Where do the casual, non-hipster, jock/outdoorsy kids go to college?

College Search & Selection
1

I though he would be easy, but it’s proving a little more difficult than I anticipated to come up with a manageable list.

He would like:
Wide range of majors. He is undecided. Perhaps Econ, criminology, business, history. Quite into the idea of being in intelligence at some point. Not STEM oriented.
Easy access to outdoor actvities, especially in winter.
Non-hipster environment, but reasonably liberal. He is fine with anything in moderation though.
Not too small. Most LACs are out*.
Not too big. His ideal size is probably 5-15k.
He does not want an intellectual environment: “Those people are super annoying.”
Would like to play club lacrosse in college.
Would like decent school spirit and ideally a football team, but ice hokey and lax are cool too.
In the ideal world, a college that might allow subbing foreign Lang requirements for something else. (That would be awesome.)

We would like:
Good profs.
More small classes than large. Small classes are the ideal. He is dyslexic and dysgraphic, so colleges with services/accomodations for such kids are a bonus.
A good reputation.
Good career services, good alumni network.

Priorities:
Good reptuation in wide range of majors.
Smaller classes (may be a sticking point because he likes larger schools than typical LACs.)
Good outdoor access.

His stats:
Rising junior.
Solid B+/A- student. I expect this to hopefully flip to A-/B+ next two years.
He has taken 1 AP so far. (Our school generally allows only jr/seniors to take AP.)
3 honors Frosh, 3 honors soph.
2 IB next year, 3 honors.
Anticipated senior year schedule has two APs and two-three honors.
Only two years of high school level FL, and that will never, ever change. It was his biggest nightmare.
Anticipated ACT score of 30-32. (Based on pre ACT score of 28. I am a test prep tutor, so we expect he will improve.)
Plays lacrosse, will be varsity next year.
Other actvities: Model UN, volunteering, work.

Finances: We have money saved and finances are ok.

So far, he is interested in or is considering:
U Vermont
UC Boulder
U New Hampshire
SUNY New Paltz
UC Santa Barbara
U of San Diego
Ithaca College
Oddball: West Point, because he likes the idea of discipline and fitness, plus the potential to get into intelligence. He has been there a number of times for sports events and loves the atmosphere.

I would like him to also consider:
SUNY Geneseo
SUNY Binghamton
SUNY Plattsburgh
SUNY Oswego
SUNY Oneonta
Evergreen State

*I wish he would consider:
Bates (Academics too tough? Sis attends.)
Dickinson (Has visited and liked, when sis was accepted.)
Whitman (Academics too tough maybe?)

He does not have a dream school. He doesn’t have strong feelings about any particular college. He is totally not interested in prestige. He may not end up with a reach school. Suggestions appreciated!

2

What about some of the smaller Washington State public universities? UW is great too but might not be appropriate in terms of size and academic toughness.

3

UCSB may also be on the larger side with approximately 24,000 students which does include graduate students.

Although you stated finances are good, are you prepared to pay $60K/year with no financial aid for UCSB?

FL can be an issue since UC’s recommend 3 years and the majority of the applicants will have 3 years.

What UCSB looks for in an applicant:

  • Santa Barbara
    *
  •   Very important: Academic GPA, Application essay, Rigor of secondary school record, Standardized test scores

  •   Considered: Character/personal qualities, Class rank, Extracurricular activities, First generation college student, Level of applicant's interest, State residency, Talent/ability, Volunteer work, Work experience

  •   Note: Eligibility established by high school GPA, course requirement, and SAT scores. Special consideration for disadvantaged students.
4

Hobart is a little smaller than his parameters, but it may fit on a lot of the other criteria. If he doesn’t mind a Catholic school, Siena could fit the bill too.

5

Highly highly recommend Evergreen State! My teacher raved about how fantastic it is.

6

Also, University of Puget Sound and Gonzaga could be added to the list of possibilities.

