Occidental gives merit aid and admits a comparable or higher percentage than of few schools on your list, and has a reputation for individualized attention which might help in transition to more challenging courses.
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rats-- Occidental 23K NPC. Out of range. And it was CA!
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Unless he really dislikes the idea of drinking alcohol and will avoid it no matter what, a student in his situation with no parentally-supervised experience or knowledge about how alcohol affects him may be the most vulnerable to do something harmful to himself or others when his first experiences with alcohol are at fraternity (or other) parties at college. Poor judgement caused by drunkenness can lead to things like fights, or situations involving sexual activity that can veer into sexual misconduct.
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St Olaf?
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yeah I here you. He is very susceptible to outer influence.
I have imagined sitting him down one day in some kind of movie scene where dad makes a man of him with a bottle of whiskey and some target practice.
To see me drink and break the law with him would be quite an experience for him.
Yah!
Thatās one we can get in and afford. How intense the first year is is another question.
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You may want to check if there is a way to stay within the law with parental supervision in a private location.
https://alcoholpolicy.niaaa.nih.gov/underage-drinking/state-profiles/california/56
Jesuit like Xavier would likely give decent merit and the service learning culture may be a good fit for a kid who might be socially uncertain.
College of Idaho with their PEAK program has received praise from in state friends of mine. 1 major, 3 minors.
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St. Olaf could be good choice and is not going to be more intense than many schools on your current list. ā¦specifically Richmond, Grinnell, Vassar, Macalester, BC, Colgate, Kenyon will all have requirements requiring a focus on writing and a not insignificant proportion of highly motivated, academically inclined and talented students.
Richmond and Colgate are both greeky. Denver would be a good choice IMO. Wooster has a required senior year research projectā¦does that appeal to your S?
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Edited to add more detail about Vassar, Grinnell.
Note ā Vassar is need-based only, no merit. Also, on our visit, it definitely had a āsmart kidā vibe, felt pretty academic, intense. We have visited Grinnell about 6 times between our two kids, and while your mileage may vary, I thought it also had a āsmart kid,ā pretty academic vibe.
I lost track, is he a rising senior? Or rising junior? Both my kids did a summer boarding school program before their junior year as they went to an urban magnet school which did not provide them with a strong foundation. Choate had a 2 week writing program, which was great for my not-particularly-interested in-academics kid as it gave him confidence in a very nurturing environment and helped him get used to living with new people.
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I donāt think Vassar would be a good fit. The school fosters a very activist vibe. Most kids not only know what a liberal is but embrace liberalism. Given how you describe him as an introvert his lack of political awareness could be socially challenging at a place like VC.
In addition the academics are challenging while the curriculum is flexible. Also no frats but a fair bit of recreational use and partying.
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These schools, as well as others mentioned in this thread, are not easy admits even with TO, regardless of the amount of possible merit. And isnāt merit often coupled with SAT/ACT scores even at TO schools? Theyāre also very rigorous academically. Wonāt schools know about the lack of rigor at the high school OPās son attends? How will a 3.8-4.0 GPA be viewed?
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I donāt think Occidentalās NPC considers merit award eligibility, and Occidental also offers fairly generous merit awards. https://www.oxy.edu/sites/default/files/assets/Financial_Aid/MeritScholarships_5.pdf
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Oxy has a 3.25 GPA to maintain highest scholarships, and costs almost $80k so even 25-30k in scholarship leaves $50k to pay (before need)
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Agree. Look at collegesā core requirements and flexibility. Is he interested in taking 8 to 9 classes that are part of a more traditional LAC with foreign language requirements or does he want to have more flexibility in course selection.
I am not sure why there is a concern with the GPA in college. It will most likely go down - based on most studentās 4.0 High school grades their college grades are lower. That is a reality and it is hard for many freshman. (Good luck convincing him to go get the extra help/supports from 1500 miles a way, most do not go to get the help when the time comes no matter how great it sounds in the sales pitch to enroll.) The colleges also know due to a year and a half of COVID schooling adventures there are even more gaps in learning than there were previously.
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Reading through this and just wanted to be sure you check each college for their policy about keeping merit scholarships. Some have rather high bars set. If you are concerned about his grades in college, keep that in mind. Iāve seen kids have to drop out after a year when their scholarship disappears.
I also want to note that students who are at the top of their less than stellar high school can often do well when they get to college. Theyāre used to meeting the bar, just the bar was set low. When they get somewhere where the bar is higher, some actually thrive and appreciate finally having peers. Others, however, get depressed when they arenāt as good as they thought they were. It all depends upon the student.
If you have any influence (some parents do and some donāt - it depends upon the student), encourage him to get involved in clubs he finds interesting (to find good peers) and get academic help to fill in the gaps when he notices he has them. Remind him heās equally as intelligent - just has gaps due to his high school. The knowledge that they are equally as intelligent can help some of those āgetting depressedā kids when they realize itās not āthem.ā
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I applaud your honesty in your search. I thought about asking for recommendations for easy colleges once upon a time and figured it would be a non-start question. A LAC that my TO daughter got great FA to was Goucher. They seem to really care about the studentsā successes and have lots of help available if needed. My daughter ended up not going there, but they really made a great impression on our whole family.
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I second Goucher. Also McDaniel.
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The OP indicated that his Occidental NPC was $23K, without consideration of merit. Also, almost any merit is going come with gpa requirements.
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BC and Colgate are reaches for those that look like matches, and if ECs are highlighted by video games they are looking for more.
Maybe look at
Mercer in Georgia - offer merit
Quinnipiac in Conn - offer merit to many
RIT (edited- RPI might work, but RIT is where I was thinking) in NY might give enough merit based on grades and they have some very cool science and tech things going on. He will find kids like him there from what you have described.
College of Charleston in SC, Public, but could be a fit. Merit scholarships offered. They have a small school feel and many professors that care. Note - There are a lot of Core requirements and need to maintain GPA of 3.0 or other requirements to keep OOS merit offered.
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