@megan12 Any school is a party school if someone is looking to party. My son has never attended a party in his life. He as found quite a few friends just like him there. What other schools are on your list?
D19 and I are back from our âDiscover NAUâ tour of Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, AZ. NAU is part of the Western Undergraduate Exchange so if you live in one of the WUE states you can get a significant tuition break at NAU. Non-residents (including WUE applicants) are also eligible for merit scholarships based on GPA and test scores. NAU also pledges not to raise your tuition over the course of four years (eight continuous semesters not counting summer). https://nau.edu/admissions/tuition-and-cost/tuition-expenses/
We drove up to Flagstaff from Phoenix on Friday night, had dinner at a restaurant on the edge of campus and stayed at a nearby hotel. The Discover NAU tour is one of their longer tours and runs from 8:00 am to 3:00 pm, and is only offered on designated Saturdays. I would estimate there were 300+ students and parents at the program. Iâve done a fair number of college tours and this one was very nicely done, well organized and presented the school very well. There was a large contingent of student ambassadors on duty (about 40) and they all seemed enthusiastic and helpful, and like they knew their assignments well.
Here are some of my random notes from the visit.
- Flagstaff is located about 144 miles (2.5 hours) north of Phoenix, at the base of the San Francisco Peaks, with a dramatic view of Mt. Humphreys
- Flagstaff is home to the Lowell Observatory and a âDark Sky Cityâ that regulates lighting and building height and location to preserve dark skies.
- The population of Flagstaff is about 70,000 not counting the NAU students.
- NAU is surrounded by the largest ponderosa pine forest in North America.
- Flagstaff is at an elevation of 7000 feet, gets 288 days of sun per year and averages 100 inches of snow. The campus sidewalks are heated in the winter. Snowbowl Ski Resort is 15 miles from NAU and students get discounted lift tickets.
- NAU recently became a tobacco free campus.
- 90% of freshmen live on campus.
- We were given a pass for lunch at the Hot Spot, the main dining hall in the University Union. I give my lunch a thumbs up. 9, The student body is 65% from AZ. Outside AZ the states that send the most students are California and Hawaii.
- The campus is in the shape of a rectangle, running 1.5 miles from North to South, and 0.5 miles wide East to West. There is a shuttle than runs through the campus and into the area just north of campus (historic downtown Flagstaff). Students can also ride some city bus routes for free.
- Arizona Shuttle, a private shuttle company, runs shuttles 13 times per day from NAU to Phoenix (the airport and one other stop).
- NAU has an honors program and is building a new Honors dormitory complex that will open in the Fall of 2018.
- Flagstaff is very proud of their Urban Trails System, a city-wide network of non-motorized, shared-use pathways that are used by bicyclists, walkers, hikers, runners, and other users for both recreation and transportation.
One funny thing they did at the welcome reception at the auditorium was to single out parents who were wearing shirts or hats with the logos of other colleges (especially ASU and the U of AZ) and hand those parents NAU ball caps. When we did our departmental tour, D19 turned out to be the only student who opted for the Chemistry tour (huge crowd went with the Biology tour). So we got our own private tour of the Chemistry Department with a professor and a student chem major. The professor remarked that NAU has very few grad students, and that makes it easier for undergrads to get research positions in the Chemistry department (kind of like the LAC pitch).
D19 definitely came away with a positive impression of NAU. Itâs certainly one of our most affordable options between in state tuition and merit aid. Flagstaff is actually a nice town. I remember 15-20 years ago I thought of it as having not much besides chain restaurants and chain hotels, but itâs really evolved quite a bit into a decent college town. https://www.aier.org/cdi-2017/flagstaff-ariz
@Corinthian thanks for the visit report! While not on S19âs list it may be a very strong fit for S20 who coincidentally also wants to major in chemistry. We are in CO so the WUE discount makes it a desirable school as well. How far out do the Discover NAU Days book? What did you think of the chemistry department?
