<p>I just saw a thread on if college visits are really that important, and it prompts me to ask this question. My son has attended our state flagship for 2 "for credit" summer programs, lived on campus while doing so, and really wants to attend there. He should be within their acceptance range, but I will make him apply to a safety school, just in case. The state flagship (University of Maryland, College Park) is cheaper than any out of state option, and I can't imagine finding a comparable private that would be cheaper. He knows what he's in for there, and from my perspective it's a great fit for him. He doesn't know for sure what he wants to major in, he's an extrovert, and likes to be involved with and try multiple things. He also knows it's a relatively inexpensive option, and sees no reason to look at more costly options. (Can I mention that my older son, who was accepted to UMD, and the engineering program, would not even consider going there). I see no down-side to him attending there, and I don't think one of the smaller Maryland colleges would fit him as well. I just want to make sure I'm not missing something I should be considering.</p>
<p>If I read you right, you’re wondering if it makes sense to encourage your son to visit other schools besides UMD-Clg Park. I understand the desire to not miss anything. There may be other schools where, even thought the “sticker price” is high, they offer merit or financial aid that makes the net cost similar to UMD. I would propose it like this: we need to gather information. It’s like doing research on a stock before you buy. We need to look at 3-4 other schools so you know this is right.</p>
<p>If all else fails, withhold meals and laundry 'til he complies :)</p>
<p>I wouldn’t see any reason to “force” your son to visit a bunch of colleges when he has found one already that he likes ,is a good fit and is affordable. As long as he has a safety that he also likes, he should be fine. Why create unnecessary drama when he seems pretty sensible about the whole thing? You’re actually pretty lucky. Enjoy.</p>
<p>I think many parents here will say that having some options in April is a good thing. I would pick out maybe 3 other possibilities that you think could work for S and investigate those. If they are within reasonable distance try to get in a visit. I assume you/he visited your other S’s school? Insist on some “just in case” applications, and see where things stand once acceptances are in.</p>
<p>I don’t know anything about the college you are talking about. Do they have rolling admissions? or are you going to have to wait until the last minute to find out whether he gets in or not? If you have to wait I would try and find a couple colleges that may work for him, have him visit and then pick one for him to apply to also, just incase so he doesn’t get stuck at the safety school.</p>
<p>It is perfectly acceptable to have just two colleges on the application list if his first choice is UMDCP which is a good fit (as he has found by actually attending, which is far more useful than the typical quick visit) and is relatively inexpensive – with the other being a 100% sure safety that he likes if UMDCP is not a safety.</p>
<p>Whether to visit the safety depends on whether he would gain useful information from a visit that would affect his decision as to whether it would be a suitable safety (though if you are considering mainly other in-state publics, they should not be too hard to get to).</p>
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<p>The safety should be a school that the student likes, not one that the student feels is a let-down.</p>
<p>As long as he has a safety, why force a visit? Do you feel as though he is “settling”? </p>
<p>It seems he is comfortable with his choice. If you are worried about a last minute change of heart, he could always visit after acceptances rather than before, so there would be no harm in applying to a few schools he hasn’t visited.</p>
<p>I get both sides of this. It’s a financial fit. He’s been there and likes it. My concern is he has nothing to compare it to. I would simple find a couple of schools to visit unlike UMDCP in character and size so he can get a feel for what a smaller, more rural, etc. school feels like. What I’m hearing is ‘you don’t think your son will like it’, but that’s not the same thing as your son setting foot on campus and deciding for himself. You may very well be right, I’d just want to let him kick a few tires and go for a few test drives before I let him buy the only car he’s ever driven.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone. I do not feel he is settling, and I will be ecstatic if he actually winds up there. I attended there, as did his father, the school is “highly ranked”/appears to be well regarded in his “best guess” majors, it’s close but not too close to home, and within budget…YIPPEE. I will likely encourage him to visit a couple of other schools, and I will definitely make sure he applies to other schools, just on case. He is currently a junior, so once his SAt scores and junior grades are in, we will better be able to determine his chance of admission. If it’s not looking good, I will reconsider looking harder at other options.</p>
<p>Umdcp is my state flagship as well! Tho i didnt end up going there…have a couple other schools on the list just in case.</p>
<p>Blue iguana, I do worry a little about what you describe… It’s the only place he knows. He did not attend visits with his older brother. Older S is totally a STEM kid, so schools were mostly technical, and this son is not looking at STEM options. I’m hopeful that he will decide to look at other options because that’s what his friends are doing. I suspect that over the next several months he will agree to do at least some informal visits, but I’m not going to push him yet.</p>
