@ucbalumnus oh that’s unfortunate, maybe the schools have a different benefit by increasing diversity but I definitely see how that could be a problem
Yeah, it might. The current president of Lehigh was a postdoc at UCLA, and got his first faculty appointment at UCSD. He probably knows that California is now generating more highly qualified high school seniors than the UCs can absorb, and wants to market Lehigh as an out-of-state alternative for Californians who don’t like their UC or CSU options. The “Western Regional Office” (WRO) is apparently part of this strategy:
It seems like a potential fit. Lehigh is ranked roughly comparable to mid-tier UCs by USNews. It has particular strengths in engineering, business, and accounting; many UC applicants are looking for that kind of practical education. Furthermore, UCs have a reputation for prioritizing GPA, while Lehigh (like many privates) tends to put more value on test scores (Lehigh's test scores are roughly comparable to UCLA or UCSD, as noted above). So if your test scores are higher than your GPA, your odds might be better at a private school like Lehigh, as opposed to a UC.The obvious drawback here is that Lehigh tuition is likely to be significantly more expensive than in-state UC tuition. On the other hand, Lehigh students typically live off-campus as juniors and seniors, and the off-campus housing in Bethlehem PA is ridiculously inexpensive by California standards.
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The linked article focuses on Hazleton, PA, an isolated town in the Appalachian Mountains that was historically known for coal mining, and which is now economically depressed.
Schools like Lehigh, Lafayette, Muhlenberg, Moravian, and DeSales are located in the Lehigh Valley (or the “Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton Metropolitan Statistical Area” as defined by the US Government). This is the third largest metro area in Pennsylvania, after Philadelphia and Pittsburgh. It is also represents the westernmost end of the Greater New York metro area (or the “New York–Newark, NY–NJ–CT–PA Combined Statistical Area” as the US Government defines it). There are multiple commuter buses from South Bethlehem to Manhattan daily (although I admit that this would not be my ideal commuting distance).
The point is that the Lehigh Valley, while not Philly or NYC, isn’t exactly the backwoods either. It’s unrealistic to compare it to Hazleton, in the same way that it would be unrealistic to compare a city on the eastern fringes of the SF Bay Area to a struggling farming community in the San Joaquin Valley.
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I really like the list in #12. I know William and Mary is making a concerted effort to diversify and is having some success. Admissions is challenging for OOS females.
I think the Catholic schools on the list are great suggestions as well. And I think Catholic schools in general would be a good bet, in terms of finding a school with equal academics but less challenging admissions. For example, academics at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA are as strong as anywhere. I know they’d love to have a more diverse applicant pool. Many non-Catholics attend Catholics schools (and teach at them).
I’d also say, in general, midwestern schools. Take the University of Kansas. State flagship with many of the top students in the state attending. Lawrence is a great college town, with lots of different kinds of restaurants in a fun downtown student area, and some developing tech. Students can also get a fantastic education at some of the other midwestern flagships and land-grant schools–Kansas State (also great college town, I hear), Nebraska and Iowa (urban schools!), Iowa State, and Michigan State. All of these are major research universities. Also, I think some of the midwestern LACs would be good bets–thinking of Kalamazoo College (hidden gem), Denison, College of Wooster, Kenyon, Creighton (Catholic) and urban), and Miami of Ohio (larger university).
Also, I feel pretty confident that lots of the “Colleges That Change Lives” would really love to have more diverse applicant pools.
Good luck, you can do great!
Re: #22
Bethlehem was a steel town, right?
I do know someone who lives in the area who mentioned a lot of alt-right (i.e. white nationalist / racist) sentiment in the area.
Also, while Philadelphia and NYC are more left leaning, they may be less so on race, with relatively high levels of racial segregation.
You can look to the Pacific Northwest as well. Whitman College, an excellent LAC in Eastern Washington, has only 4% Asian students. Lewis and Clark, in Portland, is at 5% too; and Reed, also in Portland, is at 9%.
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Do the many Asian-Americans who choose to enroll at schools in Philadelphia and NYC – e.g. NYU (20% Asian-American), Penn (19%), Cooper Union (19%), Curtis Institute (18%), or Columbia (18%) – actually find racial segregation to be a significant concern?