@mountainmomof3 We were impressed by the Chemistry department (not that we are especially well prepared to judge). The building was very new and seemed well equipped. The Chemistry & Biochemistry Departments offer a variety of degree plans âboth rigorous and interdisciplinary in nature.â (From the brochure) There is a basic plan (with a minor), a more advanced plan (without a minor), plus plans certified by the American Chemical Society for either Chemistry or Biochemistry, and something my D19 is interested in: an âExtended BS in Chemistry - Forensic and Criminalistics Emphasis.â https://nau.edu/CEFNS/NatSci/Chem-Biochem/Degrees-Programs/BS-Chemistry/
The next Discover NAU day is July 7. I assume theyâll schedule more for the Fall but thatâs all that shows on the schedule now. https://nau.edu/admission/discover-nau/ The one we attended looked pretty full but I donât really know if they book up or how fast.
@DCNatFan have you thought of looking at Goucher while youâre up looking at Towson? Itâs a smaller school but itâs very friendly and pretty and itâs close enough to Towson that there is a lot of cross-communication. They also have an application fee waiver for visiting campus so itâs a low cost alternative option in case she decides she likes LACs later in the game.
@ninakatarina We actually did a drive through of Goucher awhile back and it is a beautiful campus. D19 has all but ruled out small schools (anything under 5,000). Her HS is about 2,200 so she wants something larger.
I have a fondness for Goucher. If my son wasnât so fired up to go to school far enough away to get some distance from his father Goucher would be near the top spot on our mutual lists. Ah, well, if I had had more than one kid I could have been making multiple lists at this point. Too late for that.
@ninakatarina we have a rule that each kid has to apply to one local/in state option. What they want today may not be at all what they want in fall or a year from now and options are good. If he decides he doesnât want to go far away is there a backup or contingency plan? Maybe you could try that as a humor your mom back up option?
Hm. I like that. Iâll keep the idea in my back pocket.
Not sure if anyone elseâs kids took the April 14 ACT, but scores are available online. D19 got a 29 which is fine for the schools sheâs looking at. She wonât take it again. Still a huge split between Reading/English and Math/Science even though she prepped mostly on math. Shrugs. Does anyone know if that is a big issue for schools?
D also decided not to take math senior year, against the advice of her guidance counselor. So sheâll finish Algebra 2 this year and thatâs it. I very much doubt she would have been able to get through pre-calculus, so her father and I agreed. We just hated the thought of a stressed out tear filled senior year dealing with math. But who knows what admissions people will think. My guess is it probably wonât matter for art schools, but for regular colleges and universities Iâm worried that the math/science low scores plus no math senior year may trigger some red flags. If anyone has experienced anything similar Iâd love to get your two cents.
D19âs gpa is looking to be 3.25 to 3.3 at the end of junior year. Thatâs unweighted, her school does not weight. Sending good thoughts to all as we enter the last month or two of school. Tons of tests, projects and papers for D19 right now. Summer canât come fast enough!
@eandesmom I had that conversation last night with DS, about in-state options. He is absolutely and totally against going anywhere in Maryland, or to any of the schools that are popular in this area. His ideal college is somewhere he knows absolutely nobody from high school unless that person is one of his close and trusted friends.
He didnât quite say this, but I inferred that this is linked to his transition. He wants to go somewhere that nobody knew him when he was a girl, so everyoneâs first impressions and subconscious expectations will be that he is male and he wonât be treated differently. It makes the search a little tougher because the popular schools are the closer and cheaper options. But Iâm glad I got the root of that hidden criteria out in the open.
@golden3 I donât know about art schools, but most colleges ask for 4 years of math, I believe. You should check all the colleges your D is interested in and see what their criteria is. Itâs usually listed on their online admissions page somewhere. Is there another math class she can take, maybe like Statistics?
@golden3 if you have Naviance, look up the colleges youâre interested in and click on the âadmissionsâ tab. Towards the bottom of the page there is a listing of how many years of a subject are required and how many are recommended.
