Can you help me with our summer college road trip?

Parents Forum
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<p>Okay, here's my rising senior d's stats and interests: unweighted GPA 3.98, weighted is pretty high (almost all honors and AP courses); SAT: 800V, 640M, 690W; strong ecs. </p>

<p>She doesn't want a small LAC; wants more than 5000 students. Right now her favorite schools are W&M, UVA, NYU and she'll be applying to UConn (our state flagship). She wants a combination of "rah rah" and an intellectual atmosphere - meaning she doesn't want to go to a school where the only entertainment on a Friday night is a keg party; but she also wants a sense of community and school spirit (yeah, I know that hardly describes NYU, but she loves the neighborhood.)</p>

<p>Our "geographic triangle" is Chicago to Maine to Virginia - she can apply to schools within that triangle. </p>

<p>This summer, we're driving to Chicago to look at U of C and Northwestern (both reaches, we know). We'll also look at Michigan, Penn State and Cornell either on the way to IL or on the way back. </p>

<p>Can anyone think of any other schools we should look at in the vicinity of our NY/OH/MI/IN/IL road trip? Thank you. We're thinking of adding Wisconsin in when we're in Chicago...</p>

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<p>That’s a lot of ground to cover! There’s currently a American/GW/Georgetown thread running–if your daughter likes the NYU neighborhood perhaps she should look at some of the DC schools?</p>

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<p>Thanks! We did those this spring. We didn’t even look at Georgetown - she doesn’t have a prayer of getting in there. She didn’t love American or GW…GW was a better fit than American, but she’s not interested in going into politics or international relations or anything like that (although she is very politically active - canvassed with Students for Barack Obama) and felt like it wouldn’t be the right place for her.</p>

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<p>I think visiting Wisconsin is a good idea. BC and BU fit in your triangle, although not necessarily your road trip, and would seem to offer what she wants. Is financial aid a consideration?</p>

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<p>Try UPITT. She’s likely to get into honors, with merit monies. Certainly qualifies for the school spirit, and is in an urban location…</p>

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<p>Seems to me she is no less likely to get in to Georgetown than UVa as an OOS applicant (or Cornell for that matter). That is not to say it is a good fit for her since there is no way of knowing that without knowing her, but just to provide a little perspective on the challenges of getting into UVa (and while her grades are wonderful her overall SAT average may not be high enough).</p>

<p>If you are going to Boston to see BU/BC, Tufts might just be big enough to merit a look, though I don’t know who good a rah-rah/intellectual mix it has–in that regard G’town is probably better suited to her description.</p>

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<p>I agree that UVA and W&M out of state may be just as competitive as Georgetown or Cornell. I’ve known kids who got into Northwestern and Cornell, but not UVA.</p>

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<p>Thanks for the ideas! We’re visiting BC and BU in July. </p>

<p>Oh, I know mattmom. We’re very realistic about her chances - UVA is definitely a reach, as is Cornell, Northwestern, UC. </p>

<p>She has really limited us in terms of looking at schools because she doesn’t like your basic northeastern LAC. She’d be a perfect match for so many of them scores and grades-wise, but is just not interested in that kind of environment. </p>

<p>Thanks for the UPitt suggestion. We’ll stop there for sure.</p>

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<p>When in Chicago last summer, we drove up through Northwestern and on the outskirts of Loyola Chicago. Then we drove up to Marquette for an official visit, which is our number one choice. It’s only a couple of hours from Chicago, so definitely worth the trip. If going towards Boston, would definitely include Tufts. Very impressed with it at HS college night.</p>

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<p>Thanks. Someone else mentioned Marquette to me just the other day. We’re lapsed Catholics, is it very “Catholic?” That would not appeal to her - she really didn’t like Villanova for that reason. </p>

<p>I’m not sure she could get into Tufts, but we were planning to take a look. We’re also going to look at Brown, just to say we looked.</p>

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<p>if you’re at U Pitt, you may as well check out carnegie mellon which is just a few blocks away. You may also want to check out U of Rochester. It’s probably about 2 hours from Cornell and while in Ithaca- also check out Ithaca college which might fit the bill. They are pretty good with financial aid for the right kid. </p>

<p>You never know with OOS acceptances, my kid got into W & M but not UVA- d also applied to many of the schools you’re considering and I know U rochester and CMU were high on her list. She was partial to a mid sized universities too- didn’t even consider any small LAC’s.</p>