Do the many Jews who choose to enroll at schools in the Lehigh Valley – e.g. Muhlenberg (#16 on Hillel’s “Schools Jews Choose” percentage ranking, at an estimated 25% of undergraduate enrollment), Lehigh (#28, at an estimated 16%), or Lafayette (unranked, but at an estimated 10%) – actually find white nationalism to be a significant concern?
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Wow, super interesting thread, thanks! Didn’t know Lehigh was actively recruiting in the Bay Area.
My son is half Asian, half white. Not sure that’s a good thing or a deal breaker, diversity wise! Ha. 
@Corbett my brother ((Indian) Asian American) goes to penn (which is making me even more stressed about colleges haha) and he says there are a lot of whites but for the most part there isn’t super out right racial segregation (but there are always “those” groups too)
Midwestern and southern LACs and probably most schools (U and LAC) in the plains and mountain states.
@TTG @aquapt wow thank you both so much for your thorough responses and options!! I will definitely look into everything you guys mentioned!
Yes to schools in Maine and Pennsylvania. I know Asian kids who got diversity weekend invitations and are now happily attending these schools. I think Ohio, Minnesota, Iowa, etc. might be the same. To be solicited for diversity, you have to be willing to be in the minority. I know that sounds obvious, but it’s how you go from ORM to URM. Great options imho… Good for you for entertaining this!
It may also depend what type of Asian-American you are. Chinese-Americans, Indian-Americans, Korean-American and the like are often well represented at many schools, but if you are considered a Pacific Islander or one of the underrepresented Asian-Americans (such as Cambodian-American, Hmog-American, etc)
Also something you may want to consider is whether you really want to go to go to a school where Asian-Americans are in the definite minority. There are schools where they make up 2% or less of the population, but it may affect your own experience in terms of finding people from the same background, cultural groups that have a significant presence on campus, or otherwise finding people to relate to. While for many students it wasn’t something they considered before college, many students who ended up joining those cultural organizations and the like have found it helpful in making it seem more like a “home.”
@ucbalumnus , I am an Indian-American. I had lived in the Lehigh Valley area for 22 years before I moved to Manhattan in 2014. And I work in the Bay Area.
Both my girls were born in the Lehigh Valley and attended public schools in the area and are in colleges now (Pitt Med and GTech). Your assessment of the Lehigh Valley is totally incorrect and please do not keep on quoting the various articles. Though there is a lack of diversity in that area compared to NYC/Bay Area, it is by no mean a “racist” place. I have never heard my girls complaining about such issues when they were growing up there!
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@gardenstategal @shawnspencer oh yeah that’s an interesting point I hadn’t thought of! I guess it could be a nice change as my high school and sf bay area, in general, is so heavily Asian (nothing wrong w it but I really hope my college experience is not like high school)
That’s still a really good point that I will definitely have to factor in though as it might be hard to mesh with people too different from me.
Thank you so much!
Adding Grinnell as midwestern LAC known for good merit aid!
"Also something you may want to consider is whether you really want to go to go to a school where Asian-Americans are in the definite minority. There are schools where they make up 2% or less of the population, but it may affect your own experience in terms of finding people from the same background, cultural groups that have a significant presence on campus, or otherwise finding people to relate to. While for many students it wasn’t something they considered before college, many students who ended up joining those cultural organizations and the like have found it helpful in making it seem more like a “home.”
My son, a Korean-American born in this country, has all throughout high school years gotten into his parents’ native culture. I’ll have to thank our trip to Korea where he was exposed to great food and all different aspects of its culture and custom, K-Pop, and particularly Korean dramas.
Believe it or not, when he had to make the final decision as to which college to commit to, the percentage of Asian student population became a very significant contributing factor in deciding. The first thing he wants to do when he starts school this fall is to join its Korean Student Association and start taking Korean language classes (he speaks Korean barely).
@calitoeast Did you post your stats anywhere? And what types of things interest you? It may help so that we can give more specific comments.
Heritage speaker Korean language courses available at his college?
Yes, and the club, and I believe a Study Abroad opportunity…