B+ student results & making the decision

College Search & Lists
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Hi, you were all super helpful when I was deciding where to apply so I thought I would update with my results. I have a really difficult decision ahead and ended up with a lot more choices than I expected.

Here is the old thread if interested: Help a B+ student narrow her college list [3.4, humanities or social science, performing arts ECs, <$50k, divorced parents]

I ended up with a 3.41 UW/3.68 W. I applied as an undecided major everywhere and applied EA. The max budget set by my mom is $50K per year but ideally I would like to keep it below $40k

This is where I ended up applying:

Safety/Likely
Sonoma State University accepted
Chico State University accepted
Southern Oregon University accepted WUE + $3k merit

Target
Muhlenberg College accepted $22k merit
Ithaca College accepted $24k merit
Susquehanna University accepted $42k merit
Agnes Scott College accepted $27k merit
Drew University accepted $20k merit
Marist College accepted $15k merit
Willamette University accepted $25k merit
University of Maine accepted, $19.9k flagship match

Reach
Sarah Lawrence College accepted $25k merit

I feel extremely lucky to have no rejections. I sort of feel like I over-applied but I had a hard time narrowing choices from the beginning and I was anxious about my rough freshman year grades. Plus I have a budget and I wanted to be sure I had a few choices that would be within it. I will wait for complete financial aid results before making a final decision. Some colleges have offered to provide estimated financial aid and so far I have received that from Ithaca College.

Here is what I am thinking so far:

Sonoma State
If I decided to stay in-state at a public, I’m pretty sure this is where I would go. They are part of the Council of Public Liberal Arts Colleges (and the only CA school that is) and the Hutchins School seems like a perfect fit for me. https://hutchins.sonoma.edu/ This is a hidden gem of the CSU system.

Chico State
I applied here because of its reputation for strong student life and because I wanted to have choices if everywhere else was too expensive but I have eliminated it from consideration for now.

Southern Oregon
I really love this school. It’s definitely another hidden gem. Perfect for theater kids with both BA and BFA programs or anyone who wants a small liberal arts college experience on a WUE budget. With 3,000 students it is the the sweet spot of not too big/not too small. The dorm rooms have this sort of staggered shape where you get some privacy.

Willamette University
I love Willamette’s gorgeous campus and the fact that it’s across the street from the state capitol. It feels like there is so much opportunity for students in Salem. They also have a great theater program. I had a great connection with my AO. I love the scarf they sent with the acceptance letter.

University of Maine
I applied here to give myself the option of a state flagship experience, but on a smaller scale with only 10,000 undergrads. Plus it’s affordable as an out of state student. I still wonder if it might be too big for me.

Marist College
currently over budget & not considering
It was the $25 trips to Broadway shows that initially drew me in. Marist seems like a great place, will revisit if financial aid makes it affordable.

Muhlenberg College
currently over budget & not considering
Drawn to theater & dance and a friendly student body. Will revisit if financial aid makes it affordable.

Sarah Lawrence College
currently over budget & not considering
The open curriculum/major and donning system are ideal to me. Would probably have applied ED if finances were not an obstacle. The only college I applied to that requires my non-custodial parent info (only a tax return) but it was so difficult to get him to comply I can’t imagine doing it 4 years in a row. Will reconsider if financial aid puts it within budget.

Ithaca College
The first college I visited where I got the warm fuzzies. Students were happy and friendly. Lots of artsy people and it’s easy to imagine myself here. Con -only club theater will be available to me. College productions are for BFA students. Pro -as a theatre lover it will be fun to watch the productions. Additional pro - multiple dance companies/clubs. Estimated financial aid package puts it well within budget.

Susquehanna University
I attended an admitted students event and everyone was super welcoming. I love the study abroad program and I feel comfortable that I will be able to do everything I want here. Campus is super nice. All the buildings felt updated and well-kept. Professors seem kind and accessible. Only con is location. Before visiting I worried the university might be too homogeneous, especially coming from Southern California. I’m not so worried about that now as the university seems committed to diversity, but not sure about the surrounding community. Of course, in order to have diversity, someone has to be the one to join the community. Also, Susquehanna’s merit scholarship was very generous and makes it very affordable even without additional financial aid.

