I know a violinist whose daughter attended Smith for undergrad (science and child psychology) who was also a very good violinist. The D played chamber music, orchestra and liked her violin instructor very much. The mother is on the violin faculty at BU and Wellesley, so she may have known the faculty members at Smith. The D just entered a Ph.D program at Vanderbilt.
My D’s cello teacher also had a student who graduated from Smith 3 years ago; she studied with the UMASS Amherst cello teacher but played chamber music at Smith, so there must be some consortium options with the 5 schools.
Bryn Mawr is very strong in the sciences, but less so in the fine/performing arts.
We just got back from a day at Smith and this was definitely not not the vibe at all. Busy, yes. But we saw way more smiles and hugs than stressed kids (0).
Ask your older D, now that she is almost done with her first year of college, what are the most important things that made her experience thus far good. Then try and evaluate your D2’s options accordingly.
@wisteria100 That’s such great advice. Here’s what my D1 texted yesterday: “Tell her it’s about the people. The programs will be great at any of her schools and she will find out what she wants to do. She should go with her gut on where she will feel the most interested and comfortable with the people around her.” My daughter is so wise
I have never heard that Smith students are stressed, angry, or depressed. I have a couple friends who graduated from Smith and they all described it as a happy, welcoming, hippie-vibe place.
I agree that @Earthmama68’s daughter is wise. They are all great colleges and she can get good programs at any of them; the differentiator is going to be the people (and the location/atmosphere/vibe of the school).
Smith for $13K of debt sounds like an excellent deal. Honestly, to me that sounds like a great choice - she’s got the politically liberal and very feminist atmosphere of Smith and the Five Colleges; they have a great psychology department there (and she can also draw on resources at Amherst, Mount Holyoke, Hampshire, and UMass - UMass has a great graduate psychology department where she could take classes), and the Five Colleges are also a great place to be interested in the social sciences and humanities.
St. Olaf is a good choice too, especially if she wants to be near her sister.
I’m not saying to give up on the Filene at Skidmore, but if you aren’t willing to call the admissions office to inquire (I mean, at this point you’re only a week away from Decision Day) then I’d drop it if it wouldn’t be a clear first choice without it. I’d also accept that if you do hear back it may very well be after May 1 - maybe a week or more afterwards - and she may have to choose to deposit elsewhere.
“Too busy” for accepted student visits is a mistake. Maybe too late for her, but I am a firm believer that kids need to skip almost anything (including state tournaments in ECs, etc) for these. Huge investment and life choice on the line. Very little is more important. Honestly, I’d take her out if school if necessary for visits to her top 3.
Re: the Filene. It’s been a bit hard. The audition for the finalists was a great experience! Skidmore really rolled out the red carpet for the finalists. My D2 is a very nervous solo performer and she went last which was hard for her. Also, the accompanist had practiced a different movement than what she was playing so their warm-up didn’t go very well. Nevertheless, she played very, very well and was clearly one of the top contenders (and the only violinist). Based on how she did I thought she would get one of the six awards (I picked 5/6 correctly!). At the reception afterward, they told us they would call on Monday and also that they would be 6 winners and 4 named runners up. But Monday brought no call, just an e-mail with the 6 winners and no runners up. Then a couple of days later we got a phone call from one of the judges. D2 wasn’t home (she was at All Eastern Orchestra!) so I talked to him. He said she did very well and he wouldn’t be surprised if she were to get the scholarship if other students turned it down. He said there was a last minute decision not to name 4 runners up. He said he would call her to talk to her to try to convince her to come to Skidmore with or without the scholarship, but then he never called her (it’s been 3 weeks)! A phone call from them would have made a big difference to her psychologically. So finally I wrote to the violin teacher and he said he would love to talk to her and to call him Friday between 3:30 and 6:30. He said they still haven’t heard from 2 of the winners and they have until 4/30 to decide. We called at 5:30 and left a message and never heard a thing (no phone call, no e-mail). Meanwhile one of the winners’ moms texted me at the beginning of last week that he’s planning to turn down the scholarship to go to another school. But of course that’s unofficial and who knows when he’s going to let Skidmore know. So, it’s been a bit of a roller coaster ride to be honest and it has made the decision-making a challenge.
