My son is considering music education. And uncertain of the future of Indiana legislature in regards to school curriculum and how they treat teachers.
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Context: All of my kids skew pretty far left politically. Perhaps unexpectedly, then, my extremely left and lesbian D23 has precisely no worries about going to college in Texas (and not just Austin!âthe Texas college on her shortlist is in the Dallas suburbs). My genderqueer C25, though, wouldnât be about to go to college in Texas due to the political climate there (even if the heat hadnât taken it off their list). And my cishet ally D17 strongly considered the offer she got from Earlham (in Indiana), because she figured it could be a good base to âfight the good fightâ (her phrasing at the time).
Which I guess is a roundabout way of saying that one size canât fit all when it comes to politics and identities and their effects on location choices.
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@2plustrio - My D19 is an education major. Assuming he wants to become a teacher hereâs a few tips/considerations in making his list of colleges.
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Go to school in the state where you want to teach. Requirements vary by state, schools might provide some assistance in navigating different state requirements but I donât think any schools do this well. He will also likely be doing his student teaching locally and making connections in those schools.
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Look at the structure of the program, is it direct admitted to the school of education? or do you apply before Junior year? How soon do you get in the classroom? Do they have an accelerated 5 year masters program?
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Where you went to school doesnât affect your paycheck. Salaries are determined by years of experience and highest degree obtained.
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Look at the passing rate for the teachers exam. This is a good indicator on the quality of the program and how well they prepare their teachers. Iâve seen ranges from under 60% to over 95%
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Im not surprised a lesbian is a bit less fearful in Texas. However, my S23 is pro choice and doesnt quite agree with the current abortion laws there.
Ultimately, there will be many factors in his college choice. Just didnât expect some of the current political climate to be part of the college decision is all.
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Agree overall and that is how my kid feels (that politics is an important but not sole factor) but at some point the parent has a right to step in (I believe) to protect the kid who in some ways is naive and has never experienced anything but acceptance. I think I need to put my foot down on no Texas - just too dangerous for trans kids now I think. You have to think of the surrounding community etc.
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S23 set up a college only email.
He sat through an online info session.
Baby steps.
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I am also disturbed by the anti-LGBTQ and anti-choice legislation in certain states. My son is an ally to both the LGBTQ community and women so it will definitely factor in to where he applies.
Reminder of background: from Buffalo, NY, 4.0 Unweighted GPA, 1450 SAT, good amount of volunteer hours, level 10 gymnast, nearly fluent in Spanish, wants to major in Psychology (Spanish minor) with end goal of PhD in clinical psych. We will get some financial aid but depending on good merit and trying to keep price in the SUNY range.
We traveled to Atlanta over the winter break and visited Oglethorpe University and both Emory campuses (Oxford and Atlanta.)
We enjoyed our tour of Oglethorpe but my son, who IS leaning towards a smaller college, felt 1500 students was just TOO small. They have a great Flagship 50 program for high-stats students (will match your flagship price) so a lovely college for the right students and can be affordable. Small with a closed campus in a very nice suburb of Atlanta, but close enough to the city to for those who crave that city experience.
The Emory Oxford campus was very pretty and quaint and allows Emory students to start off (for 2 years on this campus) in a small, intimate setting of only 1000 students. This is great for students who seek leadership roles as freshman and sophomores and want the benefits of small classes. While impressive, it was too small for my son and it is 45 minutes from Atlanta so a bit isolated. They do have a regular shuttle to the Atlanta campus but he wants to be closer to the action.
Emory Atlanta was the big winner. He really liked the campus with a mix of classic and modern buildings and was attracted to the rigor and research opportunities. The students on campus seemed very engaged, social and happy. Several would comment to the tour group âCome to Emory!â or âBe a chemistry major, itâs great!â (when we were in the science building.) It does rank high for student happiness so that was evident. Seemed like more of a collaborative vs. competitive environment which appeals to my son. Having said that, the admissions presenter was very real with the application process and said they are getting many more applications (especially since the test optional decision) so she said students who would normally get in on the âfirst readâ are being put into a âsecond readâ pile for consideration. ED has a big advantage with 30% acceptance from that pile vs. 10% from RD. The general acceptance rate at Emory is about 19%. Since we donât plan on doing ED, I get nervous when I hear those stats, but it motivates my son and he thinks of it as a good challenge. They stressed the holistic approach, so donât underestimate the power of essays and teacher recommendations. Northeastern is still his gold standard but he really liked Emory Atlanta too.
