@“Queen’s Mom”, great choices. Eckerd is noted for their Writers in Paradise series every January. They have an award winning student newspaper. They have a rich visiting writers program throughout the year as part of the Presidential Series events. Faculty is broad: ttps://www.eckerd.edu/creative-writing/faculty/
https://www.eckerd.edu/creative-writing/
Students are required to have at least 1 internship in their field, (there is 1 dedicated staff member in Career Services for internships).
We are still waiting for decisions from 3 other schools. I don’t know how their answers and financial aid will affect the decision. I guess we are still in limbo. I have to start discussing finances in depth with her this weekend. Yes, Ithaca is doable, but I have another child in school at the same time. I am trying not to make finances a deciding factor, but I think they need to be a very important factor none-the-less. As a complete aside and vent: why do schools insist on packaging loans as “financial aid”? I to sit her down today and explain that the loans and work-study are not actually financial aid in any meaningful sense.
OK, another issue, the Ithaca program is a BFA, which for some reason makes me uncomfortable, and she’ll need to make a 3.0 to keep her merit scholarship, which makes me nervous. My college freshman did not make a 3.0 her first semester (anxiety and adjustment issues). I don’t want that hanging over her head. Eckerd is a BA program, which in my mind translates to a “real” college degree and only requires a 2.0. If she can’t make a 2.0, we’ll have bigger problems. LOL.
I really want to thank all the supportive parents on this thread. All your advice is greatly appreciated.
For those of you who know Colorado State University well, any information on the good/bad of the Honors College? Son received an application . Any knowledge about how easily engineering majors can work the honors curriculum into their course work schedule? Any info. appreciated!
Still waiting here for 5 schools!! So far we have Beloit, Kalamazoo and College of Wooster with financial aid and merit. Beloit just threw us $1000 more in scholarship for the study abroad one which is the lowest they give for that. Including work study and loans, this still puts Beloit out of reach. Kalamazoo came back with a strange revision - they gave us $2000 less in need based aid. The strange thing is that they did not require any other documents except FAFSA so nothing changed. I don’t think that was based on grades but I may be wrong. Everything else remains the same. The loans are a bit too much. We wanted no more than $5000 per year in loans and that is a stretch. Their work study is the highest, with Beloit’s being the lowest. Kalamazoo is offering the most so far and the tuition is the lowest but they don’t really offer Russian so it is not as high on the list. Still waiting to hear back from the outside scholarship to see if that will help with Beloit and put it in the running but I may be calling some schools on Monday.
It’s coming down to crunch time here, too. LIU-Post is still about $7K above my budget and that’s just for the first year. We could swing it if he lives at home but with the performance major, they rehearse till late at night and I want him living on campus. We thought techson17 would be getting a talent award but the most recent letter was just a congratulations with no more money.
He’s been accepted to SUNY Fredonia with a $2K/year award and a $1,500 bump for the first year for being accepted into Honors. That brings the first year cost down to $3,500 below my budget but he still has to be accepted into his major. IF he is accepted to the major, H will contact Post to see if we can get more money.
Adelphi is about $14K over my budget so it’s out of the running. SUNY Purchase has fallen off the radar because techson17 has still not read the play and the deadline to sign up for auditions is March 1. I am not paying the extra money for the audition if he hasn’t read the play. In any event, the more he reads about the school, the less it seems like it’s for him.
He has applied for some local scholarships but even if he wins every single one, it’s only a total of about $3K and they are all one time things.
Congrats to everyone on the offers and condolences on those that aren’t enough. I refused to allow my son to apply to any school that I knew I couldn’t afford. It didn’t dawn on me that I couldn’t afford the ones I thought we would be able to.
We had 3.0-3.4(ish) IRL meet up of TacoCat and @CoyoteMom today at the GMU Honors College event! It was great saying hi face-to-face, CoyoteMom, and I am hoping we can schedule that lunch soon! Glad you caught a glimpse of the TacoKids.
The event itself was a disappointment, featuring dull speeches to a captive audience. We managed to slip out between dull speakers and were ready to call it a day since this is a campus TacoSon already knows pretty well, but the second part of the event featured booths with all sorts of swag so both of my kids collected many, many GMU-branded items that I will be surreptitiously throwing out in the coming weeks and months. CoyoteMom, we did end up grabbing a quick bite at the reception and all of our moods plus our impressions of GMU made remarkable recoveries at that point. It’s still in the running for TacoSon for reasons unrelated to the event but not his top pick.
