<p>marie, just read one of your earlier posts. FYI, Baylor is expensive, plus it is a Baptist-affiliated school. Waco is a conservative town too, midway between Austin and Dallas. Definitely big football school and a huge new stadium opening this fall. TCU is in the middle of Ft. Worth and has a church affiliation but not as strict as Baylor’s with the Baptist church. </p>
<p>Ft. Worth, Lubbock, Waco and San Marcos are all realllllyyyy different places, so I’d certainly recommend a swing through Texas if he’s considering any of these schools. </p>
<p>I don’t think you mentioned your S’s possible major any whether there are any financial constraints. Your list really does seem all over the place. I think i would first try to pare down the parameters a bit…rural/urban/suburban, etc. Once a school crosses about the 15,000 student mark, the size characteristics will all seem pretty similar. </p>
<p>A good rule to follow is to build the list from the bottom up, safeties first. I would also caution sending a student who needs prodding and parent/teacher interaction to maintain a 3.0 in non honors courses, to a reach. He will need to steer the ship himself. There are plenty of good schools out there where he can be happy and successful. </p>
<p>@petrichor11 USF is in our hometown so nah…great school though</p>
<p>@cgpm59 I think a swing through TX is going to be part of the plan -thx for comments,esp insight on Baylor</p>
<p>@my-3-sons list seems all over the place but as I explained earlier, we (parents) are looking for different criteria than S. We have agreed to check out a range of schools as a result.
Your advice on avoiding too much of a reach is terrific. That is my gut instinct, but there is a fine line between a total slacker party school and a fun yet academically sound “enough” school . I appreciate you saying that ,though, bc it confirms what I think. Don’t want to set him up for drowning…ty
Oh- possible majors are business or education ( PE teacher) . He has a gift for working with young kids when he volunteers at inner city after-school facilities. They love him . I would be fine if he chose that Both those degrees available anywhere though.</p>
<p>OP- don’t overthink the size. A lot of the large universities end up with huge headcounts because they’ve got a med school, a business school, a vet or ag school, etc. They won’t impact the undergrad or classroom experience one iota. And some are on satellite campuses close by but not adjacent anyway.</p>
<p>It it were me (and I know advice is cheap when it’s not) I’d eliminate the size criteria for now. I don’t think your son is going to sink or swim by being at a 15,000 student U vs. a 25,000 student school. The actual things that will matter-- like the quality of the academic advising, the ability to start the semester with 9 classes and quickly drop down to 4 or 5 (i.e. a shopping period) so your son can assess the workload and evaluate the intensity, his ability to access a tutoring center when he gets into trouble, I think all these things are much more meaningful than sheer number of students.</p>
<p>I think a shopping period is critical for kids like your son, BTW. A schedule which seems quite manageable in the abstract in August can quickly become untenable a week into the semester. Your son knows how hard he wants to work- this will help him get a schedule which he can be successful with.</p>
<p>I also think you will be surprised that virtually every college will have its hard-core slackers. So picking a college by trying to avoid that element of the student body will be very difficult, especially with your son’s stats. So again, if it were me- I’d be looking carefully at 4 and 6 year grad rates as a better proxy for how well the college does getting kids in and out, vs. its “reputation” as a party school. Schools with low grad rates tend to have a lot of kids who have maxed out on their loans, come from families without a lot of financial resources, etc. so you have to be sensitive to that- but there are colleges whose policies and environment really encourage kids showing up, going to class, and ultimately graduating vs. those who have abysmal grad rates and who don’t seem too focused on getting kids in and out.</p>
<p>To me-based on what you’ve posted about your son- that’s where I’d focus. Every school has partying and has a terrible reputation if you ask the right (or wrong) people. But the numbers tell a story…</p>
<p>@blossom what great insight ! A shopping period ….that has never occurred to me as a criteria . How do you assess such a thing? Find out if there is a long “drop” period for classes? Think that is published somewhere?
The grad rates are part of my assessment already . But you are right that maybe it should be bumped up the ladder on priority .
As for school size, I guess that is because we put him in a smaller school for high school that is academically rigorous. Kids leave there for academics all year the first couple of years ( usually not by choice) . It was difficult to get into. So I believe his 3.0 is not truly reflective of aptitude, but he is definitely a corner cutter, and if he was at our large public school I think he would have buddied up with the slackers. Not many left at his current school. Maybe not fair to translate that thought process to college though
Great points Blossom ! Thank you </p>
<p>US News’s charts now include a column comparing a school’s actual graduation rates to rates that could be projected from a model using incoming students’ stats and demographic information. Like everything else in US News, it’s not a perfect measure, but schools with a strong “plus” number on that may be worth a look as places that are doing something particularly well with their undergraduate retention and teaching. Conversely, a large “minus” number might be an indicator that you should dig deeper on teaching, continuity of financial aid, etc. </p>
<p>@SomeOldGuy love your username ,btw ! Is that online or hardcopy? seems very useful.
