Are you sure about that? I had to look up the college but it appears that they are D3 for football.
@SOSConcern I’m no football expert, but he only Carroll I see in Wisconsin is Carroll University, and they don’t appear to be in the same football conference.
Also, if you look up their stats, Carroll University and Grinnell College are also playing to very different audiences academically.
You could consider how strong your interest would be for studying topics in fields such as classics, philosophy, religious studies, government, English and history. The greater the appeal of these potential courses, the less inclined you should be to choose to pursue a primarily pre-professional education.
Thank you @merc81. My main concern is that a Grinnell Degree will not stand out amongst other applications while applying for jobs. I really appreciate the help.
@mom2collegekids My parents said it would be doable but not preferable. So I am hesitant to make them do that for me.
My nephew had an away game to Grinnell - they may be different conferences IDK I am not living in Iowa or WI. Just that many athletic type students would not find Grinnell appealing. Maybe the conference situation changed after he graduated a few years ago IDK.
Grinnell is outstanding in academics for certain kids, but it is a good hour out of Des Moines. Not sure the distance to Iowa City - but you wouldn’t go mix with another University’s students either. Students have to love the school enough to find all the academic and EC activities fulfilling, because Grinnell is a sleepy quiet small Iowa town.
I am sure if I had DDs visit Grinnell neither would have liked it - one is at a flagship, the other graduated from a public urban. However many go there from all over the country for what they have to offer, including a DD of one of the docs I know in my city.
My advice to OP is that you have decent stats - if your HS GPA is solid along with the ACT 29 - look to schools that perhaps will provide merit or athletic scholarship (if you indeed want to play ball in college). Nephew actually loves sports so much that he is working at a very athletically strong HS now - have encouraged him to seek Master’s degree if he wants to stay as a coach/educator (he was from a small town and lettered in a lot of sports). One can get more academic attention at a school like Carroll; with many uber smart students at Grinnell IDK if would mix well with other students there.
Yes Carroll changed to Carroll University. One gets use to something rolling off the tongue or keyboard.
Depends on how fast you drive – it’s about 50 miles from Grinnell to Des Moines (45-50 mins maybe, depending on where you’re headed to in Des Moines. It’s about 60 miles to Iowa City.
Iowa City is a fun college town with good shopping and music. I live in the Quad Cities, and have lived in Cedar Rapids, so i know the area at least nominally. Eastern Iowa is either farm or concrete (or river). hehe
Grinnell is a top school, en par with the elite liberal arts colleges back east – it just happens to be in Iowa. Grinnell is well respected among employers and grad schools. If people look at you blankly when they hear the name Grinnell, don’t take it to heart, most of them would do the same for Bowdoin or Williams, and yet every year grads from those programs are working in NYC etc.
The bigger question is whether Grinnell is the right school for you. If you enjoyed the school and the basketball program and can really see yourself there – then getting admitted as a recruit with a 29 would be an enormously successful outcome. While it’s true that sports are not as big a deal at Grinnell as say, Amherst – Men’s Basketball at Grinnell is the exception, with huge student support.
The money piece matters – are you weighing offers from other schools which are more likely to give you merit award? You mentioned Case, which does give merit awards and is in a city. Have you asked the Case coach where you stand with his program? If you are not convinced Grinnell is the school for you, or your family is concerned about being basically full pay with no merit, then perhaps you can get some more info/answers from Case coach, find out whether they are offering you a roster spot and then whether they can do an admissions and financial pre-read.
Good luck, it is a nerve-wracking time for a recruited athlete, waiting for all the pieces to fall into place.
@Midwestmomofboys is offering sage advice.
I will say, my D3 athlete (who was recruited at Grinnell), found the student body quite balanced, with all different kinds of kids, rather than one dominant type. He liked that the team did not “self-segregate” during meals, even when he was there as a recruit, but ate with a group of all kinds of friends from dorms, classes, and other activities.
Keep in mind that how you present for jobs includes more than the colleges you are graduating from – it will include coursework taken, GPA, involvement on campus, any internships you have done,how you interview etc.
Have a look at Grinnell’s Center for Careers, Life and Service. https://www.grinnell.edu/cls
And compare with other school’s you’re interested in as well. That’s part of where the magic happens.
Apply to and visit as many campuses as you can where you are a financial fit as well as really can see yourself liking school there - and doing well there, and if basketball is important to you, where you would fit for that. If you cannot afford Grinnell, then that answers that. Can get applications in now, visits later for the deadline to make your final decision.
I have never heard of Carroll College. Grinell on the other hand is becoming one of the top LACs