<p>Why have I heard this school being touted as a public ivy and most competitive? It is rated now in one of the college guides as a "most competitive school". Yet, when I check the mid sat score range, it is nowhere near those of ivy league schools. It shares a fairly similar sat midrange as Suny Binghamton.</p>
<p>TCNJ is a very good value, ivy or not. Don't know about mid-sat ranges. The student-professor ratio is small and the look and feel is that of a small liberal arts college.</p>
<p>It is a good state school, but I think the term public Ivy is probably overused and the quality of some of the state schools in question may be overhyped. A key selling point about TCNJ for in-state students is that it is much less expensive than a private college; students with certain combinations of class rank and SAT scored get substantial finanacial incentives for going, and even those who don't qualify for those incentives pay far less tuition than they would at a mid-range private institution.</p>
<p>Northeastmom-</p>
<p>TCNJ is a gem for NJ students. It is 95% NJ students, the other 5% is probably from Penn, NY. It is a medium sized public, the most selective of the NJ publics, including Rutgers.</p>
<p>Not near the selectivity of the ivys, as you already found.
I think their website gives 1305 as the average SAT of last years' applicants, but increasing each year.</p>
<p>It attempts to keep higher achieving NJ students in state. GREAT merit awards for combination rank/SAT scores (see their website). Many kids choose TCNJ over higher ranked national universities due to $$$.
Tuition, R+B, fees run about $19,000 for 2005-06 instate.</p>
<p>The campus is gorgeous, not at all what one might expect of a public college. Tulip lined walks, lakes. Too few dorms- they are having a tough time keeping up with demand. New construction ongoing; science building, music building, library all recent additions.</p>
<p>The classes are small, the kids motivated. They have first year seminars, working professionals teaching instrumental private lessons in the music dept, study abroad, a 99% passing rate for teacher certification, 90%ish sophomore retention rate, 68%ish 4 year graduation rate (82% 6 year), a 7 year combined medical school program open to applicants with over 1400 SATs, etc, etc.</p>
<p>As achat said, a good value. VERY different experience from Rutgers, for those who don't want the large school thing.</p>
<p>US NEWS ranking placed TCNJ fourth in the Northern Master's levels colleges in it's 2006 list. It has been listed each year since 1993 when the school 'reinvented' itself; it had been Trenton State College previously, established about 1860.</p>
<p>Barron's last year, I believe, moved TCNJ up to the 'most competitive' category.</p>
<p>Our son will be a sophomore this year. It was not his first choice school but he (and we) are VERY pleased with the school.</p>
<p>If I can answer any questions, please sent a PM.</p>
<p>Biggest drawback is that it's a commuter school. Can clear out on the weekends.</p>
<p>Hi musicmom. We have chated online before and your information has been very helpful.</p>
<p>Yes, the sat ave. was 1305 in 2004. </p>
<p>The school is gorgeous. I am just trying to get a handle on why it is labeled a most competitive school and what that label really means. It looks like stats are similar to Suny Bing. What I am trying to access is if this school is a good fit for my son. We do live in NJ. I don't think I have a feel for the academic rigor. I know the 5 year graduation rate is 79.9%, so they are doing something right, and most students are successful here.</p>
<p>Musicmom, are kids basically off campus after soph. yr. due to an on -campus housing shortage?</p>
<p>1305 is the admitted #--enrolled is closer to 1265--still good but for comparison that's the # to use.</p>
<p>Barron where does one get the sat # for enrolled students? Thanks.</p>
<p>Yes, I do remember 'talking' to you now, northeastmom.</p>
<p>It is hard to know what those 'most competitive' and 'public ivy' labels mean. It does seem to me that TCNJ studied a bunch of quality schools and adopted many 'best practices' into a public school setting.
Perhaps your son could sit in on a class or two of his intended major?
That option was offered to my son after his acceptance. Maybe that would help him determine if the academics were sufficiently challenging and to his liking.</p>
<p>Housing is a problem, only guaranteed for the first two years.
Several of our son's freshman year friends opted for off campus for second year- frat houses or shared apts.
