<p>I would look at Chapman (but not film); U of San Diego (not UCSD); U of Redmonds, possibly Loyola Marymount. There are others, but that is ‘top of my head.’</p>
<p>Mfs47, those are wonderful schools, but I understood the folks on this thread have kids with GPA’s between 3.0 and 3.3. If so, then USD, Chapman and LMU are probably a stretch unless the 3.3 is accompanied by stellar test scores.</p>
<p>University of San Diego</p>
<p>54% had h.s. GPA of 3.75 and higher
26% had h.s. GPA between 3.5 and 3.74
15% had h.s. GPA between 3.25 and 3.49
5% had h.s. GPA between 3.0 and 3.24 </p>
<p>Chapman</p>
<p>45% had h.s. GPA of 3.75 and higher
21% had h.s. GPA between 3.5 and 3.74
16% had h.s. GPA between 3.25 and 3.49
10% had h.s. GPA between 3.0 and 3.24
7% had h.s. GPA between 2.5 and 2.99
1% had h.s. GPA between 2.0 and 2.49 </p>
<p>Loyola Marymount</p>
<p>43% had h.s. GPA of 3.75 and higher
27% had h.s. GPA between 3.5 and 3.74
19% had h.s. GPA between 3.25 and 3.49
8% had h.s. GPA between 3.0 and 3.24
3% had h.s. GPA between 2.5 and 2.99 </p>
<p>I too find this a very valuable thread. There are many other threads for the 3.5 and above students. There are even more for the crowd that thinks their kids will be complete failures if they don’t go to Harvard, Yale, Princeton, etc.</p>
<p>B student parents need a place to swap information as well. This thread is a great place to start.</p>
<p>Has anyone on this thread visited Hobart & William Smith in Geneva, NY? The more I read about it, the more it sounds like a good fit for my son. He plays the saxophone, the guitar, the harmonica and the organ. He really needs a school with a music program he can participate in, but not major in. I do note that Hobart’s financial aid statistics are not outstanding. I would guess the best thing to do would be apply & see what type of package he receives. </p>
<p>S has already stated his requirements would be Rural, New England, New York or PA.<br>
He probably will not apply to his sisters’ schools: UCONN, St. Lawrence, & Alfred.</p>
<p>We visited and my S2 will apply in the fall to Hobart. Beautiful, large campus, more similar kids (I thought) to St. Lawrence than to the kids at Alfred (we visited all three). I can’t speak to UCONN. I liked Hobart’s “attitude” of comradery amoung the students, the engagement that the students had in their school and community and the global focus - probably because of the college president. The administration and faculty also appeared visible and congenial. All three of these colleges I would feel quite comfortable sending my S2. He just prefers Hobart at this point. We’ll see when the fall arrives. I’m slightly leary of how much it will cost, coming from the midwest with S1 “out west”, I’m still trying to figure out what you get for the extra $20,000 per year in the east and I’m struggling to get a bead on how a B (unweighted) student would come out in the cost game.</p>
<p>Thanks, momofthreeboys, my son says he is not interested in his sister’s schools, but SLU gives a $2500/year Legacy Grant, not based on need or academics, for all 4 years. I have pointed out to S that 10K is really something to think about!</p>
<p>This school has had a good reputation for a long time. You should be aware (coming from the West) that the Winter there can be very snowy and that a lacrosse player died this semester in a tragic mixing alochol and pills incident at an off campus party. </p>
<p>The school is regarded in the East as laid back and friendly.</p>
<p>RE: yabey…For parents of first off to college kids, unfotunately alcohol is prevalent on most all college campuses and I would hazard a guess more of the social scene the more remote the campus is. Laid back and friendly is a good description for Hobart. For warmer clime parents, yes, there are sections of New York state, Vermont, NH and Maine that are as snowy as the upper midwest and mountain states. These same areas are gorgeous in the fall and beautiful in the spring and summer. If you like winter sports, then the snowy winters would be considered an attraction and not a detriment. I do think it’s smart to be aware of winter as that consumes most of the traditional school year and can also impact transportation to and fro…</p>
<p>Oh, we are not afraid of winter, we live in New England, my S loves winter! That is not anything that we are concerned about! I am from Northern New York so same for me. </p>
<p>The year when D applied to SLU, a student drowned due to an alcohol-related incident. These terrible tragedies always seem to be with us. If they would change the drinking age back to 18, it would all be out in the open. There is a movement on now by some college presidents to change the drinking age back to 18, as too much is done in secret.</p>
<p>I have crossed paths with quite a few people who went to Hobart & William Smith…all successful. So in my mind it has a great reputation. But it is expensive!!</p>
<p>Do not rule out Chapman if your student belongs on this thread but attends a strong, non-California high school and wants to enroll in a less popular major (ie, not film).</p>
