I was unaware there were any race issues at Grinnell; however, with regard to Grinnell, I was mostly talking in my last post about socioeconomic diversity rather than racial diversity. Obviously, there will be far less socioeconomic diversity at a SLAC than at the flagship or any other public school, but she is trying to walk a line between diversity of all kinds and an inspiring academic experience.
To be clear, I am not trying to bash Middlebury. Other kids have taken schools off their list because they were turned off by the tour guide or the weather was cold on the day of their visit. Mine removed Midd because she saw some YouTube interviews that gave her pause. She has visited Grinnell twice (mostly due to proximity), spoken to several current students on financial aid, and had email conversations with both admissions and a Chinese professor, and she has been impressed. Thatâs why it made the list and is a top contender.
Email convos with admissions are largely futile; discussions of racism will be swept under the rug since theyâre trying to sell you the school. Read this:
D was accepted at Whitman with top merit, but it is still far outside our price range and she wonât be attending any online accepted student events since itâs not in the realm of possibility.
She was also waitlisted at Grinnell today. Super disappointed as it was a top choice and she feels the waitlist is probably an indicator that most of the other schools on her list are also out of reach. Itâs early morning overseas, so this was a rough start to her day.
Fortunately, she has recently become more enthusiastic about the flagship honors program after attending a virtual event and doing more research (and the price is right!). She will accept her spot on the waitlist at Grinnell, but sheâs not optimistic considering that everyone is saying this will be another crazy admissions cycle.
The flagship honors program is an amazing option to have if Grinnell doesnât work out. Glad she is getting more enthusiastic about it. Congratulations to everyone!
Based on personal experience from last year, I am pretty sure that Grinnell practices yield protection. Hoping for a good outcome for you from the waitlist!
Congratulations on the acceptances, even if you know your D wonât be attending. Itâs great that your D is getting excited about the honors program at your flagship. And at least Grinnell is a waitlist and not a deferral. Will keep my fingers crossed that your daughter ends up in the best spot for her. Thanks so much for the update!
I donât think the Grinnell waitlist is yield protection. She visited twice, interviewed, communicated with professors in her areas of interest, and completed the optional Why Grinnell prompt requested in January. It looks like they just didnât have room for her and didnât want her enough to warrant acceptance. Really disappointing, but it is what it is!
She just found out tonight that she was accepted to Rhodes with merit, so that lessens the sting a little. Rhodes is attractive because of its proximity to St. Judes and the fact that itâs a direct flight home. I think itâs also known for premed? Itâs affordable, so she will research more!
Hi, may I ask what top merit is at Whitman now? Itâs in my daughters top 3 schools. Sheâs high stats and we are hoping for top merit. We wonât get need based aid (middle class) so we are concerned about the cost also.
My daughter also plans on pre-med and is looking at some of the same schools as yours. As for Rhodes, we have heard excellent stuff about itâs pre-med!
Congrats on Rhodes with merit. At the end of the day, it sounds like a great choice.
From a similar perspective, Grinnell could have been a good fit for my son, but there are others that will fit equally well if not better. The buck does not stop @ Grinnell and there are many comparable environments, including large schools with small honors colleges.
When you look at a tiny freshman class of 400, break it down by major, add in institutional priorities, the waitlist decision becomes much less personal.
She got 25k, which is their top academic merit award except for the full ride scholarship. I have seen some kids getting amounts under 25k but with a music scholarship stacked, and the highest Iâve seen with that combination is 28k. If your D is talented in the arts, I think they do offer a full ride scholarship to an art student.
Whitman is a great school; I wish it were more affordable for us! As it stands right now, with merit and a small grant, they want us to pay about 45k - which is about 15k higher than our EFC. Not doable at all.
You make a great point. Grinnell just stings because she really felt it was an excellent fit and her application clicked with their outside-the-box values. She invested a lot of time and emotional energy into the school, so the lack of acceptance was disheartening. That said, youâre absolutely right that she needs to not take it personally and move forward with the schools and programs that do want her. Best of luck to your son as well!
Grinnell is need blind so I donât think that was it. To be clear, there are definitely weaknesses in her profile (only 3 APs, one of which was a semester C; plus low rigor due to prioritizing other opportunities), so I think we can just admit she wasnât quite good enough - and thatâs okay! We were hoping the Grinnell adcoms would see her experiences as a different type of rigor - earning a pilotâs license is no walk in the park, nor is becoming EMT certified or completing 2 years of college Mandarin coursework in 6 months, but it looks like they didnât. However, sheâs the type of kid who will bloom where planted, and she is certainly good at creating her own interesting experiences. She still has a number of schools to go, so maybe one will surprise her. Otherwise, sheâll be fine at either Rhodes or the state flagship.
We know 3 families with kids at Rhodes (or recent alums). They do have a good premed program and the students can do fellowships at St Jude. One is now in a fully funded MD/PhD program.
Otherwise, sheâll be fine at either Rhodes or the state flagship.