@jmek15 Thanks for mentioning the article on Grown and Flown. I am going to message it to D17.
@cameo43 I love your graduation gift idea. So far, we have given D17 money toward a new MacBook, I had a t-shirt quilt made with t-shirts I’ve been saving since she was in daycare, and I’m trying to do a Snapfish album of her entire 18 years but it’s not progressing very well, so I’m not sure if I’ll get it finished. Not sure if we’re going to give her a “big” gift. Our family tends not to be big gift givers, but when someone needs something, they get it, whether there is a milestone to mark or not. (So, for example, when she turned 16, she got the rusted out mini-van, but when she came back from her semester school she got my 6 year old car and I got a newer car. We plan to let her take the 6 year old car to college when she is allowed to have a car on campus and will probably sign the title over to her at that time.)
@eandesmom I was going to suggest UW Madison because while Madison is a small city, it is a city, and it’s sandwiched between 2 lakes and it has good CS, physics, and chem programs. But seeing your price target, it’s probably out of reach since he’d be OOS. My other thought is to look at schools in Chicago. Urban setting along the shores of Lake Michigan. Don’t have a specific school in mind, though, since I’ve never looked into CS programs. I do know S22 just attended an engineering program at U of IL-Chicago.
@eandesmom I don’t think UW Madison is likely given his stats. But UW Milwaukee would be for sure admission. They are right near Lake Michigan, very nice part of Milwaukee.
@cameo43 I love the culinary boot camp for a grad gift, too! I bet she’ll have a blast! We’re probably going with a laptop for S17 for grad, but we might go for football or hockey season tickets at MSU instead–his birthday is right before classes start (the reason he doesn’t want to do the late orientation just for kids that are from far away is that it’s on his birthday…), so we might do the sports tix for birthday instead…
And @CoyoteMom I meant to tell you that the sock story is adorable! I want to see the sock puppet if he doesn’t get the 2nd sock! B-)
@NolaCAR I love Madison but I don’t love full price OOS. LOL! So no, not an option. @Booajo I don’t expect to look at any UW schools given the OOS prices, thanks though.
@cameo43 I love the grad gift idea! I’m in a bit of a gift quandary. His Bday is the week before graduation so we have that too.
My feeling is that he is getting a rather large trip for graduation and really, that’s enough. And, for his bday, well we are sending him OOS and going above budget so kind of the same. BUT both are milestones and giving nothing at the moment/time of the event, seems lame.
There is a concert he really wants tickets for, for his bday. I suspect they will be more than I want to pay, nor am I at all sure I want to pay for them at all.
I had been thinking a really nice winter jacket from REI for his bday and then for graduation, a new carry on bag that has backpack straps, a nice backpacking sleeping bag and a hammock. Sleeping bag might seem odd but I fully expect him to hike and camp while there (he will likely take his backpacking back pack to school), plus he could use one that compresses a lot more than the one he has for orientation. The hammock he can string up on campus, they’ve been showing pictures on the admissions twitter feed and that would be SO him. I’ve actually ordered all items, although REI cancelled my order so I am thinking that color (on sale) sold out and need to check into it. I haven’t picked up the hammock yet but they had them at Costco.
I am not sure how strong the CS program is at SUNY Plattsburgh but the cost this year for OOS was $30K and it gives money. It’s a smallish school (about 8K between undergrad and grad) located in a blue collar town on Saranac Lake. Lake Champlain is close by and, of course, UVM is a ferry ride away. Montreal is about 45 minutes away. My D and my middle son attended and both were very happy there. S took some computer classes. He found them difficult, although he scored a 5 in AP Calc BC because he had zero computer background. Friends had told him he should major in CS because of how good in math he is, but it wasn’t for him. He said his friends in the major were pleased with their studies.
The staff at the school is really lovely. My middle son is having issues like @mdcmom 's D and the school facilitated a medical withdrawal one week before classes ended. One thing that really struck me when we went for D’s orientation in 2009 was that they treated it as a family affair and had activities for siblings aged 6 - 16 separate from parent activities.
I enjoyed visiting and when H didn’t go, I took the Amtrak up. The station is about 5 minutes from campus.
I really encourage you to look at it for your S19. There is a good honors program. Students take a number of seminars and do a capstone project.