@techmom99 I think the cost is one of the reasons why we didn’t like LIU-Post when we visited. If it had been a state school, at state school prices. And the infrastructure was falling apart. It’s the only school we saw that had old fashioned chalk boards in the rooms. It felt overpriced for what you got.
I know it’s a great option for you because you son could stay so close. And the teaching might be excellent. Hope you can get the price down to somewhere you can afford.
@techmom99 I truly hate the money aspect of all of this. Hopefully Post will still send talent monies, they may not have gone out yet. Sending positive vibes for major acceptance at Fredonia. If not accepted into the major right away, what would that mean? Can he transfer in?
I know what you mean on the local scholarships but every little bit does help. We are a bit in the same boat here and it’s weighing on S far more than I realized. Poor kid has apparently had a bit of a reality check. Which is good but hard to see him scared and stressed like this. Are those numbers over the budget year one or over for all 4?
@tacocat333 @CoyoteMom how fun that you got to meet but sorry that the event itself was disappointing. Free swag is good…if it gets used. If it doesn’t well, it’s just more to send to goodwill.
After attending another scholarship competition I think son is realizing that while he really likes the school it may not be the strongest for his major. He has an admitted student day along with an overnight scheduled at another school for the end of March so I’m hoping that goes well. If he would somehow win one of the large competition scholarships it may be worth it but otherwise it may have to fall off the list.
@curiositycat333 and @eandesmom -
The theater department at Post is fairly up to date and techson likes the campus itself. We haven’t seen the dorm rooms yet but we are going to attend an open house just to do that. However, I won’t go into debt or put techson in debt for this school.
As to Fredonia, it is one of the few programs that allows you to audition again if you don’t make it the first time, assuming there is space in your cohort. Techson could take a related major and do gen eds while waiting if he isn’t accepted the first time. However, a little known secret of SUNY is that enrollment at Fredonia is going down and they just built a 35M arts addition, so they need students. Also, my son isn’t applying for performance, so his “type” and his “voice” are less important than his skills and his potential. He has solid skills. Next weekend is the HS musical, he is doing tech for a local community theater show in late April (week before AP’s so I am not happy, but…) and he has been asked to do tech by three different seniors doing their final projects, which means that his final project is covered as well. People keep trying to push him towards stage management, but he prefers tech.
There are a few dozen local scholarships but most of them are need based. H and I have decided not to have techson apply for any for those since we don’t want our financial information out in the community at large and since, based on how the check off categories are set up, we probably wouldn’t qualify. We are literally about $10 above the $x+ in the last checkoff. There are 5 non-need scholarships for which he is eligible. He submitted to the largest one ($1500) already. He has written short essays for two others but they are all due by tomorrow and there are still 2 essays to write - what does (our town) mean to me? and what has (x organization) done for me? I hope he will get to them. They are one year only awards and the other 4 are all $500 apiece.
@techmom99 I can completely relate to the money aspect. I am going to call Beloit tomorrow because their aid is way off the others. I am also from NYC so I am very familiar with all those schools since many of my friends went to a few of those schools. D applied for one outside scholarship but we won’t find out until May. We didn’t apply for any local ones either for similar reasons and we are in the same financial boat. That is why UNCG is sounding better to us, especially if she commutes for one year since room and board is more than the tuition. She missed that merit deadline so we are on our own except for loans which we qualify for. I would prefer she have at least one year with no loans and we don’t want to be saddled with them since S will be starting college right after she graduates.
Good morning all! I know I haven’t done an update to the results recently. If folks can PM me the info that would be lovely, there seems to have been a lot mentioned in posts but I haven’t seen any PM’s.
We’ve made it to Vermont and set out on our actual visits beginning tomorrow. S and I had a nice train ride up here. While it was long we had a lot of time to chat and to get some work/homework/scholarship apps done. Other than the crazy lady in front of us, it was definitely the preferred way to go (compared to my driving lol).
