<p>I'm pretty new to CC... must be a button somewhere..</p>
<p>My son applied RD but his page on the portal says "decision will be made soon", wondering if anyone has heard RD admission, and if so, what their stats are, if they care to share them. </p>
<p>But in general I would think it's a popular enough SUNY to have a forum??? Any thoughts?</p>
<p>I am working on getting my 2nd kid off to college, and the New Paltz threads have always been a part of the “SUNY General”</p>
<p>My daughter also applied RD but hasn’t heard anything yet. She applied early December, she has a 95 GPA, 1760 SAT.</p>
<p>well, thanks for sharing that smithmkt. My son’s stats are 88 GPA, 1820 SAT. So his GPA might be too low. New Paltz seems to be in very high demand i’m guessing due to the cute town and the proximity to NYC, 37% admitted, which seems ridiculously selective. I love the town of NP, and had many adventures there when I was my son’s age (altho did not attend the school). But I honestly can’t figure out the quality of the school itself.</p>
<p>I think your son will likely get in with those stats. My son was actually wait listed last year, he had an 84 average with an 1800 SAT. But several of his friends with similar stats did get in. In his case I think his GPA was a couple of points too low. As fas far as the selectivity goes, it seems that in recent years the number of applications to SUNY schools has really skyrocketed, so schools that used to be considered “fall backs” are have now become much more competitive. Good luck to your son, I’m sure he’ll get in.</p>
<p>thanks smithmkt and good luck to your daughter!</p>
<p>My son got accepted EA. I think part of the reason for the relatively low selectivity is that an increasing number of middle class families from NY are steering more towards the SUNY schools, so they’re just getting more applicants. It’s the only SUNY my son applied to, and it’s pretty much our financial safety. I also can’t really figure out the quality. We went to an open house in the fall, and S was not at all pleased to learn that if he doesn’t actually major in music, he wouldn’t be able to use any of the music facilities (practice rooms), take any non-intro music classes, or take any music lessons.</p>
<p>I agree it would be nice to see New Paltz have its own thread.</p>
<p>fosterte, my son will be upset to hear that about New Paltz also - he is VERY interested in music too but probably doesnt have enough experience and training as a musician to minor in music at new paltz. My impression is that the huge difference between the SUNY schools and the private schools is the ability to provide flexibility to students… it seems like at NP if you switch majors or don’t pick quickly enough you can get kind of screwed (pardon the expression), but at many of the small LACs they are all about flexibility and interconnectedness of areas of study. I’d love for my son to experience that, he never has…, but $$ are an issue, he can only attend a private college if the financial aid is great. Thank you for that piece of information, we will have to check if that is true of ALL the SUNYs.</p>
<p>It sounds like we’re in a similar situation, uncivil. My son would strongly prefer going to other schools we’ve looked at, but we need some pretty good financial aid. Unfortunately, even minoring in music at New Paltz won’t get a student into the practice rooms, non-intro classes, or lessons. We talked with them specifically about that too. </p>
<p>S does have a slight interest in majoring in music, but he doesn’t want to be forced into it . At NP, he feels like he would be forced to. When we’ve talked to the other schools about this subject, they’ve been like “oh, of course all students can use the practice rooms, sign up for any classes, and take lessons”. It’s a complete non-issue.</p>
<p>I agree with you about the flexibility difference between the SUNYs and the privates (at least the ones we’re looking at). S picked up on that as well during the NP open house. He commented that NP seemed a lot more rigid than the other schools we had visited, and it made him feel uncomfortable. I’ve been trying to stay positive in case it does end up coming down to his going there, but I wish they’d make it a little easier for me. :)</p>
<p>Fosterte–I’m going to call a couple of the other SUNYs, definitely Oneonta, and see if they have the same policy. Is NP the only SUNY your son is applying to? Its the only one we’ve had time to visit - since it was essential to visit the private schools, I thought we could visit SUNYs as needed when we have a clearer picture of things. My son applied to several, I thought it was worth the admission fees to create as many potential options as possible w/o going totally nuts.</p>
