I appreciate this. I was raised in CA but we don’t reside there now. I appreciate you and others who have given me a different perspective on USC. There are a lot of great kids and families at Tufts. I don’t want to turn others off. he has hasn’t found his people - yet.
Looking at your handle - Berkely? I think that may be at the top of his list. But I wonder if a transfer followed by another transfer would hurt his chances of admission.
Thank you for this perspective. I appreciate it! I think the neighborhood stereotype is when people compare USC to UCLA!
Thank you for sharing.
Oooh Preppy is not his thing. I think he would need to visit and reach out to people we know there. Thanks for that insight.
He is not keen on schools in the south, but Emory and Vanderbilt both might be worth a look. Thank you
Everyone I know who’s has a kid at BC has said the same thing. It clearly is a great place. He is not keen on the idea of a religious school. But it might be worth a tour. Thanks for putting this back on my radar.
Hey now! If a platform discussing higher education isn’t a place where a person can be open to changing their perspective, we are all doomed! I actually thanked several people kind enough to post information about USC that gave me reason to pause. I’m here to learn from others and I have expressed gratitude for the very generous and thoughtful responses.
This may be the same at any school. May be first year thing or some just have a harder time connecting period. A change of school won’t necessarily correct that.
It might of course - you said it seemed not typical. But maybe it is…hopefully it is….
The TO thing could be an issue, depending on the schools chosen. Some are TO but 80%+ submit. Tufts isn’t one of those.
You should let him transfer to a school where he will be happy. I made that mistake many years ago and always regretted that I didn’t leave. There will be other top schools that will accept him as a transfer. Overall happiness and college experience is more important than a higher ranked school. He will still get into le school with good grades and a high LSAT
The is interesting. D22 is a sophomore at USC and I don’t remember her having to input our family income as part of her application. And I know we haven’t supplied that info to the school since she started. I wonder where they’re getting this information?
I didn’t realize so many students submitted even when optional. He’s a very good writer so I suspect that and his LORs are what got him in. It’s so hard to know what AOs are looking for and the transfer situation is totally new to us!
And I agree that a change of school may not correct the issues. It’s really disappointing. I know he’s my kid but he is so fun, and funny and kind and engaging. Things should not be so hard for anyone. But especially for someone who is trying so hard and always being kind to others. Thank you for the words of encouragement
100% want him to be happy. That’s it. He is happy when he is academically engaged. But he really needs social engagement too!
So sorry to learn of your experience. But I appreciate you sharing
Likely federal docs - FAFSA.
btw I should note the top 25 are accurate per several lists.
It looks like 26-28 are not accurate. They had higher #s. Someone specifically pulled those three schools. When I pasted they must have just went into the same numbering system. You can see income wise how much less they are.
Tufts is known as a rich kids school. Need aware will do that. The reality is - while students there are accomplished, they’re able to pick which to take - hence the wealth status. This is one where a good CSS gives you better odds.
@KarenKaren the good news is - he’s not alone - even at Tufts - in these feelings. Both my kids struggled first semester. It’s very common. Is there a professor or counselor he can speak with ? Has he joined any clubs ?
Are there other colleges to which he was admitted as a frosh, which he declined? Those might be worth another look
Where are you getting this assertion from? Data to support this?
Spot-checking it, it seems like that datapoint above a baseline level is probably a better proxy for broader distribution of merit aid.
We never filled out a FAFSA. Many others did not either. So I’m wondering really how accurate this list is?
You mentioned that he was looking at the UCs which is why people are suggesting other CA schools. Does he want to go to CA? On the flip side of a smaller LAC, the UCs can be big and anonymous. Is that what he is looking for?
Don’t know …but there’s similar studies all over. It’s like job data people use from the feds often includes only loan takers.
Of 3664 first year at USC 2554 applied for aid. Not sure how athletes play in the #. USC said 1826 had need.
Tufts had 1707 first year. 911 applied. 684 were determined to have need. And they don’t have merit so it’s a lot of full pay. It’s a business as are all colleges and they look to maximize revenues.
I was concerned about big and anonymous. But I don’t think that is a concern for him, especially with the benefit of hindsight. I thought an LAC would be ideal. Perhaps it still might be? But at the moment UCLA, or UCB top his list with UCSD also being in the running
People are also mentioning CA presumably because I shared that I grew up there. But we do not reside there now.
What is he studying? What is it about these schools that appeal to him?
Hmm… maybe it’s more of an estimation? If it’s the median based on only students who have filled out FAFSA then I’m guessing the actual median income is much higher (assuming those that do not fill out FAFSA are high income families who do not need financial aid or don’t think they have any chance of qualifying).
Anyway, for accuracy purposes the publishers of this list should specify that it is the median family income of students who submitted a FAFSA, not the entire student body.