I also suggest she retake SAT. More # means more $$. ACT is a faster timed test. If she is a junior, try it. If a senior, I’d say retake SAT with some practice! Her GOA shows she probably can get another 150 points or more…
PS: we all think our kids are shining stars…and many of them are 4.0/perfect score varsity athletes. Don’t fall into the special snowflake trap.
I understand your daughter has some great qualities, but she has to have the grades, rigor, and test scores; and they are not secondary. Please assure her that your wallet is not what will keep her out of what you consider to be a prestigious school.
Since she is very disciplined, I would suggest she focus her hard work on re-testing if there is still time. Higher scores will open up some doors to merit scholarships. Also, most top 30 schools like to see SAT subject tests. I don’t recall if you mentioned those scores. If she has a very high score, that could offset an SAT score that isn’t quite as impressive.
BTW - Rutgers has produced CEO’s to Fortune 500 companies. So, I don’t think the Rutgers name will impact her career trajectory. I would be more concerned about the fact that she is heading towards a biology degree. Hopefully, she will pair that with a valuable minor, maybe business or computer science.
As with all state schools, there are outstanding students at Rutgers. Best of luck to her.
OP, a 3.92 weighted gpa is good but not “very good” in today’s competitive admissions. What is the unweighted gpa? You do know that most colleges will unwind that weighting and consider her unweighted gpa in admissions, right?
Stevens might be worth a try for some merit as they do have a m/f ratio that will favor your daughter. Wonderful school, beautiful campus too.
What is her class rank?
They don’t normally report it - when I asked I think they said around 16% …
OP, she might not even get into a few of those schools you’re looking at. My D’s superscored SAT’s were (I think) 2340 and her unweighted GPA was like 3.99 (she had one B+ her freshman year). All AP’s and honors. She received no merit from BC.
Schools like Seton Hall will give her money - they give everybody money. But if her R&M score is <1250 and a weighted 3.9 GPA they’re unlikely to take more than 10 to 15k off the sticker price. Same with Quinnipiac, Sacred Heart, Scranton and the rest of the less than brand name schools. Seton Hall today costs about 50k. Take off 15 grand and you’re still over 30k. You really need to figure you’re on the hook for 30k to 35k at the Providence Colleges and St. Joe’s of the world.
You need to explore with your DD if some of this is because of senior year “lunch table talk.” This is the time of year that the strong students are one-upping each other making lists, talking about campus visits to top schools, etc…all assuming that they’ll be going to schools that the “dregs” of the school can’t even dream about.
What you may not know, is that a good number of those students will find out either after ED or spring results that their six-figure parents can’t/won’t pay $250k for their college either. I’m guessing that many of your DD’s friends likely also have families with similar incomes, so they will also be facing the impact of a high tax area, etc.
I would advise your DD to say few words right now to her pals…speak in general terms…apply to at least 3 schools where she’ll get strong merit.
If your DD gives you a hard time about applying to some of these big merit schools, insist on some “parent picks”…these are schools that you know she’ll get large merit, and they’ll be in the back pocket if later needed.
I suggest 3 of these schools in case none of the others are affordable. You don’t want her to feel railroaded into one affordable school…she’ll need choice for her morale.
Learning the manners of the upper classes is priceless.
It is ironic to read OP’s rant in light of the fact that his daughter would not qualify for merit at top NJ publics and acceptance to the honors or specialized programs may be in question. Time to look at mid-tier privates that have large merit and Ramapo College that changes lives.
I don’t necessarily mean to bash Rutgers (well maybe I do). If you get through Rutgers, you are very smart and will likely do well. My complaint is that Rutgers is the most impersonal institution of higher learning that there is - it is the very opposite of a small high end liberal arts school that you would find in New England.
Serioulsy do your dd a service and visit TCNJ. It is a small colonial style NESCAC type school. I know , we visted several small new england schools. It has aprox 7000 students and is very highly regarded. The campus is beautiful and it has one of the highest freshman retention rates in the nation. It was also voted one of the happiest campuses in the nation. It also is #6(nationallly) in fastest to graduate meaning most all do it in 4 years. Listen, my child attended a very very prestigous NE prep school , member of school of 10. We asked him to visit as we did with many other schools (and his scores where higher than we are discussing here) to our surprise he totally loved it. loved the campus, the students , immeadiately felt 100% at home and has completely immersed himself in all the school has to offer. Also with the recent addition of “campus town” its even more appealing than when he first visited. Price, size, academics, campus life…it seems to be what you are describing. It’s really worth a visit , it is the polar opposite of big
impersonal institution.
I am not certain if she would get any merit as her scores are a bit low for that but her grades are good.
A 27 superscored to a 28 is decent. Has she looked at Denison? It’s a terrific school that tends to be generous with merit aid. Try the NPC and see what you come up with.
Have you said if she is a senior? If she is, she needs to get busy visiting, interviewing, and starting to get her apps in.
Some schools do superscore ACT, some don’t. You’ll have to check.
Be sure to check with your D’s college counselor to see where students from her high school have been admitted with her stats. That’s one of your best reality checks. A good high school college counselor will be making suggestions to the students about safeties and matches, based on the school’s experience in recent admissions cycles.
D2 (now a college sophomore) had around a 3.9 unweighted (her school had no honors or APs, and was grade inflated) and a 29 ACT. That got her enough merit money two admission cycles ago on EA to bring net price for Tulane down around $40k.
She is a senior. We have already visited many schools including TCNJ, Rutgers (oldest already goes there), Montclair, Purdue, Illinois, U of Dayton, Xavier, Miami U., FIT (Florida) and Clemson. She likes Clemson and Miami the best but I don’t expect much aid from those schools… not certain though…
It could be time to lower admission expectations unless she increases her test scores.
She won’t have undergrad student debt greater than $31k.
What is the balance of her 529 or Coverdell account?
How much has your daughter earned (and how much of that has she saved) from her summer (/school year job) over the past 2 years?
What does she say her career goal is with a degree in biology, microbiology or genetics?
Did you look at the pinned thread with links to automatic merit aid, and schools under $25k/year?
Did you consider your budget and look into whether her stats would yield merit before taking her on college visit trips?
Are there any younger siblings? If so you could work on any needed attitude adjustment and test study strategies sooner rather than later.
Does your wife work outside the home?
OP, you got off to a rough start but I applaud you for sticking with it and being honestly open to feedback.
We don’t have a 529. She doesn’t work - she is too busy with classes and extra curriculars - she baby sits when she has time. But it isn’t a matter of $$ that much - I can afford virtually any school because we save pretty well - but the word “afford” is about as clear as mud - this isn’t the exact point - paying upwards of $60k per year doesn’t make sense for anyone. The ROI just isn’t there…$250k is a mortgage, not tuition…
Thanks for telling me about the pinned posts… yes my wife works…
These are fairly large publics that you’ve looked at. Is that her choice to focus on those? There are considerable aid possibilities at many LACs that can bring prices down closer to those she might pay at some OOS publics.
Her first choice is Clemson. Her second choice is Miami. My first choice for her is TCNJ. She wants to major in Biology - I want her to major in business/finance/economics or something like that…
“for some reason her test scores don’t match her academic performance”
Academic performance is more closely related to a student’s drive and commitment than the one-time SAT or ACT score would be. Look at your daughter’s track record for this kind of standardized test. Has she consistently scored lower than expected when compared to classroom performance? If so, then there are several things to be investigated (her guidance counselor might suggest others as well):
It is not a good idea to force her to major in something she is not interested in.
But you can help her make a more informed decision with respect to career prospects associated with various majors.
@happymomof1 I think yours is the best response so far. Thanks!