<p>Northstarmom and stacy – he checked out both Wesleyan and Emory. Neither offer more than a handful of courses in Buddhism and other than a study abroad program, they don’t offer much in Tibetan. I sent him the info – and it isn’t really what he is looking for.</p>
<p>As far as financial aid is concerned, I am trying to keep in mind all the possiblities out there. I know plenty of kids who were burned and I don’t want my son to be one (I have given out the advice not to apply ED if FA is a concern plenty of times myself).</p>
<p>I really think that ED to Columbia will work out as far as FA goes – their new program means no loans for anyone and lower parental contribution than before. We have run our EFC through several calculators (and estimated on the high side for income) and we can deal with the EFC (not happy about it – but we would do it). Our financial picture is absolutely straightforward – straight income, few assets, no business/farm, no unusual expenses, etc. On top of the school FA, he has the $10,000 Davis scholarship to use to pay for any work-study/student contribution required.</p>
<p>The FA at UVA, UM, & University of Chicago are much more variable – but he would be able to compare those packages.</p>
<p>Columbia is his first choice – and the admissions rates are better for those who apply ED, so that is why he wants to do ED to Columbia.</p>
<p>jonri – good thoughts about applying after the gap year. I will let him know --and make sure he understands that he should only apply to schools that are top picks for him this round, so he has good choices. I think it would be a huge hassle for him to apply during his gap year – he will be in Nepal or India, colleges in the US and the school he graduates in is in Wales. He will be best served by applying before the gap year in my mind.</p>
<p>University of Berkeley, University of Wisconsin, and University of Texas, Austin are all other schools that offer the type of programs he is looking for – but he took them off his list of 5 schools since the FA at those schools is so iffy for oos students and he can’t use his Davis Scholarship at any of those schools.</p>
<p>You might also consider some of the more unusual schools - Naropa University for instance, Hampshire College, Sarah Lawrence - to see if perhaps their unique approaches to curriculum might be workable.</p>
<p>carolyn – great info! he had considered Stanford, but it is hard to tell if the Tibetan studies program is going to get off the ground anytime soon. You idea of having him contact some people there sounds good.</p>
<p>Naropa is actually his safety – kind of. He is in-state at University of Colorado, Boulder and guaranteed admissions. UC Boulder allows religious study students to take courses in Tibetan Language (and some other courses) and get credit – some kind of shared faculty/curriculum thing.</p>
<p>Since UC Boulder has that program with Naropa, plus they offer a 5 year combined BA/MA in Religious Studies and it is in-state, his safety isn’t too bad. He would probably qualify for the honors program and some merit money, too. All his college credits are guaranteed to transfer to UC Boulder --so when he adds in his AP and IB credits, he would have more than a year of college under his belt before he starts.</p>
<p>University of California, Berkeley has Tibetan, including classical. I don’t know how the department of South East Asian Studies is today, but 20 years ago it was considered one of the best in the United States. </p>
<p>It’s a shame he isn’t UK based - there’s a degree in Tibetan and the Study of Religions, including a year abroad at Tibet University in Lhasa, at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London that sounds perfect for him!
[BA</a> Tibetan and … at SOAS](<a href=“http://www.soas.ac.uk/programmes/prog13993.php]BA”>http://www.soas.ac.uk/programmes/prog13993.php)
I’m just mentioning it because if he’s interested in study abroad at any point SOAS would be worth looking into.</p>
<p>thanks for the suggestions on UCSB, Cornell and Case Western – he had no idea they offered anything in the way of Tibetan. UCB would be on his list this year, but they don’t allow deferral for a gap year (and I think the FA for an OOS is not great).</p>
<p>I wish he could apply to UK schools – but with no FA, we just can’t foot the bill.</p>
<p>His school only allows kids to apply to 5 schools in the US (they can apply to 5 UK schools and other international schools, too). The rules are solid – no exceptions.</p>
<p>As far as his ACT/SAT score – while he would love to improve them, time constraints might not allow that. He is retaking the ACT this week, so we will see. His ACT still falls in the mid-range for all the schools on the list, so I don’t think it puts the school out of reach.</p>
<p>Columbia lists their mid-range ACT scores as 28-33
Harvard lists theirs as 31-34
UVA lists theirs as 26-31
UM lists theirs as 27-31
University of Chicago lists theirs as 28-33</p>
<p>It is the math scores that are bringing him down. His curriculum, grades, ECs are strong and he definitely shows a passion. Does he look like a possible candidate for the schools on his list? I know it is a crap shoot for all unhooked candidates – but is he a competitive applicant?</p>
<p>thanks – although a complete shut-out wouldn’t be a crushing blow, he knows the odd and he knows that costs will play a factor – he is hopeful that he gets in with sufficient aid to at least one school.</p>
<p>Have you looked into Macalester? The Minneapolis/St Paul area has the largest number of Tibetans after NYC. They don’t seem to offer the language but there may be a way to link up with the community. Macalester has FA specifically targeted to World College students.</p>
<p>I am surprised by his schools’s limit of 5 applications to US colleges per student. It seems like an unfair limit, especially for a student who needs financial aid.
