@BIMom1 It can be a daunting task! Good news is there are several LAC’s across the country. Are there any restrictions on location, surroundings, majors, etc.? If you can provide a little more information I have been across Ohio, Pennsylvania, North Caroline, and Indiana and could give some suggestions. And I agree with @taverngirl about trying the ACT. Take a practice test at a local library (some offer for free) or at home and see if it comes back better. It could give you an indication if it’s worth it to sign up…many schools provide merit based on test scores.
Thanks @jcmom716 We are mostly looking PA, Ohio, MD. We are in the D.C. Area. I’m going to talk to him about ACT this weekend
@BIMom1 Check out the CTCL website for some options in those states. Also depending on major, Otterbein, John Carroll, Mount Union, Ohio Northern, Capital, and Wittenberg. We know happy students at many of these schools and most give scholarships for 3.0 and above. Several of the private colleges in Ohio start at a lower tuition so a scholarship of $10,00-$15,000 can make them more affordable. Good luck!
@BIMom1 Ursinus will offer him some money but they weight ACT/SAT very heavily so the better the test score the better the offer will be.
My son looked at many similar type schools, we found that Allegheny was by far the most generous with an offer. That said, coming in at state school prices is very difficult. Allegheny was the only one that came close for us. The strong junior year does help!
Visit to Wright State: http://www.wright.edu/ (open admissions). This was the first college visit tour my son ever took. I chose it for him because my die hard buckeye fever daughter (who was accepted and went to her dream school, OSU) had very seriously considered attending it instead.
Wow, the place had changed! Still incredible staff and faculty but the interiors were updated, new buildings completed and the place was humming with activity. Something I didn’t realize a few years ago was how well regarded their theater department is nationally. The areas around the campus also seemed to be booming, there is a new pedestrian/bike path over a major highway so the campus is now connected to a large retail/dining mall area which comes in handy for students without cars.
I think the year my daughter applied she was the only one in her class even considering it. This year, two of my son’s friends have made it their first choice.
We met with several faculty in my son’s interest area and they could not have been more engaging. We have visited additional schools and my son who isn’t picky and pretty laid back usually ends the day with the statement “I could go here.” I think Wright has been the only school he’s left a tour with a big grin and excitement about what the future holds. Maybe that’s why, so far, it’s the only college application he’s been able to complete.
Please forgive the barge on this thread.
@BuckeyeMWDSG – might you know how the Wright State budget crisis is affecting the department of Theatre, Dance, and Motion Pictures? My D19 has Wright State included on her list of schools right now, but the budget news does give us pause.
I don’t have any insider information but I do know that Wright State is part of the University System of Ohio and there were a lot of expenses unifying the 14 universities, 23 community and technical colleges as well as their various branches (24?). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_System_of_Ohio That process seemed to correlate with a rise in administrative costs, but it’s completion also means that attrition and layoffs can be achieved without necessarily impacting students negatively. President Drake at OSU also aggressively scaled back budgets after unification in order to be able to increase aid to students.
Wright State’s Theater, Dance and Motion Pictures department acts as an ambassador for the university because the productions have the ability to engage the community and they are using their dominance to set themselves apart from others in Ohio and across the country with help from their successful alumni. So unlike other schools where theater may get the last of the budget and see the first cuts, I have the impression it’s definitely an equal there, and maybe even a priority department as it gains momentum in recognition.
In short - the school and that department are in no danger of discontinuing (it’s backed by a state with billions in reserve), it is going to continue to prioritize student experience, and will have funds to provide merit and need based aid; although it will probably be funding fewer business trips and hiring fewer employees. http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/wright-state-saved-more-money-than-expected-last-year/dE4iEFoam8GobcqUoj1DpK/
Thank you very much @BuckeyeMWDSG – we are considering applying from OOS and the budget situation was a big question mark for us. (The Wright State OOS COA is roughly the same as in-state options here.)
Hello everyone!
I have a question about SAT scores: Dd needs to improve her math score to get the automatic freshman scholarship at her top choice school. She’s going to complete the application this weekend. She’s wondering if she should go ahead and submit her current score (she has automatic admission, so it’s not a question of admissions) and then provide the next score if she hits the target when it comes out in late October/early Nov? Or should she NOT submit her current score and wait for the next one to decide which to submit. This is a merit aid question only. The school does not superscore and does not want to see all scores.
So, yeah, basically: do schools accept improved scores for merit aid purposes?
That answer may depend on the specific school and when merit aid is awarded. In 2013 when we went to an event at OSU the speaker told all the kids to resit the exam in December even if they were already admitted because they would use highest score to determine merit aid. He also said, you’d be amazed how much your score can improve when you’re already in and the pressure is off. Tests after December would be updated in student profiles, but be too late for merit consideration.
