Engineering Schools/Program for my B student

My DS is also interested, but not committed to studying engineering. He has a 3.75 GPA and 1320 SAT and has not received a direct admit to any of the engineering programs so far. He noted a 2nd choice major for Pitt and Purdue and did get in to those on his 2nd choice. Both of those schools do allow internal transfers in but the GPA requirement and ability for non-direct admits to get the required pre-req classes makes it seem like a long shot. He is also looking at a small LAC in NY (Hobart William Smith) which has a 3-1-1 program w/Dartmouth. Students major in Physics and by the time they are done have a degree in Physics from HWS and a degree in Engineering from Dartmouth. I feel like these programs work to acclimate students who maybe need more time to decide if engineering is for them. More of a “draw them in” than a “weed them out” approach. The pluses of a program like this is he has more time to decide if he wants to pursue engineering and graduates with a degree from an Ivy League school and a LAC. The drawback is extra time and cost.

My recommendation is a smaller campus with a focus on undergrad education. I am unable to speak about specific accommodations for ADHD or a Jewish community but Valparaiso University and Marquette are the first I think of. Excellent facilities and advising. Definitely not a weed out culture. Others that may work but I have less knowledge about: Milwaukee School of Engineering, Ohio University, University of Dayton, Wright State, Cleveland State

@crossfitmama My son is a senior and currently has a 3.2 GPA and a 30 ACT. He was diagnosed with ADD at the end of his sophomore year of high school and started on medication his junior year. His grades have greatly improved since then. (His GPA was a 2.6). All of his coursework has been college prep (so physics, chemistry, pre-calc etc.)

He has been admitted to the following engineering programs: Dayton, Cincinnati, Akron, Ohio University, Toledo, Wooster (3/2 program) & Ohio University. He was admitted to the Mansfield campus at Ohio State and guaranteed a spot his junior year if his GPA is a 3.0.

My oldest daughter currently attends Ohio U and is in their honors program as a bio-pre med student. She knows a lot of Engineering majors (from her chemistry, physics and calculus classes) and most changed their majors after the first year because the coursework is extremely rigorous- and these were high ACT & GPA kids.

Knowing this, we have encouraged our son to explore undecided engineering his first year.

He still hasn’t picked a school. Financial aid is a big factor and although he is a URM, with lots of extra curriculars and volunteer time, his aid packages so far only cover about 1/3 of the total cost of attendance at most of these schools. (Cincinnati only offered him a student loan and Akron gave him a $2500 scholarship.)

Good luck to your son! If you’d like to reach out this time next year I can let you know how his freshman year is going and what school he ended up at.

I think you’ve been given a lot of good options to consider (Clarkson and RIT were to that came to my mind as smaller and supportive schools) but I think another important thing to think about is making sure that the school will have other attractive programs just in case he wants to swap out of engineering. Like, what would be his second and/or third choice paths? Business? Computer Science? What are his current strengths in school. I’d want to make sure that any college he went to would have good options besides engineering as a fallback because lots of kids change majors (not just engineering students, I think something close to half of all kids change from the major they planned upon entering college.)

@crossfitmama Many here have great suggestions for colleges. I am going to offer you a more personal example.

My friends son had grades similar to your sons, except his SAT score around 1000. He was not admitted to engineering in most of the colleges he applied to, Penn State, Pitt as examples. He ended up being admitted to George Mason University.

After the first semester he had a GPA of 2.0. Second year, he gave up everything of personal interest to study, study, study. He had to repeat a few classes and due to a grade replacement policy, his GPA did come up significantly. However, that put him on a 5 1/2 year BS program and his parents are full pay. Ouch!

He managed to get an internship w/ a relatives employer for Civil Engineering. He was very much liked, totally committed to the job and was given a few business cards and contacts for when he graduated as they were very much interested in hiring him.

So your son may do better, but it may very well be a long, stressful, and expensive endeavor.

Eckerd College in St. Petersburg has a 3+2 program with Wash. U St. Louis and Columbia. They offer merit and financial aid. There is a strong Jewish presence with a very active Hillel and Hillel Parents group and a campus Rabbi. The Bevan Center has academic coaching, tutoring, peer mentoring, etc.

But note that relatively few students interested in 3+2 or similar programs actually transfer to complete the engineering degree. Besides cost of an extra year, note that transfer admission to the engineering school may be competitive, and financial aid there is not known at the time of frosh enrollment at the initial LAC.