Drew University
I am headed to Drew’s admitted students day this weekend. I am excited to see the campus in person. Drew feels like it has the right vibe for me. They have a great theater program and a beautiful campus. The location is perfect - close to the city but far enough away to be its own world. Plus there are lots of direct flights from LAX to Newark.

Agnes Scott College
I am visiting for Admitted Students Day the weekend after I go to Drew. I have always loved the idea of going to a women’s college. I love the traditions and the sense of community. I love that they sent an Agnes Scott charm with the acceptance. It is also probably the most diverse of the colleges I applied to (except in gender haha). There are also plenty of direct flights to Atlanta.

It’s overwhelming trying to make this decision without having complete financial aid packages. I’m afraid I won’t have much time to process. i appreciate any thoughts or advice.

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A huge congratulations!!

Some of this will be clearer now that you are visiting as an accepted student.

Looking forward to hearing where you attend college!

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These financial aid packages are likely close to final. Will you qualify for a Pell Grant? Do the FA packages include a $5.5k loan?

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Congrats to you!!! I live an hour and change from Ithaca and know many people who have gone there and loved it! Good luck to you, you have some great options! Thanks for sharing your story.

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Wow - impressive - and that so many impress you - it might be that wherever you choose will work - even if you’re torn between 4 or 5!!!

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Congratulations!!! You have worked hard and been accepted to the colleges that you want! Wherever you go, you will do great!

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Thanks to your post, I learned something today! I didn’t know anything about Hutchins, so I looked it up. And coincidentally, my D26 and her school orchestra went to Sonoma State today for a workshop. She commented to me that the campus was really nice and she also liked their orchestra. :heart:

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Yes I will qualify for a partial Pell grant.

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Wow, well-done, congratulations !
Since you want a LAC environnement, you can already cross out Sonoma State, Chico, SOU, and uMaine (although they are great choices and if you’d changed your mind and wanted to stay on thr West Coat the first 3 would be good options).
That leaves:
Ithaca College accepted $24k merit
Susquehanna University accepted $42k merit
Agnes Scott College accepted $27k merit
Drew University accepted $20k merit
Willamette University accepted $25k merit

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I’m curious why you didn’t you apply to the University of California if you’re in state?

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I don’t want to go to a UC. They are all bigger than what I want so I didn’t see any need to apply. Also it seemed like a waste of time to write PIQs when I have no interest.

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Ithaca: 4300 students. 72% white.
Susquehanna: 2200 students. 76% white.
Drew: 1500 students. 64% white.
Agnes Scott: 1000 students. 35% white.
Wilamette: 1300 students. 65% white.
Southern Oregon: 55% white.

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SOU isn’t meaningfully bigger than Ithaca - 4900 undergrads vs 4600. I would include SOU in the “LAC-like environment” subset of this list. My daughter had several friends with similar interests and priorities to the OP’s, who went there and loved it.

Congrats, OP, on having so many great options! Tough decision - you’re going to have a number of “roads not taken!”

(Vis-a-vis Willamette, try not to be swayed by the nice AO and the scarf - good marketing is nice but it won’t determine your experience once there. It’s a great school that’s worthy of being in the running, just not because of the AO and the “swag” :slight_smile: )

Hopefully you’ll get more clarity with your upcoming visits. Will you re-visit any of the west coast schools, or do you already have enough of a sense of those?

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You’ve got big Cal State schools in your list. UC Merced is small hidden gem and they just leapfrog UC Riverside and Santa Cruz and some very selective privates in the rankings.

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I don’t see the point in debating whether OP should have applied to UC’s. That ship sailed months ago. And UC Merced, while it’s indeed smaller than other UC’s, is not known for the artsy vibe that the OP is looking for. UC’s aren’t automatically the better choice for every student.

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Sonoma State University and Southern Oregon University are smaller schools (though bigger than the ~2,000 that most here think of LACs), and Sonoma State University tries to be more LAC-like and is a COPLAC member.

