Some of these grade posts trigger anxiety. D18 is alright but D20 is usually in the low 90’s and that is a B at their school and going forward it might be easy to fall into a C if she hits a rough patch.
D20 is already planning for law school. She likes to argue and has been diligently practicing for that career since age two. I’m hoping she’ll be ok starting at cc.
Besides D18 getting accepted into the summer science program, I got another piece of good news this weekend. The small college fund started many years ago by my grandfather is a little bigger than I thought. It’s not enough to make a real difference in the college search but it’s a little cushion for tuition increases and enough to help with transportation expenses.
And it is making me wonder if it’s worth adding another instate public that is very sold academically but is not known for giving much merit aid.
Anyone have any thoughts about TCNJ?
My reservations would be: (1) she wouldn’t be at the top end as she asked for, though top third maybe, and (2) I’m afraid the atmophere would be too competitive since there seem to be a lot of pre-med types. But I’m worried she might not be intellectual stimulated enough by the schools on the list now.
NCalRent- Thanks for the info. I’d love to hear how things progress in Colorado for your cyclist and hear the details about things with the school. My boy also is really into cycling. He does enduro and downhill mountain biking. I will add Ft. Lewis to the list of thinking about and due to your opinion on Chico and Reno, we will apply in the Fall. I will just need to keep on him about being careful with drinking regardless of where he ends up.
@themathaw
Ft Lewis is one of a few schools that offer scholarships and a formal structure around their cycling team. They are essentially a D1 sports program - professional coaching, nice workout facilities. My son received a small athletic scholarship as a cross country mountain biker.
Though 6 hours from Denver by car, Fort Lewis students can fly right into Durango - via Phx, Vegas.and elsewhere. Albuquerque is another option but, it’s still nearly 3 hours by car.
@MACmiracle Congrats on the graduation and the summer program! It’s still mind boggling how time flies, but every day is a chance for a new opportunity.
@Themathaw@bjkmom Welcome! (I wish I knew more about Chico, but my info is like 30 yrs old. One of my friends majored in, yes, horticulture. My friends loved it there. I’m guessing much has changed though!)
@jcmom716 Will definitely report back once we get some tours in (fingers crossed!). I still longingly think about Dickinson and Juniata so will be curious if your son chooses to pursue them further.
I have been lurking on this thread and decided it is time to join in:) D18 has a high GPA, but her test scores are only decent. And besides that, I feel like I belong here since we are not considering ivies or top LAC. She is looking at many of the same school many of your kids are looking at!
RIght now she is thinking about majoring in Neuroscience/Pre-Med. She is attending a camp this summer that should solidify that choice or change everything. She is hoping to find a place that offer ASL minor (or just classes) since that is one of her passions, but that is proving to be difficult. She also wants a place that she has the option to join music ensemble if she desires. And finally, D2 or D3 swimming.
We will be visiting Muhlenberg, Westminster, Juniata, McDaniel, Ohio Northern, RIT, U ROchester, SUNY Geneseo, and West Chester for sure this summer and probably a few near those colleges (Grove City, Susquehanna, Goucher, Towson, Arcadia). She has already visited Wooster and OWU which she loved, Hiram which she liked but it might be too rural, and Kenyon which she did not like at all.
I look forward to seeing where this journey leads us!
Hi @2018mom2018! Looking at your list, you seem to be in the Ohio, PA, MD corridor and your daughters interest in music have you considered Baldwin Wallace they have a well respected music conservatory and I wouldn’t discount Oberlin (don’t let the “decent” test scores hold her back!) they are well known for grooming Pre-Med students and have an outstanding Music Conservatory (which I am sure you are aware of). At any rate WELCOME!
@2018mom2018 If you are looking into LACs similar to Goucher and are interested in ASL, I think you may want to look at McDaniel in MD. If I remember correctly, they have a strong ASL program.