We never considered any of the 3+2 programs. Just feels like an even more unsure thing on top of potentially being weeded out early.

For a student who either may be unsure or has lower stats, I believe the 3+2 offer an alternative. If the student’s grades do not improve or cannot keep up with the pace, it gives them extra time and depending upon the school, an easier change to transfer majors.

I am totally convinced that finishing an engineering degree is entirely dependent on the drive and determination of the student. I agree that for some kids it will take an extra semester or year for which the costs have to be weighed but if a kid is single minded they can finish successfully. Fit is going to be important because an average good high school student will be blown away by the caliber of student in a large uni setting that is competitive. I would also be wary of programs with heavy concentrations of foreign TAs and profs as a language barrier can be a big hurdle for a student. I like Utah, Montana State, Michigan Tech and a few others as well as some of the small privates that have added engineering although I would look hard at the career outcomes for those graduates of those privates.

what kind of college experience is he looking for?

OP, I know you are being given realistic expectations here, but some advice may be interpreted as too pessimistic.

My ADHD son found a lot of support at Bama.

We specifically chose Bama because they direct admit to Engineering. The support services were great. He graduated in 8 academic semesters spread over 5 years because he did a co-op.

He went in with AP and dual credits, which helped. He took 15 to 17 credits a semester.

So, while it may be difficult, plenty of kids are getting Engineering degrees with lower scores and learning disabilities.

I just saw this post. My S had similar stats out of high school. He went to a engineering heavy school and did really well. He’s out of school now and has a great job, with a great life.

There are engineering schools that are better for the kid who maybe needs a more nurturing environment. Some engineering programs are dog eat dog (Purdue comes to mind) and others will have more programs for those kids needing a bit more support.

I haven’t read through all the posts, but will he have calculus and physics in high school? Having a firm foundation in math and science is super helpful in succeeding in college. A good work ethic is paramount. I personally think that any kid can have success with both of these attributes.

I’m not familiar with west coast schools so I don’t have much to add to that. But some suggestions would be New Mexico Tech, Missouri S&T, South Dakota school of mines, Stevens Institute (May have more of a Jewish community based on its location), Rose-Hulman

All of these schools are very well known in the engineering community and employers will recruit and hire.

Another plug for New Mexico Tech. Small school, great tutoring resources. I remember reading an article about a woman who graduated from there with some kind of scholarship. When she started, math was her worst subject, but with the tutoring/individualized help, she said it finally clicked and she ended up doing well. We know several kids there now who love it.

My S is currently a freshman at Iowa State University and was directly admitted into the Electrical Engineering School. He has ADHD(inattentive type) and is doing very well there. We set him up with a tutor the first day of school, the best money spent ! He absolutely loves the campus and the town of Ames. His gpa was very similar to your sons. Iowa State is a great and very supportive school for kids with LD. Oh, forgot to mention that my son is from California and now loves the snow !

Best wishes to you and your son. My son was in a similar situation many years ago, and made it through. . (I came back to see what you folks were saying about “the scandal”!.

I echo the many suggestions of RIT. It would likely be a reach based on stats but a worthwhile one for the strong and diverse support options.

That said, will your son use the support options? It’s one thing to find a school that has a strong program, another one to have the student use it.

I have one adhd student and one HFA/EF. The adhd kid will not use official support services but has utilized available academic support. However he is not an engineering student. We did choose a mid sized school for him and I think that has helped.

I also agree with the suggestion of smaller schools. Harder to slide and for the adhd kid being noticed can really help.

This may sound odd but I’d suggest Seattle U. Yes, it’s Jesuit but it is as open and inclusive and varied and might be a surprising fit, they do a great job of supporting all faiths, or none of that’s the choice. Solid engineering and may be a match for stats.

My colleague’s son sounds similar to your son. He was an avg student and was very happy at Arizona State. He successfully finished, and has an Electrical Engineering degree. We are in PA. He landed a job near Philly. He had to work and did get help. Help seemed readily available. His dad is also an EE and didn’t think he’d make it. But he did and is doing very well.

My daughter is heading to the University of Dayton this Fall. Direct admit into Engineering. Programs seems to provide lots of support when needed.

Look at Oregon State. I have a family member with the same profile as your son (CA resident, B student, ADHD) and he had a great experience with the engineering program at Oregon State, graduating a few years ago. It did take him a bit longer (5 years total including some summer sessions) but the extra time was worth it in terms of his growth as a student. He now has an excellent job as an engineer.