No, beyond a few elite schools (like Penn) that set aside a handful of seats for local high school students, privates only consider your state of residency if they’re looking to achieve geographic diversity. Being from Nebraska might be a hook at a private school in Connecticut or New York, but being from Pennsylvania won’t help.
I realize the branch campus thing is depressing for a lot of folks, but some of those campuses are pretty nice. Not sure about Temple, but I think Penn State’s program is a “2+2” for students who didn’t meet the criteria for admission to UP as freshmen. Temple is no longer an automatic admit for the decent student. Nor is West Chester, but I would still have your son apply–EARLY ideally.
Take a look at some of the Jesuit schools (e.g., Scranton, Fairfield). In this category, I believe applying as a full-pay student can boost an application.
Keep in mind that the stats the schools share are for the average student (typically the 25th to 75th percentiles). Somebody has to be in the bottom 25th. And your son’s scores will likely go up when he retakes the ACT this fall; most kids’ do.
All good points. About the EARLY application - I would think this could work for you only if you’re GPA is good up to the beginning of 12th grade. What if a student’s GPA improves with the first semester of 12th grade? I suppose then the student is applying in early spring of senior year like most people. So much of this college search odyssey is like gambling. Do you chance applying early with a lower GPA but hopefully secure admission, or do you wait and hope / expect your senior grades improve your GPA ?
@dspflyer, some schools will hold off making a decision until they get the fall/winter semester grades from the HS if the student is borderline. This is where you have to investigate each school to see their approach. Penn State, for example, has rolling admissions. You ABSOLUTELY must apply before the early deadline (sometime in November, I believe) if you want priority consideration. Some kids get admitted within a few weeks; others will wait an agonizing three to sixth months to get a decision. As long as you don’t get a “no,” you usually can update your application with latest grades/scores.
Again, each school is different, but in general, if you’re borderline but can afford to be full pay, I think the advantage goes to the early applicant. It also demonstrates interest, which may or may not be of benefit.
Perhaps @MYOS1634 will weigh in. She (?) has a lot of experience with all these schools.
I wouldn’t categorize B/B- as some insurmountable challenge. The question is whether he struggles for those grades and where he will be empowered and thrive. Lots and lots of kids are B students and find the right schools.
ECs can help. But it really depends what they show.
And except for schools that primarily admit only based on stats, his grades in the individual cores can matter more. Try to look at the transcript from that perspective.
I would not just assume a 20 on the ACT. My friend had a 2.9 and got a 24 his first try with no prep. This ended up being the only time he took it. He got accepted to ASU!
lookingforward - It’s been 25+ yrs since I went to college and I didn’t think a B / B- would be the end of the world when it comes to looking at schools such as Temple University, West Chester University - these days it does not seem to be enough. We have always gone along with the theory that if a student is not interested in a subject that certainly contributes to a lower grade. I suppose we will know more in January when he gets his first ACT scores - taking them Dec 10th.
Anyone out there know how I can set my personal CC settings so I can reply to a post directly below it? I seem to be missing a lot of responses when I hit reply and my reply just gets tacked onto the bottom of the discussion thread.
FutureMed17 - That is very encouraging and I would praise the heavens of my son came away with a 24 on his first try. Actually on any try.
Unlike some forums, this one is time sensitive. So we’re used to seeing replies fall well below our posts. The trick is to use the @ sign before our user names, which flags that someone is calling out to us. Eg, @dspflyer
Definitely stop by the 3.0-3.4 2017 thread, lots of us there who can relate.
Yes, it can be frustrating and unnerving to realize how competitive things are. It is very different from when I went to my state flagship, really good chance I’d not get in now.
That said you have a lot going for your S. He has you, doing research now and understanding what your landscape looks like. He doesn’t have budget restrictions. And he has a solid year or more to work on his gpa and test scores. That’s huge!
I can also tell you that there truly is a college for everyone. We have 4 kids and their academic abilities run the gamut. Our 3.0 no honors or APs kid graduated from a lovely small private university, on time and is doing great pursuing his dream. Ok he’s broke but that’s part of his dream lol. Our high achieving girl is thriving at her school of choice. Our current senior who falls somewhere in between the older two has many nice options. All very different kids who chose/are choosing very different schools.
It just takes time, research, and knowing your kid. It may not be what you dreamed for them but what counts most is helping them find their own dream.
@eandesmom - very helpful and gives a good perspective. I can completely see my son as this example.
Our 3.0 no honors or APs kid graduated from a lovely small private university, on time and is doing great pursuing his dream.
@LucieTheLakie Interested in PA, DE, NJ, NY, CT, MD reasonable driving and train distance. Plane ride access is not an option. Just worked with the college counselor - yes I know it is early! - but the best options so far seem to be U of Hartford, Hofstra, Susquehanna University, Fairleigh Dickinson with his #1 choice Temple University being too much of a stretch. An option for Temple would be start at our community college and then (of course with good grades) transfer to Temple sophomore year. That is where the $ comes in. All the schools listed are $$ which would could handle 2 of the 4 years. Temple would be covered $-wise
@eandesmom thank you for that link reference 3.0-3.4 2017. Is that the discussion title ?
@dspflyer, I think it may be this one:
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/1871275-parents-of-the-hs-class-of-2017-3-0-to-3-4-gpa-p1.html
Lots of good discussions along these lines in the Parents Forum:
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/
Also, FWIW, one of my son’s best friends transferred from Hofstra to Temple after his freshman year.
