If you want her to have a four year experience, why consider commuting ?
Not to mention commuting is difficult with a varied schedule, harder to be part of study groups and get integrated.
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Agree because large merit scholarships are typically considerably harder to get than admission, since they tend to be offered to students near the top of the range (i.e. students who would consider the school a likely or safety, not match, for admission). So a college that is a match for admission is probably a reach for a large merit scholarship.
Even for a college that is a likely or safety for admission may be a reach for a large enough merit scholarship.
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Thanks. I get what you are saying. But mine and my daughterâs definition of safety is a school that is far from your first choice but you will attend if there are no other options. There is no school in our area that is safety by your definition (i.e. financial safety, guaranteed admission and DD will be happy to attend tomorrow). If that would be the case, she would not need to apply to any other schools but that one and couple reaches. My life would be much simpler 
All schools in the matches list (and it is big) should be ideal school that she should be very happy to enroll if money will be there. Reaches are more like âa magicâ I got in, but most likely money will not be there (more like self esteem badges.)
From all kids around that is pretty much how it is. Most kids go to their matches and safeties. Almost everyone give up their reaches even when accepted unless parents are really rich. Very seldom kids get significant scholarships from their reaches.
Students donât usually get significant merit from their matches either⌠and thatâs the problem here.
You could be left with 2 safeties that she doesnât like, and a few very costly matches.
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Yes, matches donât typically give enough merit to bring it close to in state, if any at all. My daughter at UDel had an ACT 4 points higher than their top average, higher gpa, knew she was getting in, expected honors and merit. She was accepted into every graduate program she applied to. She definitely had mostly safeties (got into Villanova, probably shouldnât have applied). All of them were about the same cost after merit.
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So, I havenât gone back to the whole thread, but if she likes LACs and you want $25,000 - $30,000 merit, why not look at schools where historically thatâs been possible?
Three years ago one of my sons got that type of merit at Lewis and Clark, Denison and Hobart & William Smith. Have you already investigated those schools?
If not, continuing to do your research, to find a safety your daughter would actually like and be excited to attend would make sense. I feel you are arbitrarily limiting ypur daughterâs options.
The poster who said it was hardest to find the safety was spot on!
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This is where and itâs tough - one has to be more open.
There are tens, probably hundreds of colleges out there that your daughter could be happy at.
Itâs hard to understand a Rhodes vs. UMD because they are so vastly different in size/environmentâŚbut if she can be happy at Dickinson, Gettysburg, Hobart, etc. then thereâs another 50 she can likely be happy at.
Same with Richmond, CWRU, U of R.
Kids dial in too much with âdreamâ school or I can only see myself here, etc.
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Yes. Denison is replaced with Dickinson. Hobart and William Smith are on the list. I think Lewis and Clark are a bit too far. We are trying to stay as close to home as possible (Rhodes is a big exception).
She does not want very big school or very small one. That is why UMD and Ursinus are safety/match. UMD is 40k students. Ursinus is tiny. Safety are schools that are not perfect for her but will work. Anyway, I think we are happy with the list. We may remove some schools after visiting. In my opinion this list is already a bit too big. We do not want to apply to 20 schools. She will go to a school from this match list that will be most affordable. The rest cannot be controlled. Admissions and scholarships are like a lottery these days.
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Your last sentence is why you need to apply to more, not less. Your list is not too long. And there is many a school that doesnât require extra essays or even app fees.
Like all, I donât see your safeties as right because youâre already against them but thatâs up to your daughter/you.
You can find other mid size schools close enough to home if you were open - a school like Hofstra gives big merit, for example.
Anyway, youâve put a lot of time in - good luck.
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Denison also has required foreign language (as most schools) and does not have the one that DD knows. DD does not want to spend much energy on new foreign language in college. She would rather focus on other things.
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Common application has limit of 20 schools. School teachers do not like to send too many recommendations. Most schools for top scholarships require supplemental essays. I do not think it is wise to expect DD to write excellent 30 essays. Quantity usually does not translate to quality.
I wish many schools will have free app. From our list only 3 schools have free app.
She doesnât mind the size of GW? If she doesnât, there are some very solid universities with great honors colleges she can apply to. UDel comes to mind.
Yes it does. My son applied 15. My daughter 21. We were chasing merit to a point.
Looks like your list has 14. So you have 6 spots.
