So it again goes to cost. Presumably you have UTD and USF for NMF.
What is your cost at Vassar ?
It’s $90k direct expenses.
Do you have need or are you willing to pay a $350k delta ?
The major can be done anywhere. It may not be called cog sci but the classes can be pieced together.
If you are full pay and the answer is it’s not worth $350k plus more, then your list can be easily reduced.
If it’s worth it to you, then yep you need to find other thoughts related to pruning.
Just making sure your parents instructions not to worry about cost haven’t changed? If so am I correct to assume you would prefer we move on from discussing cost?
This was way up thread and you seem very consistent. Respectfully if your parents don’t want you to worry and or discuss finances, I am not sure why the conversation keeps returning to that subject.
You say you may be interested in Vassar or Brown. I have a lot of first hand experience at both so happy to answer any questions you might have.
Yes, I asked about NPC’s up-thread because I wanted to be sure I wasn’t making unhelpful suggestions (esp. privates that would be less generous than the super-elites). But if OP is clear that they want all suggestions and don’t need to be second-guessed on cost, I think we can leave that aspect alone and let them do the cost-comparisons with their parents.
Let’s be honest - this is a Washington resident looking at U So Florida and UTD. The student will be NMF.
They have them on the list for a reason.
I simply gave guidance in regards to pruning the list. If the $350k delta vs those two schools matters, it’s easy to prune.
If it doesn’t, then they need to look deeper as to what matters to them.
I’m not telling OP what to do other than showing an easy way to prune the list.
Good for your parents who specifically said don’t use cost to prune down. Your parent’s advice should take precedence over strangers.
As another Vassar grad (and Biopsychology/Neuroscience major and I believe I mentioned upthread),I am proud that Vassar has one of the most generous financial aid programs for those who need it. And for those who don’t, and whose families are willing and able to pay the COA, you are fortunate to hopefully be in such a position and can look past this issue and simply thank your parents for their generosity. You have been clear multiple times that it is not an issue for you at this time. Again thank your parents for their willingness to fund your education and let you reach for the schools they you feel are able to provide the education and environment you seek. There are many schools that can provide a good education and where you will find a circle of friends. But if you are fortunate enough to find a school that your parents will pay for, regardless of the cost and if it doesn’t dent their lifestyle or retirement plans, than thank them and your lucky stars. Vassar is a magical place with wonderful opportunities. Brown is too (my dau in law went there, I had several friends who attended including my best friend in HS so I was fortunate to visit often, and my son considered applying so we spent time on campus and with alums, though he ultimately chose another school). Vassar has a history of being on the leading edge of program development and whose faculty encourage and assist its students to reach for their own personal stars. Pursue and enjoy that opportunity id it is afforded to you. Happy to share more privately if you would like. Good luck!
You noted this about UW? Is this important to you ? If so, you should look at closer schools - whether some of the LACs like Whitman, Puget Sound, or Oregon State.
One can say going away to college is about growth away from home. But to ofhers, they do want that closeness.
I’d argue you don’t want to go home weekly because it becomes a crutch. But I’m not you.
If distance and family access is a concern, it’s fair to tighten your geographic zone.
You will be somewhere for four years, day after day.
It’s not just about rank or reputation or cost. It’s about your day to day comfort.
Many struggle with distance and separation. If that matters to you, please take it into account.
If you’re in Florida or NY, you’ll still see your family but on FaceTime.
Another relatively close to home option, FWIW:
If you are looking at closer to home, and are Ok with a big school, I agree with the recommendation earlier by @AustenNut about UMN. It has strong psychology and cognitive sciences programs.
How important is location/ distance from home for you? Most kids don’t go home all that often if they live on campus. Some feel that if a student goes home often they may have a tougher time establishing themselves and developing a friend network in campus. If you have an ill family member and need to go home that’s understandable. How important is size and location?
I had a classmate from Spokane and I remember her driving across country in her VW bug at the beginning and end of each year. When you live across country you may or may not go home for things like Thanksgiving , though many schools now are more flexible with giving a longer break time during that week.
Yes, I’d love to know more about Brown. Particularly, why do you think it stands out in particular over other elite schools? And if you know anything about its cognitive science, psychology, and/or neuroscience program, I’d love to hear about that. And what is its culture like? I enjoy recreational activities, being outdoors, and hanging out with friends, although not a party guy. I’ve heard a decent amount about Brown being politically charged, or drug problems there. I’m aware a lot of this comes from stereotypes. Politically, I align slightly to the right, but am open to other people’s perspectives as long as I can express mine respectfully. I’m not looking to get involved in politics on campus; is it generally avoidable? And I don’t mind others partying too much as long it’s avoidable. Drugs are a big personal no-no for me and my family, and I’ve heard some things like the dorms smelling like weed, or everybody getting high during Spring Weekend? Are the majority of students involved in those kinds of things? I may be just overreacting, but I’d like to confirm because I like Brown’s open curriculum otherwise.