<p>At this point, NP is the only SUNY he applied to. Overall, I think it is the best fit for him of all the SUNYs. I would have encouraged a closer look at Oneonta, but for personal reasons that have nothing to do with the actual college itself, my husband does not want us to even consider it. Briefly looked at Purchase, but it’s farther away than he would like to be. I’m starting to wonder if we shouldn’t take another look at Plattsburgh. A friend of mine from high school went there, liked it, and has been well-prepared to be successful in life. (I know that was a long time ago now, but I think if anything, it’s improved since then.)</p>
<p>However. . . my son is DONE with this crazy application process. If I talk to him about arranging for more transcripts and recommendations to be sent out, he’ll probably faint!</p>
<p>I know exactly what you mean… I keep eyeing one more school and not only would my son go beserk, his High School college admissions office would too! His high school is literally twice the size of 3 of the schools he applied too (4,000 kids -graduating class of 700ish – ONE college counselor with some helpers - does NOT add up.) Only in NYC I think. But sounds like you are upstate, hopefully it’s not like that.</p>
<p>Yes, upstate. Did your son apply to any of the CUNY schools? Mine applied to Macaulay Honors College (Hunter first, followed by Brooklyn, Queens, and City). Funny - we were just down in NYC on Monday for an admissions interview! :))) He made the first cut and it sounds like the interview went well, but we won’t know if he’s accepted or not until next month. We love NYC and Macaulay seems like a great program, but going to school there would be very different than ANYWHERE else he applied. If he were to get accepted, though, we would very seriously consider it. It seems like such a wonderful opportunity.</p>
<p>Fosterte, my son’s girlfriend is a student in the Macauley Honors Program at Hunter (she’s a freshman this year, a year ahead of him)… so small world and all. She seems pretty pleased with it. It sounds like it would be a great introduction to NYC for your son; she’s mentioned they get taken to plays, concerts etc. If he has any specific questions I can ask if he can email her, especially if he is accepted (sounds promising!!). My son does not have the grades for it… (I was hoping her work ethic would rub off on him but no such luck) In answer to your question, yes, he did apply to CUNY, but his application got all screwed up (don’t even ask) and even though Hunter had been his 1st choice, somehow Baruch was listed first …he was accepted there and invited to apply to their honors program (essay due Feb 15…yikes) Being we’re from NYC, I’d prefer to see him go away to school, also not sure how good Baruch is for liberal arts types. But I want him to apply to the honors college, just to have more options… if he got in he’d have some nice perks, the main one being an advisor who actually can take time w him.</p>
<p>In other news, S got acceptance fr Plattsburgh today…but won’t know about their honors college for another week or two. Out of curiousity I called and asked their policy about music classes & facilities… Not a very big music department, but classes/facilities open to all. What type of music / instrument is your son involved w, just wondering? </p>
<p>Anyhow, hope you’ll let me know how it turns out w Macauley!</p>
<p>Ha - it IS a small world! 
First off, congrats to your son on his acceptance to Plattsburgh! And I wish him the best of luck in getting an invite to their honors college! </p>
<p>New Paltz has an honors college too, but you have to submit a special application for it. Is your son doing that? Mine decided not to. It requires having a new transcript sent directly to them (even though it’s already on file at the college) and having new teacher recommendations written (they won’t use the ones that have already been sent). My son was like, “no, I’m not asking my teachers to write new recommendations”, and I agreed it seemed silly so I didn’t push him on it.</p>
<p>S is a rocker. He plays electric guitar and acoustic as well. He also sings lead vocals in a band (inspired by rock from the 60s and 70s) and writes the lyrics and music for their original songs. That was also part of the concern when we were talking to the music department rep at NP. When she heard about his music, she clearly and quickly lost interest in him and didn’t seem to even really want to keep talking to us. It was a little strange - and discouraging. I’ve heard from fellow parents in our area that the music scene at Oneonta is very good for “contemporary musicians”. How about your son? What does he play?</p>
<p>While at NP, we also spent some time talking with two philosophy professors, and THAT went well. S felt very comfortable with them, and they clearly had an interest in learning more about him.</p>
<p>Sorry to hear the CUNY app got messed up. 
