I was also going to suggest ASU. University of Maine might also be worth a look. Much smaller and more personal. And definitely not CA!
- For engineering you want an ABET accredited engineering program
- Engineering is very math intensive. Has he/will he take Calculus before college?
- If you want to be an engineer, it is is very recommended to get internships/coops when you are in college. Some of these may require a minimum GPA, eg. 3.0. Will your son be able to do that?
- I would look at my all of my state schools for options first…if i lived in CaliforniaI would be quite happy with all the choices! I think it would be risky to go out of state to a full pay school when I had options in CA.
- I agree that perhaps he should consider starting at a CCC to see how the calculus goes.
My nephew is a sophomore at Purdue as an engineering tech major. He choose this over other schools were he was accepted into the engineering school. He got great internship after his freshman year. He is very happy and much less stressed then my son who was a CE/EE major at another school. Engineering is a very hard major, my son says it’s not so much that engineers are smart (I disagree) but too stubborn to fail.
Regarding Purdue, it admits engineering students to First Year Engineering. Students then have to apply to their majors based on college GPA. A student who has a slow start in college (lower college GPA) may be “weeded out” or be limited to the least popular majors.
https://engineering.purdue.edu/ENE/Academics/FirstYear/T2M
https://engineering.purdue.edu/Engr/InfoFor/CurrentStudents/enrollment-policy
Regarding engineering versus engineering technology, here are some pages describing the difference:
https://www.nmu.edu/engineeringtechnology/engineering-tech-vs-engineering
https://www.polk.edu/engineering-technology/engineering-technology-vs-engineering/
Clarkson may be a good match. Embry Riddle and maybe Rose Hulman.
I think those 3 schools are trying to help keep the kids in engineering vs weeding them out. WPI has the same approach too, but it’s more competitive to get in and the merit is not so great for men without stellar stats.
My son is in a similar position with regards to gpa, test scores and ADHD. RIT and UConn I know have excellent support for ADHD kids, but UConn would be a reach for your son. Not sure about RIT. URoch is definitely a reach.
Here is a website that gives admission stats on engineering students: http://profiles.asee.org/ Put in the name of the school and then click on new applicants in the left hand column. Not all schools have gpa and SAT/ACT scores but many do.
Some schools my son has looked at/is considering (for civil engineering): Catholic, Clarkson, UMaine (very impressed with the program/facilities), UHartford (better than we expected and know some grads of the program), Manhattan (loved), University of New Hampshire (great campus vibe, very much liked the professors we met), University of New Haven (didn’t like the campus, but strong for engineering), Wentworth (didn’t like being in Boston but strong for engineering), Western New England.
Our list is very similar to @taverngirl and although S19 does have high stats, executive issues would likely prevent him from being successful at a super large or highly competitive college. We are in the northeast so my list is of course based on that. Going from the above post (and I’ll add my commentary:). We also have access to a employee tuition benefit so many of the schools were considered because of this.
Catholic - never visited, started the app, then changed our minds. Better options closer to home was our opinion
Clarkson - visited and applied; attending an honors day soon; among son’s favorite
University of Maine - I’m a seasonal resident but no instate tuition…
University of Hartford - I really dislike that campus!
Manhattan – walked the campus and its somewhat separated; not a NYC feel; new engineering building going up
University of New Hampshire – not on our list as it would cost more than other options being out of state
University of New Haven - visit and applied; don’t love the campus either; will likely not attend; received exchange
Wentworth Institute of Technology - my favorite but not sure son will adapt well to city life; applied and waiting on exchange
Western New England - though about it for a new york minute then decided not to apply
Others:
Norwich University - strong engineering, nice structure, received exchange; among son’s favorite
Quinnipiac University – new ABET engineering, beautiful campus, very expensive, received exchange; son loves this campus
We have a couple of UMass campuses in the mix as well as waiting on regular decisions at some more competitive admission places like Bucknell, Lafayette, Villanova, and GWU. An ACT of at least 32 would likely be required for these.
Honestly, most of these are reachier if you’re talking a 3.2 GPA unless the STEM GPA is extra strong and/or maybe you have a good story in the essay about it. URochester has gotten extremely competitive. You may want to find some safer schools with lower GPA and test scores. Search around for directional state schools with engineering programs in locations he finds interesting for example. Somewhere like Wentworth might be alright. Just make sure you have some true safeties in the mix. More schools are weighting GPA heavier over test score without extenuating circumstances.
I also think it’s fair to say his options are different and possibly more limited because his academics aren’t as strong. That’s just the way it rolls. I have a 2nd kid who may not have the options of the first.
Most engineering programs will have higher stats and lower acceptance rates than the rest of the school. Like the average ACT scores at the U of MN are like 26-31. But the college of science and engineering average scores are 31-34. Honors program science and engineering are 34+. Not all schools have that type of data accessible with acceptance rates, but it’s probably a good general assumption for those programs.