S really opened up on the train, all unprompted. Poor kid is a bit freaked out to say the least. The calc episode really rattled him. He’s been uber confident of his ability to juggle work and school and this definitely knocked that assumption down. Changing that assumption does impact the financial picture in terms of his contribution. As some may know, he also has a very close friend that had to withdraw from his private college after first semester, freshman year (so last month, this is very fresh). It’s a devastating situation. Close family friend, an unofficial cousin. Got in to almost every school he applied to and allegedly with really nice packages. We assumed (but didn’t ask) that he’d also received generous FA. It appears that instead, he headed off to school without a plan to pay for the gap. It doesn’t appear that he took his student loans and his family cannot qualify. So he found himself owing the school money at the end of 1st semester that he couldn’t pay and basically ran back home. He was busy working and talking about applying to local schools and I had to intervene to let him know that 1) until he pays school one, he can’t go anywhere else as he is now a transfer and school 1 will not release his transcript and that 2) he had to talk to the school and figure out a payment plan or they’d start coming after him for collections. The whole thing breaks my heart, had I had any idea I’d have inserted myself much earlier as this was entirely avoidable. It also makes me SO mad at his parents but that is a totally different story. Allegedly he has a payment plan now and while it’s a big amount it is not insurmountable with working full time, and he should be able to head back somewhere he can afford next fall.
But. The situation has my S absolutely terrified of making a similar mistake, though he knows we would never let that happen to him. It is interesting to see the evolution of realizing that this is real money and real commitments. 2-3 weeks ago he was insisting that WWU was not on his list and yesterday he was saying that it’s the responsible choice. He also expressed deep regret that he didn’t apply to our flagship (he adamantly refused). I honestly don’t share his regret even though it’s my alma mater. It is too big, too impersonal, he’d be lost. But I do get the what if factor and should have made him apply. Although honestly even if I’d tried to force it, I am not sure he would have. Which he readily admitted lol. For all his talk of wanting to go away…the reality is hitting him as well and he is a bit less sure. He is also quite concerned about having to commit to a major or college without really feeling like he has a clue, he is more undecided than ever. Which is normal but boy I feel for the kid! While he expressed regret that he fought me on applying to more than one financial safety he does admit that even now, there isn’t a school he likes better than WWU that would have fit that bill.
I am pleased though. We spent a lot of time talking about what might, or might not, make a college worth paying more for or having a bit of debt and are on the same page. And we both want him to have some skin in the game, he is super sensitive to being entitled and wants to contribute…which is good because he doesn’t get a choice lol.
Right now that means things look like this.
WWU. Under budget. Summer savings would cover books and spending money (skin in the game lol) although I will cover books at a certain GPA. Would not have to work during the school year (would need to over summers) or take any loans. Pro - no debt. Con - larger than ideal, could get a bit lost the first year or two.
Allegheny. In budget. Summer savings would cover books and spending money. Would not have to work during the school year (would need to over summers) but would need to take some of the federal student loans. Not to the full amount though, 15K or or so over the 4 years which could be reduced if he did end up working during the school year. Pro - LAC, very unlikely to get lost and much more likely to be nurtured in the way we both suspect he needs, will thrive in, and really could “change his life”. Con - some debt.
The rest would require him to take his full student loan allotment and work during the school year unless some of the additional scholarships come through. And even then there is a small gap for some, larger for others.
So we will see how the week goes. If he falls in love with Ursinus or Goucher, we will try to leverage the Allegheny offer and may do the same at UPS. In theory UPS could come in at or under budget with music/theater and grant monies but those are variables that we can’t count on each year and would be risky to bank on. We will also really be exploring what kind of flexibility there is and isn’t at UVM. I am less convinced that the price tag is worth it if he doesn’t go the environmental route. I do think the strength of that program might give him an advantage in the marketplace both from connections, research and reputation. Far less convinced of that if he goes the poly sci or other unknown route. I also think he is less likely to get lost at UVM if part of the ENVS program than the larger general liberal arts school but I could be wrong on that front. Still. WWU seems like it may be the better bet in that scenario.
The important thing that I think he finally got is that WWU is always a safe backup plan. He can go somewhere freshman year and transfer back and even if it takes longer to graduate, it’s doable. He wasn’t considering it as a safety net and it really is. And, that even if he doesn’t end up anywhere we are touring now, we will have this week together and that’s a pretty cool thing no matter what.
