surprises of any kind would be absolutely lovely!
Would CHapman be at match with my S stats? GPA 3.1 , SAT 2250, he will be doing 3 SAT subject tests , 3 AP as well
My S17 is in this GPA range, 3.3 UW, with a 2090 on the SAT. We are also in California, and had hoped for a UC until he made straight B’s as an unhappy sophomore. We changed schools and now he’s much happier, but it’s really hard to move the needle on a GPA as a second semester junior. Looking forward to hearing what schools this group of students is looking at for college. I’ve heard good things about Chapman, but it’s too close to home. 
@StressedinCA I would think it would be a match on the SAT and a reach on the GPA but the SAT might compensate. It’s a pricey LAC but a very good one and they do make some nice $$ offers so I would definitely look at it.
@Leafyseadragon we are somewhat similar although it was more of an ADHD roller coaster both F and Soph years with horrid grades 1st semester and semi decent second. Yes, it is hard to move the needle. To get him to a 3.5 for application time/start of senior year…he’d have to get a 4.0 this semester and that won’t happen. It is possible, but a stretch, that he could do well enough this semester and 1st of senior year by senior year transcript update submittal time to get it there but we will see. I do hope schools will see the trend though. I am actually more concerned with S getting that ACT up, that could make a big difference in any offers. While the GPA is on the lower side for offers, the rigor is good. The UC system is odd in the way it seems to throw away the 9th grade gpa entirely. That can really help some kids but not others. There are a lot of Cal State schools where his gpa should be fine though and I do think they’d look at the school change and trend. On the UC side, statistically he’s got a chance at a few. As far as I am concerned 10-20% chance is still a chance and often worth at least attempting. If I can convince S17 to apply to UW, he will lol. He just isn’t interested in it. We have a lot of annoying constraints with cost and then matching it up with his interest/major/size/geographical requests/requirements.
http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/counselors/freshman/profiles/
@eandesmom that link was interesting. I didn’t realize that classes since 7th grade are being tracked!
@Leafyseadragon I know ours are tracked from 7th within the school system but in terms of what is provided instate to the schools, I have no idea. I don’t see any similar set of data for our instate options although it is easy enough to see where my S lands in general.
I was just reading your posts, and needed to share a story, maybe offer you some hope!
My D 16 had a tough sophomore year, first semester was a 2.8 and second semester was a 3.0, And even though she got straight A’s freshman year, those grades don’t count when applying to public California schools.
At this point she was convinced, she was never going to college, she had destroyed her entire life, in a single year, of course we had extenuating circumstances that year, and I probably could have pushed her more, but I didn’t want her to get overly stressed, we were already in a very stressful situation.
She also has a brother just a year older, who of course had a 4.5, Did not help.
Then comes junior year and that girl pulled it together she got a 4.0 both semesters.
So, her UC GPA is now a 3.4 , Her SAT is 1720
Anybody in California knows how all over the place UC admissions can be, but she did get into both UC riverside and UC Santa Barbara.
As far as the Cal States she got into Fullerton, Pomona, and we are still awaiting believe it or not on Long Beach, we received a email stating they will let us know March 31, so tomorrow
She is going to UC riverside, it was the best fit and choice for her, and they did give us quite a bit of money, both merit and need-based.
She is white, her EC’s just ASB and a 4 year cheerleader.
So there is always hope!!!
Now I have a Triton and a highlander, And I get to take a journey again with my S 21 in a few years, best of luck to all of you!
I always want to stand up and applaud whenever I hear these wonderful stories with happy endings. Congratulations to your daughter @TwoBoyzOneG1rl and thank you for sharing your story - it does give me hope!
@TwoBoyzOneG1rl what a great story!
UCSB is a maybe on my S’s list, the UC GPA system works in his favor but his test scores are not remotely impressive (US GPA of 3.71 and currently a 24 on the ACT). But as we are OOS he may not even apply ($$) and it’s not high on his list but…encouraging to know he might have a shot at it if he changes his mind.
I have to sit down with mine and start focusing on the math section of the SAT. Her English is very good. Math-not so much. She’s my only non mathy kid.
Hi … my S’17 falls into the 3.0-3.3 GPA range. We live in VA, but we’re also looking OOS since my S insists on applying to a U w/marching band. We toured 3 OOS U during spring break – Stevenson/MD, WV U, OH U:
Stevenson U (Villa Jolie) in MD is private w/3K students–about twice the size of S’ HS. A quick calculation shows S would receive $16K which would bring the net cost close to full pay public in-state tuition & MB students receive a yearly $500+ grant. The U has 2 campuses (Owings Mills & Greenspring) about 6 miles apart accessible via shuttle bus (or car)–students are allowed to have cars & parking is free. The dorms are located on the OM campus while classes are held on both campuses. Hubby/I felt the OM campus looked more like an office complex & the GS campus was rural/remote. The athletic complex (former training facility of the Baltimore Ravens) was nice. S liked the large 4 person suites w/entry foyer, bathroom, 2 bedrooms. Unfortunately, the on-site dining seems limited, the U has more females than males, & we were told there’s a 50:50 ratio of on-campus:commuters. For now, I’m not sure SU is going to make his final list.
