<p>My daughter is in a very prestigous dance group, and wants to stay in the Chicago area for college so she can continue with her dance team. She is not planning on dance as a career. Her major in college will be business or communications.</p>
<p>Her stats:</p>
<p>29 ACT
4.8 GPA out of 5.0
Top 20% of class
3 AP classes, many honors classes
Almost no ECS because dance took up most of her time,but she can talk about the benefits of her dance career, travel, work ethic, etc.</p>
<p>We are looking for solid schools where she will be slightly above the average applicant, and possibly score some merit cash.</p>
<p>The schools she is thinking about are DePaul, North Central , Benedictine and Lake Forest. I told her she could apply at UC , but we realize that is a major reach.</p>
<p>Does anyone have any opinions about these schools, and does anyone know firsthand if she would get merit money based on her scores?</p>
<p>I think she'd be in good shape for the schools on her list. DePaul would be my choice of the current list for someone interested in business or communications. DePaul tends to be generous with merit scholarships - ask them directly if there are any minimum ACT scores for merit money. Lake Forest also may offer her some money (no guarantees, but her stats are similar to students I know have received merit from them in the past). I am not familiar enough with the other two to comment on merit possibilities.</p>
<p>Northwestern would also be a reach like UC, but for the Medille School there is really top notch so it might be worth a shot instead of UC.</p>
<p>A few other suggestions, including some just a tad further afield: Dominican University, Beloit College, Knox College, Augustana College, Valparaiso.</p>
<p>UC is most likely within reach...however, if being involved in dance is really important to her, it probably wouldn't be the best fit. UC is extremely demanding - students typically don't have time to dedicate to things other than academic pursuits. </p>
<p>Depaul is probably one of my favorite Chicago schools - it's exceptionally strong in business. I've also heard good things about Loyola.</p>
<p>kyle, I have wondered that myself. There are 700 people in her class, and it is competitive, but you would think she might be ranked higher with that GPA. </p>
<p>Having said that, the majority of her friends in honors classes got higher ACT scores than she did, a lot them had 31s to 33s, so grade inflation is probably not an issue.. I'm a fan of a kid taking honors classes and not being afraid to get the dreaded B, because honors classes prepare you better for the standardized tests and college level work.</p>
<p>We have never considered the Ivies and the like, due to cost and the ridiculous level of competition to get into them, so it gives my daughter more room to challenge herself without worrying about having the highest GPA in the school. Sometimes I worry that striving for the perfect GPA, and the perfect test score, actually gets in the way of learning something. Both of my daughters have had friends that dropped difficult classes because they were afraid they couldn't get an A, and it would ruin their GPA.</p>
<p>If your daughter is certain that her undergraduate major is going to business or communications, it probably isn't even worth taking the time to apply to Chicago. Neither major is offered at the college.</p>
<p>My opinion might not be welcome by your daughter, but I would take a step back and review her position. If dance is not her future profession, then the path that she is taking can be limiting in her future academic and personal development. It looks like she is just afraid to get out of the enviroment that she is accustomed to - close to home, dance group, etc.</p>
<p>I would encourage her to visit some colleges within few hundred miles of Chicago (UIUC, WashU, UMichigan). She could be surpised by high level of professionalism that some of the students dancing groups have. WashU in particular is very flexible in terms of double-majoring, somebody I know going for a theater major and business minor and having a great time.</p>
<p>Hi datadriven. I hear what you are saying. She sent her ACT scores to the University of Denver and Colorado State, so she is open to looking at schools outside of the state. Her preference is to stay here, tho. </p>
<p>The deal with her dance team is that they age out at 21, so she'd like to enjoy more time with it. This group isn't just any dance group, they have opened for Ciara, and other well known hip hop groups, did halftime at the Soccer all star game on ESPN last year, and their alumni are regulars on commercials and dancing back up on the MTV awards, etc. </p>
<p>She has a bad back, so dance is not an option as a full time career, but she has gotten a lot of opportunities by being in the group. We have one member that commutes from UWM just to be on the team, and she is a full time student there.</p>
<p>I'd like to know what others think- I don't see DePaul or Loyola as being limiting , especially if she plans to work and live in the Chicago area. I thought their alumni network and name recognition was pretty decent. Is that not the case?</p>
<p>DePaul and Loyola and decent regional schools - but nothing more. They do not have national reputations and if for whatever reason your D decides to go to grad school or work outside of Chicago job market - she will be limited (somewhat) in comparison with opportunities that UIUC or other top 50 schools would provide.</p>
<p>Specifically, for business degree, in two most difficult to areas (management consulting and investment banking) - for a Loyola or DePaul graduate opportunities just are not going to be there at all (unless you have huge connections).</p>
<p>I would try to improve ACT score (to 30-31) and look at other schools (if price is an issue look at UNC, UVA). UIUC is excellent in-state value with outstanding business school and your D is in-range for it.</p>
<p>^The flip side to that though, is that DePaul's School of Commerce is located in The Loop (the hub of all major business in Chicago). The internship and learning opportunities available in the middle of Chicago's business district would be far greater than what one could find in southern IL town.</p>
<p>According to Rugg's Recommendations on the Colleges (06),
Majors ranked by Group 1, 2, and 3 near Chicago (excluding schools not very near Chicago, but including UIUC):</p>