@eandesmom, I think it’s good that your son understands before he makes a choice about the huge cost of college. I don’t think mine has realized yet that this is REAL money. She’s got a bad case of teen brain and is currently in denial about our ability to pay. I told her back at the beginning of the process that my limit is $30k before loans, but my comfort level will be $20-$25k. It’s like I never had any financial discussions and now she’s upset that I won’t allow her to consider anything over $30k, particularly since she has a fabulous (and cheap) in state option (which she refuses to even consider).
Now, I will admit I paid a lot more for my oldest, but our financial situation was different then, and I got help from my in laws. My middle girl was very aware of finances when she applied last year and, while she didn’t take her cheapest option, cost was definitely a major consideration, particularly since we knew we would have 2 in college at the same time in a year.
This child just does not want to face reality.
Also, I think I mentioned I have a nephew at WWU. He loves it. Freshman year was a little rocky, but he’s really doing well now.
A friend of mine years ago put down a spring deposit on a SUNY and when her D realized that she hate, hate, hated her expensive LAC, she was able to segue right into the SUNY as a second semester freshman. She is going to do the same thing with her D17 if the girl picks an expensive first choice. The SUNY deposit is only a couple of hundred dollars but it gave my friend piece of mind as her D went off to a school she was certain her D would hate. She didn’t tell her D what she had done but when her D called hysterical mid-semester, my friend was able to tell her that she had a place waiting for her at her at her first choice SUNY. The D was able to calm down and get through the semester, knowing she had an escape plan in place. She graduated from the school and is now an instructor at a college.
Is it possible for you to put down a spring deposit for WWU in case he decides first semester he wants to be closer to home or whatever? That way, he doesn’t have to tough out a year at a school he’s not happy at or lose a semester?
It really is a wake up call to the kids to see how much it costs. My kids were always told about how H and I had to pay entirely for ourselves and how it informed our choices.
As for UVM, Burlington is a lovely city. My D and middle son went to SUNY Plattsburgh, right across Lake Champlain.
Hey everyone - yes it was really kind of cool to meet TacoCat in person yesterday at the Mason event (and see TacoSon from a distance!). CoyoteSon was at the VA State FTC robotics tournament (his team made the finals, but lost to the first place alliance).
I have to agree that the first formal part of the event, with speeches from the Dean, the AdCom, and two students was awkward - I don't think it was the speeches themselves (ok, the Dean was boring, other speakers were OK) - but the fact that we were in a huge performing arts center, assigned to the balcony, and there must have been 500-1000 students and family members in attendance, which kind of blows the "small school within a school" feeling!
The "academic browsing" session set up in their food court area was just what I needed (and not just for the swag, though I picked up 3 nice pens - you know, with the soft grip lol)! The individual professors, students, and staff I spoke with were all enthusiastic and helpful. (The big contrast with Beloit is again the size - at Beloit, there was a professor from every department - here there was one or maybe two professors from each school! - even for Engineering School that's not representative - I went right up to Humanities school table, but was met with someone in criminal justice and then media/communication - no History professor to be found!
I think the event confirmed CoyoteSon's feeling that even though the Honors College has only about 1600 students (and about 450 up to 500 freshmen, depending on yield in a given year), it is not at all equivalent to the LAC feel.
But, ho ho - I had another reason for attending - CoyoteSon needs an 8-week internship for his high school, and I thought helping a professor at Mason might be a good thing to try, to get ready to do research next year. His school usually helps place kids with people they know (say shadowing an elementary school teacher or an auto mechanic) - but what CoyoteSon needs requires cold-calling (revealing my age with that term ha ha - all done via email now). So I met professors who at least gave me names of other professors to try - and just as I was leaving, I found the Astronomy professor (they have a school for science that is separate from school for humanities!) who might be able to get CoyoteSon hooked up to volunteer/intern with the Observatory. Fingers crossed! He has to get started on internship by mid-April.
Plus we got a free lunch, which was presumably catered by their regular dining hall provider - and food was decent. Overall, I'm still impressed with Mason, and I think the Honors College is a good option for kids who know what they want academically, will take advantage of the extra speakers/research opportunities/ advising available to them, and thrive on the true diversity and big school spirit. (Not to mention the financial bargain for in-State students). Two professors I spoke with talked of using the advantages of lots of AP credit plus the advantages of Honors courses knocking out two gen-ed requirements at once, to allow Honors students to start taking courses in their majors as freshmen (and implying that students who are undecided or switch majors don't get to take full academic advantage of the Honors perks).