And sorry if you already answered this, but does you son have a specific area of interest? Does he do better in STEM classes than others? I only ask because some kids don’t excel until they’re truly challenged. And if they tend to gravitate more towards STEM subjects, a smaller engineering school is often a good fit.
Here is the link
http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/parents-forum/1871275-parents-of-the-hs-class-of-2017-3-0-to-3-4-gpa.html#latest
It’s in the parents forum, title is parents of the hs class of 2017 3.0-3.4.
There was a similar thread for 2016 that I found very helpful so I started the 2017 one and it’s a wonderful wonderful group of people. Not as active as the larger 2017 thread but a great sub group and most participate on both threads. I would imagine at some point a 2018 thread like this will get started and take off. Several on the thread are in the states you are looking at. My S17 is a bit higher in stats (3.45 UW, 25 ACT superscore and decent but not “most” rigorous classes) so these might be reaches but ones on his list you may want to consider are Ursinus, Ithaca, UVM, Allegheny. He will also apply at Goucher. When I started looking his stats were a bit lower than now so things can change and improve!
A few more I would suggest (can’t recall if already mentioned) are Rowan, Alfred University and SUNY Plattsburgh. Goucher was already mentioned I believe but I’d look at that as well. If Temple is the #1 choice, these all may be a bit small (and Alfred/Plattsburgh maybe too remote?) but worth looking at. They didn’t make my S’s list but that was more to do with preferring the LAC environment and some other aspects of the school.
That is fabulous you have a GC already working with you and providing some direction.
Also, I think you had some questions about EA being a good or a bad thing in your situation. Here is my take on it, for what it is worth on both EA and Test Optional.
Test Optional. If the grades are better than the test scores indicate, then going test optional can be a good strategy. Many test optional schools require supplemental writing so the writing needs to really shine to have that play in your favor.
ED/EA/RD
For ED, it can be beneficial to apply if you are in the lower end of the applicant pool, or even the middle (or top if it’s your first choice), however it is binding so it really has to be the #1 choice to make sense. And make sense financially.
EA on the other hand may not be a good choice if you are in the lower end, many feel the EA pool is more competitive than the RD. If you are in the middle or higher end of the stats pool, it may offer some advantage (besides just knowing early) and can offer early/greater opportunities at merit in some cases.
RD is often best if one wants to show improved test scores or grades from senior year or because the chances are better in the RD pool versus the EA one.
If you look up schools common data sets you can see the % accepted from each application type, I found that helpful when determining S17’s application strategy.
We had one child apply RD (one and done), one ED (which some EA/RD at the same time) who luckily got her ED choice so was done early. S17 will be 100% EA but will not go test optional although it is offered at almost all (maybe all actually) of his schools. No clue where S19 will land, far too early to say but most likely not ED for financial reasons.
@LucieTheLakie Looks like a great link and I will check it out. Makes sense that a 2018 discussion will pop up in the near future. My son shows the most promise in S & T of STEM. Technology = but more with hardware / networking. While we are well aware of Tech Institutes and colleges (PA College of Tech for one), he is still thinking like a kid ISO the stereotypical “college experience” including all the sports events, campus life etc that go with it. He knows deep down however that there is so much more to consider than that - cost, ROI, course offerings etc.
Another option, since he doesn’t want to be rural might be Hood College in Frederick Maryland. Frederick’s not a huge city but has an urban, not small-town feel and is only 50 miles from D.C/.Baltimore . Nearby Rockville has the Metro/subway into D.C. Hood’s very pretty campus is walking distance from Frederick’s downtown (which has had a renaissance of restaurants, shops, etc and is pretty vibrant. )
I think Hood is a nice regional LAC. Probably not a strong STEM school but has a business major. (What are your son’s interests, BTW???) A little more than 2000 students, a good bit more female than male, which could be to your son’s admissions advantage if he’s OK with that. Admission rate 79% but I don’t know average GPA’s, scores. Just something else to look into!
Also, Shenandoah University (4000 students) in Winchester, VA might be worth looking into, though I know less about it. I know that’s out of your targeted area, but it’s actually very near Maryland, so not too far out. A little less urban but still not in a tiny town and the downtown has some nice restaurants and shops.
Just to clarify, when I was suggesting applying early, it was for a REGULAR decision application, especially for schools with ROLLING admissions, like Penn State.
I totally understand the challenges, believe me. My older son was looking for a small, private LAC experience and had good scores all around, but he always excelled in math. He was ambivalent about science, in general, but I thought he should give engineering a look because the one thing he was sure about was that he didn’t want to HAVE to go to grad school after earning his bachelor’s. He ended up choosing between large flagship unis that have both engineering programs and good arts & sciences, so he’d have options. He never wanted a “techy” campus experience, so that eliminated a lot of really good schools, but he’s truly excelled in mechanical engineering and is really enjoying it.
My younger son would LOVE to attend the Pennsylvania Institute of Technology (“Penn College”), but it’s now under the Penn State umbrella and is priced accordingly. It does sound like it has a lot of that traditional college experience, so we may visit at some point. If ONLY he had stats as good as your son’s! 
https://www.pct.edu/
Check out this list too, which may give you some names you haven’t considered yet: http://www.findengineeringschools.org/Search/by_state.htm.
The key with engineering is ABET accreditation. Any school that has that will provide a very good education.