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<p>I second University of Rochester. I just visited and I’m a rising senior like your daughter and we seem like that we have pretty similar stats. It has to be the best looking campus that I have seen so far in my endeavors on college road trips. It really is fantastic! The only drawback for your daughter is that it seems like that she is interested in schools with more people, while U of R only has 5000 undergrads I believe. But give it a shot. I would cross off Ithaca College… it is definitely a LAC and it is definitely not strenuous enough for your daughter. Cornell is definitely a good choice… I visited… it just wasn’t for me because I am looking for like <10000 kids schools for a more intimite atmosphere. Also, be warned about BC… it is about as religious as Villanova, which your daughter did not like. I am visiting both of them this summer, hopefully! Best wishes</p>

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<p>Just FYI, NYU has no campus per se, and thus there may not be a real community spirit there. I would guess no “rah rah.” It’s a great school in New York City, and the Village is its neighborhood, which is maybe the one of the best parts of the city, in many people’s opinion, but it is definitely not for everyone. Visit it, to be sure, but be an educated consumer.</p>

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<p>Syracuse is another one to consider, as a safety given your D’s stats. It’s definitely got the “rah rah”. </p>

<p>TCNJ also comes to mind.</p>

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<p>Thanks, everyone. Adding Rochester and CM to the list. We visited NYU - that’s why she loves it so much. We live an hour outside NYC and visit a lot and she loves the city. However, we’ve discussed (and she agrees) that spending four years on a more traditional college campus would be preferable. When else in our lives do we get that opportunity? She has the rest of her life to live in NYC. Nevertheless, she does love it and she’ll apply (did I just hear 53,000 dollars a year fly by? Ack.)</p>

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<p>Madison is only 2.5-3 hours car ride from Chicago and not to be missed. Even if the school doesn’t make the cut, the city is fabulous. Though, from your description UW does sound like a great fit.</p>

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<p>I agree, you should try pitt!</p>

<p>When your at penn state make sure you go to the creamery!</p>

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<p>There’s a big difference between “more than 5000 students” and some of your choices. In general, college spirit is associated with big-time sports, which in turn generally means the big schools. Pair that up with a good academic atmosphere, and I think you’re already seeing the usual suspects from these posts. Your visits will help your daughter get a feel for each of the candidates.</p>

<p>Cornell and Northwestern, while reaches, would be fantastic choices, but their locales are so different. UChicago, outside of quality academics, doesn’t seem to fit her other criteria (I’ll let someone else bring up the quote about fun).</p>

<p>Penn State is REALLY big on school pride, which is great if you get into it, but can be a big turnoff to those not yet in the club (there ARE other great schools out there, believe it or not). While there’s plenty to do on campus, the town is very isolated, which can be a problem for some kids.</p>

<p>Michigan, Wisconsin, and UVA are some of the best publics in the nation, and all three are beautiful campuses in their own way. If she likes big schools, it’s likely that at least one of the three will stand out for her. If you make it to Chicago, you’d be shortchanging yourself not to go to Madison.</p>

<p>Pitt, Syracuse, and Maryland might also appeal to her, and UConn would be a great acceptance and financial safety for her (though kind of a blah campus in my mind).</p>

<p>Stepping down in size, besides W&M, you might want to consider Georgetown (don’t sell her short - if she likes it, it’s not that big of a reach), Marquette (she’d be fine as a lapsed or non-catholic there - the Jesuits are more into education than indoctrination), Dayton (now here’s a happy campus), Miami (the one in OH, not FL), and perhaps UMass or SUNY-Binghamton?</p>

<p>That’d be quite road trip (or two), but she (and you) would have a much better feel for these places than any viewbook would give you. Let us know where you eventually go and your impressions of each campus. Good luck!</p>

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<p>Thanks! You’ve given me a lot to discuss with her!</p>

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<p>You said you are lapsed Catholics and that Villanova wasn’t appealing, but I was thinking your D. sounds like Notre Dame. 6000 undgrads, lots of Rah Rah but there is a powerful intellectual subculture there–particularly in the Liberal Arts. Jenkins wants more students who want to pursue academic graduate programs (as opposed to med, business and law schools) so if your daughter is inclined that way she will get a lot of faculty attention.</p>

<p>It is east of Chicago. Even if she doesn’t think she wants Catholic, I’d take her there. The community is just amazing, and in true Catholic fashion they do NOT proseletyze. My D. went as a Catholic and is now rejecting Catholicism and will probably end up some sort of liberal Protestant–but that’s OK–she’s got a solid community of friends there who are in the same boat.</p>