@oneundecided Actually your post and another have us changing the direction of our trip…no more VT. It doesn’t make sense to spend that much when he could go to one of these privates for a few dollars more?? Or go for free to one of the NMSF schools and get a masters?? So just as the middle class is slowly disappearing (political phrase heard frequently at my house) it seems as though the ‘middle’ schools are pricing themselves out of the picture (eg-Georgia Tech, VT, UT-Austin…so interesting)
@Gator88NE Have scrapped Ohio on this trip but Ohio State is on the list. We knew about its opportunities beforehand but nice to hear more detail. I’m not sure if he’s going to embrace his ‘inner-nerd’ or be the politician as he progresses but its nice to see the options. Thanks!
@carolinamom2boys Clemson has always been on my short list because I have a cousin who is a graduate, and it just has a gentle charm that I love. It might be a tad too greek for him, but I am happy to hear about the Lyceum which is right up his alley. We are now changing the trip to see the Carolina schools which are offering more in terms of scholarship. As of last night, the talk is cheap undergrad/expensive grad school possibilities. Of course, this changes on a daily basis around here. lol. thanks for the help.
@ucbalumnus Great info on the breakdowns. Thanks so much. But, its not the classes, per se, that he is looking for, I don’t think. Its more that intellectual atmosphere/sophistication of thought if that makes any sense. Thanks!
My S also wants to major in engineering. He’s loved building physics projects this year, but also enjoys pottery. He’s done Model U.N. for years, and is very political, a big reader, and loves to engage in esoteric discussions.
We recently went to a day for students accepted into the Honors College at Valparaiso. They offer accredited engineering degrees, but have a tremendous emphasis on the humanities, especially for kids in the honors college.
I’ve been careful to check out STEM students in Honors programs at the schools we’ve visited, as it can be difficult for kids in such a highly structured major as Engineering to complete the additional requirements found in some Honors programs. Valpo has a high percentage of engineering majors in Honors, and an impressive 4-year graduation rate. They had a panel where Honors seniors spoke with parents, and I was exhausted just listening to them talk about their multiple majors/minors, study abroad, organizations they are part of - these were kids who will go places. Social justice and values were clearly in integral part of life at the school.
For a kid with your S’s stats, they have very good scholarship offers. Valpo also offers a minor in Humanitarian Engineering and an active chapter of Engineers Without Borders - they’ve had a couple of long-term projects in developing countries their students have worked on.
A smaller school was a priority for S, and honestly that can be advantageous, as most high-stats males, especially those studying engineering, opt for the big State U’s. Smaller schools are often looking to gender-balance their classes.
A school like Valpo could be a good safety to consider. It’s a Lutheran school, but open to any and all (including no) faiths.
Another thought to add…
He is attending a regular public high school where he and a few others are the only ones to actively engage in adult concepts such as the economy, politics, war, etc. He is everybody’s friend, but he needs to be around other kids who wrap their minds around this stuff as well. He is surrounded by the type of high schoolers who dumb themselves down to fit in (and these are the honors kids), and he just can’t do that so he stands out. He wants to be just one of the pack in college.
I personally want him to go to band parties, have a girlfriend, relax and enjoy so I find myself shying away from a very uptight experience…yesterday the email from Rose-Hulman was clipped, curt and lacking any warmth. It felt like a response to a resume I sent in…yuck! Would it be too mean to take them off the list for one email?
@vmt Large publics with honors colleges are all over our list. However, in TN we don’t have many of those and we are getting close to private school money with no merit and high OOS for lots of the good ones. Still keeping the door open though to those we find.
Ran the NPC for both URoch and Tufts…both would be extremely tight for us in the $40’s each year. At least, Roch has some merit aid, but we could never afford Tufts, it seems. I’m not sure of the value either if you want to know the truth.
@nugraddad I think Northwestern might have the best website of the 100 we have looked at thus far. They definitely know what they are doing when it comes to reaching into the young mind with the videos and pics. We are all over it and appreciate the head’s up, but I have to be nosy and ask about costs. Have you found the private school experience worth the costs for you children?
The NPCs are generally not accurate for people who own a business.
@InigoMontoya (love the name!) adding Valpo to the list. Thanks!
If he is looking for lots of merit scholarship money, he is likely to be on the high end of the academic range at his college. In this case, a larger school may be preferable, since the cohort of students in his range will be larger in absolute numbers than a similar percentage of high end students at a smaller school.
@ucbalumnus good point
I agree with Gator. You should not overlook comprehensive state universities. Your own state’s UTK makes the most sense, as paying for a private engineering education is typically does not provide an advantage. That being said, here are some privates I would investigate:
Clarkson University
U of Rochester
Saint Louis University
Case Western Reserve University
U of San Diego
U of Portland
Vanderbilt University
George Washington University
Rice University
Texas Christian University
As for publics, if they are affordable for you, think about…
U of South Carolina
U of Virginia
Oregon State University
Colorado School of Mines
@mom2engkids You have gotten lots of great idea, I just wanted to throw one in that is a little out of the box. UMBC, is a small STEM focused university in Maryland with a quirky reputation. It was my NMF EE/CE son’s second choice with very good merit aid (he is in his 3rd yr at Northeastern) because of its quirkiness, strong engineering and public policy scholars program which would have allowed him to be active in other interests while studying engineering.
mom2engkids - NU was the least expensive out of pocket option of all the schools my kids looked at, which includes Rose Hulman, Purdue, U of Minn, Iowa State, and in-state flagship UIUC. And now, NU will be even better for your kids because of NU’s new policy of no loans - just grants - for Fin Aid.
Notice I did not say NU was cheapest - because they are not - but they were least expensive regarding out of pocket costs because of the Financial Aid my kids received. The local public unis have had budgets cut back - they couldn’t give my kids the kind of money necessary for them to attend. NU was able to grant enough money, and my 2 NU engineers love it. BTW - we are not low income, but our EFC was less than yours. Good Luck - and PM me if you have follow up questions.
@nugraddad Well NU’s NPC shows the loans and work study for him at $6000 so I guess we make too much for that to apply to him. Oh well. That’s not a bad amount of loans to deal with as an engineer…around $20K after 4 years I would think. That would be $300/month roughly so that’s do-able.
Funny enough, our AGI doesn’t break $150K but our business owns a building with no debt. The business barely breaks even so there’s no loans on that either. Ugh!
Why not look at Miami? Oxford Ohio is between VA Tech and Rose, geographically.
ABET engineering, has a classic feel, and if liberal arts are important, it should scratch that itch too.
(full disclosure: I’m a Miami grad who is an engineer.)
Check out the Blount Initiative at University of Alabama, if my D had been interested in UA, Blount was going to be our way of engaging her liberal arts side.
Here it is in the Post…
We must have been at the same Honors event as @InigoMontoya at Valparaiso. Definitely an interesting option for a DC interested in a school of that size.