Architecture has always been one of RPI’s gems. Glad to hear you are getting the info you need from the best source possible. I suggest contacting the Dean by e-mail with questions. This could (I cannot promise for the Dean) ensure they are answered during accepted students day. It could also help next year’s potential students and parents. If the Dean gets 50 e-mails asking the same question, the Dean learns to address this next year. If you cannot attend Accepted Students Day ask about recordings etc, ask for presentation handouts, ask for every piece of information given to attendees.Please do not take offense at the suggestions, you mentioned MST and that implies more travel than EST which could be expensive and impractical.
@CollegeGrad79 If my daughter decides RPI, I do not consider she will be NOT well-rounded. She attended an elite high-achieving HS in NYC and has great writing and communication skills already. I assume engineering students take the required humanities courses for graduation, but hence, they are engineering students, not lawyers. My son is at Stevens and he does not take language classes either. Ocourse being bilingual in todays world is a plus, but does that mean that mono-lingual graduates are less successful? unlikely. @Spark2018 Is the ARCH program basically like coop in other schools?
Basically a COOP. that is my interpretation of ARCH. Unlike Northeaster, which is the master of the COOP space, at RPI its timely is pre-determined. As a rising junior, you are doing a summer semester on campus (a few exceptions ie sports program). There are plenty of posts that question the schools support and ability to build partnerships for relatable placement. We will see. Based on the companies who attended on career day, I’m cautiously optimistic. A 200 y/o poly should be able to be good out of the gate. Again, at Northeaster, they do this really well, with robust relationships built over years. For me, maybe based on our location, downstate NY, I’m not concerned. When my other son was a rising junior, at a different school, for that matter a rising sophomore, he had no trouble finding an appropriate job. I do like the Northeastern model as if you can’t find a COOP you like in a particular semester, well, continue with classes. A close friend is a student there, and at least in CS, it is has not been an issue at all. The difference between job, COOP, and intern can be a bit blurry. Certainly some companies have better definitions than others. Smart companies use COOP / interns as a test drive, with the plan to hire at graduation if it’s a fit. That has been my practice and experience. As you know, as an adult, the summers of childhood don’t exist.
ps At NE with COOP the plan going in is you will earn your degree in 5 yrs. That is with 3 COOPs along the way. I hear now you can limit to 2 COOPs, so, with AP, class/COOP in summer, and good planing you can still complete if 4. COOPs are paid. With ARCH, staying in 4 years is by design more certain.
How is ARCH a co-op? Isn’t it a semester at school? We were told the point was for sophomores to get in their first semester junior classes sooner to be more marketable to employers for future co-ops/internships.
FWIW, my freshman dd at another school already has her co-op lined up to start sophomore year. IMO, ARCH makes scheduling co-ops/internships harder as it puts it off for another year.
@momofsenior1 Sorry if that confused. ARCH is ‘not the COOP’, it is the framework for the employment experience (COOP, Intern, job, or an abroad experience). As far as timing, I look at Northeastern which has what I consider maximum flexibility, and it all works out great, and has for decades. Yes, I guess having 5 semesters in does make one more marketable. Also, I sort of think the ARCH is a de facto way of increasing dormitory space by 12.5%.
D accepted RPI CS. also Wisconsin. which one is better? Thanks we are OOS for both, payment will be almost same (RPI provided $25K scholarship).
Are students allowed to move into the sorority or fraternity houses their sophomore year? How does payment work? Is it the same cost as room and board?
Students who join Greek organizations can move into Greek Housing during their sophomore year. The cost for room and board is usually significantly lower than living on campus.
Has anyone from other degree programs, other than Architecture, gotten any calls, etc from their major or from the school? S is CS and I’m saddened that he hasn’t gotten any emails, cards, calls, etc from the college or his major saying congratulations, welcome, asking if he had questions, etc. Colleges are businesses, and there is serious competition for students, so after his acceptance I was excepting that the college would put in effort to get his attention and get his deposit. That has not happened but the other college at the top of his list is all about sending us information. Goodness, as the parent I got an email about accepted students day (they obviously know who will be writing the tuition check) and letting me know I can attend and gave me a sign up link. S has received and email and a card from his admissions counselor, and last week he got a phone call from admissions asking him if he had any questions.
It’s a sales, pitch, I’m not kidding myself, but they are doing a excellent job of keeping that schools name front and center.
I just expected RPI to push just as hard, after all, if they get S to accept then that one more student that is paying them, not another college.
My DS did not get any calls, but we received some sort of flyers about RPI. I think he got emails also but not exactly sure how much, the same for the Northeastern his another choice.
Update: has anyone been able to set up their RPI email yet or been able to access the student orientation info on the SIS system yet? Today is April 1, so it should be available now but I’m not seeing anything still.
@rileysmom, we have not received any correspondence from RPI after my son got his acceptance either, aside from the accepted students day postcard. He has received numerous e-mails and mailings from NJIT, and received a personal phone call from the head mechanical engineering professor at Stevens Institute of Technology this weekend. I’m not saying these gestures will sway his decision, but it certainly is nice to feel “wanted”. 
@StudentsR1st We are from CO and we don’t have the NAAB accredited B.Arch program in state. Therefore we knew right from the beginning everything is going to be OOS for us. There are 4 schools D is considering as of now . We will be touring all these 4 schools. Its expensive and time consuming for sure as they are across the country from us but definitely not impractical from our point of view. We need to determine the perfect fit before taking any decision as its a question of 5 years and a huge investment.
@rileysmom We have been receiving emails and pamphlets constantly in the email from RPI apart from the phone calls. As someone said not that it will influence our decision but its nice to feel “wanted”.
@nani378 What is this SIS system?
@SnoogieMom I agree, it is nice to have the feeling that the college really does want the students they accepted. The school that is showering him/us with “attention” is RIT. I don’t know if they are swaying my son but it is certainly swaying me.
@rileysmom I agree RPI is swaying me if not D.
@sam4818. I’m glad RPI is giving you the attention, it appears that the Architecture school has figured out how to get student/families attention. Bummer the other school haven’t caught up. I honestly love RPI for my son, think it’s perfect for him. I wish I felt that they wanted him to attend as much as I want him to attend.
SIS is the student information system.
@Sam4818 it is the system that you have to log into to register for your classes and stuff. To activate your account the first time you use your application ID number and your birthday as the password and then it will tell you change it. You can access it from the accepted student website where it says register for orientation”online”
I support ALL students and alumni, whether they complain, or are happy with the Tute…
WHY NOT CHANGE THE WORLD?
“At Rensselaer, we work to change the world by linking the research we do—and the education we offer—to the great global challenges of our time.”
World changers “consistently, persistently make interesting and bold choices that enlarge their own capacities, and that alter the circumstances in which they find themselves—for the better.”
Shirley Ann Jackson, Ph.D. President, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (February 2014)