loaded title, but am looking at schools where my son could: 1) get in, 2) stay in, 3) graduate into employment! AND any further input on majors.
bright kid, dyslexic, has accommodations but no modifications, highly competitive public HS, not a great test taker, creative, wonder that engineering is too āin the boxā and exacting to be the major for him. Also looking at entrepreneurial type majorsā¦or even the basic business or economics. Husband feels it doesnāt matter where he goes, just get a degree in somethingā¦I on the other hand must mastermind this a bit and aim to make the best/better choice.
Schools? (we are in Texas) So far have applied to Baylor and U Arkansas. Cant get into UT or A&M with those numbers I fear, and think may not be able to hang in there.
No financial concerns, Thank God. Interest in Auburn, Colorado State, U Arizona (SALT program), U Washington, U Oregon. Only two years of language, could rule out Clemson.
Majorsā¦Any input on the above?
He is an eagle scout, 4 years varsity sport (crew), open to rowing in college at D2/3 or āgood club levelā. Employed since 13! Great essay about his intense interests and where they have taken himā¦how he learned how to learn, overcoming being in a special LD school to transfer and graduate from highly ranked public HS.
What Texas public schools does he have automatic admission to, and have his possible majors? Those may be a good place to start the list with safeties.
@nettiK4137
Have you considered Oklahoma State? We know a young man with similar stats as your son who is doing well there in engineering.
FYI, I have one at UT in engineering and one at Clemson, who just switched out of ME and into Packaging Science. You might check the stats of the engineering schools your son is looking at. It could be better to aim for a school where your sonās stats are closer to the average in order to increase his chances of success.
Good luck!
If test taking is an issue, an engineering major (even at a lower ranked state public) may not be the best fit. Business may be a better route - classes tend to have projects etc. Would your child be comfortable in large lecture classes, as most intro classes are at state public univs.? He may need to lessen the course load per semester than what is suggested in the course guides if he has LD, so that he has more time to spend with each course. Employers do look at college GPA (3.0 + ), so thatās another consideration.
You mentioned Baylor. What about Southern Methodist or Univ. of Dallas? And there are many UTās that are regional, and A&Mās as well - like @ucbalumnus suggests.
Hope College in Michigan has ABET and is small and nurturing. Mesa in Colorado is small and has engineering, Iām unsure about ABET accreditation. Montana State would work also I think. Utah has a decent program but I donāt know where your son fits stats-wise. The really ābig unisāā¦maybe would work with strong Disability office supports, but from watching my kidsā friends and my own son, the engineering programs are not very forgiving or nurturing. Iāve got a dyslexic junior in a Big 10 engineering program, but he started with higher GPA and higher ACT score from one of the ābest/better" high schools in the state so he always ran with the ābig dogsā academically. He also chose the uni with the "second bestā program of the unis on his particular list. My son is doing fine in his program, but the program calls for 15-18 credit hours per semester to finish in 4 and heās running 12-15 so is definitely on the 4.5 plan and he registered with the disabilities office so takes his mid-terms and exams in an alternative setting which suits him better than the big lecture halls.
You want your kid in a race he can win, especially if heās attempting engineering.
Iād have a preference for smaller schools with smaller enginerring programs over big state schools unless thereās a well defined program and support system like SALT at Arizona. Think Gonzaga or Santa Clara rather than UW or Oregon.
OK to try engineering so long as the school would also be a fit for something else if engineering doesnāt work out ā business, math, computers, etc. High attrition among aspiring engineers even without LDs.
I totally agree with this northwesty and for me it applies especially to career programs (nursing, engineering, teaching, etc.) and it required a āchange in thought and change of heartā for me as my son considered his options more selective and less selective than the uni he chose. For him there was no question he was going to be an engineerā¦for him it was where he would be successful. Sometimes our ākidsā really are smarter than we are.
A school that is a good fit academically is the University of Evansville. It is a campus of about 2700 undergrads in Evansville IN. It has a limited number of engineering disciplines. They offer a scholarship for Eagle Scouts unfortunately they have no Crew. They do have an awesome campus in Harlaxton England that many of the students study at for a semester.
FYI, the University of Oklahoma has plenty of engineering teams that are open to everyone. The rowing team recruits all students, and the entrepreneurial programs are open to all students, regardless of major. My roommate is an MIS major at OU, and I know a number of people involved with the Center for the Creation of Economic Wealth.
My daughter has LD and is a mechanical engineering student at Auburn. They are very good at providing accommodations and tutoring help. She chose Auburn because after visiting FSU and UF, the tour was all about whether you āfitā in their engineering programs, while Auburn told her on the tour, āEngineering is hard, but we will get you through it.ā They mean it. If he is serious about studying, he will graduate at Auburn.
I started out my undergrad career at the University of Evansville. My BIL and sister also graduated from there - my BIL with a degree in EE. There are lots of Engineering majors at U of E, it is well known in the region for that.
Itās really a small LAC that also has an Engineering school, around 2500-3000 studentsā¦ Itās a nice, small residential campus in one of the better residential areas of town.
People will tell your son heāll need a car - he wonāt. There are city buses that go by the campus.
I think you would be pleased by the tuition price (and your son may still get merit aid there) - but donāt be turned off by it, it is actually a good school! The area around southern Indiana is somewhat economically depressed, though, and I think thatās why they keep tuition prices low.
U of E, or other small schools like it, might be a good social and academic fit for your son if he would be easily overwhelmed by a bigger university. When I was there, I loved the professors and the administration - very attentive.
You might also look at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, or Edwardsville (the former is a more traditional campus). They both have engineering depts. SIU-C has a wide array of majors, from Liberal Arts to Sciences and Engineering, but there are only around 15k students. Your son would likely be accepted there.
Consider Missouri and Kansas public universities, too. Their flagships are not as selective as some statesā. Missouri State also gives in-state tuition to students applying with a 3.0. Southeast Missouri State recently sent us a brochure, and I think they have a similar deal - but I donāt know if those schools have Engineering or not. Overall, though, it doesnāt seem the MO and KS schools are overly selective.
Good luck to your son in his search, and with his applications!
DU (University of Denver) has strong support for LD students, a really helpful attitude across the board, a good business school, and an ABET accredited ME program. Itād be a good match for your son. Two-year live on campus requirement provides structure. Not so big that heād get lost, but big enough to provide opportunities for ECs, different majors, etc. Check it out.
We have a child with LDs at Auburn, higher grades and standardized scores than your child. Not in engineering. We have found the student disability office fabulous to work with. Your child has to be able to advocate for themselves, though. However, they have been great about meeting our kidās needs. We think AU is terrific.
University of Washington has become quite selective, and especially so for STEM applicants. My son was waitlisted in '14, as a non-impacted liberal arts student, with a 3.3-3.4 UW/4.0+W GPA, 31 ACT, 2060 SAT, terrific ECs, and a full IB curriculum (plus several additional APs). He was applying from out-of-state, but we were surprised that he wasnāt accepted.
I did a lot of research on this for my son who was considering engineering and there were three schools that were standouts:
Rochester Institute of Technology -- GREAT support. I was very impressed. Student didn't even need to be coded to access the support. At the time, the school was on the quarter system but I think that was changing. Look into that because classes on the quarter system move at a faster pace so that can be an issue for a kid with LDs.
Syracuse-- Solid engineering and support system in place. Probably the most socially attractive option for the students because of the big sports culture.
Alfred: Small program, LOTS of individual attention, very caring professors. downside: in the middle of nowhere
AND any further input on majors.