Trinity in San Antonio is a VERY good one!! One of my good friends is a professor there. San Antonio is a different vibe than most Texas cities. It has a wonderful Mexican influence in the culture. It is also like the largest small town–people are friendly and you usually find a friend of a friend of a cousin in discussions. The weather is mild and there is a lot to do in the city and in surrounding areas.
Besides warm weather, are there other criteria, like price limit or intended major(s)?
1 Like
so the reason I singled out CoC and Chapman is because she is looking for a non-rural (preferably urban) campus, with a sizable Jewish population (well that last bit might be more important to me than to her).
no price limit (assuming the 529’s bounce back!).
major will likely not be business or STEM. maybe poly sci or psychology.
1 Like
Then in my opinion the C of C is fine - but only if she can get the Fellows and International Scholar (if she’s interested in International Relations…you get a degree in International Studies which is Interdisciplinary and then a 2nd major - such as poli sci or psych). With her stats, she’ll be a contender. But even if not interested in Intl Studies (Poli Sci courses overlap), she can still be a Fellow. I think that sets her up academically closer to the level she’d have at the other schools you mention.
Miami would be the most similar IMHO to the Vandy, Emory, Tulane like schools but an easier admit and likely with merit. It’s possible as an EA she gets deferred but she’d get in and with merit - assuming, of course, her profile is more than simply good grades and an SAT. And of course, they have a large Jewish population.
So - they’re not mid size - but assuming the 529 doesn’t bounce back in time (no one knows of course) Alabama has a lot of Jews (estimated 1K) relative to many other publics and has the Bloom Hillel - which is strong - and with auto merit you’d be out at under $20K a year all-in. People don’t realize that Bama has such a large Jewish population. You could use Honors and the Randall Research Scholar cohort to make it a smaller school. Perhaps it’s too suburban - very large town - but an hour from a city…but plenty of town around the campus.
And at Arizona, a huge Jewish population and with $32K auto merit, the cost would be mid-20s. The Honors dorm is AWESOME - I want to move in with a dining hall at the bottom and gym/counseling center adjacent.
Since you mentioned the 529, I threw those last two in even though they are large - because Honors wise they’ll make the school smaller - and well - they’re affordable.
Many people gave a great many suggestions - but I honestly think the answer to your question is Miami (for warm weather) because it seems like your daughter is going after big names…and it’s that big name like a Vandy but perception wise maybe one step down. And my suspicion is it will come with money - which will make that 529 crushing a tad bit easier to deal with.
And the other I’d say is American - because you mentioned GW. It’s obviously not uber urban like GW but suburban with train access to urban but I’m not sure I’d call DC warm. It also has a strong Jewish population.
Like I said b4, doesn’t sound like she needs another school to apply given the list you presented - but hopefully those thoughts help - yes, we’re Jewish and I have one at Bama (his choice, doesn’t participate but he says it’s surprisingly vibrant) and Charleston (daughter participates in Jewish life a lot).
Good luck to you.
Charleston Fellows Program - College of Charleston (cofc.edu)
1 Like
thanks! that was very helpful! for various reasons my daughter doesn’t think Miami is a great fit, but she applied early to U of Arizona and has that acceptance already. Waiting to hear if she gets into Honors there, which does sound nice…
1 Like
She’ll get in - and the campus is manageable. But it’s 35K undergrad and another 10K graduate so it’s large population wise - so go check it out . Last year she’d have got $35K but this year $32K. I think Honors has an extra fee.
If Miami isn’t the right fit and I still say AU (not warm but then neither is GW),
I’ll throw one more out. I’m personally not a fan of a religion in a school name and I’m not sure how “strong” the Jewish life is - but they supposedly have a fair amount of Jewish students (Hillel says 5% but I’d call as their estimates are often wrong) - it’s a strong name - would be SMU. She’d get in…
But as I said b4, between the two Fl and UGA she’ll get into one or two or three - likely three. So this may be all for not. My daughter got into all three and while I don’t know your daughter’s weighted GPA, her SAT is higher than my daughter’s 32 ACT.
Good luck to her and PM me if you need someone for your daughter to speak with about Charleston…I can probably set it up.
1 Like
My daughter is a freshman at Chapman. She loves it so far. Her classes all have fewer than 25 students. There is a lot of support and personal connection with faculty. She is a psych major and has already had multiple research opportunities. She went in with dual enrollment credit and did not get in to the psych classes she planned to take so is taking mostly Chapman specific GEs. The week long orientation was a great way to start. She also did a leadership program and was able to move in to the dorm several days early. The campus has a friendly welcoming vibe.
She received $36,000 per year scholarship for 4 years with just under 4.0 unweighted. She applied RD.
Of note, they were way off on yield this year and have a few hundred (?) more freshmen than anticipated. They may accept fewer freshmen next year. We considered it a target because you just never know.
