Parents forcing me to stay in NYC for college - NEED HELP!

Parents Forum
61

<p>

</p>

<p>Queens and NHC at queens offers </p>

<p>Psychology and neuroscience
biology and neuroscience</p>

<p>At MHC you could probably take classes at the grad center and study abroad on their dime.</p>

<p>If you are considering Pre-med, then Sophie Davis should definitely be on your list</p>

<p>Your college experience, no matter where you go is going to be what you make of it. You live in one of the largest most diverse cities in the world with plenty of opportunities to learn from other people if you took the time to do so.</p>

<p>If you are looking at grad/med school- gpa/test scores/research always matters first. Especially consider the fact that CUNY has had some major resources thrown its way, with a lot of upgrades to its campuses. I would also recommend you look up their research opportunities.</p>

<p>On the academic side, drop Honors environmental. IF you have completed bio, chem, physics, then consider AP chem, Ap physics if your school offers it or find out if your college now partner school offers a class that you can take. Put yourself on track to get an advanced regents diploma with Mastery in Math and science. Online course in consumer math is also not helping your cause. If you are doing an on line class, consider a higher level math, science, psychology or possibly looking at an intro to neuroscience class.</p>

<p>Advanced Regents Diploma with Mastery in Math and Science: The student must complete all course and exam requirements for the Advanced Regents diploma, score 85 or higher on three math Regents exams, and score 85 or higher on three science Regents exams. Note: students earning these diploma designations must complete all course and exam requirements for the Advanced Regents diploma, including 6 credits in a Language Other Than English (LOTE) and the LOTE exam. </p>

<p>Again, enroll in College Now- where you can get a start on the Psychology courses.</p>

62

<p>Med schools do not care about the name of the undergrad unless it truly is an inadequate school. CUNYs are FINE and many grads go on to med school. </p>

<p>BTW…ALL US MD schools are excellent. No need to focus on any particular one. Med schools aren’t like undergrad. Education at US MD SOMs is flat. They’re all excellent and it’s an honor to be accepted to ANY of them.</p>

63

<p>What are your test scores?</p>

64

<p>Congrats on you academic success. I second the recommendation of Barnard. It being an all-women’s college may appeal to your parents and it does have all women housing which maybe your parents will be OK with (… I do not know if they allow commuters).</p>

<p>The certainly are students following their Muslim faith at Barnard. My daughter just graduated from Barnard and had a great experience and the diversity and acceptance of the diversity was one of the best aspects of her experience.</p>

<p>Another thought, you may want to check local schools to see of they have theme housing … and maybe someone has an all women’s theme house in your religion … and maybe your parents would be OK with that.</p>

<p>Final thought. I’d suggest taking a long-term approach to dealing with your parents. Fighting with them will most likely not work … with time maybe you can persuade them. Understand their issues and develop answers to those issues. A couple you mentioned. </p>

<ul>
<li><p>At your parents income level some top schools … Columbia, Barnard, etc might actually cost your family less after financial aid than than other options that do not provide financial aid. They may be cheaper including living on campus … or be close enough that it can be cheaper for you parents if you pick up a student loan.</p></li>
<li><p>Figure out the social limitations about living on campus … would an all-women’s dorm be OK, and substance-free dorm be OK?, a religious theme house? etc</p></li>
<li><p>Finally, do your parents have adults they respect who have let their kids live on campus for college? Their siblings? Friends? Work colleagues? Someone at your place of worship? Can you find an adult to advocate for you?</p></li>
</ul>

<p>Good luck!</p>

65

<p>Do not hesitate to try for Questbridge if there is still time. You are certainly qualified. While it may be competitive, you get nothing for not trying.</p>

66

<p>Of course you have earned the right to have the best experience possible, but the fact is that you aren’t independent and if your father won’t give you his tax information unless you go to school in NYC then you have to make the best of that and Sybbie has given you amazing advice.</p>

67

<p>Every hear of David Bauer? First place in the Intel contest in high school. Goldwater Scholar.Truman Scholar. Rhodes Scholar. Alma mater? CCNY. [David</a> Bauer named a 2009 Rhodes Scholar. ? Science Division Forum](<a href=“Science Division Forum”>Science Division Forum)</p>

<p>You can succeed attending CUNY. I wish you the best in convincing your parents to go elsewhere, but if you end up at CUNY, you can still go on to a top grad school.</p>