We convinced our son to accept on campus for second year, without too much negotiation. He has matured immensely since last year but we still believe on campus avoids a whole 'nother set of issues.</p>
<p>Third and fourth year on campus is by lottery each Spring.
I don't know what % of those asking for housing for junior/senior actually get it.<br>
I'm hoping our son and his roommate choose to stay on campus but I doubt it will happen. The thought of an uncleaned bathroom shared by 4 young men in a house is scary to me!</p>
<p>Can you remind me what major your son is interested in?</p>
<p>northeastmom,</p>
<p>Of the ranking, Barron's notes: "Even superior students will encounter a great deal of competition for admission to the colleges in this category.these colleges require high school rank in the top 10 percent to 20 percent and grade averages of A to B+. Median freshman test scores at these colleges are generally between 655 and 800 on the SAT I and 29 and above on the ACT." </p>
<p>TCNJ's combination of SAT scores, AVG GPA and class rank has increased considerably the past few years, pushing them into the "Most Competitive" category. My son is a college ambassador at TCNJ, and he indicated that for this year's entering class, the acceptance rate was 43% for a highly qualified applicant pool. Additionally, the campus tour numbers are up significantly over a record breaking year last year.</p>
<p>As far as the USNWR rankings, one has to question TCNJ's #4 placement. They are first in several categories, and 2nd or 3rd in others, yet are rated 4th. Many of their stats are substantially higher than colleges # 2 & 3, and are higher than #1 Villanova. They are penalized due to the peer assessment where they are perceived as the new kid on the block.</p>
<p>As far as the housing situation is concerned, the near-term goal is to have guaranteed housing through the junior year, and in the future to target as many seniors as possible. The junior-housing goal would have been accomplished this past year if the student apartments were completed. However, some damage occurred during the building process, and methinks the construction is delayed due to litigation. </p>
<p>I chuckle when I see this school still described as a commuter school. Freshmen are not allowed to have cars on campus. More than 90% of the 1200+ plus freshman class reside at school. The retention rate of the freshman class is 95% (IVY League level ~ compare this to SUNY Binghamton). The majority of the sophomores resides on campus. A percentage of sophomores have cars, perhaps 50%. Many juniors reside in the beautiful townhouses. There is a significant population on campus on the weekends and this does not include the athletes, of which TCNJ is a prominent D3 presence. And the school and organizations are providing an increasingly more active schedule for the students.</p>
<p>With it's price, academic rigor, and as mentioned, the beauty of the campus, The College of New Jersey has increasingly become a destination for top-notch students, rather than a back-up. </p>
<p>My daughter will also be entering TCNJ in the fall. She graduated from one of the better public high schools in Southern New Jersey. Five out of 20 of the top-ranked students from her class will be attending TCNJ. Four have SATs above 1400, one above 1500. This is a trend that is becoming the rule rather than the exception.</p>
<p>Sadly, after close inspection it seemed like a suitcase school - large new jersey population that commutes home on the weekends.</p>
<p>musicmom, He is interested in the business school. </p>
<p>jerseyjim, We took the tour, so perhaps it was your S that showed us around, although unlikely. I know there are a bunch of "ambassadors". Our guide was from Pompton Lakes. Interesting stats from your school. Was anybody admitted with sats, then, below 1400? How many of the students going are attending the 7 year med program? When the students reside off campus (I am not speaking about the new beautiful on campus apartments), how far from campus are they, and is finding housing in a safe area at a reasonable cost doable? I read that housing off campus for a reasonable price was a problem in the past.</p>
<p>Barrons, where would I find the ave. sat score of enrolled students?</p>
<p>Wealthofinformation, that was true in the past, but that could be changing. I am not sure. The tour guide told us that it was not a suitcase school, but he may have been instructed to say that. We visited on a week-day.</p>
<p>Thank you.</p>
<p>The suitcase school label is no longer accurate, IMHO.</p>
<p>We were pleased that our son would only be 75 minutes away from home. We thought he might come visit us on some weekends. He is our first away and we missed him!</p>
<p>Well, that wasn't in his plans! He quickly found a core of friends, a girlfriend, football games, sleeping in, workstudy on campus, trips to Philadelphia, NYC, etc. We were low on his list. Sigh.