I looked up a few arts colleges - SCAD requires 3 years of math, RISD has no requirements for math, MICA requires 2, recommends 3, UNCSA requires 3.
If you donât have Naviance let me know some of the other colleges youâre looking at and Iâll look them up for you.
Hello, everyone! Boy, am I happy to find this forum!! My D (only child) has 3.25 GPA, 27 ACT. Her High School is huge (2,500) with a lot of high (over) achieving students that really intimidate her. Not big on ECs; pretty much the only thing she is involved in at school is Varsity tennis. Reading about all of the 5.0 GPA and 36 ACT and crazy ECs applicants has me really stressed out. Reading all of the posts in the 3.0 - 3.4 forum has given me hope.
@golden3 Not all colleges require 4 years of math. And while yes, they like to see it, stressed out kids arenât worth it. The critical piece is to make sure she has enough of the right kind of math and science required by the schools on her list. If she does then Iâd let it go too.
How low are the math and science scores and where is she targeting? My S17 had rather dismal scores but did make it a bit higher in math (though he dropped calc after first semester). Scores if needed, could be an area you could focus on over the summer versus another math class senior year. In general though what major she applies to even at a non art school will matter as to how important the math and science are.
I would also check, for those schools, what they require to graduate for her desired major or degree. Does it require math or a math placement test? One risk you may have is that she will be required to take a pre-calc or an algebra class in college if she doesnât meet the graduation standards (admissions and grad will be different) and thatâs helpful to know as you construct a list of schools.
@ninakatarina that makes sense but it makes me a bit sad. I completely get where he is coming from. However, especially if a large school, the chances of running into folks from HS is relatively small. If it were me I might have a ready list of back up rolling apps if late in the game, he changes his mind, just so I knew what the options were. God to have the conversation now and support his position on this.
@Sconnie810 welcome! There are lots of great options out there for kids in your Dâs range, this is a great place for support and ideas and crafting smart application lists that result in pretty decent results!
@golden3 My D16 had a 30 ACT with 33 on English/Reading, 27 math, 28 science. It didnât hurt her and she even applied as a science major (similar unweighted GPA).
I hear you on the busy schedule these days. S19 missed two days of school last week on a band trip, returned Sunday night, is going to be at the school for 14 hours a day every day this week and all weekend (pit orchestra for musical opening tomorrow), had 3 tests to make up from last week, has a jazz band performance thrown in there Saturday morning, and somehow has to write a paper on a book that he hasnât finished yet before the weekend. I have no idea how that is going to happen - heâs already exhausted.
Our HS hosted an event last night for juniors called Admission Option and Strategies. It consisted of a panel of 4 seniors and 4 admissions reps (2 publics, 2 privates). While I found the information presented very basic it was good for D19 to hear it from students. Things like start early with applications, get as much done during the summer as possible and apply widely as some perceived safety schools are no longer so. They said all the same things we have been saying but hopefully coming from her peers will hit home.
Apparently it worked. She texted me this morning and said she talked to her Chem/Bio teacher about a LOR. He should be the perfect LOR for her since she had him for 2 years.
Then I checked Naviance and she added two new schools to the list, one way over budget and the other doesnât offer the major she wants.
Oh well - baby steps.
That sounds great @DCNatFan - I wish our school would offer something like that for juniors! All of the college planning events are for parents and not even open to students for some reason.
One additional item the counselors suggested was to get their âCounselor Self-Evaluationâ packet to their counselor during the summer as the counselors are working and have more time to work on the counselor recommendation. The packet is about is about 8 pages where the student describes interests, ECs, schools they are interested in, etc. There is also a section for parent input.
At our school, students have to get the Counselor Self-Evaluation packet (sounds similar to what @DCNatFan referenced) and the âparent brag packetâ and the resume and completed copies of the teacher LOR request forms to the school counselors before the end of school (June 15 for us).