It looks like there wasn’t much activity on last year’s thread, but I know lots of people apply to Clark. I find these threads interesting and helpful, so I’m starting this one.
(From the Clark Undergraduate Admissions website)
Early Decision I:
Apply by: November 15
Hear by: Late December
Early Action:
Apply by: November 15
Hear by: Mid-January <Note from the CC 2022 thread it looks like this was Jan 10 last year)
Early Decision II:
Apply by: January 15
Hear by: Early February
Regular Decision:
Apply by: January 15
Hear by: Late March
From the Open House we attended, Admissions said they would meet full financial need of those applying Early Decision.
Admissions also highly encouraged anyone interested in attending Clark to apply Early Action or Early Decision.
thank you for adding this. My daughter applied ED to clark on sep 1, her HS uploaded all documents on sep 27 and received her acceptance on oct 1, along with notification of her merit award - the Traina Scholarship $28,000 per year. she will also be applying for the presidential scholarship. Told we should get full financial package by end of the month.
She is a recruited athlete - soccer player. 30 ACT, 3.8 UW GPA, 5 APs out of 11 offered at her HS, strong letter of recommendation, solid extra curriculars with sports focus, very little community service or project based
My son just checked, he had an email from Clark that said they were able to process some of the EA applications before the break and wanted to go ahead and release those. So, it looks like some people who applied EA will get their results today!
The email also said if you did not receive a decision today, there is no problem with your application, it just means that they haven’t reached your name yet. our last name is far down in the alphabet, so if they are going through them alphabetically… Anyway, it’s a little strange, but I’m glad some people get their results today!
My son was about to withdraw as he just got into his ED, but got his Clark EA acceptance letter before he could withdraw.
I’m really impressed with Clark – A custom personalized acceptance letter which commended by son for founding an environmental club at his school. $26k merit. (I’m partially second guessing his ED now!).
He was 3.85UW, 1430, 4 APs, several dual enrollment. ECs – founding the environmental club, President of Mock Trial, intern for State Senator.
She came home and checked the portal and she was accepted along with being named a recipient of the Richard P. Traina Scholarship!!! She also received a personalized acceptance letter which really resonated with our family. This was a wonderful surprise that we were not expecting before the holidays and my daughter is buzzing with joy!
D received acceptance at 5pm. Personalized letter which meant a great deal too! Applied ED So happy she’s all done and can now concentrate on enjoying senior year!
Our Junior really likes Clark. We have researched online but info is all over the place. We are trying to determine if it would be reach target or safety. For those actually admitted would you mind possibly sharing stats (very generally) , other schools u were considering and why you chose Clark.
My daughter applied EA, so she still has many schools to hear from before she decides for sure, but Clark is definitely at/near the top of the list. The only negative from her POV is size. She was hoping for a larger undergraduate student body, but 2000 was her absolute minimum and Clark does exceed that.
We visited Clark last year and both loved it - the people and facilities felt like ‘home’. My daughter is pursuing game development and Clark is a top rated school for that major and they are adding a beautiful new facility that should be opened by the time she starts.
Her stats are high - 3.95UW, 4.5W, 35 ACT, 12 APs. She is passionate about her Game Dev interests and has associated ECs.
Daughter is a recruited soccer athlete. Clark was the right fit for her because of the coach, liberal arts structure, politically active and liberal campus, urban location that is actually part of the community and not gated off from it, small size, reputation for fellowships in her desired career path, study abroad and internship opportunities for athletes, and diverse student population. She liked the idea of playing in the newmac and the feeling that students had a voice on campus. She wants to be a big fish in a small pond.
She was accepted ED and recieved the Traina scholarship. Her UW GPA is 3.8, ACT 30, AP environmental, language, gov, us history(only 11 APs offered at her high school) National honor society, National board Hispanic recognition award. Nearly all ECs were sports related
My son applied EA and was accepted last week with a Goddard merit scholarship ($26k/year).
GPA: 3.75 UW, 4.25 W
SAT: 1350
9 APs, 6 Honors
Extracurriculars: Active in Philosophy Club and became President this year. Also a drummer in Jazz Band the last two years. Lots of work experience, most notably as a tour guide.
Our family has visited Clark twice, in February and again in October of 2022. Campus is small but cute with some eclectic buildings; I like the mix of classical such as Jonas Clark Hall along with brutalist, e.g. the Goddard library–funky, but I dig it. We had a fantastic tour guide on our first visit (which really makes a difference) who made an impression on my son. He was conversational and candid about what he liked and disliked about the school in addition to giving us the basic facts.
We’ve been looking for a small liberal arts college. Other schools that my son applied to are: College of Wooster (already accepted EA, Dean’s scholarship $38k/year), Hobart and William Smith, Dickinson, Gettysburg, Franklin & Marshall, Wheaton, and Bates. Of these, he likes Wooster and Dickinson best, along with Clark.
My son is not a big talker about colleges and what he likes/dislikes about them, so I’ll mention a few things I like about Clark lol, especially for a male student:
No fraternities. My concern at schools where 1/3 of the students are athletes and a non-trivial number are in fraternities is that a male who does not participate in either will have difficulty finding their way into the social scene. My hope is that with Clark being more club-driven (also its smaller athletic program + slightly larger population than most liberal arts colleges means a smaller percentage of athletes), he’ll have more options to socialize across a wider variety of communities/interests.
It’s a little bit big for a small school. While we want the small liberal arts college experience, I like that there are over 2,200 undergraduates (whereas some liberal arts college are 1,800 or fewer). I hope that this plus 1k+ graduate students brings additional vibrancy to campus that you might not find at a smaller LAC. (Admittedly, speculation on my part.)
In a city. Yes, not the prettiest area and not the prettiest city, but Worcester is the second largest city in Massachusetts and has 12 colleges nearby; there are things to do. He’s used to being out and about in our small city and loves live music, he should enjoy exploring the town.
While he likes several of the schools he’s seen, Clark is currently his favorite. Hoping he attends and enjoys the admitted student day just to get one more data point before he accepts.
Thank you for your write-up! We’re visiting this spring with my junior daughter. I think some of the same elements you mention will help it be a good fit for her.
Great write up- very helpful. You mentioned your guide mentioned some things he liked about the school as well as some things he didn’t like. It’s helpful when you get a candid guide but in our experience rare. Do you recall any of the things they said they didn’t like? Always best to get input from those actually attending. Thanks!
It’s been a while and I can’t recall much in the way of specifics from our tour. One thing I do remember is a building named after an alum–the guide had met the alum at an event and said he hadn’t liked him. Given the preponderance of positivity on most of our tours, we perked up at this detail.
He also mentioned a software platform that career services was using that he didn’t think was too helpful. He happened to say this right in front of the person manning the career services desk (not intentionally, he had his back to the woman and didn’t realize how close she was). The attendant scowled at him as he said it which cracked our family up.
If Clark has any red flags (besides the official school flags :), our guide didn’t reveal them. He just seemed like a bright, interesting, down-to-earth kid who wasn’t trying to sell the school, but rather share what he knew. The candor lent some authenticity to the proceedings, which we appreciated, and reflected well on Clark IMO.
our last name is far down in the alphabet, so if they are going through them alphabetically… Anyway, it’s a little strange, but I’m glad some people get their results today!
So happy she’s all done and can now concentrate on enjoying senior year!