68

<p>And you don’t need to major in neuroscience if the goal is medical school and neurology. You can major in philosophy or music or comparative literature and take the required courses for med school admissions and be a perfectly competitive applicant (all things being equal.) Agree that consumer math is a waste of time- you need to be taking a rigorous pre-calc/calc, chemistry and physics type of program.</p>

<p>If your parents are supporting of you staying in NYC, AND would allow you to dorm if the aid were good enough, then I’d suggest developing an admissions strategy that makes you a competitive admit for Fordham, Barnard, maybe NYU (not usually considered great with financial aid but for a low income student it might be worth an application) and Macauley Honors. There is nowhere that a top student from those schools couldn’t get to long term.</p>

<p>You are burning up a lot of psychic energy pining away for some colleges which in may ways, don’t offer what the NYC schools do. No knock on Lehigh- but I wouldn’t destroy my relationship with my family over an application there.</p>

<p>How are your scores, and where have kids with your profile from your HS gone???</p>

69

<p>

</p>

<p>NYU is really stingy with FA for low income students. And it hasn’t improved from what I keep hearing from recent NYU graduates or parents of college aged students there. </p>

<p>It was certainly the case when I was admitted when they gave me only around $8k in FA/scholarship/TAP to cover ~$31k worth of annual tuition in the mid-'90s. </p>

<p>This was a major reason why most low-income students from my NYC SHS turned them down for Ivies/peer colleges(They offered much better FA/scholarships even back then) or the better SUNY/CUNY colleges.</p>

<p>This applied even to those admitted to Stern. Most Stern admits ended up going to elite privates with better FA like Wharton or went to Baruch.</p>

<p>That’s not to say don’t apply. However, ask for a application waiver and don’t place too much hope you’ll beat the odds regarding getting great FA/scholarships out of NYU.</p>

<p>In fact, check to see if you’re eligible for application waivers all around. Your family income may make you eligible for that.</p>

70

<p>

</p>

<p>To be honest, my scores aren’t that impressive. It’s certainly not competent enough for top schools like Barnard or Columbia. It’s in the 1800s, just to give you a range. </p>

<p>My school isn’t the most competitive school in NYC, majority of the students are minorities and academic rigor for most students isn’t a top priority. However, I’m in the “honors class” it’s definitely rigorous but that’s only 32 students out of the rest of my grade. In previous years, there were students who were accepted to UPenn, Carleton, and a girl that graduated two years ago who had a half scholarship to NYU. Other then that, most students attend CUNYs and SUNYs.</p>

71

<p>

</p>

<p>My school allows students to take college now courses at John Jay. I took for the spring semester in Sociology 101 even though I applied for Psychology. I already self-studied for AP Psych sophomore year and I got a five but I want to take more advanced courses in neuro and psych. The thing is, college now doesn’t let us choose. It places students randomly based on the top three choices we put down. Is there any other way I can take psych or neuro classes at a CUNY, with or without college now?</p>

72

<p>Don’t be so sure about Barnard. You have a very interesting story to tell in your essay, and test scores aren’t everything. Also, have you tried taking the ACT? All colleges view it equal to the SAT and if you work fast, you could score much better on it than on the SAT. It’s not too late to check it out. Princeton Review gives mock ACTs and they will grade it too. You don’t have to sign up for expensive classes to check it out.</p>

73

<p>

</p>

<p>Actually, low income students who are admitted through HEOP is the exception to NYUs stingy financial aid as they will meet 100% demonstrated need. Because the student is within commuting distance, there will be no room and board in the financial aid package.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>I am very familiar with John Jay’s college now and I know Mr. Jean-Paul, the director. If you have received a B in your classes, then you can take waiver courses. You can take government and Economics (which you can use a dual enrollment) and get credit for high school credit. You will also need benefit from college now courses in anthropology, Art, ethnic studies and speech that are offered as Waiver courses (all, which are part of the liberal arts core that you will need no matter what college you attend). </p>

<p>The worse case scenario is even if your college does not give you credit (where many elite schools do not give credit taken as a high school student) it will give you a base to be successful when you take the class (which is to your advantage considering you said that you do not go to the “greatest” high school). This is the point where I do agree with Cobrat on, that there will even in the HEOP pool, students with students who have taken courses with more depth, breadth than your school, so college now can be a HUGE benefit to your being college ready.</p>

<p>It has also been my experience that there is not a student attending school (especially a NYC public school) that cannot benefit from taking English 101.</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>No, you can only take courses through college now. Even if you were allow to take a course as a non-matric student, you would have to pay out of pocket (another reason to take the $1000 course for free through college now).</p>