7

If he likes Army, then maybe consider other schools in the Patriot League. In general, PL schools aren’t noted for being overly urban, intellectual, or hip, and an ACT of 30-32 would generally be in range. They have Division 1 sports, but typically play football at the FCS level like the Ivies (Army and Navy are exceptions; they play football outside the PL at the FBS level).

Bucknell ? Larger than a typical LAC at ~ 3600 students, and broader options since it has schools of management and engineering. Rural location, outdoorsy. Has a one-course foreign language requirement though.

Lehigh ? Small university at ~ 7200 students. Strong for business and engineering, as well as liberal arts. Located on mountain, city of Bethlehem on one side, rural on the other side. No foreign language requirement.

8

If you are considering Colorado-Boulder, then how about the University of Denver? Private school, much smaller than Boulder, at ~ 5800 undergraduates. Slightly more selective than Boulder, ACT 26-31. No football, but contends for national championships in hockey, lacrosse, and skiing. Reputation for preppy, outdoorsy students; not noted for intellectual hipster types.

Has schools of business and international studies. The school of international studies offers graduate programs in things like “Homeland Security” and “International Security”; Condoleeza Rice got her PhD there. Wouldn’t surprise me if they offered undergraduate classes in these fields as well, which could appeal to someone interested in intelligence. Appears to be a language requirement.

U of Denver is not currently well known on the East or West Coasts, but it is building a reputation as a top private school in the Rocky Mountain region, along with BYU (which fills the religious niche) and Colorado College (which fills the LAC niche). They would probably like to get more students from the Northeastern US, and might give them a “geographic diversity” boost in admissions.

9

Bucknell, Lafayette, Lehigh, Miami of Ohio, Syracuse. Some of the midwest Catholic schools, Dayton, Xavier, Marquette, might be worth a look – generally middle of the road student body known for working hard, career focused, not snooty smart (for want of a better way to describe what I’m guessing he thinks about his sister).

Are the larger LACs – like St Lawrence, Dickinson, Denison, Wooster, which are in 2200-2400 range, really out? There is a difference between the 1600-1700 and 2200-2400 in terms of how intimate (or claustrophobic) a place can feel. St Lawrence is non hipster, nice, regular kids, and heaven on earth for winter sports. I don’t really see Evergreen State as a good fit for the criteria listed, my kid has a friend who went there, very alternative, hipster, lots of drugs, at least as she reported her experience. Granted, just one anecdote, but we’ve understood it to have more in common with Hampshire than other schools.

10

Thanks for the suggestions so far. He is not preppy. He’s more like a “surfer dude” who would probably surf if he lived in Cali. He is into snowboarding. Yes, @Gumbymom , UCSB might not be viable.

@Midwestmomofboys , he hasn’t totally said no to LACs. And thanks for evergreen State info. He won’t be into druggy.

11

Currently 75% of the undergraduates at U of Denver come from Colorado or other western/southwestern states. Also, their applicant pool and enrollment skew female. They might be very interested in a male applicant from the northeast that likes lacrosse and winter sports, has a potential interest in international security, and can meet/beat their average ACT of 28.

http://www.du.edu/explore/studentprofiles.html

12

U of Delaware… ?

13

I agree with the midwestern Catholic school suggestion, and I’ll add on St. Louis University.

14

Would he not need languages for a career in intelligence?

15

He might, @Conformist1688 . He needs to figure that out.

@Midwestmomofboys and other recommending the Midwest, I am a fan of several Midwestern colleges. Forgive my ignorance, but is there any skiing in the Midwest? I think the possibility of winter sports matters to him.

16

U of Maine? I think the size is right…?

17

Denver has both club lacrosse and a freeride club for “advanced” snowboarders.

http://ritchiecenter.du.edu/students/club-sports/club-mens-lacrosse/
http://ritchiecenter.du.edu/students/club-sports/club-freeride/

18

You’ll find small-time ski resorts like this one throughout the Midwest, but no legit downhill skiing like in the Rockies.

http://www.hiddenvalleyski.com

19

Have him look at Western Washington and the University of Idaho.

BTW, anyone who recommends skiing in the midwest, isn’t a skier. :smiley:

20

^^I was going to say Western Washington.