Compiling a list of Ohio colleges to consider for merit

College Search & Selection
1

I posted this in the parents 2019 thread and was hoping more Ohio-knowledgable folks could chime in.

We are in PA, which is the pits for us, financially. Our daughter is a junior. She is considering env. science/env. studies, education minor (not sure that’s a thing). She plays lax, does theater tech - she’d like to continue these in college but isn’t a star.

I’m finding that Ohio schools, overall, offer the best bang for the buck in our search radius. So I was hoping there were parents on here with more experience in assessing the schools who could help me sort them out.

I’m not talking Ohio State and Miami U; they are not an option, as it’s expensive for OOS and my daughter’s stats aren’t likely to get her any merit. She’s probably going to have about a 3.5 UW with maybe a 29 ACT when all is said and done.

We need to keep our costs </= $20k p/year. Student loan would add $5,500 more.

So, the rest of the bunch:
Kent State, Youngstown State, Bowling Green, Cleveland State, University of Toledo, Ohio University, Otterbein, Baldwin Wallace, Denison, University of Akron, Wright State and University of Cincinnati.

Anyone have good insights on ranking any one more highly than another? For quality of education and the possibility of merit aid for good, not stellar stats?

I have researched them all and know which ones have charts on their websites and lists of automatic merit etc. I am hoping for something not on the websites; maybe firsthand, maybe anecdotal, maybe a site I haven’t been to yet.

Thanks!

2

look into Wittenberg and Ohio Wesleyan

3

Sorry - should’ve mentioned that D wants bigger schools. And yes, I know Baldwin-Wallace and Otterbein aren’t big, but I’ve unilaterally included them b/c I like them :slight_smile:

4

Don’t know part of PA you are from, but if it is western PA, you could basically qualify for the in-state tuition rate at Youngstown State, under the “Affordable Tuition Advantage” program. Estimated annual cost of attendance for western PA residents is only $17,600 – before any possible merit scholarships.

http://www.ysu.edu/content/office-financial-aid-and-scholarships/tuition-and-costs

5

Would she prefer urban, suburban or rural?

6

I could see Ohio University as a good possibility for environmental sciences. They are located in Appalachia and the environmental programs are important in the area. They have a good education dept. What I can’t find is if they offer an education minor. I think your D’s stats would give her an opportunity to get the to get the aid needed to come within your budget. It is a college town and a beautiful campus.

Bowling Green is strong in education though I don’t know much about their Environmental Sciences programs. They tend to be one the better values in Ohio. Both schools I would consider rural college towns. IMO OU has more personality.

7

@Corbett - thanks, but we are on the PA-NJ border.
@lvvcsf - she doesn’t have a preference on surrounding area, just on the size of the school
We have visited OU and she liked it, but we had come from WVU and she liked that more :slight_smile:
WVU is one of her top choices right now. I am not sure we’ll get enough aid there, though.

8

While Denison would be strong in substantive academic interests, there is not going to be enough merit to make a dent in terms of costs in that range of stats.

Ohio Wesleyan, Wooster, Otterbein, and others will be better bets for merit.

9

We know current students at Kent, BG, Cincy, Cleveland State, Ohio U, and Akron. Also know past students at BW and Otterbein. IMO certain schools would lean heavier on the education major/minor while others would be stronger on the sciences. For example, BG and Kent are known in our area as strong for education majors. We see students attending Cincinnati for their internship program with engineers choosing to attend there or Akron. Also know two current students on the fast track at Akron…honors program, one science and one pre-med.

Cleveland State has improved it’s reputation over the past ten years. There are students we know in the science, education, and other fields. One girl is a junior who loves being in the downtown area. She recently began a job at an area restaurant and makes great money waitressing. She received merit based on her ACT scores I believe.

Not sure how being out of state would affect merit at the state schools. The privates, both Otterbein and BW if I recall offer pretty strong merit. Some privates do give “unadvertised” opportunities. Usually this is in the form of a scholarship competition. A certain GPA and ACT score (we’ve seen 28-30 at some) will get you invited on campus. From there, some will give additional merit just for attending such as an extra $1,000 up to half or full tuition if you are one of the top candidates. Unfortunately I don’t have a list of schools that do this and it may have changed…I believe Ohio Northern and Mount Union are two such examples.

Agree that it’s good to find out what type of setting she prefers too. There is a difference. Feel free to send me a PM if there is anything specific you think I could help with. Good luck!

10

Thanks so much, @jcmom716 - I’ll likely pick your brain as we end junior year, when I’ll have a clearer picture of stats and she’s changed her mind again…

Reputation-wise, I understand that most of these schools are “good,” not “great.” Which is fine. But are any known as worse than others? I worry about a couple of things - a suitcase school where the focus is less on academics than I would like, and a school with little post-graduation career opportunities/support/guidance. I also know the major makes a difference in the latter, and I wish D were more focused there, but it is what it is at this point.

The thing about settings - we live in a rural area. We’ve visited Sewanee, UF, WVU, OU, Otterbein and Drew. She likes every one for a different reason (except Drew, she hated Drew, very subjective reasons). The setting - all are pretty much small town to remote - was not a factor.

She also loves NYC, so it’s not that she doesn’t like urban.

