<p>Ir4550 those are two good ideas. We thought about UVM Bulington. It is not provincial nor is it overly sports oriented. I have never heard of Westminster in UT. (I know the one in PA and it’s way too religious) I’ll look into it.
We also need to have her research Goucher and Washington, they seem accessible. </p>
<p>Goucher has a mandatory semester or year abroad, which we love. It <em>might</em> have a mandatory foreign language requirement, which D will not love. She has three years of French and two of Latin. She prefers to delve more deeply into the subjects that interest her in college. </p>
<p>In order to graduate with honors at her current HS she must take Calculus. She is in AP Calc now, getting As and not enjoying it. So much for Asians and their inherent affinity for mathematics.</p>
<p>Right now we are looking into Washington, and we like what we see. Westminster looks interesting. If they indeed do not have a political science major, that will be an issue for her. However, my quick look at the website leads me to believe that they do.</p>
<p>Yes. Moravian is not as conservative as it sounds. Our son actually liked their art department. (He met a student at a college fair) but he’s going through an “anti-religion” phase. </p>
<p>As to Muhlenberg, I think it’s a good choice, but not a safty.</p>
<p>Earlier we had mentioned Brandise. My wife knew of a few students from her HS in the late 70s early 80s who were Jewish and thought it was “too religious” back then. It might be different now.
Still it is a real reach. </p>
<p>Ir4550. My wife thought that she knew every liberal arts college in the East, but Washington College seems to be a gem that has escaped her. D loves the campus and the tow. It is very accessible to her i terms of academic performance and the town looks quaint and inviting. </p>
<p>Thank you for referring us to this unique college! </p>
<p>@luxlake, It’s a special place! And WC’s appeal is starting to take hold outside of the mid Atlantic region. I’m so glad your family likes what you see and that your D will consider it :)</p>
<p>I love that @lr4550 is giving Westminster the thumbs up. I can tell you that in the West, college counselors love this college, students too. Salt Lake city has a fantastic quality of life, great city, low sticker price at Westminster, excellent merit aid. Not heavily LDS (many more at BYU). Great weather, winter sports, sunshine. One of the lowest net price results we have gotten on a NPC. We are visiting this weekend, will let you all know what we think. </p>
<p>Good luck @LuxLake, Westminster definitely a safety for your D. Also look at U of Redlands in CA, another under-rated but well-regarded small private (not officially LAC), excellent merit aid (NPC said $25k for our D with 3.8 and 30 ACT). What about Cornell College (one class at a time in Iowa)? Great merit there too. </p>
<p>So sorry to hijack this thread, but @lr4550, would you say WC is especially preppy/conservative/greek? We are interested also, you recommended on another thread. Thank you! </p>
<p>@4kids4colleges, I honestly can’t say that I have set foot on the campus, all of my info comes from a few families who have been heavily involved in the school. They can’t say enough about the school and educational opportunities, especially since it is not as selective as so many other small LACs. These are families that are higher income level and would be considered preppy, so perhaps it does lean conservative but I honestly don’t know regarding the rest of the campus. The greek life could be more prevalent than it seems from the website but you never know until you get some better information from students on the inside. I do think it is a bit regional- meaning more than half the students are from the mid Atlantic region- but WC is trying to become more national. Also, I don’t know if there is any good merit money available. I would be very interested in a first hand report if anyone does visit! </p>
<p>@lr4550, WC has been sending my D tons of emails and other marketing, telling her to apply for free. Merit looks good. Pretty campus from the pics. Again, sorry to hijack thread! Thank you!</p>
<p>^^Seriously, I would love to hear what people think of WC if they visit! It isn’t on my D1’s list but will likely be on my D2’s list a few years down the road. Best of luck with your D’s search, sounds like you have some really nice options on the table.</p>
<p>We will be happy to report to everyone about Washington. We willl visit Westminster as long as we figure out the Political Science major.</p>
<p>Ir4550 we are so thankful to you for actually reading out daughter’s stats and desires, and actually returning with a NEW (to us) college that has her excited! </p>
<p>^^^ Colorado is like #4 on the happiness meter. Why we moved here from the NE. They do question whether all the happy people out here in CO are so happy because of the legal weed? Good question. Its a big issue. Not thrilled to have our D in a town with dispensaries on every corner (Boulder)…</p>
<p>But that is not really fair. The wonderful quality of life in the West has everything to do with the outdoor recreational opportunities, seriously low rates of obesity (for real, almost no fat people here!), great weather and sunshine, good job opportunities. We arrived here after many years in the NE rat race, wondering, Why doesn’t everyone live out here??? We are lucky enough to continue our East Coast jobs (telecommuting) while living in the relative paradise of a CO ski/college/tourist town.</p>
<p>Also, legal pot will never happen in Salt Lake City. </p>
<p>Its tough to go back to the NE state of mind. Part of why we want to keep our D out here or in the South, or maybe in PNW or CA. All super friendly, less competitive (hopefully, mostly), great places to be. If you have not spent any time here, definitely give it a look. Tough to beat on many levels. </p>
<p>That’s strange Westminster does not have a poli sci major. They have neuroscience, which my D is thinking about. You have some great other choices! </p>
<p>Political Science is a social science and includes the study of government, public policy, law and history. Neuroscience is a hard science. They are very different. Still, political science or government, as it is called at some colleges, is a standard ug major at most LACs. It’s unusual that it’s only a major at Westminster. </p>
<p>Next week, she is meeting with the Cleveland representative from Clark University at a restaurant in Cleveland Heights. Later that week we will travel to Marlboro College for Family Weekend and visit some NE and Upstate NY schools - Hampshire, MHC, Clark, and Wheaton. And in NY, Bard, Skidmore, and Hartwick, which seems to be a slam dunk for her.</p>
<p>She just received her mid semester progress report and we are happy to say that the upward trend that began in junior year continues - all As ! Including AP Literature, History and Calculus.</p>
<p>Clark is not considering her Catholic Theology grades from the first two years of HS. I’m not sure if that’s just their policy or if it’s because she is Protestant. But whatever, that is good news.</p>
<p>Mid Western colleges on her list (to visit) include Wooster, Ohio Wesleyan, Earlham and Beloit.</p>
<p>Thanks to a certain CC poster - we will be treated to a trip to Maryland to visit Washington College. While we are down there, we will take in Goucher. . </p>
<p>I really look forward to hearing what your D thinks of all of those schools, so please do share her thoughts when you get back! And congrats to her on mid term grades, I’m sure it helps fuel her fire heading into the tough work of searching and applying. What a nice list of schools to be considering, have fun visiting </p>
<p>@ In4550 I appreciate your suggestions - especially Washington. College. Our daughter was in need of an interesting safety, and WC more than filled the bill for her. </p>
<p>She will visit MHC while we are in the NE area. I know her mind will be open. However, some people chose college based more on fit than fame. </p>
<p>We are a family like that. There are colleges that we would never think of for our children. Probably most of them. We have very bright students who enjoy a vibrant and intellectually charged atmosphere. Many college students just want to get a degree. </p>
<p>A poster said that I had an “animus” against women’s colleges. I do not. However, I do not have an automatic love for everything Ivy league and Seven Sisters. </p>
<p>If our daughter wanted to attend an all woman’s college, neither my wife nor I would oppose her choice. Yet, there were some posters suggested that I “force” her to look at these colleges. That it not my style.I have also seen it backfire on some parents, and the real victims are the students. </p>
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