ps- are you a Dukie? clicked on your name & saw you in that thread; didn’t read further though so unsure</p>
<p>Is your son truely not motivated or are there any learning disabilities or ADD involved? If he attends a small, structured HS and his GPA is 3.0 with intense intervention from you and your collaboration with the school, I’m not sure he has the skill or is willing to advocate and seek academic counseling on his own. Is he expressing an interest in a career in business or education? Has he looked at courses that would be required to reach those goals? Unless his GPA either remains the same or increases without your intervention for fall semester, I would consider a local community college with the caveat that he could transfer if he maintained good grades. </p>
<p>@SomeOldGuy Stones fan too ? lol. My hubs is a blue devil,why I asked .Thx for info !</p>
<p>@ECmotherx2 wise woman…yes, he is LD , ( sensory integration) and it is a huge, complex issue at home. In summary,he has 2 high achieving parents (attorneys,stetson/duke law), and 2 siblings that never make B’s. This kid has had every opportunity to take all of the advantages of the diagnosis ,but he refuses and wants to get through his way. He has a math gift ( 680 on SAT) without prep,but reading/writing is a struggle. We walk a fine line between self- esteem issues and forcing our hand too much. Like I said before, not everyone needs to be a lawyer, I hope he is an educator (PE?) of sorts, because little kids love him & he is a sports nut; tons of volunteer work at an inner city after -school. But all that said, he is also lazy academically at times. We offer to help time and time again,to no avail. Won’t seek teacher help much either, though it is offered.Do I punish him for not studying enough ? doesn’t feel right. Comm college would be the resort if he doesn’t manage well away at college,but i would like him to get the chance to try. I think I probably do too much for him-not sure if he will sink or swim when gone,but why not find out?</p>
<p>While it’s not within your stated geographic preferences, have you considered Springfield College (MA)?
It might represent a good alternative for him, with regards to its size and highly regarded programs in both health and educationally-related sports professions. It’s a D3 school, but because of it’s academic offerings, the student population may be right up his alley.</p>
<p>Hi mariemom1,
I just wanted to say that in reading your posts, you could be talking about my S , right down to the high-achieving younger siblings. He has similar stats and wants the exact same college experience as your son. It’s become apparent that he will be able to get into the type of college he wants (a big state school) but in order to do so he will have to cast his net pretty far afield, meaning the entire country has to be fair game. We’re from the northeast but I suspect he’ll end up in the Midwest, Northwest, or Southwest. I don’t know if you have any specific reason why your son is only looking at southeastern schools or if you would consider opening up your search as well. I do want my son to consider Clemson, Auburn, and South Carolina but their stats are on the rise as well. So we push on…:)</p>
<p>@mariemom1, kuddos to you for managing the fine balancing act. If your son does well in math, have you given any thought to a tech school, like Florida Institute of Technology? They have great business management programs with one in sports management and seem to work closely with their students. It looks like they have an Explore FIT day on May 30th. </p>
<p>@ECmotherx2 funny, I had suggested the tech idea, as my father-in-law went to Georgia Tech. That one happens to be difficult to get into,& even FIL admitted it was tough going while there ,so S kinda lost interest. But FIT might be less severe? Sure can’t hurt to drive across state for a day. Thx for info-exams are done next week,so May 30 could be a plan ;). Also, ty for your supportive words. </p>
<p>@greatwhiteway I mostly ruled out the northeast /northwest bc of weather & distance. This is a FL boy ,after all ! lol. Plus , SEC schools are all down here. Auburn/Ole Miss seem feasible. But you are right. If any exams take a downward turn at the end of this semester, my net might be casting much much further ! Good luck to you, kindred spirit ! Is your son a Junior also?</p>
<p>There are 12 UGs in Fl that are in Division 1 for sports. UF may be out of reach, but FIU, FAU, fSU, UNF, USF, UCF all fit the bill. Privates include Stetson, U Miami, Jacksonville U, FIU, A & M.</p>
<p>I would stay in Florida. State schools come in all sizes. My daughter looked at U of West Florida for engineering, but ended up picking Florida Tech. Expensive, but they have a lot of merit aid, plus you’ll get the FRAG ($2500), Bright Futures if he can qualify at any of the privates in Florida, so that would be about $5200/yr. Most of the private schools (Fl Tech, Rollins, St. Leo’s, U of Tampa, Barry, Lynn, ) have smaller football powers but lots of sports teams like basketball, rowing, lacrosse, swimming. JU and Stetson are Div 1.</p>
<p>Most of the kids my kids go to school with are going to the ‘biggies’ - UF, FSU, UCF, UNF - but a few are going to Florida Atlantic or schools down by Miami. You can’t beat the price of instate tuition in Florida.</p>
Both those degrees available anywhere though.</p>