<p>He’s a Jr so there’s time. As kids start to take SATs this spring and friends visit schools over spring break it will be more a topic of conversation and seem more ‘normal’ to him. It doesn’t need to be a big deal or painful, and his list will likely be what you envision now. He just needs to do a few test drives. See if that analogy works on him.</p>
<p>There is absolutely nothing wrong with applying to one college if you and he are sure he will be accepted and you can afford it. I might suggest to him that he find at least one or two other safety type choices or one safety and one reach if he’s interested in case something goes upside down. Do not let the posts from people who applying to more than 10 colleges scare you. Only a small number of college bound kids apply to more than a handful of colleges and many apply to only one, two or three. My oldest son knew where he wanted to go. I “made” him apply to a couple others just because he was my first and I really didn’t know how it all worked. He got accepted to his choice quickly, we deposited and that was that. He was done by Christmas of his senior year and he graduated from that college in 2011. My third is taking his sweet time and has 8 schools on his list. Some kids just know what they want and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.</p>
<p>No - you should not force him to do college visits. If he likes College Park and has spent two summers there, why force anything. Fear the turtle!</p>
<p>Have seen posts that indicate Maryland is a pretty tough admit these days for instate students. Since it is his first choice, his time and effort would seem to be well served by doing his best in school and doing well on his SAT’s. Have been to College Park a couple of times for one of my kid’s sports events. Nice campus. As glido says, Fear the turtle! Good luck to him.</p>
<p>Which county are you in? If He’s OK with your community college or a commuting distance one in the next county as his back up, he’s done. If he doesn’t like the CC back up plan, ask which MD Us he wants to visit. I know kids at all of them who are totally happy with their choices.</p>
<p>Go Terps.</p>
<p>No forcing. Doesn’t work well with 17 yr old.</p>
<p>My son went to the University of Maryland and liked it just fine. I was much more impressed with the school than I had expected to be. My son was not an extraordinary student, but he got quite a lot of personal attention, including opportunities to participate in research and be an undergraduate TA. The bureaucracy worked well, even one semester when he got sick during finals and needed to arrange for make-up exams at the last minute. My son also seemed to have quite a lot of friends. It’s easy for an in-state student to make friends. There’s you, your roommate, the 50 other people you went to high school with, the 50 people your roommate went to high school with, all of their roommates, etc. You can’t walk across the campus without running into people you know.</p>
<p>And when you get sick of the campus, you go to DC on the weekend. </p>
<p>Tell your son that it’s a good idea to apply by the priority deadline – which is way early, something like November 1. People who apply by this early deadline get chances at goodies such as special freshman/sophomore special interest programs (Honors, College Park Scholars, etc.). These are nice perks. You get to live in a dorm with people who share your interests and have some classes with you, and being in one of these programs makes the huge campus seem smaller. And if you don’t like the special program, you can just drop out of it after a semester or a year. No big deal, and you’ve already made some friends.</p>
<p>You also have to apply by the priority deadline to be considered for merit scholarships. </p>
<p>If your son is looking for safeties, he might want to visit the University of Delaware. It’s easier to get admitted to Delaware from out of state than to get into Maryland from in-state, and Delaware has a somewhat similar feel (though there’s no Washington, DC nearby). Some Maryland applicants use Virginia Tech as a safety, but it’s one heck of a long drive down to Blacksburg. UMBC is another possibility, but it has more of a suitcase school feel to it (although I’ve heard that efforts are being made to improve that situation). </p>
<p>Anyway, your son’s choice is certainly not a bad one. And some kids simply do not want to fuss any more than necessary about college admissions. If your son wants to keep it simple, great!</p>
<p>My S1 was the exactly like op’s S. He wanted to go to big instate u. It was a safety for him. Didn’t care to look anywhere else. He even had a NROTC scholarship that would have paid his tuition/books/fees at many schools all over the country. Didn’t matter to him. We drug him on a visit to a state u. in a neighboring state after his junior yr. He tolerated it but didn’t change his mind. </p>
<p>So he went to his choice (also DH’s alma mater). He absolutely loved it…had the time of his life, met mentor there that was instrumental in advising him on how to attain his dream job. Wouldn’t change a thing. He knew what he wanted. </p>
<p>He did apply to other schools but only because of the NROTC application. He had no desire to attend any of them.</p>
<p>Agree w/ Marian about having people you know there too. It was a big plus for both my very social kids.</p>