It’s not of paramount importance, but it is a smaller factor. There are some states where I already have a good amount of friends and family, which influences some of the places I’m applying to that otherwise seem far. I’m not listing exact locations for privacy. I also don’t mind going further out if I really like a school. Apart from UW, I’d say a school that’s a 3-4 hour drive is probably the same as one that is a 15-16 hour drive or 2-3 hour flight. So I’d consider the ease of visiting home would be the same for a school in Oregon vs Cali. East Coast is different because that can be a day or more of travel, but if it’s a good school, I don’t mind. Will look more into UMN and UBC tho.
Ok. One more question. As I research more colleges, I’m particularly interested in colleges that have a large focus on research, are strong for cognitive science/neuroscience/psychology or CS (and have at least a program in brain sciences), and focus on undergrad education. This means, at the very least, that undergrads have access to great TAs and resources (like premed advisors), have easy access to small classes, and it would be cool if they could interact with professors. I would want these colleges to be reach/high target types.
I know many LACs fit this, especially top ones, but my geographic constraints of being in the suburbs or near an urban city remain (like within 45 min drive/90 min bus). I know Macalester is in a city, but I’m not sure if it’s strong for my subject. I also know Vassar is strong for my interests and is small, but again, location. A university like Rice would fit all these interests. My college list has changed since I last posted. Cost isn’t terribly important right now, but colleges that meet full need (even if it’s with loans) are nice.
What about Reed?
Wesleyan University checks a lot of boxes. Its location in Middletown is basically the county seat, so I would call it a densely populated suburb. Hartford and New Haven are both within a 30 minute drive. It receives a great deal of external funding for a college its size:
https://www.wesleyan.edu/grad/graduate-programs/bama_program.html
I feel like you’re going to get all of the same suggestions over again. Can you sort the list of schools that have been suggested, according to your updated criteria, and tell us what schools you’re most interested in?
The fastest train to NYC from Vassar takes just over 90 minutes.
Carleton is only about 45 minutes outside of Mineapolis.
From Pomona, you can get into downtown LA on the train in about an hour.
Wesleyan has already been re-suggested.
The mid-sized U’s - Rochester, Brandeis… we’ve really covered the territory already. Have you researched these schools? What are you hoping that we can tell you about them?
If you’re getting a “Goldilocks” feeling that nothing is “just right,” then maybe the answer is to take the full ride at UTD. The Honors College would give you a close-knit, high-achieving cohort, small classes, strong advising and faculty attention, and a >80% med school acceptance rate. You can even get involved in research before your freshman year begins. The CogSci program is strong, and Dallas has all of the big-city resources you could want… and you’d not only graduate debt free, but with all of your college savings unspent.
No school you attend will be perfect. The inevitable moments of dissatisfaction can be easier to take when you’re not spending money you haven’t made yet, to be there.
So obviously this is the nature of LACs.
But some universities maybe do make the quality of the undergraduate experience more of a priority than others. Of course getting really good data on that subject is challenging, but I tend to think this peer survey conducted by US News is worth considering:
https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities/undergraduate-teaching
Here is the methodology:
In the spring and summer of 2023, U.S. News & World Report once again asked top academics to name the schools they believe have faculty with an unusually strong commitment to undergraduate teaching.
The rankings for Best Undergraduate Teaching, as part of the 2024 Best Colleges rankings, focus on schools whose faculty and administrators are committed to teaching undergraduate students in a high-quality manner. College presidents, provosts and admissions deans who participated in the annual U.S. News peer assessment survey were asked to nominate up to 15 schools in their Best Colleges ranking category that have strength in undergraduate teaching.
The Best Undergraduate Teaching rankings are based solely on the responses to this separate section of the 2023 peer assessment survey.
These rankings focus on a very important part of the undergraduate academic experience that is not always directly measured in a college’s regular peer assessment survey results or in its overall rank.
The lists, organized by U.S. News ranking categories, include the colleges that received the most nominations. They are ranked in descending order based on the number of nominations they received. Schools had to receive seven or more nominations to be ranked.
As usual with this sort of thing, I think you need to be careful with how you use it. Like, personally, I would not put a lot of stock in exactly where a college appears on this list, although obviously if it was very high that is nice, it means it has a widespread reputation in this area. I also would not assume a college that was not on this list was NOT good in this area, particularly if it was not a very well-known college.
But if a college IS on this list, then I think that is at least one positive piece of information, and again if it very high, maybe even a little more positive. And I note this is not one of those cases where it seems to just be repackaging some generic rankings–there is a real variety of universities on the list, including right at the top.
As a final thought, no LACs are on the linked list because it is only National Universities. There is in fact a National LACs version:
https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-liberal-arts-colleges/undergraduate-teaching
But personally, I would assume more or less every LAC on that list, and probably quite a few more, would rank near the top of the universities list.
I think you have great suggestions and i found with my kids that the LACs just below the Ivies give out merit aid to students with your scores. I would now focus on my applications. Writing a narrative of what you want to do in the future, how that school will get you there and what a perfect fit you are for there incoming freshman class. This is super important at the elite level as you have the gpa and test scores but are lacking a little in the clear narrative of ECs and experiences.
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