Thanks BuckeyeMWDSG, I guess I’ll ask them directly, though they didn’t answer my last question. I’m thinking dd feels like the pressure’s off already and that she’ll feel it going into this SAT.
By the way, are any of your seniors back to school yet? Mine started two weeks ago. She likes the majority of her classes, so I’m hoping it’ll be a good year.
@Kardinalschnitt My S18 started his senior year yesterday. His schedule works and I think he’ll end the year strong. His is taking a pretty cool class, AP Seminar, where he’ll do a lot of research multiple perspectives on current issues and write research papers on them. He’s really excited because there is a lot of freedom and choice to research ideas he is interested in (currently it is climate change and alternative energy). He also has a few of the same teachers he had last year which makes him very happy. I think it will be a great year!
@Kardinalschnitt My S18 started his senior year yesterday. His schedule works and I think he’ll end the year strong. His is taking a pretty cool class, AP Seminar, where he’ll do a lot of research multiple perspectives on current issues and write research papers on them. He’s really excited because there is a lot of freedom and choice to research ideas he is interested in (currently it is climate change and alternative energy). He also has a few of the same teachers he had last year which makes him very happy. I think it will be a great year!
Mine was back for a week…then Harvey. She is scheduled to go back again next Tuesday, but I suspect schools will be closed all of next week too.
She was liking her schedule though! I think her senior year is going to go off without too much stress, which is good.
She scheduled to take the ACT one last time next Saturday but I am not sure if the community college where she is scheduled to take it flooded or not.
Glad to hear other things are going well @labegg. Hopefully things continue to recover at a good pace. No scheduling issues sounds great too. My S21 is having to face reality and settle a bit in terms of his HS freshman schedule. Oh well.
S18 has been back in school for a couple of weeks. Quizzes and essays on summer readings, but he’s enjoying his classes so far. All his friends are already waxing nostalgic about being seniors this year… It’s weird, but there’s this strange calm right now regarding college apps; I feel like I’m the only parent stressing about it at his school and he’s one of the few asking for help at the GC office.
My son started school on Monday. His schedule was fixed by Tuesday and he is happy with his classes. He has told me his Govt/Econ teacher is the best that he has had! I still remember my Gov’t/Econ class from high school. Hope this last the whole year and not just the first week of school. He is very excited that he doesn’t have to read a lot this year for English. He is not a reader at all! I just hope that he doesn’t miss out on some classics.
He took the SAT last Saturday and was just “meh” about it. Not very happy that he didn’t take advantage of this first SAT of the school year. He knows what he has to do to go out of state, which he wants to do. It just doesn’t seem like he truly gets it.
@labegg Gosh, what a time to start senior year. It sounds like everything is going well, but please accept my wishes for a stress/damage-free hurricane! That sounds so weird! But I do hope you’re all okay.
@trish02 That class sounds cool. If dd were doing the IB Diploma she would have to do the Extended Essay, which sounds similar. We were in the local medical library and dd picked up a book about, I think, Neurology & Art and said that would be her EE if she were doing it.
@Texas1820 We ask a lot when we ask these kids to “get it.” It’s only recent that kids have to get these big things. I wish they could just stare at the sky instead!
University of Toledo is recruiting OOS and has some great merit aid starting at gpa 2.75/ACT 20 http://www.utoledo.edu/admission/freshman/scholarships/2018/out-of-state.html
How is everyone doing? I am following parents of 2018 but my kid so belongs in this forum. He is a wonderful kid but he is so sheltered.
I need him to really get a grasp on reality, we need for him to find at least one state school if not 2 because of the price. He has only applied to out of state schools. I will admit that I am not very happy with the options that he has for instate. We live in a great state but WOW are the options not great for a kid that wants lots of things and a certain major. We live in Texas. He does not want to got to Texas A&M, don’t ask, just not his cup of tea (He has told us this for the last 2 years) It would be a great option but a big NO go. UT is not an option, not what he wants in a school and not one we would want him to go to. Plus he would not be able to get into UT. Broke that news to him when he said he would rather go to UT then Tech. Tech is about his only option when it comes down to fit/major. It is the location that puts a big NO into it. We have a state app and was about to send in an app to a school just as a safety and found out that they don’t have his major. We have come across this in 2 other schools and it is very discouraging that a state like Texas is not making the public university system up to par in my mind. That makes at least 3 state schools that he can’t go to because of his major. I guess Tech will be his safety but we are still searching for a state school that would be a better fit. This is so much harder then I thought it would be.