Locococomama, after hearing about Rose-Hulman I started diving into their website to see how their graduates fare (very well, maybe even better than UofM grads in jobs, salaries and graduate school admissions) and the CVs of their professors (who are products of top STEM universities like Carnegie-Mellon, RPI, Cornell, etc.). While rooting around, I came across a Rose-Hulman professor who graduated from Carnegie-Mellon a few years after I did. On a lark, I wrote her an email asking if she would be willing to speak with me about how the academics and campus culture at Rose compare to CMU (a notoriously tough school that seemed on a mission to fail out the bottom 20% of engineers in the 1980s). To my amazement, she responded within a couple hours and we spoke for 45 minutes later that same day. She could not have been more helpful, patient and forthcoming. If she is representative of the faculty at Rose, the school just replaced UofM as Jackās top choice.
@JackH2021 This is fantastic to hear! Since it came down to Colorado School of Mines and Rose for my son, Mines reputation was hard to let go of and Rose is far less well known to the common folk (my theory is because of the location and that is the only reason), though if you talk to folks in the industry, they are very aware of their great program. What ultimately made it easy to let go of Mines in the end (for my son who had said he would go there since 7th grade and also for myself, who was a Rose fan much sooner) was what the kids were saying about the school. Unigo tends to lead to frank answers to all of their questions and many things come out if you take the time to read what the kids say about different issues. The community feel, the professor support, and actual desire for the kids to succeed (not saying professors at Mines donāt care, the kids seem to be more of a number and they do also seem to weed out, which I am very opposed to). Rarely do schools practice what they preach, but Rose-Hulman by all accounts seems to do so.
My son worked with the man in charge of Rose Squared, their 4 year Masterās program last week. To qualify, you need around 6 classes via dual credit or AP/IB to transfer over. He worked hard to get my sonās courses qualified and when he could not approve something, he ccād the department heads, who then discussed it all with my son and got everything approved. There were some issues because of COVID and how AP exams were done, but they worked with him and found a solution. Heāll be one course short, but Rose lets them do that over a summer or do it in 4 1/2 years if they prefer. The ability to get his mechanical engineering degree with a masterās in engineering management in 4 years is huge (their program also allows a masterās in mechanical if you wanted it, but that would like be at least an additional semester) and justifies the price tag. Iām really excited to hear about my sonās journey as August is just around the corner! Like I said, keep my info and feel free to check in with me. Iāll let you know how it all goes. My S applied for early action, which I think is the best scenario for kids, answers by mid December and scholarship info by mid January (just a tip!)
Jack was just accepted to the Catapult Summer Program.
Fantastic, and congrats to him.
@JackH2021 congrats! It looks like a great program and 2 credits to boot! I wish we had found Rose earlier. My son did a 3 week, very intensive Intro to design course at Tulane in summer of 2019 and loved it. He did get college credit and learned a ton, also cementing his desire to major in ME. He also did Vanderbiltās computer 3 week course they have for GT kids the summer before. No CC, but again, allowed him to narrow down what he wants to do for life! These programs also strengthened his college applications, but the real point of them for us was to make sure he wanted to do engineering, especially desiring a STEM school, as it makes it hard to change your mind!
Jack was accepted to UofMās Summer STEM program last year, but then COVID hit. UofM is still shut down this Summer, so we are glad we found the Catapult program.
The real goals for the Summer are 1. give him a taste of living away from home on a college campus, and 2. see if he likes the school. We had not even thought of the college credit. Also, I am sure that Rose looks favorably upon applicants who had already attended Catapult.
Most of Roseās classes were in person, which was a HUGE positive for us too. So many schools were mostly remote/hybrid and I am not convinced this pandemic is over yet, making that a long-term positive should mutations and such make schooling hard moving forward. When you say Uof M, are you talking Michigan?
Loco, yes - University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
I wonder, would a full professor of Biomedical Engineering at UofM had taken 45 minutes out of their day to speak to the father of a prospective undergrad whom he had never met?
They mostly give out scholarships too, if you have attended one of their summer programs
@JackH2021 most likely not a chance! Itās interesting how my opinions of what is important in college have changed over the course of my 4 kiddos (on number 3/4 now with the twins). Things that are harder to get info on (like professor receptiveness) are far more important. Both of them will likely go to smaller schools, as did my older son (Colgate) for this exact reason. Additionally, I believe it is the reason smaller qualified LACs have better med/law school acceptance rates. LORs from professors that know you are essential and that is impossible to get at a large school, for the most part. I see Rose as the STEM version of a solid LAC. It obviously adds to quality of life during college too, but will work well for them for job searches and grad school if they go down that road.
Locococomama, I am not up on all the acronyms so you will need to help me a bit. What is āLACā (Liberal Arts College)? What is āLORā? (Letters of Recommendation)? This is my first kid looking at colleges, so I am a noobie.
@JackH2021 Well, for a noobie, you have great intuition! You got them all right! Welcome to the college rat race! Itās changed so much in the last decade from when my daughter entered college. Some things are better, some far worse, but this is a great resource. Feel free to ask any questions regarding the process.
Anyone considering the AMP program at Rose this summer?
I thought for sure my kiddo was going to select Rose-Hulman, but his confidence gotten shaken and looks like heās choosing a different school. Disappointed because I thought Rose was a good fit for him. Thanks to everyone for sharing and posting. I learned a great deal here. Good luck to you all!
@ZAMI36 When you say his confidence got shaken, do you mean he thinks Rose would be too hard for him?
In case this will help: when we did our visit, one of the reasons my son chose Rose was their collaborative environment: 1. open-door policy in dorms so students can help each other with homework or problems they are having. Our student guide said it was very common for students to call out for help with problems and others to come and help with the solution. 2. tutors in the dorms that are there to ensure students donāt fall through the cracks and get help before it becomes a problem. 3. 88% Students from Rose state that professors are always available (this is double or triple other schools) and want their success.
It may not matter at this point, but I had to see someone think they cannot make it there that got in, as it is clear that Rose thinks your student can be a success. This is always a hard time for parents and students alike, so I wish you both the best.
No, he attends a nationally ranked high school and heās used to a rigorous course load and isnāt afraid of a challenge. It was more a message he heard during a competition and he felt like he wasnāt what they wanted in a student.
Can you share the message please for our information?
All still deciding: Wow, Rose-Hulman is beyond any other institution I have yet to experience (and one of my kids goes to Colgate). The parent group on FB is unbelievable and supportive (totally different than the Colgate one or DU one). The community clearly likes each other (I recommend you join if you are strongly considering Rose to see what I mean). I had a concern and the VP of student affairs called me and spent a lot of time with me until my concerns were all addressed, I am beyond impressed with how responsive they were, as you rarely see this in educational institutions. Congrats to all on your decisions, but thought I would add this if you are still on the fence.
Thanks for the stats. A question: Did he also take all 3 sciences in HS (Physics, Chem and Math) or does Rose Hulman allow you to enter freshman year and complete a prerequisite? My D is not going to have Physics in HS and may have to take it as a prerequisite in college, and lately has been interested in Engineering, so wanted to check. Thanks!