I agree with Trinity University - you really have to visit to see it for yourself. Another that we have visited that definitely should not be missed is Hendrix College.
But it also depends on what kind of “fit” you are looking for. Just finding the star Chemistry LACs is only a part of the total package.
If you are interested in understated or no Greek life - and you like warm weather - these two should not be missed.
Hendrix is under your 3000 student size criteria, by about half. There is no Greek life, 50% OOS students, generous merit, accepting, inclusive community.
Thank you Everyone for your suggestions and input. In addition to a very active strong chemistry department:
the college should be located in the northeast, midatlantic, greatlakes or plains.
My son loves cold weather and I don’t think he’d be happy spending 4 years in a warm climate.
Greek life should be absent or understated.
We’re not religious, but a school affiliated with a church is fine as long as aren’t evangelical
Diversity is important (we’ve lived, worked and studied abroad a few years)
Down to earth - middle of the road
It seems based on the responses … we may have hammered out a reasonable list?
St Norbert - safe
Juniata - safe
Univ of Minn - Morris - safe?
St Olaf - reach
Kalamazoo
Knox
Beloit
Gustavus Adolphus College
Wooster
Muhlenberg
Each has other strengths / weaknesses … I’d prefer he attend a bit larger school … but it’s not my life …
Muhlenberg has a new science center and is an excellent choice. I will warn you that Juniata and Ursinus get talked up because of the colleges that change lives but the facilities are no where near Muhlenberg or Scranton. Not even a fair comparison.
@ScaredNJDad Thank you for the tip about Muhlenberg. I was actually a bit skeptical about Juniata. I’m sure he’ll be admitted to a few of these, then we’ll dive into an even deeper level of research. Unfortunately, we can’t visit any of them. Grateful for the internet!
Since my last post my son has applied to the following LACs: College of Wooster (ED II & by far his top choice for chemistry and … so many other qualities), Earlham EA II (2nd for the science program and Quaker culture), Univ or Minn - Morris Rolling admit (2nd for science and links to Twin Cities ACCEPTED:-), +6 others. Why he bothered to apply to the others is no longer clear. All focus is on these 3. Wooster’s decision is due Feb 1st and Earlham’s Feb 15th. I’ll post results. He had very positive Skype interviews (citizens living abroad) with all of them. If Wooster admits him … celebration :-)!
Regarding his qualifications: He’s an IB Diploma candidate and extraordinarily hardworking. But due to dyslexia his final score will probably only be 33-35. I say only … only a little above average in an honors program …
Wooster is 8th in the nation for percentage of undergraduates who go on to get their PhD. It’s a fantastic chemistry department, and its strongest characteristic is the year-long senior research project which every student completes. Students at Wooster work one-on-one with a mentor who is a faculty member, and complete a project. For chemistry students, this experience is invaluable because they learn how to apply everything they’ve learned and create a design and follow through with it. Many students will continue with their project’s focus in a variety of different graduate school settings.
Wonderful News! My son was accepted EDII to Wooster. The financial aid package was very good, but not quite as much as we need, so I’ve requested a review and sent documentation. The FA Office has responded that they will review and reply with a decision before Feb 15th. In other words, quite soon.
He’s been accepted already to Univ of Minn - Morris, which is quite a bit less expensive, but all indications are that the FA package would be quite small since it’s public, which makes the net cost higher … ironically. Too bad.
That leaves Earlham as another option which he applied to EAII. We’ll hear from them quite soon … hopefully by the weekend. And they are known to provide, usually, sufficient aid to eligible students.
My son is studying all the information about Wooster and Earlham … again …
Update
After exhaustively reviewing all information about Wooster and Earlham, he has decided that he doesn’t want to attend Earlham. Of the dozens of colleges researched Wooster remains his top choice. When my son makes a decision … he sticks to it. “I want to study chemistry at Wooster. That’s final.”
Still waiting on FA review decision from Wooster. Should hear by Friday - I hope. A bit nervous …
I called Wooster this past Friday, but the review committee hadn’t been able to meet last week. Admissions agreed to extend the reply deadline to Feb 19th while waiting for the FA review committee’s final decision. How very considerate. I’m impressed with their flexibility. They are treating my son and his situation with kindness and respect. He’s not just ‘another prospect’.
Unfortunately, the revised FA package was still not enough to make enrollment sustainable. My son’s loan debt would be well above the national average, which is already too high.
He’s decided to enroll in Univ or Minn - Morris, which is also an excellent fit in many ways and according to calculations will result in loan debt significantly below the national average. Morris, as a part of the Univ of Minn system, offers other advantages.
I’m impressed with my son’s ability to be practical and resilient. Even though he was quite enamored with Wooster, he’s moved on to accept the financial realities without any negativity and is looking forward to attending Morris in the autumn.
This will be my last post on this thread unless anyone has questions.