<p>My son will be applying RD. High ACT score, but low-to-middling GPA. Chances?
Also wondering whether he would fit in as a "non-geek." He's more into music, photography, and artsy things. Will probably not study engineering, more into bio sciences. How are those programs? Thanks in advance for your honest feedback!!</p>
<p>Any chance your son can visit the campus? I think it is important for him to get an idea if he would be happy there.
WPI has very strong drama and music programs since many of the students are also interested in these subjects. The Worcester Art Museum is a few blocks away and is free to WPI students.
But the overall vibe is still pretty nerdy.</p>
<p>Agree with BeanTownGirl that the vibe is overall on the nerdy side of things. My D is a sophomore and, although a science and math kid, is not someone I would classify as a nerd (unlike her brother who will be applying this year!!). She is an athlete and involved in various other activities on campus. She has had no issue “finding her tribe” and is very happy at WPI. </p>
<p>WPI has very strong programs in both Biomedical Engineering as well as a strong Biology & Biotechnology. Lots of students that plan to apply to professional schools after ungergrad (med, vet, etc) gravitate toward these majors. </p>
<p>BeanTown - I had no idea that the art museum was free to students. Cool!</p>
<p>Unfortunately we live on the west coast and can’t visit. Maybe if/after he gets in, we will. Do students get into Boston much? Or is the workload so heavy that most students work their tails off? The 7-week quarter system seemed incredibly fast paced! If you miss a couple classes, you’re already behind, right?</p>
<p>S is a sophomore. He doesn’t go into Boston much, but due to lack of interest rather than lack of time. At orientation, staff and older students emphasize that if you do your problem sets every day and stay up with your work, you will have time for fun. In general, S makes sure he has Saturday night and most of Sunday free. Plus he fences four afternoons a week. The advantage of the term system is twofold. First, it means that the majority of the students finish in four years. Look at stats from other schools: 5 yrs is common, and that means a bigger cash outlay. Second, you only have three classes at a time to juggle, and three finals. That makes taking 36 hours a year manageable. The workload is not excessive from the perspective of S and his friends, and they are not super hard-driving academic maniacs, just responsible students.</p>
<p>Thanks for your input! Very helpful. My S will apply! I like the idea of co-ops too: great real work experience.</p>
<p>My D is a senior at WPI. We, too, live on the west coast. She likes the 7 week terms; it doesn’t seem hectic to her. A big advantage, from our opinion, is that she has both a fall and a spring break of at least a week. Gives her an opportunity to come home for that week. She can also really relax during that week as she doesn’t have any homework or projects hanging over her head.</p>
<p>I liked the 4 year grad rate compared to the poor 4 year grad rate of the CA schools. My son took 5 years to get thru Cal Poly SLO and it seems most of his friends were also on the 5 year plan. (I can think of only 1 of his friends that did it in 4 and he had a ton of credits going in).</p>
<p>D goes into Boston about once or twice a year. Not a time issue but she can find most of what she wants to do in Worcester. They have a minor league baseball team and a minor league hockey team. Cheaper than the majors in Boston and easier to get tickets to. </p>
<p>One trick she and her girl friend worked out is to tell the campus ride service they need a ride to the train station. The ice rink is just across the street. The ride service won’t take you to the ice arena. Reverse the process for the ride home.</p>
<p>Just so you understand, Wondrousworld, the system does alow for co- op, but few kids do them as the curriculum is not really set up for this. The projects are seen as the hands-on aspect of the curriculum. In terms of work experience leading to job offers, most of the students try to find summer internships. If you want co- op, look at GA Tech, Drexel, Stevens, Northeastern, and others.</p>
<p>RIT would be another co-op school to consider.</p>
<p>Of course, you would not want to compare WPI’s 4 year graduation rate to these co-op schools 4 year graduation rates, as doing the co-ops would usually not allow for graduating in 4 years.</p>
<p>I don’t think any of my son’s friends have gone into Boston, they seem content to do things on campus and in the Worcester area. For example, there was a special night at Boston’s Museum of Science and they sent a busload or two of kids in, and there was a trip to the beach a few weekends back. It is a great area for apple picking farms. The Residential Services department and the student government do a great job of organizing events both on and off campus. Plus there are all the student clubs that hold events. You can check out WPI’s various facebook pages to keep up with what is going on. As a parent, I follow the WPI Parents Facebook Page <a href=“https://www.facebook.com/pages/WPI-Parents/127939120583208[/url]”>https://www.facebook.com/pages/WPI-Parents/127939120583208</a> , but I sometimes check out the WPI Residential Services Page <a href=“https://www.facebook.com/WPIResServices[/url]”>https://www.facebook.com/WPIResServices</a> or the Career Development Center. They do a nice job of reaching out to parents, there is also a monthly newsletter that they email to you, as well as the Facebook page and pages on their website. That way you can continue to nag your child from afar - “Don’t forget the campus flu shot clinic this Friday” 
</p>
<p>They had a Job Fair in September that was attended by over 185 companies, most of them interviewing students for internships as well as full-time jobs for seniors, but many also offer co-ops. There is a second in February, and a few other specialized ones for the Life Science and business students. It seems like internships are hard to find for most freshmen which is not surprising but my son and his friends were all gainfully employed the summer after sophomore year. He doesn’t know anyone thinking of doing a co-op. He will work during winter break at the company where he interned this summer :)</p>
<p>CowtownSlim - My S is also a fencer and interested in WPI (we recently visited). He’s been fencing for years and we’re trying to figure out the STEM/Fencing/ piece. Can you share more information?</p>
<p>WPI has a fencing club. I’m sure many other schools do. Because it’s a club, academics take priority. If your classes overlap with a practice session, you simply miss that session each week. Nonetheless there is nice camaraderie and they do travel for 2-3 tournaments. There are NCAA programs at other tech schools, like MIT, Cal Tech, Stevens, NJIT, and other universities with good engineering departments like Hopkins and Penn State, if the fencer wants to compete at that level.</p>