Hi @2018mom2018 ! Will be interested to hear about your visits, many do cross-over with others including my son. As a side note, we know happy students at both Ohio Northern and Westminster. There are scholarships, used to include a few competitive full tuition, available at both. Also we met some of the nicest, friendliest students at Ohio Northern.
My son also liked Wooster and most likely will be in his top three. He seems to be taking a break from thinking about college, which is okay with me. Let him enjoy summer (including his job and internship)…next year at this time will be a whole new set of emotions!!
@2018mom2018, we just visited McDaniel earlier today. S liked it, but since it was his first college visit there was no frame of reference. The only other school he’s talked about visiting is Fordham. That would be a stretch for him with his GPA, although his SAT is about average for admitted students. I’m also not sure if he would like the large number of core classes there. I thought it was cool that one of the language options at McDaniel is ASL.
SAT done. It seems like the math tutoring has been helpful, but she felt the reading was harder this time.
She was having one of her unfocused days because she said she found herself zoning out. Does anyone else have a D with issues like that? Oh, well, you can’t help the timing with that.
My DD is taking SAT II Subject tests (3 subjects) today and she doesn’t understand why she needs to take them if she is not majoring those subjects (Math 2C, US History, Physics), she didn’t like any of those subjects and didn’t prepare for them either… My other problem is that DD doesn’t want to consider OOS universities and only sets her eyes in UCs and couple private schools in CA (USC, Pepperdine), but with her current stats, I am worried that she won’t have good chance, but I don’t want to discourage her. Her weighted UC GPA is above 3.5, unweighted just around 3.2, with SAT 1300, hope to major either Design or Computer Science, strong ECs. Very concerned that she would be so disappointed if she can’t get into a UC, (she is considering couple CSUs)… How should I get her even expand her options to universities near California (Arizona State, Nevada State, etc.)
I am so pleased to find this coversation. My Junior DS GPA is around 3.2 (pretty heavy course load with mostly honors and AP classes). ACT of 33. He’s a bright kid but hasn’t had the motivation or figured out how to excel in the classroom. Sometimes feel a lonely when it comes to talking to other parents about college options due to GPA. Hoping to learn and share. Have an upcoming visits to Denison, Wooster, Ohio Wesleyan, Kalamazoo, SMU and TCU scheduled.
Hi @CPHinPVE and welcome! I think there will be plenty of good options for your son and it looks like you’ve got a good set of schools to visit. My son also has strong test scores and started with a GPA around 3.4. He’s improved and looks like had a great year. It took him awhile to get motivated but with several AP’s this year and some competition from his friends, it seemed to click. Your son will find what works for him!
I never gave report on our visit to McDaniel. S liked it, wife and I really liked it. It’s a nice campus even though some facilities are a little long in the tooth. I think a there are a lot of major/concentration options for a school that size, and they appear to offer a lot of support to students. The town of Westminster has a nice Main Street, but we didn’t get to spend a lot of time there. They have shuttles running to both DC and Baltimore public transit on the weekends, and organized trips to both cities. It wouldn’t be hard for our inside the Beltway kid to escape the small town, but he wouldn’t always be surrounded by big city distractions either.
Next visit will be to Fordham later this month. This is his reach school, since his GPA is squarely in this thread’s range. Maybe his SAT, which is around their median, would be enough. I wouldn’t say this to him this way, but I think it might be too intense academically for. When a class doesn’t interest him he has trouble getting motivated,to do the work, and there’s a big required core at Fordham.
D18 just got her final grades-her GPA for this year was an astounding (to us) unweighted 3.7, up from 2.6 the year before. Her overall gpa is now a 3.14 (Pi!), and we’re just so proud of her for putting it together so well this year.
Her SAT scores came in and she got a 670 verbal, 640 math, so she’s thrilled about her first try on that test, especially since she upped her scores each time from the PSAT.
I think the schools she’s looking at will stay the same, but perhaps some of the reaches will be a little less reachy. Next up is her second shot at the ACT this weekend. She thinks she’s going to focus on the SAT from here on out, though. Which reminds me, I need to have her register for the next one…