<p>Minimally, this can be your plan for the fall. Take advantage of the 5 in AP psych to request admission to a the next level psychology. You can benefit from the depth and breadth of a college course.</p>

<p>PM me your breakout on scores if you do not want to disclose. On face, you are a viable candidate for HEOP at Barnard and Columbia (ECs are a little light/non-descript) but you may also have an amazing story to tell. EOP at Barnard and columbia does include housing. If you could do this an snag a chase smart start scholarship you would have a free ride as it can be used at the following schools:</p>

<p>Barnard College
Baruch College
Brooklyn College
City College
Columbia University
Fordham University (Lincoln Center campus, Rosehill campus)
Long Island University (Brooklyn campus)
New York University
Pace University (Manhattan campus)
Polytechnic Institute of New York University
St. Francis College
St. John’s University</p>

<p>(Pace, St. Johns, St Francis no longer have HEOP, but the other privates should certainly be on your list).</p>

74

<p>

</p>

<p>This is certainly the conventional wisdom on CC and probably true. </p>

<p>However, I met a bartender at a concert recently whose son is attending NYU on a full need scholarship. The school district he comes from is nothing special at all, but apparently this kid caught the eye of NYU admissions enough for them to throw everything they have at him. I didn’t ask for details from her but I did say that I thought her son must be quite special because NYU isn’t known for giving much help :)</p>

75

<p>

</p>

<p>Wouldn’t Barnard immediately cut me off the admissions list as soon as they see my scores? I know that top schools have a certain cut off for SAT scores and wouldn’t bother looking at the application at all if the cut off isn’t met. I’m not sure if my scores meet the cut off or not but I know some Barnard students and almost all of them have 2200+. </p>

<p>If you’re referring to my story about my parents restrictions on me, I’m not sure if admissions counselors would enjoy reading that. I don’t want them to think, “Oh, just another ungrateful kid complaining about her parents. Next.”</p>

76

<p>You will apply to Barnard through HEOP.</p>

<p>[Arthur</a> O. Eve HEOP Scholars Program (NYS Residents Only) | Barnard College](<a href=“http://barnard.edu/admissions/apply/higher-ed-opportunity-programs/heop]Arthur”>http://barnard.edu/admissions/apply/higher-ed-opportunity-programs/heop)</p>

<p>Your job will be to spin your essay so it does not sound like woe is me or just another ungrateful kid.</p>

77

<p>

</p>

<p>

</p>

<p>No and no. Read the first message in this thread:
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-essays/1526461-pitfalls-traps-new-common-application-essay.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-essays/1526461-pitfalls-traps-new-common-application-essay.html&lt;/a&gt;
as well as others in the college essay forum.</p>

78

<p>

</p>

<p>Tell me more about this “NYU bureaucratic shuffle.”</p>

79

<p>Sadia, I don’t think the alleged bureacratic shuffle at NYU should be a decision factor for you at all at this point. There are tens of thousands of happy recent NYU grads; the majority of whom made it out after four years with a college degree in the discipline of their choice. Right now, given your constraints (or possible constraints) I think you need to keep an open mind about any college which will meet your parents criteria AND might accept you/be affordable.</p>

<p>Cobrat- really. This kid is going to start taking schools off her (short) NYC list for these kinds of reasons??? For every horror story you’ve heard, the posters hear can counter with a happy and successful NYU grad (where is SoozieVT when we need her?), many of whom got generous aid (as I recall, Soozie’s D got both merit and need based aid.)</p>

80

<p>OP- I repeat, you do not have the luxury of taking ANY school which meets your parents criteria off your list right now. Unless you will be happy heading off to Baruch (nothing wrong with it) with zero other options, you need to be exploring a wide range of other colleges. You have many unknowns- whether your parents will allow you to dorm in NYC, how much financial aid you will get; how much outside money or merit aid you will get; whether you can take your scores up enough in the next few months to make a broader range of schools realistic options for you.</p>

<p>Don’t let a strangers story on the internet of some lost documents or a billing mishap scare you now. And guess what- when you get a bill which you’ve already paid, or get billed for tuition when you’ve got a full ride merit scholarship, you pick up the phone or walk into the bursar’s office and you straighten it out. They don’t send you to jail and they don’t revoke your degree without giving you ample opportunities to straighten out the bureaucratic shuffle.</p>

<p>Cobrat- take a chill pill.</p>