@eandesmom I know Wisconsin at Madison has crazy high OOS prices, but UWMilwaukee (and all the non-Madison campuses) remain pretty cheap. Total COA at Milwaukee 30k. Wisconsin non-Madison remains a bargain in my opinion.
@endesmom I get you on the ‘He needs to be at a school full of peers or ones that will challenge him.’ I’ve been having a hard time articulating that. It’s why DS went with mostly large schools and we weren’t chasing $$.
Working to get his SAT/ACT scores up would probably help a lot. But I’m a bit out of idea’s. What about San Jose state? They have a good CS program, it’s urban/suburban and has the advantage of being in the Silicon Valley.
@Booajo and @rosered55 actually according to their site it would be closer to 35k in today’s dollars. $20k in tuition and then $14,400 for room board, transportation, books etc. Which yes is still a good deal and I am quite familiar with Milwaukee, having lived in Chicago for 10 years. I just don’t see UW Milwaukee as being especially strong in his areas of interest, other than being on a lake and in a city. He is also significantly above their stats which wouldn’t meet his academic peer need.
@curiositycat333 H got his undergrad from San Jose State. He thinks it’s too commuter and not a fit but I’m not ruling it out. He is only a sophomore and these were his first diagnostic test so definitely not where he will end up score wise. Probably not even close but who really knows. If S17 can bump up 5 points with just a prep class and doing the bare minimum on the ACT it will be quite interesting to see what the much better student, S19 will do.
I just know my kid and he’s asking a lot already so giving him some goals and targets and a plan (he is a PLANNER) is a good thing and will keep him from driving me nuts. Quite the opposite of S17 in that regard.
I think Minnesota is a good school. One of my nieces is about to graduate from there and has a job lined up for the end of May; she’ll be making more money than almost everyone else in the family (her parents, me, her aunts and uncles, etc.).
Hey @eandesmom - i’ve been trying to think of suggestions for your younger Son, but the urban and near water are both things CoyoteSon was not interested in. I think Drexel is a good choice for CS and urban - what about Emory or Tulane? I don’t know much about either school, but they do get lots of mentions on various CC threads. I looked in a “college finder” book of various lists, but near water was not one of the choices - but what about Pepperdine? That was listed as having great views of both the Pacific and LA.
My only other suggestion is Brandeis - but your Son will have to hit at least that magic 32 on the ACT to try to get a better merit aid package. Or stick with the new SAT - I think the new SAT is now much more similar to the ACT, and so I don’t think it matters much anymore - just pick one to do the practice/prep. – and the Khan Academy prep is online and free for the new SAT.
Pepperdine is in an absolutely gorgeous location. Not sure if it will matter to your S but it is overtly religious (Church of Christ) than most schools. There are some required religion classes and kids have to attend convocation a certain number of times, I think there might be more dorm rules than the other schools you are thinking of.
So much more fun to think about a new crop of colleges than to wonder what my own S will decide, and when. Thanks for providing the distraction!
@CoyoteMom I would love to have Tulane on his list as oh, the jazz, oh the food and he would love it and deal with the humidity. But it is not going to be in budget and best not to fall in love with something you can’t have. I will look at it again when we have more real numbers but, expect it’s a non starter.
I will look at Emory, no clue on that one. I suspect Brandeis is out of reach but this kid is a wild card to be sure.
Hmmm Pepperdine. @93pilots is right it is far more religious than most on the uber rough list. Oddly enough I have a very very personal high level administrative connection there from HS. S may or may not be ok with that. The religion part, not my friend. Dorm rules would not be an issue for this one. Unlike his brother lol.
I think the challenge there would be cost. In overlap years it could be doable. In non…it scares me. It’s an interesting thought. If we do a CA tour I could see meeting my friend for lunch for an exploratory talk. S19 would very much enjoy him and vice versa It’s an interesting dichotomy. I tend to think of Pepperdine as spoiled kid territory (partially due to the setting but partially due to other reasons) but my friend is the complete antithesis of that and makes me want to reconsider.