Edit: not sure how many they are over enrolled by, the number stated at orientation was several hundred more than I expected it to be. They waived the 2 year on campus housing requirement to make room for all the incoming freshmen.
3 Likes
For my edification, how does the religious aspect work there. As a Jewish parent, I’m concerned with schools religiously affiliated - even though many have a sizable Jewish population including Chapman. I’m looking from the POV of one that might not be religious to the point of attending a religious service, etc.
Thanks for your input.
Here’s what they say:
Chapman University is affiliated with and holds historic ties with the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), and more recently with the United Church of Christ. Chapman’s covenants with these denominations stress the importance of the intentional integration of spirituality and reason into students’ lives and into the life of the university. As such, Chapman University does not establish one religion for all to follow; rather Chapman University highly values the unique spiritual life of each person within the community and incorporates spirituality as one of its four pillars of education, as promoted through the work and presence of the Fish Interfaith Center.
1 Like
I have observed it to be just as you quoted, very open as far as faith goes. My daughter has not mentioned religion at all so I don’t know from her perspective. On social media, the events I remember seeing were either Jewish or simply “spiritual” such as meditation and sound healing. The Jewish Community seems very welcoming, there have been many posts on Instagram welcoming new students. I believe they even sent a welcome gift if you signed up to receive it. They are not required to take courses in religion.
They do have to declare a minor or “area of interest” in addition to their major. They have a global studies requirement and encourage semester abroad or travel course over one of the breaks to satisfy it. They allow 32 DE or AP credits toward graduation requirements. They do not accept upper division psychology class credit from a community college.
Freshmen do not get to choose dorm or roommates, they are mostly triples. One price for everyone no matter what your room assignment. They have private/ semi private bathrooms, parking garages and an outdoor pool. Most dorms do not have a community kitchen, meal plans are also one price with flexibility on how to divide up the money over the weeks.
3 Likes
So religion is there if you want it - but if you don’t, that’s ok too?
I always worry on affiliation with, there for example, the United Church of Christ but realize their Jewish population is large. Many Jewish students like to be together, celebrate but not necessarily attend services.
1 Like
It is definitely part of their history. They have convocation at orientation and a candle lighting ceremony that they tell about the history. I felt that they made an effort to stress that they did not promote a certain religious belief while also emphasizing the importance of spirituality (whatever that means to the individual). The interfaith facility is available for anyone to go to for prayer, meditation, solitude and/or reflection. They also hold classes and events. It is quite peaceful with beautiful architecture and water features.
3 Likes
This seems to be the most active community and like you mentioned, mostly social gatherings.
https://www.jewishchapman.com/
1 Like
Thanks for all the info.
It’s $1000 a semester for Barrett, but there are scholarships accepted students should look out for to help with this cost.
TCU or Rollins? San Diego’s campus is beautiful and not sure there’s nicer weather anywhere.
Elon is not “rural.” It has a small town surrounded by a city of 50,000 people (Burlington) with a bus shuttle to stores and restaurants in 10 minutes. We have found good places to eat (and even good NY-style bagels) a few minutes from campus. Going a little further are more towns with more restaurants and Greensboro is 25 minutes away with many more options. They have zip cars to rent on campus and ride shares.
Elon is well-run and doing well in the national rankings with a #1 ranking from US News for undergraduate teaching for the second year on a top 10 list that includes Princeton, Brown and Dartmouth. Many happy families send 2 or even 3 kids there.
As for Chapman, I know one student from our NJ high school who is a film major there and another who was rejected. Good luck.
3 Likes
Personally, I think Chapman is a better school than C of C. This may be due to the fact that C of C seems a bit overshadowed by partying. My impression at Chapman is that a lot of stuff happens off campus, mainly due to the proximity of Disneyland, CAdventure, and Downtown Disney, plus being in So Cal in general.
2 Likes
This is U of A, not ASU. It’s $475 a semester.
Of course, if OP decides to go there, with the $32K in auto merit, vs. other schools they are hoping for - they’ll be in good shape.
Depends on your definition of rural.
Elon is well located in that it’s 30 minutes from Greensboro and 45 from Durham/Chapel Hill.
The school has one street of businesses - and yes it’s 10 minutes drive from small town Burlington where i used to stay for work.
When I took my daughter, Elon and Miami Ohio (had already been accepted here) were the two schools that immediately came off the list. No one said it’s not well run. It’s a very good school with great outcomes and a gorgeous campus. Personally, I loved it. This is not a shot at Elon - but - sorry, IMHO it’s rural. Most who have written here about Elon would concur.
Rather, look at the OPs previous list, additions they are thinking of - and read his words - “she is looking for a non-rural (preferably urban) campus,” Each school they have mentioned (other than maybe UGA) is near/in a medium/large city.
This is not Elon, His kid is my kid - literally the schools he applied to except Vandy (because it’s home) and GW - my kid applied to.
Good luck to OP and to your child if they’re at Elon…a wonderful place but not the place the OP is looking for.