West Virginia U. It doesn’t appear S will receive any aid so we’re looking @ full pay OOS tuition. It also has 2 campuses (Downtown & Evansdale) which are accessible via bus or the PRT monorail. We liked the approx 50:50 in:out state ratio, but didn’t like that 85% of students live off campus after freshman year. The adjacent city of Morgantown was a “little rough around the edges” to what we’re accustomed to. The campus buildings, dorms, dining, & other facilities were all nice. The audition for MB seems very competitive. For now, I’m not sure WVU is going to make his final list.
Ohio U. It doesn’t appear S will receive any aid so again we’re looking @ full pay OOS tuition. Athens, OH seems pretty remote, but the business area off Court St, which is w/in walking distance of campus, seems nice. I erred & signed us up for an admitted vs prospective info session, but I feel we benefited from the walking tour. The dorm room we saw was small & the building was old, otherwise, the campus buildings, dining, & other facilities were all nice. I’m concerned about the in:out ratio of students & the MB auditions seem competitive. But, for now OU is still on his list.
My S’s #1 choice is Christopher Newport U in Newport News, VA, but it’s become difficult to get into, so he needs to keep his options open. Later this month we visit East Carolina U in Greeneville, NC & Appalachian State U in Boone, NC. It’s been difficult researching OOS colleges since my S doesn’t have a chosen major, won’t receive federal or merit aid, & doesn’t have ACT or SAT scores (yet). I’ve tried to narrow the list to U w/MB, located less than 500 miles of our home in VA, & acceptance rates of 50 % or higher. Hopefully by end of Jr Yr w/final GPA & entrance exam scores, we’ll have a better idea of his academic “fit” to help narrow the field.
I’m a 3.0 Class of 2016 student (if including first semester senior year or 2.9 if not) and these are the colleges that I applied to with the results. I hope that you find this useful.
UW GPA: 2.9 (9-11), 3.0 (9-12th 1st semester)
ACT Score: 28, 34E,34R,26S,17M
AP Courses: 6 (AP Lit, AP Euro, APUSH, AP Gov, AP Lang, APMircro)
URM: Native American (registered)
Family Income: 80K
Other Info: My grades had a very high upward trend and I had a personal story (sister dying) that related to bad grades freshman year.
*Net Price is after institutional scholarships and max loans
Accepted:
Ohio Wesleyan University (Net Price): 20K
American University: 13K
Trinity University: 12K
Beloit College: 16K
Denied:
George Washington University
Boston College
I will be attending either Trinity U or American U but I’m not exactly sure which one yet. I am happy that I got into some good schools and look forward to the next four years. I wish you all the best!
Congratulations @HeyItsNick! You have an absolutely fantastic list of acceptances and whichever school you choose will be lucky to have you. I wish you success and thank you for sharing your story with those of us who are just starting out.
@MomStudent2017 have you considered James Madison? I know nothing at all about marching bands but I actually heard the James Madison band once several years ago and they were amazing. Don’t know if it fits your bill but it is instate for VA so I will toss it out there.
Hi, longtime lurker here. I have received some great advice from these forums and wanted to post my son’s results for those who are starting the process.
Unweighted GPA - 3.2 with 1 AP and 8 honors classes
SAT - 2010
Typical EC and volunteer activities
competitive public high school in Boston suburb
Accepted with merit. Merit awards ranged from 7,000 per year to 22,000 per year.
University of Portland (rolling)
Willamette (EA)
Seattle University (EA)
University of Vermont (EA)
St. Lawrence University (ED) - Accepted in January. He will be attending St. Lawrence.
Applications withdrawn after St. Lawrence acceptance:
University of Puget Sound
Union
Whitman
I am thankful for all the posts describing the schools in the Pacific Northwest. These were schools that were new to us. For our family, the college application process was not overly stressful and included a wonderful mother/son week in the Northwest looking at schools together. My son had some early acceptances at schools that he really liked, which made the whole process more relaxed. St. Lawrence was the last school he visited, late in the Fall of senior year - and he fell in love with it.
Best of luck to those just starting!
What a lovely post @922x711! It sounds like you and your son have had an idyllic college search and selection experience with some really great outcomes. I have actually spent a good deal of time in the Adirondack Park and am very familiar with St. Lawrence University - it is a wonderful school. A couple of friends of ours are graduates, one is a dentist and the other is a retired university president, believe it or not! The daughter of some other friends of ours will also be attending SLU in the Fall and she is just an all around super kid. Your son will have good company.
