<p>My son’s best friend from high school loves AU and so does another kid from a class ahead of him. If your interests align with it’s strongest programs you can get a great education there. My impression from accepted students weekend was that it has a larger portion of starry eyed idealists than the average campus. I’d say it’s a little less intellectual than average and a little more weighted to students who are interested in a more practical education.</p>
<p>If your son is a sophomore, this is premature to be cutting out some more competitive schools. Wait until his test scores come out and see if his grades improve. That could make a huge difference. I’d still like to know where his GPA places him in the context of his school. If he’s in the top 25%, that’s a different story than if it’s the bottom half. I also wouldn’t put it off so quickly to boredom; are you really sure that’s the reason? How organized is he, for example?</p>
<p>check out the threads on 3.3 - 3.6 kids (one on applying to T20 schools and one on “where did your 3.3 - 3.6 get in?.”</p>
<p>If your son does end up with a lopsided profile (high test scores, lower GPA) then you will need a well balanced list, but I would not automatically cut off schools unless, as I said, he is below the top quarter of his class. The best way to build a list, IMO, is to forget the GPA and look at the percentages of students in top 10 and 25%, the SAT range and the admission percentage of male and females (a few schools admit a greater percentage of males). That’s what I did, and we had very few and then, only mild, surprises. </p>
<p>I would also pick a school or two that does NOT have the “artsy” profile so your son will stand out more in the admissions pile. Chances are he’ll find kids interested in music and theater at any school, and might even be a bigger fish at such a school.</p>
<p>“Grinnell, Macalester and Oberlin are not solidly B-student schools. They’re quite competitive, and don’t give much of an admissions edge over Vassar, in my opinion.”</p>
<p>Ditto re: Conn College, URoch, Kenyon, Bard, Vassar and Skidmore - - though not quite as competitive as Crinnell, Mac and Obi. </p>
<p>Beloit, Lawrence and Knox are getting increasingly competitive; likewise Pitzer (which wasn’t mentioned in the earlier posts). </p>
<p>Applicants to SLC don’t submit test scores, but that makes gpa even more important; most successful applicants are in the 3.4+ range, but a 3.0 male might make the cut. </p>
<p>Goucher and Bennington are good bets; a 3.0 male might even get a small merit award (scholarship candidates might have to submit SAT scores). Bennington, like Hamp, is in the middle of no where; Goucher is outside of Baltimore.</p>
<p>Look at Ithaca College.</p>
<p>Alfred University…if your student is okay with a very small town…they have an incredible ceramics program…very artsy campus (also balanced by the engineering and business schools). Brand new theater with great facilities. We met with head of theater dept. Great guy. Beautiful artwork and ceramics all over campus. Was one of my d’s top choices, ultimately she rejected it as too artsy and hipster for her…but for others it would be perfect. She kept it high on her list because she loved the theater dept. more than the school she ultimately chose.</p>
<p>If he wants a strong theatre program as well as a strong academic environment, then Muhlenberg also fits the bill. I’m assuming you’re not considering BFA or conservatory type schools that require audition, as they have relatively few academic classes. And you also don’t necessarily want to pick a BA program at a school that also offers a BFA as his performing opportunities will be hindered by those in the BFA program (as a general rule of thumb, but not always). </p>
<p>All of my daughter’s classes (even music theory and music history) at Muhlenberg have been discussion based. In fact, when we were there for her senior recital last month, one of her music history professors came up to us to introduce himself (it was obvious who we were with the video camera in tow). He told me how much he loved having D2 in the class as she always contributed so greatly to the discussions.</p>
<p>For her first year honors seminar, one of the books she had to read was written by the professor, and was titled How to Think About Weird Things. However, I don’t think a solid B student would qualify for the honors programs.</p>
<p>Oh, and Muhlenberg is SAT optional.</p>
<p>Here is a different alternative: Mount Allison. A very loved liberal arts college in Canada, located in New Brunswick (close to Bangor Maine I believe). Been rated #1 for years in national rankings and in terms of student satisfaction, has produced 45 Rhodes scholars, 70% of the graduating class goes onto graduate school, has a very vibrant theatre program. Fantastic artsy culture, with very down to earth students, who seem very warm and friendly,academically focused but know how to have fun. </p>
<p>The really good part is total cost of attendance for non-Canadians is around 20k a year, and that is before merit scholarships, which are plenty (he’d probably get one). </p>
<p>[Mount</a> Allison University :: Sackville, New Brunswick Canada](<a href=“http://www.mta.ca/index.shtml]Mount”>http://www.mta.ca/index.shtml)</p>
<p>Hmmm . . . Mount Allison looks quite interesting. I wouldn’t describe it as “close” to Bangor, Maine, however. According to Google Maps that’s about a 5-and-a-half hour drive. Mount Allison is close to Moncton, NB (38 minutes, the nearest airport with regular commercial flights), and it’s not too far from Halifax, NS, the nearest city of any size (metro population 400,000), about 2-and-a-half hours.</p>
<p>UNC Asheville
New College of Florida</p>
<p>I think New School in FL is pretty competitive. Warren Wilson near Asheville NC is also worth a look. (My S goes to Evergreen and loves it.)</p>
<p>I knew someone from Mount Allison who did a semester away at Smith and now is at Oxford. She always spoke very highly of MA and I think she enjoyed it a lot.</p>
<p>Thanks all for your excellent suggestions. I’ve never heard of Mount Allison and will definitely check it out. I’ve always thought that Ithaca College was less of a liberal arts place and more of a professional training school but maybe it’s changed?<br>
And I probably have discounted my son’s chances of getting into a challenging school prematurely. Maybe he’ll rally in AP classes. He just loves learning and has so many interests but dislikes school intensely.</p>
<p>Have a look at Luther College in Iowa.</p>
<p>I know many kids who go to Luther and I would not consider it high on the “intellectual” school scale. It is pretty artsy. Cornell/Coe College more of both. Knox probably more than any of them.</p>
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<p>ha, thanks for catching that bclintonk! Bangor might be the nearest US location one would recognize, but not exactly a short drive away. I must be biased from looking at it from the west coast.</p>
<p>I keep hearing about Lewis and Clark…</p>
<p>For theater major B student, how about Otterbein College in Ohio? Your son would need to look into academics to make sure that it is a good fit. Also, what about Wagner College in NY?</p>
<p>To note - those two schools are great, but they do require an audition for the theatre program.</p>
<p>We visited Wagner College, and I wouldn’t call it artsy or intellectual, particularly. Drew in NJ also has a very nice theatre program, but again it struck my D as a bit more preppy and conventional than artsy/intellectual.</p>
<p>I’m curious once your S starts visiting schools where he will fall on the artsy/intellectual spectrum. My D learned a lot about herself when she started looking at programs in detail. It was a very exciting process!</p>
<p>Agree with your D about Drew. I have not toured Wagner, just have done a drive through. Wagner might be a draw based upon its proximity to NYC! Along with NYC comes the need for more spending $$$$. BTW, Drew sells NYC too, but it still involves a longish train ride. NYC is not around the corner from Drew IMO. YMMV.</p>
<p>I would strongly second the recommendation of UNC Asheville. It is in a gorgeous area. We had a nice visit when we were college shopping over spring break. The campus is lovely and the town of Asheville is beautiful. The students seemed sort of like Oberlin students, interested in discussions and quite artsy. It is the “small LAC” of the University of North Carolina public univerisities.</p>