<p>My SS is leaning toward OSU and I’m totally going to encourage him to look into the turf management thing. No joke. Unbelievable how much I learn on this site.</p>
<p>Ah, just saw this upthread:</p>
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</p>
<p>Being a very small school makes it more likely to be a school where a student out of its academic mainstream will have a hard time finding others of similar academic ability and motivation. Unlike some big not-very-selective schools, there may also be too few high ability and motivation students to induce the school to offer honors courses and the like that would interest the high ability and motivation students.</p>
<p>Of course, it is hard to tell for sure without knowing the specific school, but the odds are stacked against it as far as it being suitable for a high ability and motivation student.</p>
<p>Being a very small school also makes it more likely to have limitations on the majors and subjects offered, and the selection of courses within the subjects that are offered. If the student’s possible majors include those which are not offered, or where course selection is poor, that can be another point against it.</p>
<p>[Department</a> of Crop Science @ N. C. State University](<a href=“http://www.cropsci.ncsu.edu/]Department”>http://www.cropsci.ncsu.edu/)</p>
<p>BS in Turfgrass Science…big deal here</p>
<p>Kat</p>
<p>fauxmaven, Engineering can be different-engineering schools would be ABET accredited. Also, getting through an engineering curriculum is tough so his peers would tend to at least have some strength in math and science. We don’t know the school the OP is talking about but something tells me it is not the same type of situation as your son has been in.</p>
<p>We got offers from small schools like this for a kid who stats were similar to yours. They went straight into the trash. I didn’t lose a second’s sleep over it. My kids had good reasons for every school on their list, being cheap doesn’t trump the work they did finding places that really met their needs (including their intellectual and academic needs.) To be clear, there are many schools out of the top 50 that are just dandy, and some are superlative in their specialties as well. This does not sound even close.</p>
<p>MNcollege – bribes work sometimes. Not all. </p>
<p>Sevmom, I think Va has a wide range of state schools, not just what you mentioned, but GM, Old Dominion. Yes, VA is harder to get in, but the state does have a wide range. (Highly Selective, Somewhat selective, etc). </p>
<p>Momfrom KC – I dont know which kid I feel worse for – second kid may WANT to go instate. But most middle class people with more than one kid face this issue, how do we be fair to all. I dont see any easy answers.</p>
<p>Part of the retirement question I would be asking would be how old are OP and wife.</p>
<p>kayf, I mentioned JMU and also added etc. I am in Virginia so am very aware of the different choices and level of selectivity. The issue may be more that the other kids don’t want to use the prepaid tuition to go to a Virginia school.
mathmom, same here. This kind of stuff went straight to the trash.</p>
<p>Sev – oops read over JMU, sorry.</p>
<p>I guess I still think telling a kid you have to go instate in VA still gives a lot of choices, a lot more than they are giving older kid.</p>
<p>kayf,I would imagine(but of course not 100% sure) the oldest was also told she could go to any of the Virginia schools and I’m thinking that is what the OP had in mind all along by purchasing the prepaid plan. However, the daughter seems to like Clemson and maybe Emory? She apparently really disliked William and Mary and I believe also has ruled out JMU and Virginia Tech. So, she has already ruled out some of the most selective schools in the state (and seems to still be considering UVa but I think the OP was hoping she would become more enthusiastic about UVa). What seems new in this is that now the OP (or the wife) may want the daughter to all of a sudden have to consider full tuition,lower tier schools . And it is February. And we are talking about a school that the daughter didn’t even apply to or show an interest in.That is what is confusing to me.</p>
<p>Can you afford to send your dau elsewhere WITHOUT dipping significantly into savings or retirement funds or taking out loans? I tend to think like barrons and think college is an important 4 years in terms of growth and social developent, but I would NOT go into major hock to send a child to an expensive school. If she is happy with the school, it is her choice. Maybe she can go do an overnight and see if she finds people that she will enjoy having as peers. Good luck!</p>
