Child accepted to all three, all OOS but UDel with scholarship. Instate UMD EA rejected and offered Institute of Applied Agriculture acceptance with classes and campus life like all UMD students and option to transfer into main BS program after a year or two.
Pros and cons of these options?
Price will obviously be a concern for Pitt and PennState.
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If Pitt and Penn State are not comfortably affordable I’d drop them from consideration now.
I don’t know about the UMD program you mentioned but UDelaware is a great option.
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Agreed - throw out the two PA schools - that you raise the issue is enough to remove them?
How is the price of UDel vs. UMD.
Do they like UDel? It’s smaller and a bit further out than UMD.
Going to UMD has risk - so to me, if he likes Delaware and the cost is comfortable, I’d lean there.
Of course, I don’t know the student or what they’d be comfortable with.
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Student seems to be attracted to Pitt’s rating but agree, price will be the deciding factor. And, I guess, the rating difference is not significant enough to chose it over UDel.
Between UMD and UDel (more expensive), there will be 7-10k difference per year in tuitions assuming the rest is comparable.
Both will have risks:
- UMD - first year you have to maintain 3.0 GPA and 30 credits to transfer automatically
- UDel - same pressure (maintain high rigorous/performance) to stay in honours with scholarship)
They also say, love school that loves you back - UD is clearly better in that respect.
On the other hand, in UMD might be easier in case of dips and major changes - you can take longer than 4 years and still pay in-state.
Ohhh, my student is torn and so am I.
Already ruled out other acceptances but these 2 (or 3) are hard
Define rating- if you’re talking about US News and overall - there is no discernible difference between these four schools and even lower ranked flagships whether it’d be WVU or Alabama or wherever. That’s for magazines. Example - not pertinent to here - but who has the most national merit scholars int he country. Alabama - and they’re ranked far lower than these schools and yet the smartest are flocking there.
Or are you talking about a rating in the major? I can’t find any of these schools in a ranking but I’d think Pittsburgh is in a city…UD is closer to a coast…I dont’ know if anything is there.
Can you afford the $7-10K?
All have risks. Is Honors at UD tied to the scholarship? Are you sure? But yes, most schools have a GPA tied to scholarship but you want to look at the conditions if you don’t make it. Some schools take it away, others have a long probation time.
Only you all can decide - but if you believe in your kid, bet on your kid.
What are the career outcomes for each? And what types of earnings do kids in this major get?
And if he doesn’t get the auto transfer at UMD, what do the last three years look like? On campus? What major?
What are his stats - GPA and ACT/SAT? Is he open to others that might be cheaper or only in that immediate geographic area?
I only hear great things about UD.
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Start off by eliminating Pitt and PennState as they sound unaffordable.
Next ask, what would your student be choosing if they had been accepted directly to the UMD Environmental Studies major?
Because as you describe it, the UMD option and the UDel option seem similar. Both require your student to jump over some bar in order for them to achieve their goal. UDel’s bar is that it requires a certain GPA or they pull the scholarship and the school won’t work financially. UMD’s bar is that it requires a certain GPA or your student can’t transfer to the major and will have to settle for some other major. Seems sort of equal to me, so I think your student should choose the one they like better.
My own opinion shouldn’t matter, but I’ll tell it to you anyway: I have a positive bias toward Applied Ag programs due to my experience with an Applied Ag department at a different university. I worked for a time in the Ag department of my state’s flagship and felt that it gave students a really good experience. It was one of the smaller programs at the University and gave students a lot of individualized attention, smaller class sizes, etc. The professors and the students were smart,hard working and down to earth. Also, a relative of mine was an Economics major in the department of Arts and Science (the biggest school within this flagship university.) Economics was his first choice major, and he was a good student, but he was having trouble passing the foreign language classes that were a requirement in the A&S dept. So he ended up transferring to the Applied Economics major within the Ag Department (which had no foreign language requirement.) Even though Ag applications of economics had not been on his radar previously, the program turned out to be a great fit, and even better there were a ton of jobs waiting for him when he graduated. He got hired by a global company that has afforded him lots of room for advancement. Turns out, this company had a long tradition of recruiting heavily from the Ag school, but not the A&S school. Apparently this company agreed that its graduates were smart, hard working and down to earth.
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For environmental studies, Pitt does not appear to stand out in particular:
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Thx, I totally agree, applied ag or ag economics is better as a bachelors degree than general economics or business or environment and hope my student will understand that too.
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Thx, Interesting, only PennState is on the list (from acceptances) and UVM (still waiting on decision)
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I know, us news is just an overall rating, not an indication for your major or even quality of academics. My older son chose school based on ratings, not the best fit and I think he regrets it (junior now). Rating is important for overall motivation (at least with my kids) but it’s just a part of the puzzle.
My younger one is not highest stats (28 ACT, 3.6 uw/4.6w, all Aps with 5,4s and some 3s, jobs and relevant lab internship). He can do wonders when he wants to but can also drop the ball. Therefore, it would be great for him to be in a supportive and encouraging environment.
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Maybe he needs a smaller school - it’s tough at larger schools to find that “encouragement”.
I was thinking like a Bama for auto merit but he doesn’t have the test score.
Can you go check out both departments - and see - maybe there is that support in the Applied as @fiftyfifty1 noted - maybe UMD is a winner and it’s all good as is.
Delaware is definitely smaller but does that mean more supporting - that’s tough.
Kids need to seek out the support no matter where they go. I don’t see UVM as a possibility - if money is a concern, with his #s, it’s not going to put you where you need to be. Maybe U Maine. Did you look at St. Mary’s in Maryland - a public and a small school - perhaps they’d give him the support needed?
Best of luck.
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