The CC community has been so knowledgeable and helpful in D1’s college search that I am seeking advice on behalf of her friend. The two of them were Posse STEM Scholarship finalists, and D1 learned the night of their final interview that she had gotten accepted to the Middlebury STEM program. Unfortunately, her friend said he had not heard back, and was planning to wait the full two weeks before the official announcement is made. I’m concerned, because if he waits until mid-December, there won’t be much time to apply to other schools. He is not familiar with LACs, and I’d like to steer him to schools where he’d excel in physics and math. (His SAT score of 1970 does not reflect his reputation as the resident genius who teaches the after school tutoring sessions.)
It seems as though Oberlin’s new STRONG pre-first year program has a number of similarities to the Posse STEM initiative. Does anyone have firsthand knowledge about STRONG? Would it be out of place to suggest that the friend apply to Oberlin? He is an excellent student, but hamstrung by the SAT score. Is Oberlin within reach?
my s benefited from oberlin’s holistic admission review process. If he has a strong gpa,rigor and good ecs, IMO it’s within reach (though ed would have been a much better bet). But first and foremost is fit and I think he has to be comfortable that oberlin is the right place for him.
@quietdesperation - thanks for your response. You’re right of course, and I’m not so certain that the friend is a good fit at Oberlin. I hope your son is thriving there, and has a good sense of humor about the flap over Bon Appetit.
Good luck with DD’s search as well. D2 is my next all-encompassing project for the next 2 years.
thanks @winnvanmeter , my S is loving it and had a good first semester. Maybe the biggest part of fit at Oberlin is walking in the door with a finely tuned sense of humor and, in that respect, I’m willing to bet my son is 99th percentile.
He thinks the whole food thing is hilarious. He doesn’t know anyone that has complained about “insensitivity in preparing international dishes” and the general feeling on campus is that media are just trying to sell papers (views) by portraying students as privileged hipsters.
having said that, we eat in nyc a lot, he does know good food, and apparently the food is pretty terrible, perhaps a more meaningful data point for someone thinking about attending. On the plus side, his classes had less than 15 students, he’s on a first name basis with all his professors, he appeared in a play, took improv and swing dance ec classes, attended a a bunch of conservatory performances and has made a ton of friends. We visited in the fall for parents weekend and it’s hard not to fall in love w the vibe/place.
we’re felling good about S2 and fully engaged with DD’s search, good luck with your D2!