Really, we are happy. Had he been home every weekend, we would have been concerned.</p>
<p>We saw him at Thanksgiving and Christmas and Spring break.....we visited on campus at Homecoming WE and for his school concerts.</p>
<p>He has a good life!</p>
<p>Musicmom, It sounds like the perfect college life! At least you get to see him in concerts! </p>
<p>I sent a pm to you bcs I had a few questions.</p>
<p>It's good to hear that the suitcase school image is changing. When many of my older child's friends went, we would see them at home every weekend at the football games, band competitions, etc (hour and a half away). I didn't want my kids to go there, because of that.</p>
<p>But I have heard from others with younger students that they're coming home less often.</p>
<p>I would agree that the ''suitcase school'' name has definitely evolved from where it used to be a few years ago, but it is definitely not a misnomber IMO. The bulk of the students come from inside the state and while I have heard mixed views of the ''suitcase'' nickname, two friends there confirm that it HAS improved since they were freshmen, but it is still largely true.</p>
<p>northeastmom,</p>
<p>A. TCNJ's 7-year med program. The competition for this program is intense. I believe the minimum qualification is a 1400 SAT, however, I believe that the average SAT for accepted students is 1530 or 1540.</p>
<p>B. At my daughter's high school, in addition, to the five students I mentioned, there are four others that will be attending TCNJ. I don't have their GPA info, as my daughter is not that close with them. I do know that one of them was acknowledged at the H.S. awards ceremony for having a Math SAT score >750. My daughter knows the SATs of the others since 6 out of the top 15 students in her high school all work at the same pharmacy in town and are very close friends.</p>
<p>C. Off campus housing. I am quite familiar with this as my son, a junior, will be living off campus. He was guaranteed a townhouse, but elected to move off campus. He is an athlete and will be sharing a house with four teammates. Their house is about 1.5 miles from campus on the south side and is in an area that is considered safe. You can go 0-5 miles north, and east of campus and you will be in extremely safe areas. If you go more than 2 miles south or more than 3 miles west, you get a bit closer to Trenton, and the risk factor increases a bit.</p>
<p>My son previewed about (5) houses before they selected this one. His cost is $500 each or $2500 monthly for the group. Houses are generally $400-550 per student per month in the area. Remember, this area is within 10-15 minutes of Princeton. You will not pay more for private housing versus college room/board, but you will be hard-pressed to save more than 1000-2000 living off campus.</p>
<p>At first I thought my son was crazy for bypassing a townhouse, but a percentage of juniors and seniors want the freedom of independent living. I think there is a demographic component to this as well, as I would not be surprised that more males than females prefer to live off campus. Additionally, all of the athletes in his house will be on the same schedule so hopefully their performance on the field will reflect that. </p>
<p>An interesting anecdote and perhaps this is why TCNJ has a 95% retention rate. Many (perhaps most) of the dorm floors have an unwritten "open door" policy, that is, your door remains open for the majority of time that you are awake. That fosters a tremendous amount of team (floor) spirit and there is a significant amount of socializing involved. Additionally, each dorm floor competes with all others throughout the year in various contests. My son indicates that he cannot count the number of lifelong friends that he has made in his two years at the school. Additionally TCNJ has a (5) day freshman orientation period prior to the start of classes. This is a fun-filled, and jampacked session to acclimate the new arrivals to the college environment. Also, the first year freshman seminar serves to build relationships and generate team (freshman) spirit.</p>
<p>In contrast, one of my daughter's best friends arrived at Virginia Tech this week, and the next day attended her first class. No orientation, no transition. Every door on her dorm-floor is closed and there is no planned activity to build relationships. This young lady is positively spooked.</p>
<p>I took the median point of the 25-75 range from US News which uses enrolled numbers from the schools. It's usually pretty accurate.</p>
<p>Barrons, that is very interesting. It never occured to me that US News uses enrolled rather than accepted #s. I don't even know why I did not think about that! Thanks. From the US News stats I have (2005) TCNJ has an ave. enrolled student with a 1270.</p>
<p>I think 1270 is about right for the enrolling class.</p>