<p>My D was 100% convinced she wanted to attend Vandy...after a tour of Vandy, SMU, and Duke, Vanderbilt is totally off her list...why? No real reason, "just didn't like it" (?) Loves Duke..it is now #1 choice...I worry it is too big and dangerous...SMU seems safer and smaller (which I think is important) She plans to be a vet so needs an undergrad school in the same state as a vet school...Cornell is also on her list but I have really been against it as it is so big and cold and far away! She also agrees that going to a seperate undergrad and grad school has merits...Recently Colorado is entering her thoughts....
Does anyone have any words of advice/experience with these schools? Thanks in advance!</p>
<p>Durham is definitely not Chapel Hill but I can assure you that it is not “dangerous” S loves Duke and we’ve been on the campus several times. I have no hesitations about Durham.</p>
<p>I agree with the above poster. My son is a freshman and Duke and loves it. We have no concerns about safety on and around campus. We are also instate and 50 miles away. Durham simply does not have the reputation of being a “dangerous” town. With NCSU’s vet school nearby, Duke may be a great place for your child. I believe Duke students can take an occasional class at NCSU or UNC-CH if similar classes aren’t offered at Duke.</p>
<p>If your daughter were to choose SMU over Vandy or Duke for any reason other than huge amounts of money that were badly needed, she should have her head examined.</p>
<p>That said, I also can’t imagine touring Vanderbilt and taking it off the list. Unless she had a problem with the Greek life and sports culture, it is beyond my comprehension that she wouldn’t like it. Duke has those same characteristics, too.</p>
<p>Has she been admitted to all these schools? I wouldn’t regard Duke as dangerous. Vet school admission is extremely difficult. She might want to go where she thinks she can really get a high GPA.</p>
<p>If your daughter is a good enough student to get into Duke or Cornell, she might find SMU understimulating intellectually. My H, a very fine and serious student, and a native of Dallas, skipped his senior year of high school and attended SMU on a full academic scholarship for his first year back in the day. But he had difficulty finding challenging classes even though he was allowed to take grad courses (as a freshman!). He transferred to Cornell and found the level of work dramatically more demanding and interesting. This was all a while ago but I don’t think the relative standing of the schools has changed that much. Several of my H’s relatives, who are intelligent people but not “intellectuals” or natural students, loved SMU, got deeply involved in the frat/sorority scene, and made many connections there with fellow Dallasites.</p>
<p>Cornell is indeed cold, but it’s a marvellous place for pre-vet because of the combination of the College of Arts and Sciences and the Life Sciences/Ag school. Students can get some practical exposure to veterinary medicine, as well as taking the standard prereq courses, which are similar to those required of premeds.</p>
<p>I’m not sure why you assume your D will have to go to vet school in the same state where she does her undergrad work. This isn’t necessarily true of the vets I know, and when it is, it’s generally been because they were taking advantage of instate tuition rates to public schools.</p>
<p>katiemom, Has your daughter looked carefully at what various vet schools want? High gpa and test scores are crucial, of course, but most also want a whole lot of job shadowing hours and work with animals prior to vet applications. Many public vet schools exhibit strong preference for in-state residents or residents of states with which they have a reciprocity or special arrangement. If this were my daughter, I’d have her looking at the web sites for some of the vet schools at the same time as she is investigated undergrad. schools. There is a risk, of course, in this approach, as many pre-vet students don’t go on to vet school.</p>
<p>As for Vandy vs SMU…My son will be graduating from Vanderbilt soon, and has loved the experience even without the Greek life and sports connection. Great campus, great town to go to college in. I spent a little time on the SMU campus last fall, and while it is a pretty little campus, both of my kids would have died of boredom there. I understand that if you want to work in some fields in Dallas, it can be a good choice, but it was certainly a different kind of scene than Vanderbilt. (And, as I suggested above, son would not strike most people as the stereotypical Vandy type.)</p>
<p>I can’t even put SMU on the same level as Duke and Vanderbilt, except from the perspective that they are all located in southern areas. SMU’s core influence is in Dallas and its influence / name quickly wanes outside of there. Duke and Vanderbilt are far better. I have to agree with MOWC completely on this one.</p>
