<p>I am following this thread and wii be interested in the outcome. My son is a junior in high school but has an interest in going to school out west. We have a limited budget so can not afford CU, UW, etc. The western schools he may choose from are Montana, MSU, Wazzu, Wyoming, and Idaho. We are planning a visit to the Univerity of Wyoming this summer. We will then probably visit either U Montana and MSU or do a combo U Idaho/Wazzu visit.</p>
<p>If you can, I would be interested in all the details of the Montana schools.</p>
<p>I have another take on the low retention/graduation rate in Montana. Without saying so, both schools are almost open admission which means they tend to attract more low-performing students than other, more selective, schools of comparable stature. </p>
<p>In comparing the schools, we noticed that Missoula tended to be better in the humanities, Bozeman in the sciences. My son initially liked Missoula - and U of Montana - more than Bozeman. But he’s into the sciences and architecture, and Montana State is much stronger in both. </p>
<p>I also agree with the other poster who raved about Vermont. It’s a good school in a great town and area. A very good choice for outdoorsy types un-intimidated by intense winters.</p>
<p>I haven’t had a chance to really talk to them about all their impressions. As of now I think she likes both schools. She thinks she would fit in better at U of Montana. My H thinks she would fit in at MSU. For my D it is all about the horse. The horse barn at Missoula was very nice and she loved it. The con is it is 20 minutes from the school. At MSU you can board your horse on campus but the facility is not that nice. The Pro of being on campus she could easily get to her horse.
She felt that the students at Univ of Montana were more diverse. Not in an ethnic sense but in style of dress. At MSU the students all dressed and looked very similar to each other. Bozeman was a nicer downtown area to walk.
She got a email from U of Montana yesterday saying she was awarded one of their most prestigious merit scholarships. They said the letter she will get in the mail will give the amount. I am thinking she was awarded the WUE. At MSU as of now she was not awarded the WUE but a $5000 a year merit award. MSU states pretty clearly what the score requirements are for their different merit awards. U of Montana does not. SAT or ACT scores are very important for merit awards.
If she goes to Montana I hope her decision is based on the different majors at the two schools and not on the horse facilities. For my D it is all about the horse.
I think for my D the Montana schools are going to be the most affordable of the schools on her list. Though flight travel costs to Montana are high from Ca.</p>
<p>On paper Vermont seems ideal for my D. The main problem with Vermont is that even with merit aid it will probably be double the cost of the Montana schools.
My D also got into Boulder. OOS tuition at Boulder is expensive and they do not participate in WUE. Even if she loves it and gets the small OOS merit award it will probably be too expensive.
Haystack-My D also got into Western Washington. She has not visited yet. They do participate in WUE. But I think they also have other merit awards for students from non WUE schools.</p>
<p>katlian,
I agree with your comments about the schools being open contributing to the drop rates and agree with the humanities being stronger @ UM with architecture in Bozeman. (Ironically, though, I think the buildings on campus are much more beautiful in Missoula) I do, however, believe that UM has a great science department, too as my son is a biochem major and premed there.
mom60,
Hopefully, she will decide upon the best education rather than based on a horse barn, but even that factors into the whole picture. I don’t know where the facilites are in Missoula for the horses but I do know that Missoula has an excellent bus system and if it is on one of the bus routes, is a great way to get around. S uses it to go out and get back on nights he and his friends go to bars so they don’t have to worry about a designated driver.</p>
<p>For this kid having horses around will be emotionally important. I feel it doesn’t have to be “her” horse, she feels differently. Her first choice school is our local UC. Not because she loves the school or the type of student body or any of the academic programs or even our city. It is her first choice because she won’t have to be apart from her horse and her barn.
I am not sure what they are doing today. I have not heard from either one of them.
Right now she has several areas of study she might want to explore- equine studies, nutrition, psychology or speech therapy.</p>
<p>It sounds like the Montana schools have a lot to offer. (I’ve had kids at CU and CO School of Mines - both great schools, but pricier for OOS). </p>
<p>I’ll just put my plug in here for South Dakota School of Mines (for Engineering students). Total expenses for non-SD students is around $18K/year (minus any scholarships). We never visited, but I remember being surprised that it is so affordable for OOS.
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