We are not Catholic. BUT our DD wanted a college with 5000 or so undergrads. We found that the Jesuit colleges hit her sweet spot. They are very ecumenical and welcoming of all faiths. And the Jesuits know higher education very well.
The strong commitment to community service also was important, and we didn’t find that uniformly at other colleges.
When you say “no religion” what do you mean?
@thumper1 I sent you a pm, but I mean not a Catholic or Jesuit school. We don’t practice this religion and it would not be the right fit for her. I’m sure that knocks out some nice options, but I’m looking for a fit that’s also a match. Thanks.
I second the University of Michigan, even if it’s a reach. One of the best undergrad business programs in the country. Also Penn State, and Indiana also has a very strong business program. My son is at UM (not in business) and loves it there, and I have a good friend whose daughter is at Penn State in business but had a hard time choosing between there and Indiana. PM me if you want any more info about UM.
Dartmouth , College of Wooster or Case Western are colleges with very good Business Schools.
College of Wooster is a small school, so likely not a fit.
I’m a Lehigh grad, wife of a Lehigh grad and mom of a Lehigh grad. Each of us majored in different things. Son played football and wrote for student paper; I sang in choir, and husband played in many instrumental groups and was in a frat. We all had different and great experiences. I would urge you to check it out. Those who steer your child away from Lehigh based on its rep as a party school seem to assume all kids are sheep! Most bright kids will find their own paths and people at whatever college they attend–and Lehigh is a great place for lots of different kids to get a great education and robust cultural and social homes. Check out Mountaintop programs, Lehigh Silicon Valley program, etc.
Dartmouth and Wooster do not have undergrad business programs. (OP is looking for accounting or finance.)
Remember to apply to your instate schools. Know her unweighted gpa as some schools will only look at that (recalculating and including only the classes they choose). Recent years has many schools improving their admitted student stats, especially for wanted business schools that have enrollment limits.
Also good to keep in mind that naviance doesn’t show which major the student applied for. At many universities, certain majors, including business, have average SAT scores substantially higher than the college as a whole. Consider carefully the direct admission vs. 2 year program
Yes, that is a challenge with Naviance! It’s hard to find details for acceptance stats for a specific school/major. I saw something for Penn State Smeal (I cant remember the stats atm) but it still seemed pretty safe. She’s in the top 5% of a very competitive school with an unweighted 4.0, weighted about 4.5. Weighted will be higher after this year because of the AP classes.
She also took a summer college business class and got an A and has lots of business electives.
I’m going to look for a day to visit Lehigh. It’s close enough for a day trip.
Does anyone have thoughts on Wake Forest? Does that fit what she likes?
Sorry I saw did mention Wake Forest. Can anyone comment on the vibe there? How “southern” feeling compared to UVA or Emory? Is it a big party school? I might be able to fit in a visit if it seems like a fit for her. Thanks!
Well, Lehigh is considered one of the biggest party schools, so I’m not sure the part of Wake would be any different.
Yes, that’s why I was discouraged from visiting Lehigh last year. I was thinking since it’s close by and otherwise fits her criteria it might be worth a visit anyway.
Wake is far and would take much more effort to visit. Sometimes people say the party reputation of schools is overblown so I was just looking for feedback if anyone knows personally. It’s another school that looks good on paper but might not have the right culture.
Babson, maybe? Not good at much, but great at business, especially entrepreneurship, and not super-selective.
S attends Wake Forest (Sophomore) and loves it. He parties more than he did in HS but I wouldn’t consider him a big party kid. Wake does have a big Greek presence (more females than males). S is NOT in a frat. It wasn’t his thing. Has tons of friends (Greek and Non-Greek). He joined a coed Business Frat (competitive to join). All freshmen live together on south campus and that forged a tight group within his dorm. They’re spread out now but still quite close.
The vibe at Wake is: very smart kids who are active and social. A lot of excitement surrounding their sports teams (ACC). Most of S’s friends were top in their HS class, but they were also class pres or captain of a sports team or leader of something. Very engaged. At Wake, S is in leadership of Business Frat, plays Club Baseball, Intramural sports, and works in a professional setting part time. He’s busy and has made very solid friends.
First semester freshmen yr was a lot of partying (true of most schools). Then he found his tribe. Still parties but mainly on the weekends. Doesn’t really have time during the week. Rigorous classes that require lots of effort to achieve As and Bs. (I say that because it’s way more challenging than HS - lot of work and depth). Range of friends vary from don’t drink at all to fully partake. Nobody really cares.
Hope that helps.
Bentley could be another possibility.
@rickle1 thanks so much! That definitely helps. I would say my daughter is very smart and active in a lot of activities ( and has leadership roles in most of them) but is not at all sporty and does not party at all in HS. Partly because her school work and activities don’t leave much free time but also because it’s not her thing. She likes hanging out with friends when she has time but they aren’t a drinking group. I’m sure she’ll drink some in college but I guess college “partying” is relative and for her it could seem overwhelming if everyone is drinking heavily, since she’s inexperienced in that scene. I’m hoping wherever she goes that she’ll find her tribe! I’m sure there are kids like her anywhere but it’s a matter of how easy or hard it is to them. I also feel like when we tour schools we don’t see that part of things (parties) so I wonder how accurate the feeling of fit is.
She really liked Penn Stare when we visited and of course any school like that has a big party scene too. But you don’t see that in the middle of an afternoon!
@musicmom1215 completely understand. You go to these amazing info sessions and tours and then you read other things online and it makes you wonder.
S looked at a lot of the schools mentioned on this thread (Lehigh, Richmond, W&M, Bentley, UNC, UVA, etc.) They’re all great but they’re all different. The one word I would use to describe Wake is inclusive. Maybe because there’s a 3 yr residential living requirement on a fairly small campus, no residential Greek houses (everyone just lives in the dorms for 3 yrs and many for all 4) , there’s just this overall feeling of pride and togetherness. Lots of classes with different age groups, etc. Pretty easy to find your way.
^ Forgot to answer your “southern” question. Lots of kids from the NE so not too southern. Local community is southern for sure but there are plenty of students from all over the place. S’s roommates have been from CA, MA, MO, NC, RI.
University of Maryland/Smith school? My son was offered scholarships at Indiana/Kelly and Miami Ohio/Farmer, but he chose UMD. He loved his experience there and got a great job right after college. I would only suggest it if she was directly admitted to the businesss school, because it’s pretty competitive to get in once you’re at UMD.
Updating a bit as we get ready for Spring Break tours. Any new comments/suggestions appreciated!
March SAT results are in - she now has 1560 (up from 1450). GPA is 4.0 unweighted, 4.5 weighted.
She is looking for schools with a business school. She is still thinking accounting or finance, but tbd exactly. So far she has liked mid-sized and large schools. On the list to apply so far:
Cornell - big reach but she loves it
Northeastern - match/low reach?
Penn State - safe?
American - safe?
(We have visited all of these already)
We are now planning to visit
Lehigh
GW
UVA
William & Mary
Wake Forest
U of Richmond
Any thoughts on these or others to consider? I am now considering taking her to see Emory also but I don’t know when. With her higher scores it’s more worth the look. I know UVA is still a reach for OOS but I’m hoping the others on this trip are more matches now.
She’s not sporty at all. She wants to be around kids who care about school and care about community service. We are in NJ so she is thinking she doesn’t want something “too southern”. This trip will help us see if she can see herself at these schools and in this part of the country. Thanks!