@toastiecheez, not sure what you are planning for your major, but Colorado School of Mines is an excellent engineering school, located in the beautiful Rocky Mountains, and accepts applications until April 1st. It was on my daughter’s short list.
@gratefulmama, when we were at Parents’ Weekend first year, I asked my son if he felt Cal Poly was the perfect fit. His response was enlightening. He said, and I’m paraphrasing, I like it here a lot, but I think I would have been fine at every school I applied to. It really reaffirms my suspicion that we as parents put too much emphasis on finding the “perfect” school for our kids. None of them are. They all have flaws. Don’t get me wrong. I love Cal Poly and the style of education there, but I believe that students who make the best of their opportunities will thrive anywhere. Year after year, surveys support that as 80% of graduates say they’re happy with their undergraduate institution. Good luck.
@julsvb124 I would guess that the majority, but not an overwhelming majority of parents attend SLO days. I had planned to go with my older daughter in 2014 (I think it was called SOAR then), but the day we were to leave my dad was admitted to the hospital and I got her a ride with another family at the last minute (we live in San Diego). She did a-ok without me. If younger daughter decides to attend, I will go too since older daughter will be staying in SLO this summer to work instead of coming home.
Is anyone else applying for the Honor’s Program? It sounds like they are changing it up a bit next year. Does anyone know anything about it? My son will be in Computer Engineering for what it’s worth.
Regarding the Orientation days (for my son), is it appropriate to bring my younger daughter (high school freshman) as one of the supporters? My wife will be starting a new job, so she can’t attend. I’ve heard that many of the supporter activities are geared toward adult interests (town tour, financial aid info, wine tasting) so I don’t know how much will interest a 15 year old girl. Still, I’d like her to go just for the fun of a road trip and to get a glimpse of a college orientation. Any insights? Has anyone attended in the past?
@AMCdad, I attended when it was still SOAR. We brought a friend who was thinking of applying to CP and he hung out with me. Some of it was for parents, and probably boring for him, but on balance, we had a great time. The campus tours are interesting. Then there’s the beach and SLO. It’s also good for her to get a jump on looking. It’ll hep her decide if it feels too big or too small. Have fun!
@eyemgh, thank you for the insight. That’s really useful information. I appreciate it.
Just some data for those out there. Our son was wait-listed for Cal Poly in Computer Science - MCA ~ 4729. (ACT = 35, SAT=1540, National Merit finalist, GPA 4.0/4.0 (10 AP classes), with a reasonable mix of EC. Good luck to all.
How quick do the spots for SLO days fill up? I was recently admitted to Computer Engineering and choosing between here and UCSD. I am definitely favoring SLO, but don’t think I can commit until after Open House. Due to a family vacation, I will be unable to attend SLO days until the last 2 or 3 sessions. How pressed for time am I to sign up?
@rhbgames my son was also waitlisted for Computer Science. Unless I am making a mistake, he has a 4765 MCA. We double checked his application to make sure there were no mistakes and just assumed that he must be at the very top of the waitlist. But now I am thinking that it must be a very small computer science department since so many great candidates have been passed over. It is his top choice although I am pushing for Davis given the Honors program and $.
@rhbgames Are you in state or out of state?
@ProjectByeByeKid Just wondering, are you in state or out of state?
In state. The thing that bums me out about the whole process is that even though my son has really good EC and work, it turns out that a lot of kids we know said that they padded their stats and of course were admitted. It would be great if Cal Poly randomly audited some student’s stats. That way, some kids might think twice about trying to cheat the system.
Question about housing. My DD’s first preference is to be in an apartment (if possible). Does anyone know how the Learning Communities preferences work? She is less concerned about her Learning Community preference and more concerned about being in an apartment. Anyone know how the housing application asks about your preferences? TIA!
Since you are a freshman in Cerro, does that mean you aren’t in a learning community? I’m wondering how big of a deal it would be to check the box on the housing application that requests an apartment, thus overriding my learning community preferences.
@Kitty33 - Sorry for the delay - in state
@ProjectByeByeKid - thanks for the response. I thought that perhaps we forgot to put down his 7th/8th grade advanced math classes but we haven’t checked the application. I thought I saw folks with lower MCAs get in, but he still has great options, so it’s all ok. Best of luck to all those going to CalPoly - great school - great location - and you can’t beat the price :).
@ProjectByeByeKid we were also concerned about the lack of validation/verification of EC/work experience application responses. Those can amount to 350 possible points toward MCA and can make all the difference.
@rhbgames CS is very competitive. This year admissions was targeting to fill 130 spots and they received 4377 applications just for CS! So how they sliced and diced through those applications is anyone’s guess. Did they accept 350 and then waitlist 50? Who knows?
http://www.ir.calpoly.edu/content/publications_reports/targets/index
@zenmom3, @10bates, this year the main communities at Cerro Vista are iCommunity and Transitions. I think the gender neutral housing is also there and the honors program. There is a place on the application to check that you want an apartment. While there are no guarantees that the communities will all be in the same locations next year, I would also recommend that you put iCommunity or Transitions as your first choice preference, if an apartment is what you want.
My son is in iCommunity at CV and his experience has been that there aren’t really any “community” activities. That is fine with him, as the apartment was what was important to him. He has had no difficulty meeting other folks and making friends.
Anyone got in for Econ?