<p>My sophomore son is getting oodles of mail from the PSAT (just like everyone else I figure). I'd like to offer some choices for him to really consider, visit, etc.</p>
<p>He's interested in doing science research. Up till this year he was certain it would be Biomedical. Now that he's taking Chem he's considering Chemistry too. He wants research at the undergrad level. Based on college visits with his older brother he's said he likes small classes, small school, and rural or suburban area. He is not into the drinking or partying scene. For this son, "fun" is studying or reading (unlike my other two). He'd love peers who cared about the same, but not in a cut throat environment. His test scores are high - should be National Merit high pending that one test in Oct of Jr year. GPA is 4.0. His ec are probably average (Chess Team, scuba, travel, church youth groups - will be shadowing at our local hospital Junior year and probably some Community College classes).</p>
<p>His "dream" school at the moment is the University of Rochester due to what seems to be multiple research opportunities. He's not so fond of Rochester weather or the city location (but hasn't visited it specifically yet). What other schools should I have him consider? (Eastern half of US please. We're in PA, but within a day's drive (12 hours) is acceptable.) Financial aid (merit and/or need) will be an issue as he's the middle of 3 and the economy took a hit on our investments + income. Ivies are not our preference for undergrad, but little is ruled out at this point.</p>
<p>RPI sounds like it could fit. Carnegie Mellon does too (it may be in Pittsburgh, but as a Pitt student, I can attest to the fact that its campus is more on the suburban side) and Case Western (though it’s in Cleveland, a city). He would get merit aid at RPI and Case provided his test scores are high along with that gpa.</p>
<p>Reading and studying for fun but not cut throat is generally what one hears about U. Chicago. If he wants small classes and rural/suburban, maybe he should visit the science departments at one or two LACs to see what they offer. Most have research opportunities and no graduate students to compete with for the research positions. Middlebury, Amherst, Williams etc.</p>
<p>Thanks for the suggestions. He’s gotten literature from RPI, Carnegie, & U of Chicago. I’m not sure about Case Western. I’ll look through the pile. He’s looked at every last one of them that’s come in, but we need to sort a bit before thinking of visits. I’ve showed him how to sort via collegeboard for schools within his level (ACT/SAT), but even then, we need to pare down some.</p>
<p>I expect we’ll visit a decent variety - big, small, city, LAC, Uni - just so he can check everything out himself. For the right program, his idea of ideal might change, but even then, we can’t visit them all. Washington & Lee caught his attention today.</p>
<p>UNC seems to match your needs. Strong science departments for bio med and chem especially. Not more than a day’s drive. They emphasized at their visit the research availablities. Not too expensive, and there’s Carolina Covenant for low-income families.</p>
<p>If he decides to venture outside of the east coast, Rice sounds like a perfect fit. Undergrad-focused, collaborative environment, residential colleges (no Greek scene) and huge research opportunities. Direct flights from PA to Houston would take less travel time than a 12-hour drive! Just a thought. Have him check out Rice through its virtual tour of campus. [Rice</a> University - Virtual Tours](<a href=“http://www.rice.edu/virtualtours/]Rice”>http://www.rice.edu/virtualtours/)</p>
<p>MANY thanks for mentioning Rice. About a year ago someone locally had mentioned it as a place for him to look at, and we liked the basics of what we saw on the internet. In the meantime we got my oldest off to his dream school (not science) and totally forgot. Yes, I do want him to consider Rice even if it’s not Eastern US. It could be a great fit.</p>
<p>So far we’re keeping U of R, RPI, Emory, and Rice on the top list - maybe Case - with maybe some LAC’s for comparison.</p>
<p>My advice is, if you are looking for some merit aid, be sure to look specifically at schools that offer it. Most of the top LAC’s do not (Middlebury, Williams, etc ). </p>
<p>DD is a senior and we are waiting for April 1 decisions to come out as she has applied to 8 very fine LAC’s in the Northeast. In the meantime, she has gotten letters of acceptance and substantial merit scholarships from 2 of her “safeties”. The “safeties” are also very fine schools, but not as prestigious. We parents are now wondering the 50K+ price tag of the top LAC’s could possibly be worth it, especially in this economy and another sibling to educate as well. Wish we had not put so much emphasis on applying to the “best” schools, when we now realize what a financial stretch it would be to send her.</p>
<p>I second (or is it “third”?) Rice. Closer to home, for a top LAC strong in science, consider Swarthmore. For a larger school famous for biomedical research, with abundant undergraduate research opportunities, consider Johns Hopkins (though it does not match the desired rural/suburban environment).</p>
