<p>Just wanted to add an aside on the foreign language issue. It may not be necessary for ITER's son to avoid schools with a foreign language requirement, which would cut out a lot of options. My son's LAC exempted him from this requirement after the disability services office reviewed his doc's evaluation that studying a foreign language would be an exercise in futility for him. I don't know ITER's son's situation, but thought this was worth passing along. Sometimes you just have to ask the college the right question.</p>
<p>Perhaps a school that does not use traditional grades, but is known to highly engage students in cross disciplinary courses such as The Evergreen State College (a CTCL school) warrants consideration.</p>
<p>Local</a> News | Unique school sees unique success | Seattle Times Newspaper
The</a> Evergreen State College - a public, liberal arts & sciences college in the Pacific Northwest</p>
<p>That is WAY too unstructured for his taste.</p>
<p>I know kids at Evergreen. It isn't unstructured, but students structure their education to suit their own learning. It's definitely for self-starters and students who are focused and disciplined, or who can learn how to be so. For a student who responds poorly to busy-work, it could be a great option.</p>
<p>Not saying it's too your son's taste, ITER, but it is an interesting option for kids who are self-directed and want to be partners in their education in a more fundamental way than traditional programs.</p>
<p>I understand that, I think he would want something more traditional.</p>
<p>Large public universities (at least here in Michigan) do expect students to do schoolwork as a large part of their grades. It may be very different in other parts of the country. I don't know.</p>
<p>Are you looking for someplace that will teach him the (essential, in my view) skill of sweating the small details (that is, a structured place), or someplace that will fit his current study habits?</p>
<p>FWIW, I wouldn't be focusing so much on colleges that fit him, but rather would expend my energy trying to change those bad habits, so he can function on his own during and after college.</p>
<p>You might find that those not-so-bright kids at Regular Univ have figured out something important that might benefit your child.</p>
<p>britbrat, you said you were baffled by how someone could get into a top college with less than top grades, here's an SAT analogy (Cornell's 25/75%ile scores):</p>
<p>Cornell University 1290 1500</p>
<p>So, 25% of Cornell's enrolled class had essentially perfect SATs, and 25% had pretty good SATs. The spread is wide. </p>
<p>True, no one with a 1250 SAT should bank on going to an Ivy, but 25% of Cornell's class had those scores.</p>
<p>What is his diagnosis and reason for the IEP? High IQ does not always equate to high functioning in the real world. Does he have the self discipline to keep up with the daily reading and assignments without special accommodations?</p>
<p>What does your son want in a college? Bright students exist at every college so the idea of not being with "AP type" kids will not be a factor. Consider his IEP. Colleges do have academic support services and support for students with disabilities but unlike in high school, they don't hover around the student or aide him while doing the assignments, etc. They will be in an office for him to come to when needed. There will be study groups but the student must be able to take the initiative on their own to attend. </p>
<p>You should also search for colleges that do not have a foreign language requirement. A relative had a High School IEP (for Speech that included not having to take a high school foreign language) that would not be honored at the college. She's currently taking Sign Language at the college to satisfy the foreign language requirement.</p>
<p>You can't count on a student finding their college classes (especially freshman courses and some "required" courses) interesting and engaging. My kid had horrible classes and teachers for almost ALL his freshman year classes at the Ivy he attends. It was horrible. The OP's son may not drop into a land of intellectually stimulating classes which will turn him around. He may be in large lecture classes taught by boring TAs. It takes a lot of discipline and motivation to get through this stuff and get yourself into better upper level courses.</p>
<p>Many engineering programs have so many requirements for the major that they drop the FL requirement for these kids. My S attends a university with a FL requirement, but the engineering kids are exempt. We found this to be true at many of the schools we researched. There are plenty of schools that after general admission, will admit kids to their engineering schools based on SAT scores. Unlike britbrat's advice, I would look for programs where he would qualify for direct admission now and not take a chance on applying later based on college GPA. It's much easier to transfer out of engineering than to transfer in later.</p>
<p>Something to keep in mind is that with the nature of his interests, engineering and physics, he will be with kids who are bright and take academics seriously even if he attends a "prep college". Since he's only a junior, he has time to get serious about all aspects school. Perhaps a few college visits and info sessions will help him see what admissions committees are expecting.</p>
<p>Not everyone belongs at an Ivy or a far reach. If he has trouble doing his work in high school, he's going to have trouble doing his work in college. And in college he isn't going to be able to not do his homework and then show up for the test and ace it. So the thing he thinks he wants, is probably not the thing that is best for him. </p>
<p>Only the elite colleges have smart students who like to learn? That's the kind of thinking that gets us all in trouble! All those very smart kids who are qualified for elite schools, but don't get in? They're going somewhere else and they're still smart. And all those very smart kids like your son who don't have the numbers to get into top schools? They're somewhere else, too. </p>
<p>Your comment about the "AP of colleges" concerns me. Not all AP classes are great, and not all college prep classes are dumbed down. Ditto with colleges.</p>
<p>If I were to pick one major he should not do, it would be engineering. Tons of homework, and in the field one is often performing mundane tasks, which must nonetheless be done perfectly.</p>
<p>And to repsond to MSUDad, that is why I was questioning someone trying to do Engineering if they struggle in certain areas as the OP suggests.</p>
<p>Now, in our research for Engineering programs, I will say that most if not all engineering programs have almost 2 years or more of what is considered pre-engineering. These are courses that all engineering students must take and they are fairly easy to find on the websites of the colleges under curriculum guide. </p>
<p>Having said that, a lot of the engineering degree path is a series of courses that require pre-requisites as well as the gen ed requirements. So, a student who goes to a college, not necessarily into the engineering school, can take Calculus and Physics as long as they have had the proper classes to prepare for it or can test into it.</p>
<p>Some of the smaller LAC's and universities have a great program for engineering students termed a 3-2. The student attends the small university, ie. Elon in N. Carolina for 3 years satisfying the "pre-engineering" and gen ed req. and then transfers with guaranteed admission (pending the grades are acceptable) into a 2 year program at a college such as Columbia or Penn State. This would enable a student to adjust to college life, be able to learn with other engineering students and then if successful, transfer and complete at a larger institution. </p>
<p>This information can be found on the Columbia website with a list of schools that they have an agreement with for the 3-2 engineering program.</p>
<p>Please feel free to pm me if you have specific questions and I can give you names of professors that we spoke to about this particular program.</p>
<p>Does your son get some form of daily/weekly support/service from his school? Does he have a problem with time management? </p>
<p>It's hard to tell from your comments whether your son is extremely bright and just bored with menial tasks or if there are other reasons why he doesn't complete his assignments. </p>
<p>Where does he want to go to school and what does he want to major in?</p>
<p>There seem to be two different things going on in this thread: one is pinpointing schools that will work with this student's strengths and weaknesses. Another (and correct me if I am wrong) is a concern with "top" schools.<br>
I definitely think the CTCL schools and those like them would be great options, but I get the feeling the OP's son would not be interested.</p>