<p>I think we need to clarify what you are calling "Group 1, 2, and 3" in Rugg's. Rugg's does NOT rank schools. The Groups Treetopleaf is referring to are based upon the difficulty of admissions, nothing more. All of the schools listed in Rugg's have been identified (by high school guidance counselors) as having strong programs in the specific subject areas. Just wanted to point this out.</p>
<p>Thanks carolyn for your notes. Regarding Ruggs, I have seen the same school listed with different departments in different groups (Group II for one department, Group III for another) though it's not typical. Rugg says that 'his' colleges are in their opinion in the top 1000 of 4 year colleges, or have excellent specialized programs. It's helped me to think about certain schools differently.</p>
<p>I'd love to hear other's experience with North Central. It has quite a few strong departments.</p>
<p>I have a friend that taught at DePaul and she wasn't too impressed with academic rigor there, but I think her opinion reflects the rather large range of talent attending. I don't know about business or comm there.</p>
<p>Your daughter can look at NIU. They have a dance team that performs at football games called the Silverettes. They're rather good. NIU also has a decent business program; not too sure about their communication program.</p>
<p>Though I don't think your daughter should apply to UChicago, I wouldn't say that she statistically doesn't fit the mold. Remember that UChicago's MIDDLE 50% of admitted student's ACT scores were 29-33. 25% of UChicago students had a score lower than 29, and 25% had a score higher than 33...</p>
<p>^^^That's true, but you also have to take into account the high number of applicants to both UChicago and Northwestern from the Chicagoland area. There seems to be more wiggle room for UChicago, from my anecdotal evidence, but academically it would still be a reach for the OP's daughter, especially becuase of her low rank. There is certainly room at both schools for students with less than top 10% rank (about 20% of the admitted students at each school do NOT have top 10% rank), but it is significantly harder with a lower rank. Additionally, if the OP's school is a normal suburban Chicago high school like my own, there will be MANY fellow applicants to both Northwestern and UChicago from her school, and frankly most of them will have higher stats (and many of those will not be admitted because of the high regional and national competition). At my school alone, which does not send particularly many applicants off to top school like UChicago and Northwestern, we had 9 and 27 applicants respectively to each school. All of the accepted applicants had top 10% rank and 30+ ACT scores. </p>
<p>Additionally (not trying to be overly negative about the OP's D, btw! She has good stats...just a bit limiting for staying in the Chicagoland area), while I would also suggest going a bit further afield and looking at UIUC, the OP's D would not by any means be guaranteed admission to the Business college, which is becoming quite competitive and is not very holistic in it's admissions. I can think of several applicants from my school with top 10 or 15% rank and low 30's ACT scores who were also very involved in either DECA or BPA (national officers in the later case) who either did not get into the Business college or were first deferred. Those rejected/waitlisted ended up going to great schools with fine business programs (UW-Madison, Indiana), but just a friendly heads-up that you can't get into the Business college so easily, even with overall good stats. </p>
<p>As far as match/safety schools in the area, I'm not particularly familar with the ones listed, but Loyola, UIC, and DePaul are all solid schools where your daughter would be in good position for merit money (or are just cheap, in UIC's case). I don't know how much it fits your D's academic interests, but North Central would be a safety school where she would probably be able to get money, and it also has a nice campus (I live in the city where North Central is and have been there/drove/walked around the campus, which is in the quaint downtown, a few times). This is a bit of an odd suggestion, but the best school in the Chicagoland area that would not be a reach for your D is probably Wheaton College. I have no clue if that is a school that your D could stomach at all, but I'm just throwing it out there. Another strong LAC near Chicago without the religious aspect would be Beloit College. My father is an architect and is working on the new Science building there, and he goes on day trips regularly...it's only 2 hours from our house and only 2 hours from downtown. Again, I don't know about how well it would fit your D, but being that it's not that far away and is a stronger school than DePaul, Loyola, etc., I thought it was worth mentioning.</p>
<p>Thank you - and I am fine with the honesty regarding my daughter's stats. There are a lot of bright students that don't score a 33, and rank in the top 5% of their schools. They all go somewhere. I certainly don't think she is doomed to an unproductive life. :-)</p>
<p>My older daughter had a higher ACT (31) and the same class rank, and she got accepted at a lot of schools that we couldn't afford, or did not think were worth taking out the loans to attend.</p>
<p>I'd love for her to consider UIUC , as they have the good reputation, and they have a very strong dance team locally that is not part of the school, but has ties to the school. Based on the stats of her sister's friends who were rejected, I know she would have to apply liberal arts, not business.</p>
<p>And advantagious, We are visiting North Central,and are on their mailing list. I think North Central would be perfect for her. Her dance team is right down the street, and she could still have the college experience and the dance team. North Central's reputation seems to be growing, or maybe it's just that I have become more aware of it.</p>
<p>Wheaton is a no. Any kid that did 11 years of religious elementary school just balks at religious schools. None of my daughter's friends went to a religious school, with the exception of one who went to Valpo.</p>
<p>Thanks for the Beloit suggestion. I also liked Carthage when my older daughter and I visted there a couple years ago. Does anyone have an opinion of Carthage?</p>