<p>Farther from home, but not as far away as Rice, is Grinnell College (Iowa). Good facilities, generous aid. Somewhat less selective than Swarthmore. Swarthmore does not grant merit aid (except to a small number of applicants from the Delmarva area). Grinnell grants merit scholarships, averaging ~$10K, to about 1 in 5 students. In general, the Midwestern LACs are much more likely to grant merit aid than the Northeastern ones.</p>
<p>FYI, Rice offers merit aid to about 1/3 of accepted students. All applicants are considered for it, and there is no separate scholarship app or essay to complete. And that’s in addition to the fact that Rice’s tuition is lower than its peer institutions.</p>
<p>^ Rice’s tuition is barely lower than that of its peer insitutions… especially with the recent tuition increase. This factor is not significant enough to be considered alongside other far more important factors.</p>
<p>I don’t know about you, but for those of us paying cash, cheaper is cheaper. Rice’s tuition for 2010-2011 academic year is approximately $5,500 less than Emory. It’s also more than $6,000 less than Wash U.</p>
<p>But you’re right, it’s just one factor to consider. The OP mentioned that merit aid and cost were important factors in her son’s college search. For those reasons, the availability of merit aid coupled with the lower tuition is significant.</p>
<p>Does Emory give big merit aid? If money is a concern, then getting small merit scholarships (like $10k per year) may not interest you if that leaves you with $40k to pay. </p>
<p>Keep in mind that merit scholarships don’t reduce EFC unless they’re bigger than determined need.</p>
<p>Since you say that money is a concern, you should look at some schools that give assured big merit to NMFs and/or assured big merit for high stats.</p>
<p>I think Carnegie, Chicago, Swarthmore and Haverford are excellent choices. Emory is a good school, but I have heard is more suited for bright kids who like to party hard on weekends. All of the Ivies except Dartmouth seem like good fits (assuming, as with Hopkins and Carnegie, he might waive the suburban requirement). Brandeis, Case, RPI,Wesleyan and Bucknell are well worth a look and in the safety/major merit aid category, Muhlenberg, Franklin & Marshall and Ursinus. Lehigh is a strong science school with a drinking on weekends reputation.</p>
<p>We came across this with our oldest too. In the end he is going to a college that is perfect for him and his desired major and got the equivalent of full tuition aid with very little in loans. We’re left with room & board + books, etc, which is essentially our EFC. In an overall list of colleges it’s not the most prestigious (nor near the bottom), but within his field it’s darn near the top (as per workers in his field). However, that son wants a totally different major, and therefore, was looking at totally different schools (aside from one or two in the beginning).</p>
<p>We’re looking to find schools for this son that might work out similarly - getting him his heart’s desire in an education without bankrupting us in the process or saddling him with endless loans. Those working in his field have cautioned us out the wazoo about getting into oodles of undergrad debt when one will likely go to grad school. They’ve also cautioned us that not all schools are equal in education. We’ll be looking at a lot of factors and trying to align those with his preferences if possible. I’m doubtful that it will be a top LAC. He really wants research, so I’m assuming on our visits in the fall that research facilities will have him seeing stars - perhaps even enough to overcome his preferences for size and/or setting if he can envision himself in the lab with peers. </p>
<p>Nonetheless, we’ll consider many options at this point as long as the SAT/ACT’s aren’t so low that I question the quality of education possible due to the ability of peers. Then I’ll look at grad school admission and affordability stats and have him shuffle his brochures accordingly to line up who actually gets a visit. He can decide from there.</p>
<p>I really appreciate all the thoughts on this thread. Thanks.</p>
<p>getting him his heart’s desire in an education without bankrupting us in the process or saddling him with endless loans. Those working in his field have cautioned us out the wazoo about getting into oodles of undergrad debt when one will likely go to grad school. They’ve also cautioned us that not all schools are equal in education.</p>
<p>Very, very good idea of not letting your kids get saddled with lots of undergrad debt. Although not all schools are “equal” in education, there often can be little differences overall in income potential, etc, especially if the student will end up going to grad school anyway.</p>
<p>^ Very true. It’s interesting looking at the schools currently on our list and comparing those with average debt as per the “declining schools” page.</p>