His goal is to apply to 10-12 schools (mix of safety, target and reach.) We only have a few more he might consider (although Iâm sure new ones will pop up) but not sure we can visit these ahead of applying.
So these are the ones he may look into more:
Fordham
CUNY Hunter and/or City College (if he applies to Macaulay Honors)
Nova Southeastern (Ft. Lauderdale)
Florida International University
maybe a few Chicago schools?
Colleges like Alabama or University of Arizona might be considered if he is recognized as a National Hispanic Merit Scholar b/c they give great merit.
These have stayed on the list after visiting:
SUNY Buffalo State College
LeMoyne (Syracuse)
Rollins (Orlando area)
St. John Fisher (Rochester)
Clark (Wochester)
UMASS Boston
Northeastern
Canât believe we are into March of junior year. This year is flying so I can only imagine how fast senior year will go! I enjoy reading your posts and updates!
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My sons hs has about 1600 students and I do fear several of the colleges we may be able to afford could feel too small for him.
Hoping to tour soon and get a real answer.
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D20 wanted a small school (her high school was large and she wanted smaller). What we were surprised by is how different campuses feel, even when they have basically the same number of enrolled students.
Some small schools felt small, some definitely felt larger than they were. If you can visit multiple small schools, I would highly recommend doing so because they are very different.
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Talked to mental health today, going to try a low dose of meds for adhd. Hoping this helps.
Voice teacher recommended some schools. However, half of them are MAJOR reaches. Hoping he stays realistic.
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We are in a very similar situation with my S23. Just got an ADHD evaluation back this week, and meeting with doc next week. Therapist thinks that could be the root of the other issues (anxiety, depression, and recent experimenting/self medicating). My S is not an arts student, but my older D was (theater). That adds a whole level of difficulty to the search process! She found some rolling and non audition programs as safeties.
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This is my son exactly.
His voice teacher recommended he apply for a couple top schools which raised his confidence a bit.
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Oh, absolutely, and the recommendation is coming from the voice teacher is fantastic. IMO finding safeties for performing arts can be hard. Good luck!
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Thinking of adding Case Western and Xavier University to our list of potential schools to look at. He seems to want to be in or close to a city and Cleveland or Cinncinatti (while no NYC or Boston) might fit the bill. Itâs only a 3 hour drive for us to Cleveland (vs. 6-7 for Boston and NYC) and about 6 hours to Cinncinatti but both probably cheaper places to live, so definitely some perks. Any experience with either school or the city of Cleveland or Cinncinatti? Are either known to give decent merit?
Case gives very good merit. We are from IL and I know many kids from here choose Case over UIC or UIUC because Case gave significant merit to attract bright ones. And Case is such a great school too. We have toured Case in January. It was cold but got good vibes of the college. Our D is definitely applying.
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We also have Case on our list to look at. And itâs also on the TE.
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Thanks for that! We actually passed through Cleveland on our way back from Atlanta and they had tours at CWR, even though it was a Sunday, but my son was tired from our long trip and just wanted to get home (probably to see his GF. Lol) But itâs close enough we can visit pretty easily, along with Xavier. Iâve heard great things about it so not sure why it wasnât on our radar until recently.
Let us know your thoughts if you tour anytime soon. What is the TE?
TE is tuition exchange list, because my husband works for a University that belongs to the program his dependents can apply for the tuition exchange program at those schools.Many offer full tuition, however some are extremely competitive, itâs basically like applying for a scholarship.
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Wow, thatâs a nice perk! Even if competitive, itâs great to have a chance for such a nice award!