University of the Pacific might be perfect.
University of Utah is a good OOS option for Californians that is very affordable (you can get residency after the first year, then the COA is about $25K per year). Great facilities, Pac-12 sports and amazing skiing and outdoor activities. SLC is a very nice city, with convenient travel from CA.
@MAandMEmom your son could go to UMaine for the same tuition as UMass through the reciprocal program, no? My son loves Quinnipiac as well; he’ll likely apply but it’ll be more than our other options I’m sure. Really gorgeous campus. We looked at UMass Lowell and really disliked that campus - so disjointed - and the surrounding area. Looking at UMass Dartmouth soon but haven’t heard anything positive. Wasn’t sure about Norwich due to the military aspect - can you share any thoughts on that?
Ended up at an engineering college because my father had lived in a boarding house full of engineering students. His observations lined up with your son’s observations until I insisted on attending this expensive engineering college. I told him it was his fault, so I got to attend.
FYI: my father made a good living selling beer with his classics background. and was a sage advisor when Uncle Sam mailed my draft notice.! He sent me off with some of Dr. Elliot’s classics under my arm.
I would definitely recommend Iowa State University. It has a very strong and highly regarded Engineering program and since they use a predetermined formula for admission, you can plug in your child’s numbers and know right away if they will be accepted. Just search regents formula and Iowa State University. Cant say enough good things about their program, Engineering facilities, generous OOS merit and departmental scholarships, and the beautiful campus.
@taverngirl S19 is a lifelong scout and an eagle so the uniform aspect doesn’t seem to bother him, although he would not join the Corp. I hadn’t seen the campus so on the long haul to go to an open house at clarkson, he and I stopped by so I could see the campus. It’s very nice but the uniform presence is very strong. It also happened to be family weekend and the rooks were able to leave for the first time. A bit of a bro culture from what I could tell - not that it’s bad or good just is. The faculty also seem to be in uniform. My kid is doing an overnight in early April so I think he’ll have a better feeling then.
We still wouldn’t want to pay the UMass Amherst ticket at Umaine, which is in excess of $32k I believe. Not for abet engineering unless it was a very big name.
Living very close to UMass Dartmouth and working very closely with them, I can say their engineering grads do very well. A very good friend works on the Navy base in HR in nearby RI and recruits heavily there. It is a suitcase campus and I’m not certain DS would even bother living there. They have a 4+1 in civil and it would cost just about $11k through his master’s. That’s a tough price to beat.
You have a lot of suggestions. As an engineer, I will tell you that the first two years are hard, where ever you go. Really hard. Many schools have weed out programs those first two years. It is very stressfull. If you have a kid who will go to office hours and meet up with the TA they will probably be fine. What exactly does he like about engineering? My 26yo very high IQ son dropped out of college his first year. (full tuition scholarship mind you). Anyway he is now in the apprentice program in the pipe fitters union. As a first year apprentice he makes in the mid $40K After 5 years he will be making over 100K. He loves, loves, loves working with his hands. Something to consider.
You can search for ABET accredited engineering programs by state or type of engineering.
https://www.abet.org/accreditation/find-programs/
Then narrow it down by looking at school selectivity by inputting gpa and test scores into college navigator.
https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/
How about U Toledo? WVU? U Akron?
Clarkson, Marquette, Butler U?
Thank you all for your input. I definitely hear how hard engineering programs are to get into AND to stay in. He doesn’t want to go the community college route so we continue to look for programs that might work for him. We have encouraged him to consider taking a gap year but he sees this as a sign that we think he is incompetent (we will continue to talk about this). I walk the line between encouraging him to work hard and trying to help him research engineering programs that he has a chance of being accepted into and my fear of his being accepted someplace and then not being able to handle the workload.
Why a gap year though? I am not sure that helps at all. You might need to take a firm stance, but see how he goes in his testing. If you do send him OOS make it cheap enough to allow him to change major, and make strict rules of engagement over what the expected outcome is (successful undergrad, whatever that looks like to all of you). Is he improving his GPA?
@crossfitmama I think you are correct to be concerned about him getting admission to a engineering school but then not be able to handle the workload. The curriculum is tightly structured and would be a challenge for a student with adhd. Add to that living away from home and handling all the other responsibilities.
If not a CC, would he consider a regional 4 year public college close by? He can start there and take the general ed courses, including math and science.
Adhd kids sometimes need a longer path to get to where they’d like to go. My DS1 with ADHD goes to a nearby tech university. He takes 12 to 15 credit hours a semester. He is in CS , so he has a bit more flexibility in the curriculum. No accommodations other than extended time on exams. For him, that has been very helpful. The nearby support of family and therapist has also been helpful for him.