I agree, it is really incredible what you learn on this forum. Like you, I am also very grateful for information that I would not otherwise have had access to, and for the generosity of the posters who share their knowledge and experiences.
Congratulations to your son! And thank you for sharing your story.
Thank you for opening this thread!
Here’s our story, which may be familiar since I’ve been posting on other threads too:
DS’17 is our youngest; we have a DD college soph and a DS college freshman. So when DS’17 is a college freshman, we’ll have 3 in college, but the next year only two, and then he’ll be the only one in college junior and senior year.
My older two made it into Cornell and since our EFC is <$2000 they are pretty well taken care of there, financially. However, DS’17 is not nearly as academically motivated as the older two so Cornell is not an option. And he’s fine with that because he doesn’t want to be competing with super high achievers. I guess he’s sick of that from living with his superstar siblings 
. What he DOES love is running and he wants to run D1 in college. (I know, D2 or D3 should be a good option too but he isn’t interested in those programs because he “wants a shot to run against the best of the best.”) He is section champion in his specialty but places about the middle of the pack at state championships, so is not being aggressively courted by D1 schools at this point.
He doesn’t have a major in mind (besides track and field, LOL). GPA 3.5, PSAT 93% which would be around 2000 in the old SAT, but we don’t have SAT scores yet so we’ll see there. No APs so far (the school offers 4), 3 honors courses. The lowish rigor is why I’m thinking of him in the 3.0-3.4 category. Class rank 40/165.
We are NYS residents, and have about $15,000 in savings for him.
So far we’re looking at SUNY schools: Binghamton, Buffalo, Albany, Stony Brook. Also St. Bonaventure, which is just starting up their track program and whose coach DS likes a lot. DS also (barely) qualifies for an automatic $18000/year merit scholarship there. However, SBU looks too expensive to me, unless DS gets one of their higher track scholarships (they go up to $9000) AND they can stack the academic scholarship too. Plus, that academic scholarship depends on maintaining his GPA and I wonder if that would be too much pressure.
Money is a huge deal, in other words.
I’m wondering whether he’d have any chance at a place like Davidson (meets full need, and their CDS values scores and volunteerism over GPA, but also highly values rigor). His rank is low for them, but if his SAT pans out similarly to his PSAT, that would be in range.
Florida A&M has an automatic full tuition scholarship for his stats and he’d LOVE to be somewhere warm because he hates snow. He’s thinking about the aspect of being a white kid at a HBCU; DS’15 would have a great time with that but DS’17 is very quiet and reserved so I don’t know. Plus, their Men’s Track page is not maintained at all and they’ve just let their coach go I don’t know how the team is doing. FSU might be doable if we got the OOS tuition waiver, but the stats required according to other people’s research seem out of reach.
I also wonder about schools that have merit that’s not automatic, and whether we should try a couple of those to see if that might pan out.
Coaches have contacted him from SBU, Buffalo, Brandeis, SUNY Cortland, and U Mass Amherst.
This is a very different process than with the other two, that’s for sure! I treasure any and all suggestions.
@922x711 what a lovely success story! I am very familiar with 4 on your list but has to look up St. Lawrence, it sounds lovely!
How nice to see those kinds of merit awards.
@mcdmom D1 is nuts, I think I mentioned it on the 2017 thread but in our experience of the kid wants D1 he needs to be proactive and aggressive. I only have soccer for a reference and track may be different but while there was money out there it typically wasn’t a free ride.
It does sound like you should be able to stack need and merit aid though and get a nice package together although I might suggest having 1-2 d2 /d3 as backups.
Generally speaking though if they want him for track, he may be ok on the low end of the stats. It does depend on the school. If it’s a uber competitive school it may be an issue. DSD with her 3.93 was turned down by Colorado school of mines and they did want her for soccer. Just not badly enough apparently.
@MomStudent2017 I’m not familiar with those schools but love the band updates. S17 hasn’t decided if he wants to play on college or not but we will be gathering information on our tours.
I’ve been so focused on finding programs that fit and schools that meet the budget and his climate/geography preferences I haven’t dug deep enough into what music options he would have outside of his major.
You should be able estimate a sat score if he took the PSAT. My strategy has been to use the current gpa under the assumption that it won’t go down but may not be likely to go up either. When is he taking act or sat?
@HeyItsNick what a great story and congratulations! Wonderful choices
Div. I schools are not permitted to stack merit and athletic money without the entire package counting toward their permitted scholarship total. Some may try to preferentially package, but they aren’t going to be able to raise the FA amount much because they have to make a report to their conference that doesn’t raise suspicions. Otherwise, athletic programs could give more than the allowable amount in scholarships, which would give them an unfair recruiting advantage.
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