College Ideas/Are we heading in the right direction?

sjussanah · 07-31-2009, 12:19 PM

D currently attends a rigorous catholic high school. She has ADD but her medication has worked wonders. She had a rough start to her freshman year and got a 3.3W but she had a 4.2W her junior year and took honors physics and AP Bio. Although she got As in both AP bio and Hon physics, she got a 1 on the AP exam. Her gpa after junior year is 3.6UW and 3.87W. Next year she will take college equivalency classes (chem & public speaking) which will result in a high school accumulation of one AP (bio) and 1.5 CE classes. She scored a 26 on the ACT and a 1740 on the SAT (superscored)(1140 CR&M). She's played lacrosse all four years of high school and recently did a three week internship with a hospital. She's also worked throughout high school and has more than 125 volunteer hours. She wants a big school and hopes to go to medical school. Any suggestions would be appreciated! She's currently looking at Indiana Univ of Bloomington, Mich State, Miami of Ohio, Purdue, Penn State, Loyola, OSU and Pitt.

We want her to go somewhere where she can succeed in a science based program and have a good shot at medical school. She also wants a "name" school that is big and that she is proud of. She's worked hard and is still on her way up academically.

4gsmom · 07-31-2009, 12:28 PM

Just glancing over Naviance, she looks like she's on the right track for all of them. Best of luck to her!

rrah · 07-31-2009, 12:45 PM

This looks like a fine list. I did a quick glance at an SAT/ACT equivalency chart. The ACT score is slightly better than the superscored SAT. Provided she did the writing section of the ACT I would recommend sending the ACT. It will eliminate any questions about whether a school superscores.

I'm guessing Loyola is due to the catholic school connection, but it seems a bit different than the others. It's not as much of a campus type feel as some of the other schools.

One other school you might look into is St. Louis University.

FYI--Applications are already available for Purdue. IU's will be out on Monday. It's nice to get a few done before Senior year begins. I'm guessing a few others will be out very soon if not already.

NewHope33 · 07-31-2009, 08:12 PM

OP - You'll get a lot more responses once your post count is up. Lots of trolls on CC.

Oh, and yeah you're on the right track.

sjussanah · 07-31-2009, 08:40 PM

This is all so new to me. D is my oldest (of two) and the world of college applications seems so unwieldy. I really appreciate any advice and am glad to know that I am headed in the right direction with D. Her stats are not in the 25%ile for any of these schools so I am gathering that no school is a lock. My biggest fear is that she does not get in anywhere. At this point, anything I post would be a question because I have no advice that would be helpful. Thanks again for your guidance.

Erin's Dad · 07-31-2009, 09:56 PM

"My biggest fear is that she does not get in anywhere."

Make sure you have a safety school. One which your D is willing to attend and she has a virtually sure shot of getting in. This is usually a state flagship or secondary school. If it has rolling admission all the better since she can apply early and know she is in one place already.

PRJ · 07-31-2009, 10:56 PM

I agree with Erin's Dad. IU has rolling admissions. My D was accepted there very early last year and it was so nice to know she had that option. As I recall they don't require an essay so it was a relatively easy application. Good luck!

OhMan · 08-01-2009, 09:22 AM

OP:

I am a recent HS graduate (rigorous Catholic school) who has much in common with your daughter in terms of grades, ADD, stats and ECs. My goal is medical school as well. Of the schools you mentioned, I was accepted at Penn State (UP), Ohio State and Miami (OH). All are great schools and she would get a great education at any of them. But after much consideration, I decided I would do better at a private Catholic school like Loyola, Marquette, Xavier or St. Louis (I was accepted at these schools as well).
Don't worry about your daughter getting in, she will, but think more about what kind of college environment is right for her (big state school vs. smaller private, etc.)

Good luck in your search!

curious77 · 08-01-2009, 09:29 AM

^ agree. Definitely consider whether a huge public is the was to go for your daughter. It is very easy to get lost in the crowd and overwhelmed. There will be little to no advising. If she is set on that type of college, try to steer her toward ones with honors programs for which she has scores that will qualify her. At many state schools the honors programs are "schools within schools" and will provide more advising and a closer knit group of students.

ebeeeee · 08-01-2009, 10:27 AM

Be sure to have a financial safety if money is a factor. By that I mean unless you can pay full tuition at the listed schools assume they will give you a combination of FA and loans. Not all of the offers will be equal. Talk to your D about money now. Sit down and give her a realistic idea of what you can afford and what FA you will be looking at from each school.

TheresaCPA · 08-01-2009, 10:40 AM

I second ebeeeee. A financial safety is a must. We are not done with this downturn. A financial safety is a place that has little parent loan participation and/or if your set aside investments are tanking you have no plans for loans. It's a place where you could enroll and transfer from when sunny days return. It's a smart thing to do.

LurkNessMonster · 08-01-2009, 10:44 AM

My daughter attends Pitt and so I wanted to weigh in from that perspective. Yes, it's a big school, but the advising happens to be excellent, right from freshman year. So it's important not to make generalizations about any school, large or small. They all are individuals.

Premed at Pitt is really really hard. The health sciences are excellent, but many kids get thrown off the premed track by tough "weed out" science courses. Lots of schools do that though.

Also, keep in mind that out-of-state publics can be the worst deal financially. They're surprisingly expensive, and financial aid is usually limited to loans. So look first to your own state's system and what it has to offer. I don't think you mentioned which state you live in, did you? If you want to, we can give better advice.

My only other advice is to keep reading College Confidential. There is a WEALTH of information here, and most parents are more than happy to share their accumulated wisdom. Best of luck to your daughter!

compmom · 08-01-2009, 11:03 AM

Does your daughter have a 504 plan or any accommodations in high school? If so, you might want to also check out the disabilities office and how the culture is at each school for kids with ADD/ADHD and similar issues.

yabeyabe2 · 08-01-2009, 01:57 PM

Congratulations to your daughter on overcoming her disability. Your schools seem on target. I know she has cited wanting a big school, but perhaps one visit to a smaller school which might be more personal; more nurturing; and where she could continue her lacrosse career (and still get into medical school) might provide another perspective on her options

sjussanah · 08-01-2009, 09:29 PM

I guess I'm surprised! After reading the middle 50% or SAT/ACT, I was not confident at all that she would get into any of the schools she's applied to. I will try and talk her into going to see a smaller school. She's so focused on wanting to get out of the smaller school environment. She does not have a 504 or IEP - in the Catholic schools system it didn't seem helpful. In addition, with medication, her LD has dramatically improved. D does not intend to play lacrosse in college. She's looking for someplace where she can do well at a school she is proud of and get into med school. Thanks for all of your help!