Based on what you have said OP, I would strongly suggest looking at Rice (at least online) as I think it has similarities to a number of things that seem to appeal to your daughter. Very strong academics, warm weather, physically intact and beautiful campus, and residential colleges. With regard to matches and possible safeties, I would suggest considering Tulane – if she is interested, you must visit to show interest, but then if she liked it, she could apply early action and know early that she was in which would make life much happier and easier. University of Richmond is another option to consider in that vein.
With regard to Brown, she shouldn’t apply ED there if it’s not her first choice. The odds, even as a legacy ED applicant, are still very very low. If she has a real first choice that offers a binding early option, she should use it there because the bump would likely be much more significant and offer her a better chance of admission (not talking about Harvard of course, but a LAC or Rice or Vanderbilt say).
Thanks–yeah, we’ve discussed the same group of schools. Rice, Tulane, Vandy, etc. When you get right down to it, here in the southeast—which I’ll define as south of DC and west to Texas–once you eliminate the gigantic state schools and schools that are more regional (i.e., don’t attract students from across the U.S.), there just aren’t that many options. And you’re talking about an area that may be 800,000 square miles. Once you hit Pennsylvania and New England, or, further west, Ohio, there are many more choices in a much smaller geographic area. Leaving out Duke/Vandy, there’s Rice, Emory, William and Mary, Tulane, Wake Forest, Davidson, Wash&Lee, Richmond, and that’s about it, at least on my list–and of course Rice and Emory are highly selective, Davidson and W&L close to it. SMU? I guess Mercer and Elon, as well as some Florida schools like Flagler and Rollins if you want to argue that they qualify as national, but that’s probably pretty debatable. What else is there? Butler and the Ohio schools are outside my zone.
Bottom line, if you want that non-gigantic, national experience–regardless of whether you’re set on an LAC or simply a smaller university–you more or less have to get on a plane.
There’s a baseline level of left-wing anti-semitism at all of the schools you’re looking at. Some more than others. The most important thing is a very, very strong Hillel to keep on top of it and provide support for the students. My D goes to one of the schools (not on your list) considered to have the most anti-semitic activity. The Hillel there is amazing and pushes back and is supportive.
@circuitrider I desperately want her to visit WUSTL, but we haven’t been able to work it out. I’ve never been there myself, so don’t have a picture in my head; I just know their reputation and the mailings we get at least once a week. From what little I’ve read, it seems like it’s a place where she could be happy and thrive. I can envision it being a school she applies to blind, and visiting if she gets in, so for now it’s sort of in our back pocket.
@MWolf and @OHMomof2 --Yes. It’s a genuine concern. Of the southern schools I identified in post 123, Rice, Wake, Washington& Lee, and Davidson all have small Jewish communities. I wonder what it would be like for her there, and that’s one reason I hope she’ll be able to visit at least the NC schools. Tulane, on the other hand, may have too large of a Jewish community–she doesn’t want to just be surrounded by people like her, and I don’t want that, either; there needs to be balance. My family has a strong connection to Brandeis, and she needs to go her own path. I can’t blame her; I did, too.
I do worry about the attitudes I have read exist at some of the LACs. It’s on our radar.
@RayManta@brantly My kid will be going to Midd, which seems to be a pretty good place for Jews, if you’re not observant (we aren’t). I guess we’ll see.
@RayManta Re, Jewish kids in smaller southern schools, Richmond has a larger population than W&L and Davidson and is really less “southern” (draws lots of kids from NE). They have an active Hillel, and the Chaplaincy even sponsored a pilgrimage to Poland this Spring break to visit the Jewish sites and spark interfaith dialogue (a huge benefit of the 2.3 billion $ endowment). We aren’t religious but our S feels completely comfortable, has some Jewish friends, and hasn’t felt an antisemitic vibe.
The situation at Wesleyan is such that a Jewish person’s most contentious relationship might be with another Jew (remember the old adage, “Two Jews equal three opinions”.) The Women’s March, The Palestinian issue, have all been impactful on the Jewish community.
From the way my daughter describes her classes at Vassar, it seems like a learning environment your D would enjoy. And not all the students are from NY . We’re from the south.
@RayManta – if you’re interested in WashU, you need to show them the love. When we decided which schools to visit and which to hold off on, we made sure to visit any schools that might be a contender for a binding early application and any schools where demonstrated interest was very important. WashU is one of those where visiting really matters. Tulane actually is another one. Tulane doesn’t want to be anyone’s safety and will reject high stats kids if they think that the applicant isn’t really interested.
Thanks folks. This is all very enlightening. I can’t respond to everyone, but all your posts are very, very appreciated. @pittsburghscribe: that’s good to know; many schools at least claim not to track campus visits. Of course, Wash U is hard to visit without spending a ton of money–for anyone. @thegreyking: My D has become more attuned to potential danger since October, when we went to Pittsburgh to visit CMU and for a baby naming, which was held at a historic synagogue down the street from Tree of Life on the very morning that lunatic started shooting. He could easily have chosen the temple we were at, like flipping a coin. The doors were shut and locked and it was several hours before we could leave. It really brought things home for her. But it isn’t just danger when it comes to choosing a school; harassment matters, too–anything that could impact her opportunity to do as well as she can and be happy.
One school that no one has mentioned–again, not an LAC–is Wake Forest, which seems to be in that sweet spot of size (~1200 per class), location (easy for us to get to, not too cold), and stats (not an elite school, 75th percentile SAT of roughly 1450, ~80% in top 10% of their class, ~75% out of state) that’s otherwise nearly impossible to find in the south. I also believe they have some merit scholarships available. When I was applying to grad school several decades ago, I thought it had more of a “regional” school reputation, but I think that’s changed. Does anyone have any thoughts about it, possibly in light of this discussion about the Jewish community?
I had hoped for D to visit Duke, Davidson, Wake, Vandy, and fly to Wash U during spring break, but as I think I mentioned in a post, the NC schools all have the same spring break as she does so the trip fell apart.
She doesn’t seem to have any interest in Emory, Vandy, or Tulane, though–I assume it is because she just doesn’t want to be in a city, and, as mentioned earlier, she hated Penn (hated Hopkins, too, and has no interest in CMU but is attributing it to the trauma of the shooting). But then there’s Cambridge, so who knows.
Emory has Oxford - not in a city for the first two years. LAC, small size, all the personal professor attention. By the time she gets to Decatur she’s a junior and classes are smaller anyway. You might give that a look.
I would not count on merit money to Wake Forest, even if the school looks like a “safety” on paper. There is a Hillel on campus and I got the impression that it has a strong presence despite the 5-6% Jewish population ( that may have changed).
@brantly I am also hopeful! While our family is not Jewish, I know many Jewish kids currently at Oberlin, some of whom are very active in Jewish life on campus. I haven’t heard of anything untoward and they all seem very happy with their choice.
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Wheaton College in Norton MA is strong in the sciences and has a strong synchronized swimming team - which is very unusual for a LAC. It was an all womens college until the 1980’s , then went coed. It offers cross registration with Brown.
. We’re from the south.