But to go over 20 you can apply to schools that require no reqs. Youâll see some schools will send you apps that have no reqs required. Their common app may but special app wonât. Or youâll have a school that doesnât and only uses an essay youâve already written. My daughter, as an example, used common app for 19 and dud two school apps.
Your list is fine. Iâm not sure itâs set up for the merit near guarantee you want except at the school you donât want to attend. But youâve also set filters on location, prestige, and size.
In the end, you/your daughter have done the research. You are happy with the list as is and thatâs what matters.
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Iâve read this thread but itâs been a while and canât remember all the recommendations but have you looked into TCNJ? Itâs a public LAC with COA for out of state is around $37,000/yr without merit. Itâs about 6,000 students so not as big as UMD and bigger than the small LACs. Good luck with everything!
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For your planning - In Common App, her teachers will each write one letter and it will batch to all of her applications. It is the letters of rec for additional honors colleges and scholarships that want separate LORs that add to their letter writing burdens.
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Youâve done a great deal of research, but I just want to offer up a few more suggestions to consider if you and your daughter are looking for additional schools that are highly likely to give an acceptance and to fall within your budget.
- Siena College (NY) has about 3300 undergrads (so over twice the size of Ursinus) and is about 5 ½ hours from your location. Itâs a Franciscan institution and I donât know if thereâs a theology course requirement, but this page seems to indicate that the university is more about practicing aspects of it (being in good relationships with one another, pausing and reflecting, wishing people peace and good) than about a particular faith.
- Merrimack College (MA) has about 4,000 undergrads and is a little less than 7 hours from your location. Itâs in the Augustinian tradition and itâs about us page talks about seeking truth through inquiry and dialogue and respecting a diversity backgrounds, beliefs and perspectives.
- Rider University (NJ) has about 3500 undergrads and is about 2.5 hours from your location
- York College (PA ) has about 3700 undergrads and is a little over an hour from your location.
- U. of Hartford (CT) has about 4000 undergrads and is about 5 hours from your location
The average merit aid package at the schools below wonât get you quite at the same price range as Quinnipiac, but your daughter may well qualify for scholarships larger than the average at these institutions. I would also investigate these further.
- Endicott (MA), about 3100 undergrads
- Molloy (NY), about 3400 undergrads
- Adelphi (NY), about 5,000 undergrads
- Roger Williams (RI), about 4200 undergrads
- U. of New Haven (CT), about 5000 undergrads
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Thanks a lot . I will try to research. It is a challenge with small schools, since most people like me have no clue about them. Yes, schools with size 2-5k students would be amazing. I could not find many that fits our requirements. I am not sure that DD will be comfortable in Franciscan or Augustinian school even if they do not push religion much. I am very grateful to this community and all suggestions.
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I know you posted above that you really prefer private schools as the only options apart from your in-state publics. But since the Maryland publics have not been appealing to you and your daughter, I wanted to throw out a couple of other options for consideration while giving you the U. of Md stats for comparison. Iâve included the class sizes compared to the U. of Maryland to see why you might consider paying out-of-state tuition for a public university when you already have a strong option in the U. of Maryland.
The model that will be followed is:
⢠School Name: % of classes with 50+ students, % of classes with 20-49 students, % of classes with fewer than 20 students; undergrad enrollment
⢠U. of Maryland â College Park: 18.1%, 36.6%, 45.4%, 31k undergrads
⢠U. of Maryland â Baltimore County: 13.8%, 36.3%, 49.9%, 11k undergrads
⢠Penn State Erie/The Behrend College: 3.3%, 47.3%, 49.4%, 3500 undergrads
⢠Christopher Newport (VA): 4.1%, 42.6%, 53.3%, 4800 undergrads
⢠SUNY Plattsburgh: 4.7%, 39.3%, 56%, 4700 undergrads
⢠Ramapo (NJ): 0%, 39.8%, 60.2%, 5400 undergrads
Iâd pay particular attention to Ramapo. Itâs about 3.5 hours from your location, thereâs a minor in Judaic studies, and none of its classes have more than 50 students.
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Nice that Ramapo and Plattsburgh belong to NSE (National Student Exchange). This would give her the option of up to a 1 year exchange at any of the 200+ participating schools in the U.S., Canada, etc. Credits transfer automatically, and scholarships do too. Some really fun schools belong.
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