<p>Katie93mom,
My daughter had the same reaction to Vandy when we visited. She was notified that she was accepted there on Friday but she will most probably go to SMU. Money is a big reason-- SMU gives a a lot of merit aid and the difference between SMU and Vandy for us would be about $20,000 a year. Since she is hoping to go to med school afterwards, the savings will enable us to help her out with that. (Plus, I guess when I see the Vandy/Wake/W&L COA at @$56,000, I have reached my personal tipping point as far as what I am willing to pay for an undergraduate degree.)</p>
<p>I went to SMU (long ago) and I benefited from the small classes and ability to develop relationships with my professors. I definitely was prepared for grad school. I wasn’t too into sorority life, but that wasn’t a hindrance (I was in a sorority though-- and several of my sorority sisters went on to med school, one went to dental school, quite a few of us to law school-- the point being that the common stereotype of Greek members as only a bunch of partying airheads is simply wrong.). My children have quite a few friends who attended or are attending SMU and they run the gamut. Sure, there are kids who are there to be part of the Greek scene, etc., but there are others who have taken advantage of the small classes and possibilities of developing relationships with their professors.</p>
<p>Finally, I can’t help but think that places like SMU are going to benefit from their generous merit aid as college costs go into the stratosphere. We know of several children like our d who were accepted to places like Vandy, Duke, etc. but their families don’t qualify for much, if any, need-based aid and are unwilling to either (a) strain the family budget to the tune of about a quarter of a million for four years or (b) go into debt for a bachelor’s degree. So, the (relative) affordability of SMU makes it a very attractive choice.</p>
<p>Finally, if your daughter is thinking of vet school, has she looked at Texas A &M? Maybe too big for undergraduate but they do have a great pre-vet program.</p>
<p>I see SMU as having quadruple any possible negatives of Vanderbilt with none of the strengths. I lived in Dallas for almost 30 years (not far from SMU) and have been in Nashville for almost 5. There is simply no comparison between these two schools. I can’t fault the selection of SMU for financial reasons- especially with med school expense as a strong possibility, but SMU is not much more than an extension of the affluent public high school directly south of the campus. I also know very successful, wonderful people who are SMU grads. There are exceptions to everything. You don’t even get a fun athletic conference at SMU!</p>
<p>“SMU is not much more than an extension of the affluent public high school directly south of the campus”</p>
<p>Oh, please. What lovely stereotyping. (And I am quite familiar with this high school since I graduated from there about 30 years ago.) </p>
<p>katie93mom: Is your daughter a junior?</p>
<p>It isn’t stereotyping if it’s true.</p>
<p>My D is a junior (I am pretty sure her stats will get her into any of the above colleges…but you never know…high GPA with all AP and honors classes thru-out HS, ACT taken soph year with score in 30’s (she didn’t like score so will retake…even with a perfect score in science)good PSAT score,top 5%…and already working at local animal shelter --started the minute she turned 16 and they allowed it)
I have no idea why she crossed off Vandy (as posters have mentioned it is similar to Duke which she now loves…?)I may take her for another visit (her Dad took her on this visit)It wasn’t the Greek or sports thing as SMU is big on Greek and she liked it! (plus mom and Gmom both were in same sorority so she is aware of the happiness we had with Greek life)
I am thankful for the reassurances about Duke…it may be her college…with a good vet school instate…
Cornell we will visit but I am against it as it is big, cold, and far from family…(but she is very interested)
She realizes SMU is not in same class as Vandy/Duke (admit stats are not even comparable) but they put on a very nice visit, all the kids were so pro-SMU, and they showed alot of interest in her…they were very effective at getting akid interested in their school!) Texas has a vet school, family in Texas, and it would be an easier 4 years to get a high GPA and have some fun before 4 tough years in grad school)<br>
She looked at Rice and it was no -way…
I am taking her to NU and a state school in the miswest just to get a feel of different types of campuses/schools…but I think a smaller private undergrad is where we are leaning…
This entire process is overwhelming! She is my first and only (I bet it shows!)…any other advice/ ideas on schools to visit/ parents of kids looking at vet school or have been to vet school would be great!