11

It’s hard to put a ranking on the schools. At our high school, kids think of Ohio State as the highest due to acceptance rates (know that’s not on your list). Many top students go there if looking to stay in state and like the larger student population. A smaller portion of top students then are spread out at other Ohio publics either in honor’s programs, merit scholarships, or specific programs, or at privates.

Personally of the list you gave, I had heard Wright State was in some financial difficulties and would investigate further on majors there if it ends up on your daughter’s final list. With Cleveland State, Kent, Cincy, and BG there are some students that commute, but the students we know live on campus or in apartments, and all seem happy with their choices… I don’t think of those schools as suitcase schools. BG and Ohio U have a party reputation. We know a girl who transferred out of Ohio U and is now at Kent, but I wouldn’t use one example as the norm. Many kids love Ohio U.

Otterbein has a nice little town, seemingly safe campus, etc. haven’t heard anything negative. While touring a few colleges in North Carolina, we met a family who was going to be heading to Ohio to look at equestrian programs at Otterbein and Findley. They knew of and heard good things about Otterbein.

BW has it’s strong points including music and theatre. It didn’t resonate with either of my kids. They didn’t think it felt like a campus. Of course, that’s only their viewpoints.

As a side note, I think it’s great that you’ve already visited a variety of schools. You will help your daughter find a great school, and more importantly a great, affordable one. Best wishes!!

12

Thanks again; you’ve been very helpful. Will be back for more, I’m sure :slight_smile:

13

@Gatormama

Ohio Wesleyan is a bit larger than the average LAC. Its location also makes it a bit less insular than some of the small town options.

The top merit award at College of Wooster last year brought costs down to 30K. It’s also on the larger size for LACs - between 2500-3000 students IIRC

If your D can get her ACT up to 30, she’d be eligible for 15K tuition discount from WVU.

Have you looked into any of the Colleges that Change Lives schools in PA? I know you said she prefers larger schools, but some of them can be quite generous for students with stats similar to your daughter’s. It might not get you to a 25K per year budget, but close. I’m thinking Ursinus, Susquehanna, Alleghany, etc.

Ithaca College (upstate NY) might be within range although I’m not sure if the financials would be close enough to your target.

There was a great thread last year about merit for the 3.0-3.4 GPA student that periodically compiled merit results and stats. Maybe you will find some ideas here.

http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/1871275-parents-of-the-hs-class-of-2017-3-0-to-3-4-gpa-p1.html

Good luck!

14

Agree with @mamaedefamilia that some of the PA LACs give great merit. My daughter (lower UW, higher ACT) applied to several and with the merit they provided, all of them are in the $25,000 range. Allegheny is one of the top environmental science colleges in the country. And out of 40 colleges we visited in the northeast, I might add, the most impressive. And those visits included a lot of selective schools.

15

Gatormama,

Has your daughter visited any LACs? I am not at all interested in trying to persuade a student and her family to consider a type of school that she’s not interested in, but every year there are students who believe they must attend a large school but then fall in love with a small school. The opposite happens, too.

I attended OU for graduate school and also taught there. I love OU, and despite its party reputation, I found the students very bright. I never had the sense that I was teaching students who were basic learners or in any way developmental (both “basic” and “developmental” are the new terms we use to replace “remedial”). Ohio State is the flagship, so it takes the lion’s share of the state’s brightest students, but OU is not some lower-tier alternative. There are kids who prefer OU because it’s half the size of OSU, has a drop-dead gorgeous campus, and, yes, one can have a whole lot of fun there! I miss Athens dearly.

I know someone who went to Bowling Green and was quite happy. The somewhat funky name makes people think that it’s a lesser school, but my impression is that it’s more comparable to OU.

I once interviewed at a job at Wright State. I showed the committee an example of an assignment/lecture that I was proud of that I’d used at OU. One of the women on the committee said, “Oh, no, no. Our students couldn’t handle this.” OU students could handle a lot.

If your daughter does open up to LACs, they’ll have the largest merit. Of course, they’ll also have the largest price tags, which is why they dish out substantial merit. Ohio Wesleyan should be on your list, if only to test out the LAC feel. It, along with Denison, used to have a party-first reputation. It’s still a fun place, but it’s shed its total-party image. It’s also a school that receives consistently positive comments from students on various student review sites. My sense is that it’s almost like a miniature version of the public schools you are considering, though I could be wrong about that. I’m relying totally on what I’ve read.

16

Maybe consider WIttenberg also.

17

Maybe she would consider Northern Kentucky University, which is just across the river (10 minutes) from downtown Cincinnati? Cost of attendance is not that steep to begin with, and their chart indicates she would be up for merit scholarships. It’s larger than your typical LAC, not quite as big as some of the bigger state universities (but growing). They have an environmental science program and Division I sports (no football though), and proximity to Cincinnati makes for decent employment opportunities and off-campus amenities.

18

Thanks so much for even more options to consider!

19

My son wants to go into Environmental Engineering. Ohio University (which has Civil, not Environmental) is tied as first choice for my son (with Vermont).

Ohio University offered a very nice scholarship to my 2.9 GPA, 29 ACT kid.

DH visited with him and DH loved Ohio U.

Certainly worth staying on your list

20

Thanks so much, @longhaul - I live for posts like this :slight_smile: