Should daughter pick LAC over Ivy?

<p>I felt Brown had some of the most laid back and more important, open minded and accepting student out of dozens of schools D and I looked at. Have had many friends at all girls LAC"s and while they provide an environment that has many pros, they tend to be high pressure. </p>

<p>college should be a way to stretch oneself from their perceived comfort zone. Picking based on what you think is your exact comfort zone now may not prove to be everything she anticipates.</p>

<p>I would suggest she see Brown, and seek out modestmelody on these boards, he is a wonderful representation of everything fabulous about Brown and a wealth of information.</p>

<p>Good luck to D</p>

<p>Congrats to your daughter she has great choices! A couple thoughts</p>

<p>Brown is one of the smaller IVYies without the heavy grad school precense of some of the others … in many way it is a lot like a big LAC.</p>

<p>I wouldn’t worry too much about your daughter struggling academically at any of these schools. All the schools have very tough admit rates … which means there were tons of great applicants they turned down. In other words none of the accepted students are the bottom of a curve … the “least qualified” of the accepted students is among the mob of kids who applied all of whom could have been accepted … and virtually all of whom will do fine as students at those schools. (When I was at an IVY I can count on one hand the students who were discplined and worked hard and truely struggled academically).</p>

<p>The punch line to me is your daughter’s impression of the fit of the schools should carry the day (along with any financial differences that matter to the family) … these are all GREAT choices … each with distintive features … if your daughter is drawn to one that one would get my vote (although I believe your daughter should have the only vote that matters).</p>

<p>Endicott,
Thanks! I think what matters most is that the kids are happy whichever school they select. DS loves TCNJ. It’s a great school with highly motivated kids, plethora of activities, International programs, and research labs far more well equipped than my grad school! :wink: There were some kids who chose TCNJ over Ivys (due to the $ I guess). I do need to clarify though… I should have said ‘full tuition ride’ and $2000 for international exp. </p>

<p>We were pleasantly surprised since we don’t qualify by FFSA and had not filled out the FA application. The Grants administrator reached out to DS urging him to fill up the forms since everyone accepted in 7 yr gets a full tuition ride for 4 yrs and money for going abroad.</p>

<p>Sorry OP, I don’t mean to hijack your thread!</p>

<p>Pharmalegal, you did not hijack;-), all contributations have been helpful. I was actually afraid that you might resent somebody like my D would did get accepted and is wondering whether it is a good idea after all. I guess it comes from allocating more time at selecting a couple of great safety schools (Bard and Wheaton) than at picking a reach school. I am very happy that your S was accepted to such a great program as TCNJ.</p>

<p>I am all for “stretching comfort zone” but how far should she land? That was the purpose of my question. You have all helped me determine that those 4 schools are close enough that she can be left to decide by herself.
Still waiting for Brown FA decision though;-(</p>

<p>Took more than a year to give an update because D only just started college a few weeks ago.
In the end, she picked Brown, probably because we happened to know several people who had gone there and were raving about it, while we did not hear as many first-hand experiences about the other schools.</p>

<p>However, since she was still slightly awed at the prospect, she asked to take a gap year. She traveled some, worked two different jobs and generally reflected on what she wanted out of life.
She moved to Providence at the end of August and sounds perfectly happy there: most of the students in her dorm and in her classes are bright, fun and not intimidating. The professors are great and the campus lovely and not too urban at all;-)) </p>

<p>Thank you to all the people who reassured us 18 months ago!</p>

<p>Nice ending, Grateful Mom!</p>

<p>nice story. Glad it all worked out.</p>

<p>Love to hear the updates on these various threads where student or parent are seeking opinions. Glad all has worked out for your daughter.</p>

<p>D applied to only LACs, but with a 2370 SAT, 5.2/4.0 GPA and stellar EC’s, I suspect she is a competitive Ivy candidate. But, she always wanted the academics and smaller community that a LAC provides. She is loving Williams and does not regret not applying to an Ivy at all. PM me if you want more info.</p>

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