<p>I don’t know if this is true all over the South or just a coincidence, but when I was college shopping with my older kids, I found that the Colleges from Virginia south were cheaper then the ones in the North. For instance, we thought that Susquehanna had about the same vibe as Elon but Elon has a sticker price of $35,000 and Susquehanna has one of $41,000. Only $6000 difference but that adds up to $24,000 over four years. I realize that both colleges are probably reaches for a low B student but they were examples of Colleges that we looked at.</p>
<p>We just had a not-so-professional experience with Susquehanna, my D submitted the Common App more than a month ahead of the deadline, with the teacher recs done as well. April 1st came and went, so I called: Her application was incomplete & they never told her! They were missing some mid year grades. Fortunately, she had already made her decision & just wasn’t that interested in attending Susquehanna.</p>
<p>Kathiep I think your correct to a great degree but Elon is an unfair compairison school.</p>
<p>Elon is a bargain by design. One of the schools core values is to keep tuition as low as possible for all students. I think they just think things out strategically and keep on making impressive decisions that increase the value of attending. Cost is just a part of value and quite frankly I’m much more impressed by the other moves they constantly make to increase the value of an Elon education.</p>
<p>Tuition - “The Elon Experience” - (4-1-4) semesters - Fellowship Programs - Heavy tenure track for Profs instead of using adjunct and grad students - adding new programs and talent to keep pace with a changing world example = “Interactive Media graduate program” - Making sure students have a LA base to grow from.</p>
<p>SLUMOM, I’ve heard from multiple admissions officials that it is the APPLICANT’s responsibility to ensure that their application is complete. More than one school has stated during their info session that students should make a brief phone call or email a couple of weeks after the application deadline to double-check that nothing is missing. If you don’t follow up, they assume you’re not that interested. They stressed to us that we should not wait until after April 1st to call and ask why we didn’t get a decision.</p>
<p>One college DS applied to (Colby) had an online checklist that showed what items they had received. After DS noticed that they weren’t showing his SAT scores, he called the college. It turned out they did have the scores but hadn’t linked them to his application due to a missing SS# or something else trivial. Had he not called them, they would not have called us. It was DS’s responsibility to ensure that his application was complete.</p>
<p>“I’m still trying to figure out what you get for the extra $20,000 per year in the east”…</p>
<p>momofthreeboys – You get a higher cost of living. And a little more post-contact history (except in the southwest). Hobart is a very good school. But certainly no better than Denison, Ohio Wesleyan, Earlham, Knox, etc. and etc.</p>
<p>Lafalum84, I failed to mention that she received a letter stating her application was complete & they were reviewing it.</p>
<p>Oh, well in that case… definitely Susquehanna’s bad, then!</p>
<p>I want to say something nice about Susquehanna. I found their admissions office to be excellent. They arranged for my son to meet the Dean of the Business School after his interview. How many schools do that? Also, after our son was admitted they had an fantastic accepted student’s day for the student and the parents. The parents were invited to a luncheon and they placed at least one professor at each table. The students talked about the school and they were allowed to be very candid. They talked about the pros and some cons. They did not hide anything. I was extremely impressed. As far as the finances, they came in the middle of the schools that my son applied to, which made them unaffordable for our family. Basically my son was offered a merit award and loans.</p>
<p>OK, so this is a little off topic, but I’m hoping that people on this thread can commiserate with me. Last night was the junior prom and after pictures some of the parents had dinner and of course the talk turned to colleges… One of the kids really wants to go to Georgetown but will also apply to Williams, Holy Cross etc. So what did I do, I mentioned the reach schools that the GC brought up… Oberlin, Skidmore, Bowdoin… I know that it is ridiculous and that no one was trying to “brag”. They just assume that since my son is a bright kid that we are all in the same boat… After all this I woke up a little depressed today!!!</p>
<p>Warrior, I know just how you feel.</p>
<p>We also had our prom last night, and two mothers actually came up to me to ask if we were looking at Ivys. Their kids are apparently always telling them how bright my son is. I’m surprised it has escaped their notice that my son is not making the dean’s list as they publish it in the newpaper! </p>
<p>All I said was that his grades are not Ivy quality. One mom said, “Really?” is a shocked tone. </p>
<p>Ugh…how am I going to feel when they find out where he is going to college!</p>