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hayden
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Posted: Fri Jun 27th, 2008 11:01 pm |
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I want to appeal to you helpful folks, in case I'm overlooking a gem. Here's the situation: good public school in the Northeast that typically sends its top 10% to the highest rated schools. But my relative has about a 3.2 - 3.4 weighted. Only a couple of honors/ap courses. Her SAT's are between 1150-1200 (M+V). Not many different EC's, but has a couple of strong, focused EC's which counting next year, she will have followed through all 4 years.
There are plenty of schools that could be possibilities, but she has the added problem of a single parent and multiple siblings, two of whom are already in college.
So we have the classic case of medium stats, no chance for merit money, and a real need for financial aid.
You'd hope a kid like this would cast a wide net, but unfortunately she saw her siblings choose schools they loved, and she naturally wants the same advantage. She wants cold / cool weather, NOT close to a big city. Also, 6 hours or less drive from NYC. At least, size it's a big consideration.
So far we're looking at SUNY's, Rutgers, York, West Chester, even as far south as George Mason. The wild card of course is the amount of financial aid. Any more ideas?
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safisher
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 04:05 am |
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| Some Catholic colleges in the Northeast may fulfill these criteria, offer at least some financial aid and have nuturing environments. Look at St. Bonaventure and Scranton as two examples.
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CardinalFang
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 04:54 am |
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Does she have an academic interest? What kind of college life does she envision for herself?
There are a lot of schools to fall in love with, but without knowing more about what she wants it's hard to narrow down the list.
I thought George Mason was in the south, so it wouldn't have cold weather?
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Northeastmom
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 01:42 pm |
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Hayden, Look into Marietta College in OH. I believe that with those stats she will get a 6k scholarship and an opportunity to compete for more money. Earlham is need blind. If she could gain admissions, perhaps the financial aid package could work. We recently visited both schools. I know that they are not 6 hours or less from NYC, but Marietta is 8.5 hours away. Marietta's campus police will drive to and from the airport for $75 each way. They told us that they will take the extra travel costs into account when offering FA. Marietta's sticker price is lower than many schools.
Are the state schools for OOS going to be affordable? Perhaps a third tier/4th tier private would be better. How about the College of St. Rose in NY (is it next to Suny, Albany)? When in Va, how about Roanoke College? It is not in Roanoke, but in Salem (suburb). It is not too far from the airport, and it is 7.5 hours from NY.
Editing this Post: I want to say that she should contact Marietta if interested to see if those stats qualify. Her gpa is weighted, and I know that at about 1150 and 3.25 you qualify for 6k. I don't know if that 3.25 is weighted or unweighted. Also, they might give some flexibility in gpa, depending upon her hs.
Last edited on Sat Jun 28th, 2008 10:39 pm by Northeastmom
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mominva
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 01:50 pm |
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Cabrini in Philly, Rowan and Ramapo in NJ, Salve Regina in RI, Wagner on Staten Island all fit the bill.
Let us know her EC's. That may generate more suggestions.
Last edited on Sat Jun 28th, 2008 01:50 pm by mominva
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Northeastmom
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 01:56 pm |
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| How about the CUNYs, and investigating housing if needed, with a bunch of students? I know someone from NJ who is at a CUNY and it is working out well. She did find housing with a few other students, but I don't know specifics. I do know that it was an affordable option. Never mind, if she really hates being in a city, or is avoiding a city because of the need for more pocket money. Last edited on Sat Jun 28th, 2008 01:57 pm by Northeastmom
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mmaah
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 02:11 pm |
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How about Union College in upstate NY?
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Lderochi
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 03:41 pm |
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A lot of schools in PA would fit, if she's willing to cast her net a bit wider.
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Chedva
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 04:12 pm |
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St. Michael's College and Champlain College in Burlington, VT could work. While Burlington is a city, it's not a big city as far as New Yorkers are concerned. It's also a great college town, with UVM right there. And the weather would work for her.
Union I think would be a reach for her, but it may be worth a shot.
She might also want to look at Stonehill College and Wheaton College in MA.
What are her strong, focused EC's? There may be some places that will value them more than others.
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hayden
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 04:37 pm |
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I knew you folks would come through !
Her academic interests are pretty general, which is why I forgot to include them. She is interested in either business or math education, hasn't decided which yet.
By the way, my original post had a typo. I meant to say that size is not a factor (I wrote "size it's a factor" instead.) Sorry.
Her EC's revolve around theater. She has done theater production (not acting) and chorus / solo's since middle school. She also has held down a 8-10 hour per week job during the school year, and 40 hours a week during vacations and the minute school ends in the summer. She banks everything to save for college tuition, to help out her mom. As you can see, she's a pretty good kid.
Thanks for all your suggestions - incredibly helpful. For the person who asked about why George Mason, it's because I was focusing on the publics due to lower tuition, and thought I could sneak it in if her mom took her to visit during the fall We'll see if that works.. . . . . .
I was thinking that private schools would be too pricey since we couldn't estimate financial aid for her, but you've pointed me in a different direction and I really appreciate it.
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Chedva
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 04:59 pm |
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Have her mom go to http://www.finaid.org and use the financial aid calculators there. While not foolproof, they do a pretty good job of giving a ballpark EFC.
Also, since it is within 6 hours of NYC, and given her theater background, she should check out Muhlenberg College in Allentown PA. They are very performing arts oriented, and even have talent scholarships (audition based - the program is not) for theater types, including those who do not intend to major in theater.
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mackinaw
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 05:13 pm |
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Another college within the distance perimeter but it's private and still expensive -- though that depends on finaid -- and that has good theater production is Ithaca College: http://www.ithaca.edu/admissions/
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CardinalFang
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 05:23 pm |
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| Drew is well within the area, has an excellent theater program and is, I think, a match for her stats. It's an expensive private, but maybe she could get aid, I don't know about that.
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Northeastmom
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 05:52 pm |
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| Perhaps you could look at average % of need met, and how that is split between grants and loans. Perhaps for a student like this, it is worth applying to a lot of schools to compare packages, and making sure that she has some instate public school options.
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hayden
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 06:58 pm |
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I've looked at some of the schools you all have suggested, and found some terrific options I wasn't familiar with. Both our kids refused to look at schools smaller than 10,000 undergrads, so you can imagine that limited the school search of our own kids pretty dramatically.
Thanks, everyone! i hope that other parents / students who have these problems see this thread since it could be so helpful.
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CarolynLawrence
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 09:34 pm |
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Hi Hayden, I'm chiming in late, but I wanted to note that I don't consider her stats to be mediocre at all. She should have lots of options! In addition to the great suggestions people have already gave, some that popped into my head based on your description of her: Susquehanna, Juniata, Goucher, Clark U, Wagner, and Hobart & William Smith.
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Mrs. Aardvark
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Posted: Sat Jun 28th, 2008 11:44 pm |
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How about University of Hartford (although Hartford may be too big city-ish)?
They have an arts school which may cover the theater, and I know of an art student who got a scholarship there.
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Lderochi
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Posted: Sun Jun 29th, 2008 02:29 pm |
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The College Board website has a pretty good college search tool for looking at colleges in specific areas, using the stats as a parameter (but stats obviously aren't the be all and end all)
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