<p>I must say I am enjoying having this pleasant discussion about the pros/cons and cost effectiveness of differing tier/rigor schools without the “show me the data” posts shoved down our throats as was done elsewhere in the not too distant past.</p>
<p>Sev, I agree with the confusion/lack of planning. I thought what has happened is that DW wants older kid to take free ride, so they can save prepaid for younger kid, so they dont have to touch retirement savings. </p>
<p>One thing to tell a child, its IS schools for you kiddo (or anything you can get at comparable net price) in September (but preferably earlier). Esp if your state is VA.</p>
<p>This school sounds so inappropriate for the OP’s daughter that if the family is truly hurting financially, I would think that a better choice would be for the daughter to attend a CC for two years and then transfer into a four-year school in the Virginia state system. </p>
<p>It would be a shame for a student who has been accepted into UVa and Clemson to have to do this, but it’s better than going to a small school where she is unlikely to have any academic peers.</p>
<p>I agree that it comes down to affordability, but I wouldn’t send a child with stats like the OP’s D to the school he is describing unless that was really our only option. It’s prefectly reasonable to choose a less prestigious school when money is an issue, but I can’t see choosing a school that is so far below her academic level. If the family is instate for VA, I think that UVA is a great value. </p>
<p>My D1 is graduating in June and just finished a successful job hunt. While interviewing, she discovered that many employers target specific schools. Prestige does come into play when applying for that first job.</p>
<p>Marian, I agree with you. Looking for a CC with an articulation arrangement sounds better. Our local CC does get some capable students (everything from money problems to too much partying at first school)</p>
<p>My state is filled with those small private schools with low average ACT scores. They often provide outstanding scholarships to average and stellar students which makes them very attractive to some parents. </p>
<p>But…and we see this over and over again every year…when the students graduate they can’t find jobs or get into graduate schools. They end applying to our state flagships and going for 2 more years to get a second degree that is valued by employers and grad schools. In the end, it often costs them more than if they had just gone to the flagship to begin with.</p>
<p>Instead of dipping into the retirement fund, maybe have your D take out a student loan.</p>
<p>Just to clarify things to a couple of the posters that have mentioned possible poor planning or communication as part of the problem- our D is, and always has been, well aware of what we are willing to pay. This also isn’t a “game changer” as one poster mentioned because we haven’t even mentioned it to her and might not ever say anything. </p>
<p>Also to another poster, I didn’t open her mail. I found it on the counter (although she has given me permission to open her college stuff with the exception of acceptance letters <vbg>). </vbg></p>
<p>One other thing is that D1 isn’t the oldest (just the oldest D). Our oldest kid is our gifted magnet school slacker son who is in CC because he pre-majored in partying, but will hopefully be at VT in about a year. Then there is D2 who is probably smarter than D1 (but has a good work ethic vs an incredible work ethic). So, within 3 years we will have 3 in college with only 2 prepaid plans since that was all I could afford, and I was hoping that at least one of them would get some kind of scholarship. I didn’t want to pay for something that one of them might not be able to use.</p>
<p>TV4 --</p>
<ol>
<li><p>I cant figure out what you are willing to pay. Is it xero (as in she must take a free ride if she gets it)? or is it cost of any state school?</p></li>
<li><p>I thought the VA plan could be used at any school, but it might be more valuable at a VA school (on top of the benefit of the IS tuition). So it will be used.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>PS love the “pre-major in partying” - gotta keep your sense of humor</p>
<p>Have you checked out the 4 and 6 year graduation rates for the college giving the unsolicited scholarship? Important indicators of school quality.</p>
<p>It sounds like your wife has a legitimate concern about college costs if you think you might need to raid your retirement funds. It isn’t too late to check out/apply to other schools that might offer your daughter significant aid, but that are more selective, given her stats.</p>
<p>My dad’s friend’s son went to SUNY Buffalo and is now a graduate student at Columbia university</p>