<p>Ok first off, I live in a really small town in MA, so some of these colleges you may not have even heard of but they are the ones I've got my list down to.</p>
<ol>
<li>Husson</li>
<li>Curry </li>
<li>Newbury</li>
<li>Suffolk</li>
<li>Anna Maria</li>
<li>Becker</li>
<li>Nichols</li>
<li>Southern New Hampshire</li>
<li>Dowling
10 Western New England</li>
<li>Johnson and Wales </li>
<li>Kean </li>
</ol>
<p>Honestly, my GPA is not the greatest, so that's why there's no Yales or NYUs on my list. I was just wondering if anybody had any experience with any of these colleges or knew any pros and cons for any of them?</p>
<p>I know I'm going to be applying to Newbury, Nichols, and Johnson and Wales because they all have free online applications (plus the fee to send my scores to them). And I'm not only applying to them because they're free, they were already on my list before I even knew they were free and I do like them as colleges and can see myself there.</p>
<p>Also if it helps, I really would like to live in a busy environment with a lot going on. Anna Maria and Becker are really small, but I think Anna Maria is a good safe school.</p>
<p>WNEC is a solid school from what I have heard. A friend of mine checked out Curry and she liked it. They have good support services for students who need them.</p>
<p>I’m an educator and I’ve heard some wonderful success stories from Keane State in Keane, NH. I’ve also heard some great success stories from Franklin Pierce and St. Anselm’s - NH schools which may be similar in admissions stats. All of these schools, from what I’ve heard, seem to pay particular attention to individual students. Curry College and Westfield State are schools in MA that also have great reputations. Best of luck with the process.</p>
<p>The S of a co-worker had a list similar to yours; he’s a freshman at Anna M and according to co-worker is loving it. They did over book the dorms though. Had three in a two and when one moved out they moved someone else in. Offered a slight break in fees to make up for it.</p>
<p>My neighbor goes to Suffolk and loves it. However, it is not for everyone. I agree with the previous recommendation of St. Anselm, I have heard good things from the kids that go there. Good luck in your process!</p>
<p>Keene State is a very nice school, Keene itself is a great college town for the students.
Keene is even bustling & has an active downtown in the summer season. As a family we do a lot of shopping in Keene, it is easy to get to Keene from Mass Line. </p>
<p>Anna Maria, I thought was in danger of closing as we had a relative there who recently graduated. So, look before you leap as they had some financial difficulties.</p>
<p>My D moved to PRovidence RI after graduating and shared a house that included students from Johnson and Wales and other colleges. </p>
<p>Providence is interesting because there are several schools there (Providence College, Brown University, Rhode Island School of Design, plus Johnson and Wales). Many students relate to PRovidence, not just their own campus, so the activities are out there in the community. (Example: look up “WaterFire” in that city). There’s lots of art, and some cafes if you are interested in exploring. </p>
<p>The downtown center of Providence is a government town (state capitol), while the East Side of Providence has a more college/neighborhood feel. To the west of the downtown/government area are more neighborhoods with lots of ethnic and working families, especially Italian and Portuguese and some Asian.</p>
<p>TO FIND the college feeling neighborhoods, walk around Thayer Street, also Waterman St (where it intersects with Hope). As I recall, Johnson and Wales campus is not quite in the center of student activity, but accessible by bus to all of it. Find out if you can live anywhere in the city and commute to the JW campus. Or if you live alongside the J/W campus, you can still spend all your entertainment time out in the City of Providence or on its East Side (over near Brown U and Rhode Island Sch of Design). Note: there’s a whole other place called “East Providence” which isn’t the same as the East Side of Providence. Oh well. </p>
<p>The city has good public transportation (bus) so owning a car isn’t an absolute necessity. In good weather people bike. It’s a compact little city so people walk to lots of activities. Providence is 45 minutes from Boston with good connections by train or bus, if you want to go to a much larger city for a concert or sports event. </p>
<p>If you are trying to move into a larger environment from a small town in Massachusetts, then Johnson and Wales in PRovidence might be a good medium-sized city to expand your horizons – if you like their program, that is!</p>
<p>I don’t know anything about J@W itself, am just saying my D enjoys living in Providence RI because it has a lot of student activity and is a medium-sized city with interesting things to do.</p>
<p>Friends teach at Dowling and Franklin Pierce. Neither has good things to say about their student bodies. And neither holds a PhD, which is not usually a good sign.</p>
<p>I teach at community college and do have a PhD.</p>
<p>One of my nieces went to Anna Maria and loved it. She is really bright and got a great scholarship and is now a music teacher in the Boston area.<br>
Another niece went to Becker. She loved that school as well.
Another niece went to SNHU for one semester. It was expensive for her, she realized that she would be very deeply in debt so she dropped out, worked for a while and is now back at a different college.</p>
<p>I second looking at Keene State and St A’s.</p>
<p>I’d steer clear of Johnson & Wales UNLESS the potential student is a highly motivated self starter. There is not a great deal of pride in the school among the students - despite the comparatively high costs of tuition - everyone knows the motto “if all else fails, try Johnson & Wales” - which sounds like a trivial negative, but actually matters in terms of feeling inspired to excel.
JWU students joke defensively about being the no-hopers (compared to Brown/RI art students) - which isn’t a great ethos.</p>
<p>From what I know of it, I would avoid Husson. There are many better choices in Maine, notably USM and UNE, not to mention SMCC. For a Massachusetts student, I would look at your state school choices first.</p>
<p>It sounds as if you might be interested in some particular vocational programs. Johnson & Wales is known for some, for example. Could you elaborate?</p>
<p>May not apply to you, but Curry College is supposed to have some of the best services for learning disabilities (dyslexia, ADHD, etc.) in the country.</p>
<p>My d is a Becker alum, and she chose it for a special niche major. They do not have a really broad spectrum curriculum, but they do a couple of programs very well. There are actually two campuses, one in Leicester, one in Worcester and you can live on either one, but most of your classes will be centered on one, depending on your major. The Leicester campus has
seen some new building in the past couple of years. Some of the housing on both campuses is actually converted old Victorian homes, with much of the original millwork intact. They’re arranged suite style, and it was a great option.</p>
<p>The food was “ok”, nothing special (Sodexho was the purveyor), and parking is an issue on the Worcester campus. Plenty of colleges in Worcester for cross mingling, although you can feel isolated at Leicester, but its a great setting if you like the quaint look. They run shuttle buses throughout the day and into the evening, or later for specific events.</p>
<p>D lived on each campus. She was a solid student, 3.6 ish gpa, just below top 10%, and was offered a nice scholarship, and earned an additional one while there. Staff, administration and faculty were always responsive and accessible. </p>
<p>I know this is late but it’s not worth attending JWU. If your looking for a student population who cares about academics, a school that has a lot of school pride amongst its students, etc. then JWU is not for you.</p>
<p>If you are refering to Dowling on Long Island - there is a large commuter population and that will effect social life, etc.</p>
<p>I do not know anyone who goes there at this moment. However, one of my daughter’s friends will be attending next year. She wanted to stay close to home and is going on a full-ride basketball scholarship - primary reasons for enrollment there.</p>