Hi! I am a high school senior and am currently deciding whether to apply to Lehigh, Bucknell or Lafayette Early Decision 1. I visited the three schools this weekend and loved them all. I really would like to apply ED, but I can’t decide which one is best for me. My concern with Lehigh is that many of the facilities on campus seemed very out of date and that the campus is very spread apart. My concerns with Lafayette are that its student enrollment is too small and it does not have as good of a reputation as Lehigh. And with Buckell, my concerns are that it is very isolated from any cities and that they do not super score Acts. Could anyone address these concerns? Besides that, I like all of the schools equally, unfortunately, as it makes this decision so hard for me. As far as my high school record; I have a 4.3 weighted GPA, Class Rank 22/338, 29 Act super scored 28 Composite and many extracurriculars. Any help or insight would be appreciated on the schools. Thanks!
Have you run the net price calculators on their websites? You should only apply ED if the school is clearly your first choice and your family can afford it.
Being far from a city can be a non factor for many students. Many students do not go off their campus during their 4 years at many different schools. There are plenty of things to do on campus and the town of Lewisburg has stores, restaurants etc if you want to walk down town.
Of course it is never going to be the same as walking off an urban campus so you need to remember that. I personally think the Bucknell campus is much more walkable nd beautiful than Lehigh’s. What do you want to study?
mommdc Thanks for your reply! And yes, fortunately my family is in a financial condition where the extra cost of early decision is not a concern.
Surfcity that is an excellent point! I also got the feeling on tours that Bucknell was much more walkable than Lehigh which was very hilly and not as contained.
All three are good options. Really just a question of which campus felt like the best fit. Academically, Lehigh is mostly engineering and business majors…Bucknell has both majors but to a lesser degree. Lafayette has strong engineering but no business major. Lehigh is somewhat bigger/ Bucknell middle/Lafayette smaller.
I agree with above poster that while Bucknell is further from a big city, students at Lehigh/Lafayette do not spend much time in Bethlehem or Easton. There are subtle differences in the demographics/campus culture at the three schools which might make the difference if you are choosing an ED school.
dtrain is right on.
Can you take the ACT again?
S is at Bucknell, D graduated from Lafayette. Unhooked ACT scores below 30 are rare. If you want Business or Engineering, go even higher.
@pardullet My son is a jr in high school and he got a 32 on the ACT twice. His superscore was 33, however, Bucknell does not superscore the ACT so we are done at 32. Leigh does superscore the Act. Just curious what you think of his chances. I am assuming he will have a 93 unweighted gpa 95 weighted, with honors courses and probably 5 ap courses. He likes business, and wants to give accounting a shot.
Also, I am not counting on merit aid, but does Bucknell give any merit aid?
Thanks
@Euve69 If you go ED, you should be fine. My son is an acctg major at Bucknell and got a 32/33, too. 32 got him in ED1. We didn’t get anything. I believe Bucknell does offer some merit but probably to the few kids with super, super stats and accomplishments. I think they’re great on need based aid, but they didn’t think we needed anything. Sounds like your son is very similar to mine. He should have lots of options. FWIW, I begged him to go to UAlabama (free tuition) and bribed him with a new car . He and his mother said, nope.
Note, with this incoming class, if you don’t get into Business as a freshman, you will not be a bus. major. Make it clear on your app that is what he wants. To me, acceptance into another school was the same as a rejection. Feel free to PM me if you want any more info. Good Luck!
@pardullet My son is a freshman at Bucknell and was selected to be a Dean’s Scholar. He scored a straight 32 on the ACT and had a 3.8 unweighted GPA (his HS did not weight grades on their transcripts). He had 5 AP’s, lots of sports, and plays on one of Bucknell’s sports teams (not recruited, though). Bucknell has been a perfect fit for him and he has had a challenging 1st semester, but loves his classes, teachers, room and dorm mates, and has great grades (Econ/math major). He was accepted RD (we did not want to commit to any ED due to needing financial aid). All in all, great experience and we have a very happy son. 'Ray Bucknell
@jkrazney2 That is terrific! My son just got home, no final grades yet, but he’s loving everything Bucknell, too.
As a recent Bucknell grad, I would recommend choosing another school. They are looking for profit; reputation and money mean a lot more to them than their students, their culture, and their post graduate opportunities. On top of that it is ridiculously expensive and exists in the middle of nowhere.
It doesn’t sound like the OP is absolutely certain on where he would love to go to college if accepted.
Accordingly, ED is perhaps not the best path.
I totally understand. My son is a jr in high school and wants to most likely major in business. Most likely accounting. Do not get me wrong, Bucknell is a very good school, but it is extremely expensive. We are talking 65k per year.Bucknell does not give alot of merit money so nobody should count on that.
In the end, we will apply just to see if my son gets in. But in the end, I just think a good state school is the way to go.
Go to Villanova over each of those things here!
Bucknell has a current campaign to raise half a billion dollars and is well on its way. This will greatly improve what is offered in financial aid packages in the future I should think.