Couldn’t the original post have said something like: “Need suggestions for good Bio schools for family on a budget of $25K/yr”. Then post stats and other pertinent details (minus editorials) in the body of the post? Wouldn’t it have gotten us to the same spot without all the drama? Don’t most of us feel that college costs are too high? The ROI of reading through 10 pages of this stuff is very low.
I, too, am impressed the OP stuck it out to the very end. I’m more impressed by the helpful CC community that didn’t entirely eat him alive, but in most cases offered a lot of good suggestions.
I was probably looking for secrets that I hadn’t picked up with my first child. And I think I got most of what I need. I’ll follow up on that information. Thank you!
@wwpdf2 you have the right to set whatever college budget you feel appropriate. You are not cheap. As I have said I know families that limit their contribution to the cost of their instate flagship and if the child wants something more expensive then the kid has to figure out how to get merit money. I even know one family that can help their kids with $$$ but philosophically believe their kids should finance college themselves with no.loans so they better appreciate their education. It has worked so far. 3 of their 6 kids sucessfully have done just that. The other 3 are not college age yet.
You have to dig deep into what is meant by the “best school”. It really is all about fit, not rankings. Focus on fit - cost, academics, size, social environment, region, weather, city v rural v suburban, etc, and it will fall into place and your d will thrive.
If she positions herself betterfor merit aid or you decide to pay more, I’d highly suggest Miami U (OH) which is quite literally located amidst cornfields outside of Cincinnati and has a great small college town in Oxford. (I think some group ranked Oxford as the best college town or something to that effect). Miami has a very good reputation in these parts. Good luck, (and I take back my comment about the original post coming from below a bridge.)
Thank you @CGHTeach . We originally visited Xavier and U. Dayton, both of which she liked. Since Miami was in between those colleges and we had some extra time we visited Miami. And yes, she loved it. It was her #1 choice for a while until she visited Clemson. She calls Clemson her #1 choice and Miami her #2 choice. I personally like Miami better.
@DrGoogle She was actually interested in studying in Germany. But with the refugee crisis I don’t think that could happen now. What college do you recommend in the UK? We visited London last year and my daughter loved it.
Well…this is easy peasy…might not help you freshman year…but could in subsequent years.
Have your child apply to a school that guarantees to meet full need for all. Use your full savings to pay for her freshman year.
Then give away that house, sell one car at least, quit your jibs. Apply for SNAP benefits. In other words…you too can become “poor” if you think that is a real advantage.
But really…why can’t you be grateful that you have what you have. Believe me, any “poor” person would be thrilled to have enough money put aside to attend Rutgers.
And there is nothing wrong with Rutgers. I live in CT and Rutgers is actually a school students look at from here. You might also want to consider The College of New Jersey.
Or apply to places where your daughter will get merit aid…which adds to the $30,000 or so you have per year will lay her college bills.
Can you tell it annoys me when folks list here that the poor have it so much better than folks who have good financial resources?
“Yes, she wants a small to medium sized school. No cities whatsoever - she doesn’t like them. She like small town/rural.”
Since this is the case, why not consider a mix of publics and privates in her range that fit this criteria? Miami of OH is a great option, which you are already considering. Why not add in Denison, Earlham, College of Wooster, Allegheny, Juniata and Sewanee? All great schools, within her range of stats, that offer outstanding merit aid, have great bio departments and whose graduates have a great record of accomplishment?
@wppdf2 my Jersey raised sister has lived in S.C for over 35 years - first in Clemson, now in Greenville-Spartanburg area. Clemson is a wonderful school. Though western SC has changed dramatically over the past 3 plus decades, it is still very southern and at moments insular. Your d needs to make sure she is comfortable culturally or open to the difference. My grand father went to Miami-Ohio close to a century ago. Great school then, and still is. Again, the midwest is a real cultural change for Jersey girls and she needs to make sure she is welcoming of the difference. (I went from NYC to U W Madison - it was culture shock but very good for me.)
Lots of schools that are easier to get in and have brand name recognition like a King’s College, UCL, University of Manchester, Bristol university, LSE, Imperial College.
And for a Bio, McGill from Canada is a good choice too.
Has she checked out Upstate NY? They have cornfields and SUNYs only cost $30k/year. If you contribute $26k and she gets a part-time job now and a full-time one in the summer, you could probably swing it.
@austinmshauri we looked on paper at Geneseo and Binghamton. We actually visited New Paltz. I think the best SUNY school for her though would be Stony Brook although I think it is difficult to get into these days.