@intparent Yes, you’re right. It’s just been difficult to pull off. My husband was out of the country for 6 weeks and I was busy too with work and we have another child at home. We live a long way from anywhere in a rural area. She was at All Eastern Orchestra (there was really no way to get out of that) and had to miss 3 days of school and has been stressed about missing any more. She’s had to miss a lot of school because of auditions. It’s really only Smith that she hasn’t visited this year (except for Geneseo which she’s never visited). Should have taken her to Smith this week, but it was a hard time for me work-wise. Clearly, I’ve got to figure out a way to get her there.
@Earthmama68 I went to Skidmore back in the paleolithic era, and even then the Filene Scholars were just so special on campus – I felt vicariously campus-famous when I was friends with one of them. It’s even more competitive now and honestly a huge honor. TOTALLY worth following up on. Good luck.
@Earthmama68 Sounds like a waiting game with Skidmore. Maybe you will end up waiting until the end of the month to deposit. Not pleasant, I know.
FWIW, I really loved St. Olaf. My daughter ended up choosing Oberlin but St. O was in the running until the end and I was a bit sad to see it go. Their admissions office was incredibly helpful and kind and the music program is outstanding, as you know. My sense is that music permeates the campus, even for those who aren’t majoring or performing at the very highest level and there is room for all levels of participation and commitment. I also felt that the student body was a shade more “intellectual” than at Wooster, although Wooster is a fine place as well (my D also applied there).
I can’t speak to the others on your list. Best of luck in the decision making! I hope the Filene scholarship comes through, sooner rather than later.
@Earthmama68 She enrolled at the college. She is not conservatory level as her first love is dance performance. She did want a place with a strong music-oriented culture. Oberlin and St. Olaf are strong in both music and dance and had other qualities that made them attractive prospects for her.
While I think college visits are important, I don’t think they have to be Accepted Students Days (in fact, I think it’s better if they aren’t, as it provides a clearer picture of ordinary life on campus).
Your D may well not know about the scholarship until April 30th – my daughter has been offered several and hasn’t turned any down as she hasn’t yet committed.
As for your D’s other possibilities, I like the idea of a consortium, so I’d lean towards Brynn Mawr or Smith. Sarah Lawrence is not worth a premium. I would ditch Wooster if she didn’t click with the violin teacher. St. Olafs sounds like a nice option too.
@Earthmama68
Yes - your D1 is certainly wise. That is exactly what my very happy D1 says too!
Good luck. You certainly have had great outcomes 2 years in a row.
St Olaf sure has a strong music program and great academics; and with you other daughter at Carleton; and the scholarship , sure seems like a great choice.
With smaller schools (mostly) like those she has been admitted to, fit and comfort matters because there are fewer choices so I would pull Wooster from the list for that reason, as she did not click with the violin prof and that is someone she would be spending a lot of of time with. Sarah Lawrence is just not affordable, and she can have a similar, though not identical, seminar based experience at the other LACs. The proximity to NYC and the distinctive project-based format at Sarah Lawrence is great, but it has been known as the “most expensive school in the county” and is just not affordable for your family. With her interests in swimming and violin, even though its the best money, I’d pull off Geneseo. That leaves St Olaf, Smith, BMC and Skidmore if she gets the music scholarship. Those are all wonderful schools. As your older daughter said, its about the people – so, where did she feel most comfortable, among St Olaf, Smith and BMC? If Skidmore comes through, and that trumps every other choice, then just wait it out (or call for an update middle of next week).
I’d definitely try to take your D up to see Smith this week even if it means missing a day of work/school. IMO if the Skidmore scholarship doesn’t come through Smith and St. Olaf seem to be the next best contenders as far as I can see.
Might it be worthwhile for you D to email the judge that contacted you? Maybe say something like that she is honored to be a runner-up and that if she is fortunate to be awarded the scholarship that she would definitely attend Skidmore (and maybe also add that she would not be financially able to attend Skidmore without the award).