I’ve heard that Baruch is a great school especially for those interested in business, but my son also really needs to be at a school that focuses on liberal arts, so he didn’t end up listing Baruch on his MHC application. I didn’t realize that for regular admissions, you couldn’t apply and get accepted at more than one CUNY. That kind-of stinks.</p>
<p>Yes, let’s keep each other updated!!</p>
<p>Fosterte, my son is a rocker, too! But he would call his music ‘Indie’ which to my ear sounds like a mix of punk, pop, rock n roll and blues. So… basically–Brooklyn rock n roll. He plays back up guitar in a band w 3 friends-they seem to compose music collectively and individually & are performing in little clubs/coffee houses in Brooklyn & the east village. So I know what you mean, I guess some schools are not going to react to this the same way as playing the oboe. Sorry to hear that NP is one of them, the administration does seem really rigid in certain ways. Their insistence of duplication of letters & transcript for their honors college seems very much in that vein… no, my son didn’t apply, stats not high enough, esp GPA. </p>
<p>back to music - thanks for that info on the Oneonta music scene, that kind of information is hard to find out in a book! and it’s worth so much… </p>
<p>On a positive note about NP though, an acquintance/friend of mine, a prof at Bklyn College, made a good point, NP will always have an EXCELLENT teaching staff because it is in a very desirable location, good people WANT to work there. So that may balance things out, as per your experience w the philosophy professors…</p>
<p>I did find out, happily, that it IS possible to get accepted at more than one CUNY school, so still waiting to hear from Hunter. But my hope is still for my son to LEAVE the city. Plattsburgh may be a tough sell, distance-wise, & was originally applied to as a “safety”, but I somehow have gotten a positive impression of it. ANYHOW, REEEALLLY wanting to hear from Oneonta & NP. And about financial aid for the LACs… I think it’s going to be awhile. </p>
<p>Will your son be having a 2nd Macauley interview?</p>
<p>unciv, not sure if you’re still checking this thread at all, but if you are, how are things going? Any SUNYs that stand out as top contenders? Did you hear back from the CUNYs - are any in the running? </p>
<p>S got accepted into Macaulay at Hunter yesterday, so I’m pretty giddy about that. It’s probably holding the top “likelihood” spot right now even though it’s never been his very top choice. From my perspective, the financial aspect of his attending there is SO compelling, and from his perspective, the program seems very interesting and engaging - especially the NYC interdisciplinary seminars and the internship opportunities. We’ll go down for the accepted students day and hopefully he’ll be able to talk with an enrolled non-NYC native regarding what the adjustment has been like. I really think it’s an opportunity he shouldn’t pass up, but at the same time I understand how it could seem a bit intimidating for a 17-year old. We’ll see how it ends up working out.</p>
<p>This whole college “thing” has become particularly stressful for me the past month or so. Not sure if it’s me or if most moms end up shouldering the bulk of the stress, worrying, and planning. S is very laid back about it all and doesn’t spend his time going through a bunch of scenarios in his mind, which is probably pretty healthy, and at any given moment DH seems to at best be vaguely aware of what’s going on. I think when a commitment is made, I’m going to need to take a mini solo vacation!</p>
<p>@fosterte, congrats to your S and you re Macauley! That’s impressive!! I grew up in NYC so its hard for me to imagine coming here to attend school but I imagine it could be exciting. S got into the Dean’s scholar program at Baruch (shocked!) but I don’t hear the greatest things about liberal arts at Baruch. And with him being from NYC & having a bunch of friends who will be staying here for their bands, not for school, I think he’ll focus better going away. </p>
<p>Happy to say, my S did get accepted at a bunch of SUNYs including Geneseo (where I WISH he wanted to go) but he’s not too keen on the distance and it being in a small town. As far as SUNYs, NP and Oneonta seem to be the top contenders… we really need to visit Oneonta and re-visit NP. I think until the 3 private schools he applied to have sent their financial aid packages it is psychologically hard to move forward. </p>
<p>I can totally relate about the stress…</p>
<p>Anyhow, S’s #1 choice school is supposedly sending its package next week so holding my breath. If you want to “talk” off-line, I would be happy to compare notes on specific schools… but I’m irrationally paranoid about talking about private schools on line. Pretty crazy I suppose!!</p>