This is going to happen at almost any school… he needs to know that there will be students like him who aren’t interested. He just needs to find them - look for clubs or via study groups.
Clarkson is definitely rural, so keep it on your list for now. It can always be cut later.
Your guy is competitive for top scholarships. That doesn’t mean he’ll get one, of course, but he has First Gen and strong stats going for him.
It’s not small, nor an LAC, but I’d try U Rochester to see if he could get a strong scholarship. Pitt is another possibility - larger than URoc, so might not interest him.
I really appreciate all your comments because at this point, I am so ready to advise him to just apply to a couple of safeties.
I also have no idea what the difference is between the Alabama campuses. Also, are most safeties no essays required? How do students find the time to do all the apps?
Tell him to count on the safeties, then just wait and see on the others. He doesn’t need to apply to anything he likes less than his safeties - but for a comparison, U Rochester and Pitt came in less for us than U Alabama. That does NOT happen for all, but it can, which is why he can find some he likes to try for.
Finding a small, rural school where drinking isn’t prevalent could be tough. And yes, drinking is one aspect of social life at Clarkson. Having said that, my youngest son is a sophomore at Clarkson who doesn’t drink at all and seems to be thriving. He is heavily involved in several club sports and says he is often offered alcohol, but that when he says no thanks, that is the end of it. And Clarkson gives fantastic merit aid so you may get to the $25K mark.
Creekland, when you say competitive for top scholarships, are you referring to ones that require a separate application? The reason why we haven’t seriously considered those is because of the lower GPA. I imagine most kids applying to these are 4.0 or close to it.
WIll look into Rochester, but I seem to remember it being on top 20. Seems like a reach?
Oregon State gives WUE to only the top 10%ish of applicants, but it is discretionary and I think he should still give it a shot.
My D22 and several other out of state applicants we know all fell in love with Oregon Stare because it feels much smaller and more personal and structured than other schools its size. I think its Honors College could be a good fit and would keep it on the list.
I think both Whitman and Willamette would also like him. I think Whitman in particular would be a good fit for him, but might be too expensive— I doubt they will get low enough. Willamette could get closer, but won’t have the same rural feel that he would prefer, I am guessing.
University of Alabama is in Tuscaloosa. It is the main public university in Alabama. University of Alabama-Huntsville is in Huntsville, it was created after WWII to provide educational opportunities to Werner von Braun’s staff. UAH is very STEM focused and tied to the local aerospace community in and around Huntsville (NASA and, I believe, the Redstone Arsenal). UAH is more of a commuter school but lacks the big time sports atmosphere of Alabama (but then, most non-SEC schools do). Both have clear, defined merit scholarships.
Some schools have separate applications for top scholarships, but many (like UR) just consider students based upon their app (or at least they did when my guy applied). Pitt uses the regular app too.
UR is Top 30 and tends to be easier to get into than other top schools because not as many want to go to Rochester, NY - or at least that’s what I’ve heard. My guy almost didn’t apply for that reason too. He calls it his “Best Decision I Almost Didn’t Make.” They do get snow there, but my guy never had problems and told me it makes it easier to study. They also have tunnels to get from some buildings to others.
RIT is right down the road and loved by CS and Engineering students too, but I’m not sure how high their merit awards can go. It could be worth checking into. If you end up visiting one it’s not hard to visit the other. They’re a short car ride away from each other (10 minutes?). U Roc is about 15 minutes from Rochester’s (NY) airport.
https://www.wiche.edu/tuition-savings/wue/wue-savings-finder/ can help you find western region state universities which offer 1.5 times in-state tuition. These are generally the less popular / less selective ones that have space available to offer at a discount off of the usual out-of-state tuition.
You obviously have UNR and UNLV at in-state prices.
I’ve come across Whitman and Willamette when researching, but is there a good way to find more info on the strength of CS and engineering programs? I’m looking at the typical ranking sites, along with the Fiske guide, but these two are example of colleges that would not have come across my radar. Will look into those, including Oregon State. I heard Clarks College is good, but I think that is U of Oregon. Thank you!