Hi @shortysmom - students had until today to RSVP, so they should be taking standbys shortly.
I understand this is a tough process to go through. I am ready for all of this to be settled.
I am sure if your daughter was a highlighted applicant, she will have a lot of great choices, maybe even Olin. Keep us posted!
Daughter picked her college a few years ago (not Olin) . We always thought it was bizarre how competitive it was/is to get into CW but without a doubt its the best process out there. We are so glad that we went and we learned so much. It takes a lot of guts to commit to a small (tiny) school like Olin and Candidates weekend gives you a chance to get to know the school and the people. We thought the staff, the teachers, and the students where amazing. There was an energy that we didn’t see at any other school. Daughter would have been one of the Gap Year kids if she went but in the end she decided on a larger Ivy. I notice that she thinks about Olin all the time, She doesn’t follow MIT or Harvey Mudd but does follow Olin, Candidates Weekend gave her that strong connection. She even made friends at Candidates Weekend that she still keeps in touch with. Olin is a special place, I wish you good luck as you decide where to go… but if you get the chance …100% without any doubt go to Candidates Weekend. It teaches ( or showcases) the concepts regarding “fit”, passion, people, commitment … we didn’t see that anywhere else.
I’m interested in Olin for my son but…looks pretty competitive. He’ll hold his own with 35 ACT and a likely similar SAT and National Merit SemiFinalist status but 3.6 unweighted GPA likely problematic. He has his own cool passions and interests and all the candidates will. Here’s my question: what are OTHER hands on, colleges you’re considering that have similar campus culture? We seek small classes, small student:faculty ratio, experiential learning and great teamwork based problem solving. So if not Oiln, where? We are looking at Harvey Mudd, Rose Hulman, Carnegie Mellon, Case Western, and Georgia Tech…would love to identify some more schools we’ve not encountered that feel more like Olin and Harvey Mudd…your help is a blessing. PS Small class size experiential software/computer science environments would also be great recommendation!
RedbirdDad, perhaps you are familiar with https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Association_of_Independent_Technological_Universities Except for Georgia Tech all the schools you mention are members. You could not go wrong with any of the current members of this association. I’m biased but for the qualities you listed Olin is tops.
That is an interesting list jeffgordon. We looked at Webb Institute for my youngest child. That is a very interesting place. Very small (total school is 85-ish students) and only 2 marine/nautical related majors, but very interesting and they do full-tuition scholarships and have a 100% job placement rate if their program is of interest to someone. My oldest just graduated from Rochester Institute of Technology with his BS (2 years ago) and his MS and is now working in his field. RIT is known for their co-op work experience program. All three of my children really liked Clarkson University, especially when considered with their honors program. They have a very integral program of SPEED teams such as robotics, solar snow mobile, mini-baja, etc. They have more of those teams/programs than any school we looked at. None of those are Olin which is very unique and special, where my middle child attends, but they are all worth considering.
@jeffgordon thanks for sharing that list.
@RedbirdDad I recommend having your student sit in on classes in the schools you are really interested in. It makes a huge difference to see how the students react to the teachers, each other, and how interested they are in the program. For my son it was absolutely make or break for some schools. 2 schools on my son’s short list were eliminated after sitting in on classes, meeting some of the students, and talking to professors.
Olin is a one of kind place. As I understand it, something like 20+ students are taking a gap year this year so that will leave roughly 60+ spots for next year’s freshman class. I can only imagine the caliber of student that they turn away.
We are also having trouble finding comparable schools. Its going to be an interesting ride. Best of luck to you.
@RedbirdDad My daughter will be attending Olin in the fall. Some other schools that she applied to that seemed similar to Olin (in some ways, not all) were Harvey Mudd, Case Western, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Cal Poly SLO, and Lafayette College. Rose Hulman was one she considered, but ultimately didn’t like the M/F ratio there. Harvey Mudd is probably the closest match to Olin.
@mom2twotallgirls can you tell us what your daughter liked about Case Western, Cal Poly, and WPI? What made her choose Olin over Harvey Mudd and the others? My daughter is looking for places to apply and is having a hard time finding places that ‘feel good’. Thanks in advance for your help.
Sure @MuggleMom. My D was very deliberate in her college application/selection process. She applied to 8 schools and was extremely grateful and overwhelmed to be accepted to all of them. She is a FIRST robotics kid and also works hard at Technical Theater. She knew that she wanted hands on, project-based learning right away. But she also wanted a program that would not just allow but value a liberal arts education as well. She also wanted a school with a pretty even M/F ratio. Harvey Mudd was her inspiration, and she found out about Olin researching HMC. She looked at Rice, but decided Case Western’s Thinkbox was better than their Design Kitchen. (I really wanted her to like Rice - I thought it was a great option!) She looked at RPI, but preferred WPI’s location and interesting trimester system with opportunities to study abroad, and it also had slightly more female students. Cal Poly’s “learn by doing” approach, great reputation, and location also appealed. She visited Carnegie Mellon and didn’t care for it - too hard to combine engineering with other things. Lafayette’s small size and liberal arts setting with a large engineering dept was also a great combination. UT Dallas was also on the list as she would have gotten a full ride there and their engineering dept is strong. She also looked at ASU Barrett and Alabama, but decided pretty early on those schools were too big and not hands on enough. She applied to MIT and got in, a shock. She got great merit aid from Lafayette, Case Western and WPI. She visited Harvey Mudd and MIT again and confirmed that MIT was not a good fit. It was hard to say no to HMC, but she ultimately decided the course load was too much. Olin came out on top because of the community she felt during CW, the amazing curriculum, the opportunity to be in partnership with other students and faculty, and cost.