HTH someone else who might be considering Mason Honors College (ooh - plus the super, super cool "get a minor in Conservation/Wildlife Ecology" in one semester by taking classes at the Mason-Smithsonian Zoo facility in Front Royal that does truly cutting edge research with wildlife like Maned Wolves and Clouded Leopards).
I think it’s clear that CoyoteSon both wants and needs a true LAC to thrive - so we will gladly pay more for that experience.
@eandesmom - thanks for sharing how your son has really opened up about his fears and hopes. So horrible what happened to E’s good friend - how on Earth did his parents let him go to a school they couldn’t afford?? So glad you’re helping the friend pick up the pieces.
Meanwhile, it is probably a good thing that your Son sees this as real money now, especially since he has had you all along to keep the financial picture in perspective. Just in time to help weigh the colleges you ate visiting for academic, social, *and* financial fit.
And it really made me smile that you emphasized that the college visit trip itself is a week of quality Mom-Son time - which is very cool!
@QueensMom - so sorry your D’s teen brain not getting the money aspect, and really sorry for all of us that the merit and financial aid chases make it difficult to predict how much any college will cost any student - really is a completely crazy system.
@techmom99 - thanks for sharing the idea of putting down a spring semester deposit. What a great idea for insurance to handle an unexpected flame out situation. Fingers crossed that all of our students (who obviously have very supportive parents) will never cross that bridge!
@“Queen’s Mom” - a BFA is no less a real degree than a BA. The main difference between the two is that a BFA requires more courses within the major, it is more in-depth and concentrated. IMO, for creative fields that can be an advantage. (Though, on the downside, you get less electives.)
But that 3.0 requirement would make me a bit nervous, too. The first semester or two can be a bit rocky for a lot of students.
@eandesmom , I’m so impressed at your conversation on the train. Your son has gained wisdom that not a lot of kids this age have, and it will serve him better than calculus as he navigates college choices, college life and real life after that.
I’m having some buyer’s remorse experience right now – did we choose the right schools to apply to? Should TacoSon have aimed higher? Should he have aimed lower – with more sure bets with more merit? He has had no problem getting accepted anywhere, but of course merit at the more competitive schools has not been as generous. Would a bigger-name and/or private school mean a ton for his intended degree (marketing)? Mr. TacoCat feels that none of the private schools he has applied to are worth the price tag and eventual debt, even including merit offers.
@CoyoteMom , very nice job on the internship connection! I found the faculty/staff members at the booths very personable overall. As you know, the Taco Three were kind of hot to exit so we didn’t engage in prolonged conversations, but the event did underscore the range of experiences and services that a larger state university offers vs. the smaller schools TacoSon likes. And, of course, it was great seeing you there!
@“Queen’s Mom” I would be far less concerned about the BFA aspect than the 3.0. 2 of E1’s choices have the 3.0 requirement, Ithaca being one of them. Between the cost and the 3.0 it made it easier to cut. Also easier since we aren’t visiting. The other 3.0 school is likely off the list as well.
I am sorry she doesn’t want to be realistic about the numbers. Our budget is similar, had really hoped to have options 36 or under but that’s been hard to find and 36 does mean loans. The mid stats full pay kid is a tough place to be.
@tacocat333 so Tacoson prefers the LAC but Tacodad doesn’t feel any are worth the price bump? How will you reconcile that?
@techmom99 how can you have an enrollment deposit without applying to transfer?
I will confirm with my friend, but my recollection is that the girl was accepted to the SUNY for the fall, so my friend put in a deposit for the following spring instead. Once they decided that the girl was miserable, she put in transfer papers. Since she had already been accepted to the SUNY, it was just a question of how many credits would transfer. If I recall correctly, she had a number of AP credits that hadn’t been accepted at the first school, but which SUNY accepted. I am not sure how many of the credits from the first school transferred, but my friend didn’t care because the overall cost was so much lower and she had the AP credits. She did lose the scholarship from the SUNY because she didn’t come in in the fall but, again, the savings was so much that it didn’t matter. The main reason for putting down the deposit was to make sure that she had a spot available, which might not be guaranteed if you apply for a mid-year transfer cold.