That is wonderful to hear!
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I agree with others who said strong math kids might run out of advanced math courses at SLACs without access to graduate courses at their own school or at a nearby university. My son rushed through and finished the undergraduate math requirements at his SLAC by the end of his second year, but luckily Wesleyan does offer graduate degrees in math so he could then work on courses and research towards a free 5th year Masters in Math.
My son also used Erica Meltzer for SAT Reading (3rd edition) plus College Panda for SAT Writing. I wrote out notecards on Quizlet for each book since especially Meltzer is extremely wordy and he wanted a short study program. He read my cards for each book section and then did the book exercises. He also did Khan Academy tests. I can message you the quizlet link to use if you decide to use these study books.
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Check out Ohio University Honours Tutorial College. You take your classes as one on one tutorials and have no general education requirements other than a single English course and have no prerequisites.
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OU has great merit too.
Here is more info on the math tutorial program.
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With the premier, excellence, and Trustee scholarships (assuming they stack), the CoA should be around 12k-15k per year
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I imagine a lot will depend on gpa (now a 3.5 so not high relative to top scholarships) and an unknown test.
It’s another great option for OP to consider - certainly with the tutorial aspect something one isn’t going to get elsewhere.
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How was his 5th year free? Which math courses did he take in his first and second semesters?
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No on AP English, 2 years of foreign language, AP Physics yes.
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Budget is a concern, but we can figure that out. What we can’t easily figure out is a school that he has a good chance of getting into, and that offers a program that aligns with his goals.
I agree with you that smaller might be better - UMass Amherst might be overwhelming - a smaller school might be better.
Figure out the type of school that works best. Then you figure out budget but it has to be figured out without straining you or wrecking the child financially.
Could a school like MCLA work ??
Of the schools that have been mentioned, which ones resonate and which repel? And why? Sharing this information on the forum will allow posters to provide more targeted suggestions that will hopefully suit your family.
These are the schools mentioned so far (in alphabetical order). There are a lot of them, so if you could even share about groups of schools what is (un)attractive about them, that would help.
- Beloit
- Binghamton
- Brandeis
- Case Western
- Central Michigan
- Clarkson
- Earlham
- Florida State
- Grinnell
- Hendrix
- Iowa State
- Juniata
- Kalamazoo
- Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts
- Northern Illinois
- Oberlin
- Ohio U.
- Puget Sound
- Purdue
- Queen’s U. in Ontario
- RPI
- Rutgers
- Southern Illinois-Carbondale
- St. Olaf
- Stony Brook
- Temple
- U. at Albany
- U. at Buffalo
- U. of Connecticut
- U. of Florida
- U. of Georgia
- U. of Iowa
- U. of Maine
- U. of Maryland
- U. of Minnesota
- U. of Missouri
- U. of New Hampshire
- U. of Pittsburgh
- U. of Rhode Island
- U. of Rochester
- U. of Utah
- U. of Vermont
- U. of Wisconsin
- Union (NY)
- Waterloo
- Whitman
- Willamette
Also, I apparently forgot to mention in my post #22, but all the schools I mentioned there offer through a doctorate in math.
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My son completed the minimum major requirements within the first 2 years, not semesters. He also added in additional math electives, a math guided reading, math reading groups and seminars, math research which led to creating 2 new offered courses, 2 additional majors (physics & cs), and his required GenEds in his 4 years. He had advisor permission to take more than the recommended 4 courses a semester.
Year 1: Deduction with Calculus FYS, Linear Algebra, Multivariable Calculus, Discrete Mathematics Year 2: Intro to Real Analysis, Abstract Algebra, Differential Equations, Topics in Abstract Algebra, Graph Theory
Wesleyan offers a BA/MA program for certain STEM majors. The Masters year is tuition free for those accepted into the program. My son was able to complete his Masters work within his four years on campus, but by design he will not be officially awarded his Masters until the following commencement ceremony. BA/MA Program, Graduate Services - Wesleyan University
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Is he very self-directed in his areas of interest? It might be interesting to see how much merit Hampshire would give him. He could write his own ticket there, and have a supportive, small-college experience, while still cherry-picking the advanced math course offerings that interest him at UMass. I don’t have a sense of whether someplace as “alternative” as Hampshire would be a fit, and I don’t know whether there’s a path to affordability, but I think he’d be a strong applicant there.
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Of the ones listed, I think the best matches are:
- UMass Amherst
- Brandeis
- Clarkson
- Queen’s U. in Ontario
- Stony Brook
- St. Olaf
- U. of Connecticut
- U. of New Hampshire
Anyone have an opinion on Simon’s Rock? I know it is crazy expensive but if he did go there he would skip senior year of high school.
We’ve considered Hampshire - I went to UMass Amherst and took classes at Hampshire. I do have concerns about their ongoing viability, because I have a friend who was on the board and she said it was having a lot of issues.
My son is very self-directed - but I think he’ll need the core math classes to get to the next level.
It may be worth looking into the possibility of combining core math courses at UMass with self directed classes at Hampshire.
I wouldn’t worry about the college’s viability as much as for other colleges in a difficult situation, because it’s part of a consortium, so that, if worse came to worst, the students would likely be integrated into the other colleges if they so wished.
What about Waterloo in Canada?
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The scattergrams available from Naviance or SCOIR would be a good place to start, as they show past admission results from your high school.
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We’re going to look at Queen’s in Ontario - Waterloo is another interesting option.
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Some of these will be way over.
there was news on Simon Rock recently. It was closing or relocating. Will have to look.
MCLa, if they have the courses, will crush the budget. Forgetting overall stats for the school - if your son is in math, there will be smart kids.
Why St Olaf but then not other Midwest LACs which will cost less ?
Looks like 3.4 is their minimum threshold + AP Calc BC score of 4 or 5 + an A in precalculus + English&Social science senior year + a course in CS jr or Sr year preferred.
Participating in their maths contests is highly recommended (he should find them fun) and I’m not sure whether it’d be within budget, you’d have to check.
First year = Math, 1 communication course, 1 elective. 2nd through 4th year, 3/4 Math as per Math major (14 possibilities including Pure Math, Optimization, etc)+1/4 electives or a minor. Co-op available starting after freshman year.
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