Thanks!</p>
<p>My son turned down an ivy league school for a small college that few people know. He visited the school and loved it instantly. He liked everything about the school and it became his very top choice, head and shoulders above other more selective schools with much bigger reputations. This was without money in the decision matrix; in fact, the school was more expensive than the in state rate we would have paid for the ivy. He is so happy there, and doing so well, that I am thrilled.</p>
<p>I know a young lady who turned down UPenn, BC and JHU for Fordham. She is excelling there, is happy and has saved $120K over the 4 years. Plus she had some NYC time that she could only get here. No, Fordham does not have the stats and the rep of the other schools, but it worked out so well, that there are no regrets. Our principal’s daughter just turned down BC for a close to full ride at Providence. A young lady I know is going to SUNY Binghamto rather than taking up Holy Cross’s offer. It’s not always the best way to go to take the schools with the rep and stats. Other factors come into play that can more important.</p>
<p>I can’t offer any insight regarding Duke or SMU other than having intelligent friends who have graduated from both institutions. What did strike me about post #12 is that the OP’s D is a junior. So much water will flow under the bridge between now and next April, encourage your D to keep an open mind regarding a cross-section of schools. We live 2 hours from Nashville and S was originally determined to go to school in the Northeast. I only got him to do a Vandy visit because we were in Nashville for an MIT information session the same day. His opinions changed so much in a year. In fact, he valued his undergrad experience so much that he returned to VU after two years in the real world to attend law school.</p>
<p>There is no reason why SMU cannot be on the application list with Vanderbillt and Duke. The chances of getting into the latter are ever so small these days, that I would encourage anyone who is interested in those school to find some less selective schools as well because getting in could be a big time lottery ticket. And if a kid likes SMU better when it comes to the final choice, fine for him.</p>
<p>Kudos to you and your D for thinking about this whole process. You sound like an intelligent and caring mom. Choosing the best fit school can be such an overwhelming process for these CC kids.</p>
<p>My younger son applied and was accepted to 12 schools which run the gamut from highly selective to in-state safety. We didn’t realize how competitive and time consuming the process would be as my older son went to college a few years ago when it didn’t seem to be so competitive, particularly for scholarships/financial aid. (This probably due to this difficult recession that our country has been in) Our challenge now is for my S to decide the right “fit” school for him among those that we can afford. Luckily he has choices and we are grateful for that. </p>
<p>I would encourage you to trust your and your daughter’s instincts as to what is right for her. My older son was rejected at his longtime dream school and landed at a highly respected school that he LOVES attending. Good luck!</p>
<p>S goes to Duke. There is one broad misconception about Duke that OP mentioned. That it is a “big” school. I think folks see the basketball team on TV all the time and assume its a big school, almost like a state flagship. People are often surprised when I tell them the actual size. </p>
<p>For example, undergrad population of the schools in question: </p>
<p>SMU - ~ 6,200
Duke - ~ 6,500
Vandy - ~6,800</p>
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<p>There are no sure things now with Duke or Vanderbilt. Truth be told, not even pretty sure. Stats alone don’t do it. So, be sure to include a variety of schools on the final list.</p>
<p>(Look at Vanderbilt’s admission blog for the entry last week on the stats of the admitted class for 2011. I’ve seen kids waitlisted the last couple of years–and left on the waitlist–that I thought were candidates for merit scholarships! And now it is even tougher.)</p>
<p>Agree with midmo. If you are around this site very long you will realize that schools like Duke, Cornell and Vanderbilt are not a lock for ANYONE. I’m sure your daughter is very qualified, but so are thousands of others. Make sure your daughter has a true safety school that she really likes and some solid matches.</p>
<p>Thanks all…I just found this site and it looks to be a godsend for me! I have spent hours looking around the post for the last few days…She will certainly apply to a wide range of schools…although she wants to ED at her favorite up front…if that doesn’t happen we move on and wait on the others!
It’s just finding her “favorite” and then the apps/acceptance!
I am finding it hard to make sense of the wide range of scores/etc. and how they correlate to acceptance at various schools…I am looking forward to see how she performs on the ACT the second time around (32 first time soph year) and the SAT (never taken, but will need to if makes Nat’l Merit Semi-Finalist (which I think she will judging on past years cut-off scores…but again…you never know!)
I don’t know if it is best to visit many more colleges this year…or wait and see where she is accepted and then visit her favs…? What have most done/plan to do??</p>