There is a great private high school near us that had a very strict 6 college application limit until 2 years ago, when they finally caved to parental pressure after too many students were left with limited or unaffordable options. Then again, we are in California, where UC applications tend to add quickly to the total for most students (same application, just check more boxes and add more fees).</p>
<p>“His school only allows kids to apply to 5 schools in the US (they can apply to 5 UK schools and other international schools, too). The rules are solid – no exceptions.”
In view of fact that students today are faced with the most competative atmosphere in college admissions history, I STRONGLY suggest that you and other parents fight this overly restrictive policy tooth and nail. Parents should make an issue of how students at your HS are at a SERIOUS disavantage compared to others seniors, ESPECIALLY those in need of FA.</p>
<p>I think your list is fine, given the 5-application limit, his plan to take a gap year, and his willingness to wait to apply to his safety. It looks like he would have as good a chance as anyone at those colleges.</p>
<p>Tactics: He should apply to Michigan as early as possible, since it does rolling admissions, and it also seems to award merit scholarships very early. If he applies to Michigan in September, he will almost certainly hear by the beginning of December. Another value of applying early to Michigan is that if he is NOT accepted in the first wave of Michigan acceptances, and his ED and EA applications are deferred or rejected, that is a market signal, and you may want to rethink which schools you send your last two applications. (Hint: not Harvard.) Or you could use that to beg the school to let him file a couple extra applications (or better yet get them to agree in advance that if his early round is unsuccessful he can apply to more than two more schools).</p>
<p>I think the Columbia ED / Chicago EA pairing is a good idea. Either one could be a good fit for him; I think Columbia is better known for Tibetan. (If only because the daughter of Columbia’s top Tibetanist is better known than the entire University of Chicago faculty. Throughout all of its history. Nobel prizes and all.)</p>
<p>I’m not certain what UVa is doing on the list, unless you live in Virginia. It’s not urban, and it’s not particularly easy to get into from out of state, and I’ve never heard of the rich mix of cultures and creeds in Charlottesville (although I’m sure you can find some Buddhists there). But I don’t know anything about Tibetan or religious studies at UVa, so I could be completely off base.</p>
<p>Two more schools to consider, that may well meet his criteria: Toronto and McGill. They are fairly predictable in admissions, and easy to apply to. They are in diversity-rich urban environments, with diverse, international students, and I know Toronto at least has very broad language programs. Plus, maybe you can convince your school that, as Canadian universities, they shouldn’t count toward the 5-application limit. They do have some limited financial aid for U.S. students available (although that could be an issue).</p>
<p>I know the policy of only applying to 5 schools is very restrictive – but it won’t be changed. His school is outside of the US system – and parental input is zero (we don’t even get updates, report cards, nothing). </p>
<p>My understanding is that the policy is set so that everyone is “equal” and the richer kids don’t have an unfair advantage because they can pay for more applications. I know it doesn’t make sense – a few more applications on the front end can yield thousands of dollars of savings if you can compare more FA packages – but the school is unbending on their policy. </p>
<p>Since my son is planning on taking a gap year (and has been planning to take one for years) he just figures he will apply to his top 5 choices (as far as what they offer and how he “fits”) and see what happens. He can save schools that are not quite as good a fit, a little less selective or won’t defer (both his safety and UCB don’t defer) until after his gap year. It isn’t the best method – but the best way he could figure out within his constraints.</p>
<p>Overseas – he is very lucky to have the Davis Scholarship, the only problem he has encountered is that his interests (Tibetan and Tibetan Buddhism) are really only offered at limited schools. some of the best are state schools (University of Wisconsin, University of Michigan, University of California – Berkeley, University of Texas, Austin) that not only offer less aid to oos, they are also not part of the Davis Scholarship program.</p>