep that in mind. Whether or not there is a competitive vibe will depend somewhat on the student and their personality etc.
I would do some research on the biology depts- can students do research? Where have they worked if they chose to take time off before heading back to school? What about if they do not return to school? Research positions? Internships? Volunteering etc? How accessible are the profs- can you knock on their door and talk? What about office hours etc?
This list consists of very good schools. The key is to find the one that your daughter likes best.
This may or may not be true depending on the size of the school. Iād advise the student to look up the 4 year plan of studies for genetics vs pre-med and see the overlap.
While there will be overlap at Purdue, there are different bio requirements for the first and second year pre med students, and there are a variety of organic chemistry options.
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There might be differences between genetics and biology, and there may be differences between a BS versus a BA in biology.
Thanks for pointing out that she needs to check each school, any overlap etc.
My D has a BS in biology, and was premed. The BA in biology had fewer requirements. Some of her classes were in genetics.
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Let me throw in one more thing - in your original message on another chain, you mentioned she volunteers at her Temple. Other chains mentioned Jewish life.
How important is that? If it is, I would ,connect with the Hillels (or Chabads) at each school.
If you go by that, Iād especially study:
Purdue - now it shows 500 students per Hillel but not sure how accurate that is. For my son, it didnāt matter but for other students it might - their strong or not strong Jewish life (I donāt honestly know but I donāt have the feeling itās strong. When we asked on the tour - it was - oh, I have a Jewish friend response) vs. the usual, thereās a Hillel, I love to go with my friend, etc.
Clemson - yes, thereās some Jews (very few) but with the coach looming large and itās state/location within the state, thereās scant Jewish life and itās clear from many an article.
So you might - or might not - want to factor that in to - as a student has to be there four years, day after day after day.
Iām not saying to eliminate either on that - and especially Purdue which I think would merit further investigation ā¦ perhaps discussions with Jewish leaders, etc.
But if Jewish life is important, I would not consider Clemsonā¦perhaps thatās just me.
U of SC - yes - the population is small but we investigated - and came away unconcerned. But we did bring my daughter there, had conversations with Hillel, etc. and had to develop a comfort. But you might investigate for your family - if thatās important to you.
Good luck.
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I think it would be great to have some Jewish presence in the school (this is me speaking, my daughter doesnāt think itās overly critical). She does want to be in an accepting environment, whether or not there is significant cultural diversity. Definitely not looking for a āreligiousā school or one that is intolerant of other cultures and religions.
Does anyone think large Southern schools like Clemson, UofSC, Alabama, or Georgia are not good places for a Jewish student?
I should save this for the poster, but one of @tsbnaās kids is at Alabama and the other is at College of Charleston. So I donāt think itās necessarily broad swaths of schools that should be eliminated (or included). I think it really depends on each school and that will need to be researched on a case-by-case basis.
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Bama look a has a large Jewish presence and strong Hillel. My son (an introvert) went and said itās all Greek kids and didnāt like. Bloom Hillel at Bama is large, weāll funded and Iād have zero concern.
UGA - we saw the Hillel - not as nice as Bama but certainly they have a decent Jewish population.
U of SC - Hillel Director is from the Jewish Federation so not as large a campus presence but when we walked into admissions, they had a menorah. And we spoke to them and a student. We came away satisfied. But definitely not the presence of a Bama. They donāt have their own building for example. Itās shared with another group.
As a parent I think you need to reach out or include Jewish life as part of your visits. We tried to set meetings up.
Clemson. Me personally - I would not consider it. Others may disagree. Thereās enough anecdotal evidence online to remove it. Iām speaking as a Jewish personā¦not a non Jewish person who says they know a Jewish person there.
Also itās different in that itās rural vs a U of SC which is urban - so you have to figure out that mix too.
And then how will your child get to these schools from NJ ?
Are you planning to visit campuses once acceptances are in ?
Nothing better than that and schools like Clemson/UGA/U of SC are reasonably close to one another so you could do all three in two days if needed but three would be better.
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Thank you for your perspective. We definitely plan on visiting all of the southern schoolsā¦will take 3-4 days. Waiting until after my daughter gets her acceptance and financial package for each.
FSU is probably the top choice of the southern schools if she can get the OOS waiver. It has a relatively significant Jewish population. Didnāt want to write off the rest, however, without checking out the campuses in person.
I have a neighbor with a son, also Jewish, that graduated from Clemson and loved it. Business major and more extroverted than my daughter, however. A few other neighbors (not Jewish) have sent their kids to Clemson as well. Raved about school spirit and loyal āfamilyā/alumni.
I think Clemson falls into the bucket of āif it fits itās great, and if it doesnāt itās tough to make it fitā colleges. (Iād put Reed, Cal Tech, Sarah Lawrence in that bucket as well so itās not just a Southern thing).
There are some colleges (Iāll pick MD, BU as examples) where a kid might not like a particular aspect of the school (too big, too urban) but where with a modest amount of effort, a kid can find āmy peopleā and a wide range of activities, ECās, volunteer work, etc. to get involved in. The more āparticularā colleges donāt always have as wide a range so itās going to be harder for a kid who is out of the mainstream of that college.
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Seems like if that were the case, Clemson would be somewhat unusual in being a larger generalized school where that were the case (versus smaller schools, especially somewhat specialized ones).
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I could give more examples-- big and small. Culturally, Clemson is not for everyone and itās silly to pretend otherwise. BYU is not for everyone- has nothing to do with its size. Berea- has a lot to do with its size AND its mission and culture. Liberty- the U could double in size and Iād still have a hard time claiming āYouāll find your people because its so bigā.
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