<p>^^SUNY New Paltz is the college closest to Woodstock</p>
<p>wcramer, I almost cancelled a recent trip to a school in your state, DePauw, based on the mostly negative feedback we read about the college from many guides and internet sites. The only reason we did not cancel was that the airfare was not refundable. We made the trip and D immediately put DePauw on her short list. She loved almost everything about it. We learned a valuable lesson to not have other peoples opinions become ours. I know Fordham and the campus well, we live less than an hour away. It is a very good school close to the Bronx Zoo, Botanical Gardens and, most importantly, Arthur Avenue which is their little Italy.</p>
<p>SUNY Purchase also has a great journalism major. It’s only 1/2 hour from the city. Please check it out, if only on paper or website.</p>
<p>Grinnell has merit money, as does Smith. I think both these schools might resonate with your D. Sarah Lawrence WILL have rich kids and is usually not good with money.<br>
Bard is better and I think a good fit with what you describe, but offers merit money only in science.</p>
<p>I just sent a student to Sarah Lawrence (transfer from CC) and have a D who graduated from Barnard. We looked at all these schools, and I know them from a personal and professional point of view. Please feel free to PM if I can be of any more help.</p>
<p>Smith offers limited merit scholarships; I think MHC offers a bit more.</p>
<p>SLC is not know for good merit or need-based awards.</p>
<p>Bard offers limited merit money and is in the middle of nowhere (but it ain’t Iowa).</p>
<p>I am going to respectfully disagree with mythmom. I live in NY. SUNY Purchase is a very popular choice among my young neighbors and a few go to SUNY New Paltz. They are good schools and I’m not knocking them. But…to me it makes no sense to travel from Northern Indiana to attend them when the out of pocket cost would in all likelihood be significantly more than attending IU-B. IU-B has a good journalism program too and I suspect most college kids would think that Bloomington is a cooler college town than New Paltz.
Even if they didn’t, it’s hard to justify the additional cost.</p>
<p>I haven’t checked in state for IU-B. It’s certainly a beautiful, reputable school but is is big. SUNY out of state is cheaper OOS than many instates. And New Paltz and Purchase are both small and have the “hippieish” vibe the OP seemed to be looking for.</p>
<p>I have no horse in this race. These are just options.</p>
<p>
Cheer up!, Enjoy Steak dinner at “Shula’s Steak House” at Hotel Westin at Times Square and catch a broadway show.</p>
<p>OP - pay no attention to the guides. They only reflect one person’s experience and really can’t be seen as the last word on anyone’s campus experience, especially at a larger university like Fordham. Case in point: my D1 is a freshman at UMass and fretted all summer about the “ZooMass” reputation, as she’s rather serious and quiet. Her experience has been the complete opposite from what she read in the guidebooks. She lives on the Wellness floor in her dorm and all her friends have the same temperament and attitude as she. Likeminded people tend to find each other at college.
As I said previously, I know lots of kids at Fordham and not all of them are spoiled rich conservatives.</p>
<p>Also, FTR, Bard’s merit aid isn’t limited to science majors. D1 is a language major and she got merit aid from Bard. (Turned it down because the school was a bit too small and rural for her, but, from the way you describe your daughter, it sounds as if it might be a good fit for her.)</p>
<p>“and in the middle of a really vibrant neighborhood”</p>
<p>You’re a funny one, JHS! My friend who attends Fordham keeps on getting an email every other week how a student was robed or worse on their way back to the campus! The area is a dreary, scary place.</p>
<p>I agree with mythmom, You can’t really compare IU-B with SUNY New Paltz and Purchase. It’s like apples to oranges. IU-B is a large mainstream state flagship while the two SUNY’s are small and have a more offbeat and creative student body. I think the cost OOS is very reasonable. Personally, I prefer New Paltz overall.</p>
<p>I agree with the above posters that Fordham should be on your visit list, despite the guide’s descriptions. It’s a great place.</p>
<p>On the other hand, if D is “into the bicycle community” Lewis and Clark may be perfect for her. In Portland the bicycle is king of the road, and bicyclists have taken over city government.</p>
<p>I think that these college books exagerate how “conservative” various campuses are. Yes, “bible colleges” will be more conservative, but larger national universities are not going to be that conservative - even if they’re Catholic or whatever. Many might even be quite liberal in their social outlook.</p>
<p>As for “upper-middle class”. I’ve visited about 50 various national U’s across the country, and I don’t think there has been one that doesn’t mostly consist of “upper-middle class students”. Someone has to pay the bills… LOL.</p>
<p>Hello,
Just a follow up - we are getting ready for the trip and we are excited to see the school and the city. Even if it doesn’t work out - it will be a neat experience. Looks like the weather may cooperate too, so hooray for that. Thank you for all your helpful input. Lewis and Clark is definitely numero uno on her list, probably IU second and Fordham next. I think. We’ll see how the visit goes. I will post my thoughts when we get back, and fill out one of CC’s really cool college visit reports.</p>
<p>Have a great trip!</p>
<p>My daughter has a close friend who is very liberal, crazy, and fun, and she loves Fordham Rose Hill. The campus is beautiful and the access to all that NYC has to offer is great. You need street smarts when you are off campus in the immediate neighborhood but on campus is safe, and I think the neighborhood is neat.</p>
<p>WC, your daughter is in the running for a full tuition scholarship at Fordham since she is a national hispanic scholar. I don’t see why she would even consider another NYC college that would not offer her this opportunity. You didn’t mention her grades or rank, but if they are good and she selects Fordham as her first choice on the national merit program, she will get a $120,000+ scholarship. Fordham is defintely a college you want to visit and consider.</p>
<p>The campus is gorgeous and safe. Security at every entrance. They have the “ram van” that takes students to the Lincoln Center Campus and metro north railroad is outside the entrance and a 20 minute ride to Grand Central Station. </p>
<p>I would check out both the Lincoln center campus and Rose Hill & ride the Ran van. They are two very different campus experiences - Rose Hill the traditional college campus and Lincoln City a city campus. I was at Rose Hill today and the place was completely empty for the holiday weekend, so I hope you go for your visit after the students return so your D can enjoy the campus when it’s active.</p>
<p>to the OP
Having a D who is a National Merit Semi Finalist and a Hspanic Scholar, you should be attempting to maximize the benefits of those two designations.If you havent already do a search for scholarships for those recipients.
I might encourage you to look at Arizona State U who offer excellent merit money for those kids, plus an Honors College setting within a large University with an Excellent Journalism School plus the benefit of being large enough so that any kid of any leaning,quirky or not can find a large like minded group.
D who was vegetarian,quirky and a musician had a great 4 years there.</p>
<p>My niece went to Fordham and is not like that a t all. you have to check out the school and see how it feels to you . My D goes to a school that has a reputation for rich preppy kids and she does well and there are lots of kids like her.</p>
<p>wcramer, yes, please post about your impressions of Fordham. It is on my D’s list as a potential transfer.</p>