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Some of the comments about the area surrounding Susquehanna University can be found in this thread: Curious why Susquehanna University is considered "conservative"? (particularly posts #3 and #9)

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Congrats on all the great acceptances! After your visits, I’d advise to try to whittle down your list to the top 3 or so, based on the financial info you have now. A useful tool may be to set up one-on-one comparisons (e.g. would I rather go to Drew or Agnes Scott if they were the only two?). IF you get any more clarity on financial information for those that are out of reach now, you can see if any of those would supplant the group you have now. I’d say maybe Sarah Lawrence, since you mentioned how you’d consider ED if finances weren’t an issue. But I think one or two will become front-runners if you imagine your experience on the campus of each. Good luck with the decision, and remember this is a good thing (even though a difficult decision) - you’re accepted a lot of places!

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I just saw your report on Drew…so it looks like it’s made your top two. What’s the other school?

Also, it’d be great to hear your thought process on how you’ve been narrowing schools down. You’ve been very thoughtful throughout the college search in terms of initially selecting schools that seem like a fit, narrowing the list of schools to apply to, etc.

For those who need a reminder, from the original post it seemed like these were the schools in contention that OP hadn’t eliminated yet (unless other schools’ financial aid packages brought the school within budget:

  • Sonoma State
  • Southern Oregon
  • Willamette
  • U. of Maine
  • Ithaca
  • Susquehanna
  • Drew
  • Agnes Scott
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Thank you for asking. :slight_smile: Finances are still a major consideration for me so I’m finding it hard to make any concrete decisions until I know for sure what it will cost. I couldn’t apply to any CSS schools because my dad wouldn’t fill out the CSS so with the FAFSA delays it has been hard. But my FAFSA has been processed and I have 2 FA offers in now. My initial budget came from a set amount my dad will contribute (from my parents’ divorce agreement), what my mom can afford, and then my grandparents making up the gap (they are very generous and keep telling me not to worry about it but I would rather keep that amount lower). With the 2 that I have FA for I won’t need any help from my grandparents.

I eliminated U of Maine because I decided I really do want a LAC environment and I eliminated Sonoma State once I realized I could afford to go out of state. I eliminated Agnes Scott after attending their Admitted Students Day. I plan to write about that visit as well on the Colleges You Crossed Off thread. It’s an amazing school but I don’t think their arts program is robust enough for me. I decided I prefer Willamette to Southern Oregon and Willamette offered me a very generous financial aid package.

So this is where I am right now:

1 & 2 (tied) Drew University & Ithaca College

Drew - I love the beautiful campus. The buildings and trees are so pretty. The community feels very close. It’s smaller than my high school! But I’m someone who likes knowing everyone and having everyone know me. The New York Semesters and proximity to the city really made an impression on me. I love the idea of being able to go to the city for the day and experience everything it has to offer but come back to a cozy college campus. I have read on this site about their financial issues so that makes me nervous but that also seems to be a common LAC concern.

Ithaca - It is a slightly larger school with about 5000 students but it still feels pretty close. When I visited everyone seemed so genuinely happy and easygoing. Since they are slightly bigger than most of the schools of my list I noticed the huge variety of classes (I think I want to take every class their English department offers) and the huge number of clubs. They have 8 dance companies/clubs. I would never be bored. However, as someone who tends to commit to too many things and overwhelm herself, that might not be the best for me. The campus is not nearly as pretty as my other options but it does have the great lake view. Ithaca is a really cute town. It is on the isolated side (having space between towns is still a really strange concept for me as a SoCal person) but I think having Cornell there too makes it feel bigger.

3. Susquehanna University

Susquehanna feels like the luxury option. Everything on this campus is so nice. With everything my family and teachers and friends say about living at college, I expect to be roughing it. I don’t think there is any roughing it here. I love that they built study abroad into the curriculum. My only negative is the location. It definitely feels remote and isolated. Selinsgrove is cute but it doesn’t have the energy of Ithaca. I still could see myself being very happy here. They were incredibly generous with merit and financial aid. My COA would be only $17,000/year (no grandparent help needed)

4. Willamette University

Willamette is my safe option. I have friends on campus. There is a great arts community. It offers a lot of possibilities for internship experiences being in Salem across the street from the state capitol. I’m not ready to let go of it yet. It’s not the winter wonderland campus of my dreams but it does snow in Salem. They were also very generous with merit and financial aid. COA is $15,500/year (no grandparent help needed)

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