<p>Could be changing times, in order to get more applicants as well, make it free and make it easier! I think for us (Class of 2003, Class of 2005, Class of 2009) that more & more schools were on the Common App & more Priority Applications came into the house via snail mail. A couple of schools did say this time around they were waiving the fee due to the bad economic times, but only waiving it if you applied online.</p>
<p>I have two questions about those priority apps. </p>
<ol>
<li><p>Do you have to send in the paper app, or do they send you a code to may your on-line app. priority? </p></li>
<li><p>Is it easy to tell what a priority app. looks like? We got an app. in the mail (from a school my son is not interested in) with some language about applying early…but it didn’t specifically say it was a priority app.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Well, I can tell you that my son has received one of these already. He had a choice of completing a paper app. (included in the mailing), or he was allowed to apply online.</p>
<p>Oh, it did not say “priority application” (at least I do not recall that it stated this). It did say notification by the end of September (if the file is complete on time), and waived the application fee. Transcript, completed app, sat/act scores were required. Essay was optional, and recs were optional. Deadline was July 15th.</p>
<p>Son got another application that was a paper one. It was a regular application with application fee waiver stamped on it. He received that application after touring campus and interviewing. The admisisons counselor told him that if transcript, and sat/act scores are in on time, he would have a decision after 9/15. No essay or recs required for that application either.</p>
<p>RTR, I would say the Priority Apps my D received were from schools where she was on their mailing list. In other words, she showed interest by requesting info from them online. These were all private schools & usually came in a large envelope with “Priority” in large letters & boasted about no fee, no teacher recommendations etc. and you would be notified early (way before April 1st) Usually they gave her an ID & password to do the application online at school’s website.</p>
<p>Taking my S to visit Hobart & William Smith in August. School starts August 31st for him, maybe by then he will have visited 3 colleges. No essays started of course! 
</p>
<p>Hobart and William Smith is gorgeous. D just fell in love with the campus.</p>
<p>We just visited Goucher yesterday and our son is head over heels. We were pretty impressed too. Gorgeous campus, nice arts facilities, and just a pleasant vibe all around. The tour guide was excellent and made a very good impression, and the info session was more informative and less of a sales pitch than the other one that we’ve seen so far. </p>
<p>Today, GWU…</p>
<p>nightchef, a friend of mine teaches at Goucher and likes that the student body does not fit any stereotype.</p>
<p>Goucher is the top choice (and a reach) for our son right now. We were there last spring and the vibe was nice. It’s diverse (at least culturally) and welcoming. The tour was just so-so, but you all know how that is. So much depends on the tour guide. </p>
<p>I want to second the thumbs up on the info session. It was the only one we’ve seen that featured a professor talking about academics. He was there the entire time and was very helpful. </p>
<p>Dorms were a little run down (mice), but that’s not something our son even sees. Goucher also has substance free housing choices. </p>
<p>A really nice plus is location. This is one of the few small LACs essentially in a metro area, and the Amtrak access is the icing on the cake for us.</p>
<p>Edit: Our GC tells us that the stats at Goucher are somewhat deceiving. They are trying to move up the food chain and it’s somewhat harder to get into than the numbers might suggest.</p>
<p>Three of my sons’ friends have attended Goucher and all have loved it. One is now in med school, one is a senior and one is a sophomore. The rising soph had a fabulous internsip w/pay in DC this summer</p>
<p>The summer is going so fast hard to believe the kids will be deep into apps right around the corner. S2 has five “going to apply for sures” one of which is Hobart, which I loved. I think that’s all he is going to do although we’re going to visit Lake Forest this fall as it’s “close to home” and somewhat “Hobart-ee” so we’ll see what comes of that. So far one big reach, two big safeties and two matches. I’m Ok with it and it will be a relief when all is said and done as it was with S1.</p>
<p>Ok, we’re back from a long break (from this thread). Now, its down to the business of helping S start college apps. He’s finally thinking about this seriously and I’m finally seeing the liaght at the end of the tunnel. He has good friends who are great students and looking at competitive schools. Has anyone started filling out the common app? I know I’ve read info on it somewhere and it may have been here. Will one generic essay suffice or should S write one specific to his target schools? Just starting the process and have lots of questions!!!</p>
<p>We saw George Washington yesterday. Very interesting contrast with Goucher; in fact it’s hard to imagine two more different schools. Where Goucher is relaxed and bucolic, GWU is very high-rev (as our tour guide, himself a live wire, told us, “if you’re not a caffeine addict when you get here, you will be before you leave”). Lots of energy in the air, even on a hot summer day. </p>
<p>Our son didn’t have the same I-heart-this-place reaction that he did to Goucher, but liked the curriculum, internship opportunities and facilities and thought the urban campus was kind of cool (he’s a city kid). None of us much liked the Mt. Vernon campus. It felt very suburban, and not in a good way. But it sounds like you wouldn’t need to spend much time there unless you wanted to.</p>
<p>Nightchef, I have heard GW has a surprisingly low % of incoming freshmen graduate; was this discussed?
I also get the sense they want a GPA above 3.5</p>
<p>Has anyone here considered the University of Pittsburgh?</p>
<p>Re: George Washington…the average GPA (weighted) admitted from our school was a 3.75.</p>
<p>So I think that one of my son’s favorites would qualify as a safety. According to College Board 45% of the students have a lower GPA, their average GPA is a 3.1, (son has a 3.13) and his ACT is way above their average score. This sounds like a safe bet to me. (I know there are no guarantees) but what does everyone think.</p>
<p>Also, do you worry at all that if your underachiever ends up at a safety that they won’t be challenged…</p>
<p>A friend went to Pitt. It has solid academics; a low price because it is a state school; a diverse student body; lots of offerings; and big time sports. It is a very urban environment and a very large school.</p>
<p>Warriorboy,
Your safety analysis seems solid to me. By the way, if you are seeing Muhlenberg, Moravian, which might be a good safety, is very nearby.
Albright is another safety to consider, although I was surprised that their 4 year graduation rate was lower than 70% (Moravian is 80%).</p>
<p>Regarding the lack of challenge at a safety, I think that depends very much on the particular school (and sometimes the major)–some schools with relatively easy acceptance push kids pretty hard (and remember honors offerings are available), while some more selective schools have reputations that getting in is much harder than getting out, with lots of parties in between.</p>
<p>A safety, IMHO, is when your students stats are way above the average stats. A match is when your student’s is the same or slightly higher then the average accepted student gpa. </p>
<p>I understand your concern about having your child not being challenged but that hasn’t happened to my kids. My daughter and son had similar GPA’s starting college and went to colleges that were pretty much matches. My daughter said her first semester that she had no idea how hard she had to work or how hard she COULD work. She was very much stretched but graduated with highest honors in her double majors.</p>
<p>MY oldest son, OTOH, has also learned how to work hard but is still getting B’s. He has been very challenged at a college that looked not that hard on paper. The motivation has to come from the kids. I think most of the colleges that you’ve been looking at will be challenging for your son.</p>
<p>yabeyabe, I haven’t seen Pitt, but someone told me that the environment wasn’t really “urban” because it’s “not really in the city”. I have no idea what this means, as I know it <em>is</em> in the city? Any idea?</p>