Hello
I’m a newbie here. My daughter loves Villanova but her less than stellar grades makes it far out of reach. We’re still going to “reach” for it but would love viable alternatives. She has a 3.2, a 2000 SAT, touch classes, and GREAT EC’s /volunteer work. She is also part minority - 1/2 Caucasian and the other 1/2 is Asian/Spanish.
People have directed me to both Loyola and Scranton. My daughter loved the vibe at Nova - she wants a medium size school (5000-10,000) with a beautiful campus (very important) and near a town/city with nice people and small-ish classes.
I know I’m posting in the Loyola forum but does Loyola fit the bill? For those who have considered/visited/attended Loyola or Scranton, which is more like Nova and which do you recommend visiting?
@jyyanks…All are great schools and are able to offer your daughter numerous opportunities. My son graduated from Loyola MD over a year ago and is doing very well. He was accepted to Villanova among others and chose Loyola. The merit money allowed him to graduate debt free with money for grad school if he chooses. The campus is beautiful and very easy to walk. You are in the city of Baltimore, so the Inner Harbor is about 15-20 minutes away. He was able the study abroad (most junior do), and be very involved in several clubs. He really loved his time there. His largest class at Loyola was 35 students with most of his classes averaging about 18 students. Loyola is a bit preppy like Villanova. Perhaps a bit less. I visited Scranton with both my son and daughter. Scranton Is a bit more relaxed than Loyola and even more so with Villanova. Scranton has a beautiful campus as well. It has more of a city feel, whereas Loyola feels suburban like Villanova.
I am partial to the Jesuit schools and believe your daughter has terrific choices with all three schools. The college search process can be challenging as well as an exciting time. Good luck to you and your daughter.
@funfatdaddy Thank you for your reply! Sounds exactly like what my daughter is looking for - beautiful campus, close to a city, small classes and a Nova feel. We are going to visit tomorrow. Hoping we can find other schools she likes since Nova is her reach. I’ve heard some comments about safety in Baltimore. Should I be concerned at all? Not sure where exactly the campus is located…
@jyyanks…Loyola is located in North Baltimore. (No tunnel if you are coming from the north.) The campus is called the Evergreen campus and does have a country club feel. Three sides of the campus are bordered by nice homes. Some are multi-million dollar homes located in quite affluent neighborhoods. The York Road area borders one side of campus and is rough. The Loyola campus is very safe and the crime statistics for Loyola are extremely low versus other colleges. There are websites that provide campus crime statistics. One would be surprised by the number of sexual assaults that take place on campus at some of the elite schools in the country. Like any school, one needs to practice good safety precautions such as always walking with others at night, avoiding certain neighborhoods altogether, taking cab rides back to campus instead of walking through sketchy neighborhoods, etc.
My son really loved Loyola. I hope all goes well with you and your daughter’s campus visit.
@funfatdaddy Thank you so much!! We went to visit today and I almost feel silly for asking the safety questions as the campus is in a gorgeous neighborhood!! Needless to say my daughter LOVED the school. Aside from the beauty of the campus, everyone we met was beyond friendly - going out of their way to show us around, tell us about the school, and overall made us feel so welcome. I think she will be very happy there if she gets accepted. Villanova is a reach but Loyola seems more interested in the “overall package”.My daughter may not have the best GPA but she has strong leadership skills, SAT scores & EC’s. I hope that’s enough to get her in. Nova is still her #1 but not that she has visited Loyola, she is second guessing. I can see why your son as happy at Loyola. Thank you so much for your help and insight.
@jyyanks We corresponded on another thread about this prior to your visit. I am so glad your daughter liked Loyola. My D is a sophomore and loving Loyola and Baltimore. As I mentioned before she picked Loyola over Villanova partly because of the nice scholarship they gave her. Your D being half minority also makes her eligible for their Claver Scholarship. We have been very happy with the school. My D has found her professors knowledgeable and accessible. Good luck with your search, your D is looking at some terrific schools!
In terms of the campus and setting, Loyola is definitely the closer comparison to Villanova. But overall I think Loyola and Scranton are comparable in terms of academics and opportunities. But still definitely apply to Villanova as she certainly stands a solid chance!