<p>My son, a B student has was admitted to U of Colorado, Indiana University, Rutgers, and College of Charleston. We are still waiting to hear form U of Delaware, Elon, James Madison, U of Vermont and Roger Williams. Granted, a smaller school might work, because although he did well in school, he likes to have a good time, and was a student who needed support. We live in NJ and have 4 children..so of course price is a factor, but I want to send him to a school where he will succeed and where he will be happy. ( He is a twin..his sister looking towards Indiana) My son is favoring Colorado because feels it is a fit..loves the outdoors. Basically..looking for the best education and happiness. Anyone have thoughts?</p>
<p>Well, I would ask you some questions. What kind of environment does he want to live in, does he want a college town experience, urban, rural, etc? What about weather? Big school versus small school? After all, although the most important thing is the academics, the student has to live wherever he is going to go to college and that should be a factor as well.
My son has a friend at Indiana, a freshman this year, and he is loving it. He is from California and has fit in well there. But, it is very cold there…much colder than Colorado it seems. This student is a sports journalism major and so he wanted to attend a big sports school. I am sure your daughter would love it there, as would your son. The town of Bloomington is supposed to be a nice, small, college town.
I do not know anything about the other schools you listed except Delaware and of course Colorado. My twin sister graduated from U of Delaware but that was a long time ago. She enjoyed it though, a close trip back home on holidays, and she met quite a few of kids from NJ and PA when she attended there. Beautiful campus, nice college town. My son attends Colorado and he is really enjoying it. If your son loves the outdoors, it is probably the best place for him of the colleges you listed for outdoor activities. Tons of hiking, rock-climbing, bicycling, skiing, etc. Beautiful location and campus. Easy to get around with free bus transportation for the students. The weather can be cold but Boulder is weird, it can be cold one day and then up in the 60’s the next. This week it has been in the fifties which is pretty warm for December. Also Boulder gets 300 days of sunshine a year so even if it snows, the next day the sun is out and the snow is gone. My son is actually disappointed so far there isn’t more snow! The students seem happy there to me. Good school spirit for their sports teams although they are not very good. Joining the Pac-12 next year. Academics are solid, they have free tutoring for the students. The counselors my son has been exposed to in his department (engineering) have been fantastic and very nice and helpful. Great intramural sports club program on campus, one of the biggest in the country. Beautiful recreation center as well for the students and staff.
Good luck with your decision…and I hope your son and daugher are happy whichever school they choose. By the way, isn’t it interesting how NJ students are forced to flee the state for college? I know I did!</p>
<p>First of all, congratulations!!..a couple of things; this won’t be a long post…</p>
<p>1) The biggest thing that jumps out at me with this list is a couple of outliers: Both CofC and Elon are smaller LAC type colleges than the rest…Elon moreso than Cof C…have you and your son visited? (i would actually include UVM in this list; different than the rest)</p>
<p>2) What kind of student is your son? A “B” student who works hard? or one who doesn’t really “engage” in school…? The culture of each of these places educationally are very different</p>
<p>3) as mentioned above, basic questions need to be asked…climate, culture, outdoor interests?</p>
<p>4) Why not wait until you have your whole list and then decide? You have until May 1st and you can visit each acceptance prior to that…fit is a very personal thing…</p>
<p>full disclosure: my daughter was accepted ED to Elon; the other schools (specifically CofC and UVM) were also on her list; she wanted a school where she wouldn’t be invisible within her classes…</p>