Boy, @eandesmom, you sure got a lot of advice and just one night! I’m going to put a plug-in for my alma mater, Loyola Marymount University, which has a gorgeous view of the Pacific ocean, just 3 miles away, as well as the Hollywood sign, and downtown LA! The air is so much cleaner since they instituted commission standards. It’s in a very nice residential area, with easy access to most of the city. Only about 4 miles from LAX airport. I would think if he continues to improve his GPA, and picks up his test score, he would be a good candidate for a merit scholarship. It’s Catholic, but there are no religious participation requirement, other than to take two courses in the theology department, which can cover a multitude of areas of interests. Their student body is more diverse than Pepperdine’s, and they have a pretty well developed a relationship with the film and television industry, as well
Here is info on their CS program: http://www.cs.lmu.edu/
Avg ACT - 28 (top 75th percentile -30) Avg GPA 3.74 (UW- so S 19 should get extra brownie points for all those AP classes, and advanced academic schedule that he is on.) Their SAT numbers are based on the old test,
I would recommend practicing for the SAT, and taking the PSAT in the fall, to see if he might qualify as a national merit scholar. I think Washington is similar to Minnesota, around 219 this year. Again, under the new scoring system. S16 took both the ACT, and SAT, after having a good experience with the PSAT, his Junior yr. He prepped with a tutor for the ACT, and prepped for the PSAT/SAT, mostly on his own. We are lucky to have several retired teachers in our community, heart specialist in personalized test prep for a pretty reasonable price.
@eandesmom Also, if you look at a map, Pepperdine is about 12-15 miles out of town, and your son might need a car to get anywhere. But the views are amazing. I was married just up the road on Zuma Beach! Another thought is University of San Diego.
In my neck of the woods, U of MN, is an excellent school, and right in the middle of the city, but quite large, like UW. Campus is located on either side of the Mississippi River, with some pretty views. Also, not far away, also in St Paul is St Thomas, which has a very good engineering program. Your son’s projected stats should qualify him for merit aid there. It’s campus is in a residential area of the city, right down pretty Grand Ave from Macalester. And they share some course/exchange privileges as well. Of course course Macalester is a wonderful school, with a great CS program but merit might be a bit more difficult there. Although they do have a good scholarship for NMSF.
Surprisingly, for being the “Land of 10,000 Lakes,” there are no universities on, or really close to, a lake!
Closest would be University of Minnesota Duluth, and Bemidji State.
Just one more quick add, Lawrence University is right on a river, and very close to the downtown, in the small city of Appleton Wisconsin. Good science programs there.
@eandesmom We gave DS’15 a camping hammock for his high school graduation and he loves it. He camps with it occasionally but even better, during the school year on hot nights (no AC in the dorms) he sleeps in the trees on campus. It’s one of his favorite belongings, I think .
@eandesmom , I second morningside95’s recommendations to look at LMU and USD. D17 is going to USD, but we also looked at LMU. I loved both, but she got little merit from LMU so she crossed that one off.
I will also put in a plug for Loyola Univ in Baltimore. They gave D17 the most merit aid. Nice campus, urban environment but in upscale neighborhood of Baltimore with free transportation down to the Inner Harbor. No view of the water from campus, but the Chesapeake Bay is nearby if interested in water activities. It’s Jesuit (Catholic) but no participation required. Money mag ranked it as a “Value All Star.” Dh and I came away from their “accepted students” day pretty impressed but D17 did not want to be that close to home.
@eandesmom Regarding the SAT and ACT: My D did better with the ACT and the “why” of it may be helpful for you. D is very strong in math and is completing her second year of calculus. The SAT math problems are very verbal - you have to sift through lots of language to get to what is being asked and can get tripped up. The ACT is more straightforward - you have to move faster but the problems aren’t worded to confuse the test taker. As he is taking an advanced math sequence, he should be able to bring up that math score. As mentioned earlier, most kids struggle with the science section and he’s got that down. The on-line prep through ACT ($40 for a year’s access) is very good.
If your son ran out of time on the ACT and the score reflects an inability to complete the test in the time given, practice will build his speed.
As for urban/water/CS, maybe look at Case Western Reserve? (Lake Erie) It would be a reach for him with current stats but if he could get his ACT up to 30-31 or SAT to around 1400, he might have a shot. Nonbinding EA would probably help his chances over RD. Merit and/or need-based aid is pretty good.
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