College Selection advice for a friend (Carolyn et al, HELP!)

Parents Forum
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<p>I’m using my son’s address to send a link to the nursing schools in Missouri and Kansas. Many of these schools would also offer education degrees. Some schools have you enter as a general freshman and then admit you later to the nursing program. It sounds like staying in the midwest may make the most sense for this family. I’m sure other states have links for a list of nursing schools as well. There is a new program opening this fall at University of Saint Mary in Leavenworth (historic town outside of Kansas City) that may not be included in the list below. Given the time frame, the family could visit some of these schools and get a feel for the different campuses.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.kchealthcareers.com/asp/Schools/Nursing.asp[/url]”>http://www.kchealthcareers.com/asp/Schools/Nursing.asp&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>We live just outside Boston and I’ll add another vote for Simmons College. The Campus is quite safe, the programs in health and sciences for women are very strong. Undergrad is currently about 1800 women…and everything else momof3sons said!!! The clinical opportunities at Simmons are fabulous given proximity to Boston’s world-class medical facilities. And they have a reputation for mentoring their students. If students apply online the $35 application fee is waived.</p>

<p>Also in MA: Regis College, another women’s college about 12 miles west of Boston. A little smaller than Simmons, 1000 undergrad. Lovely safe campus in a far more suburban area of Boston. Excellent nursing program and they have an accelerated 3 year nursing program as well as a traditional 4 year program. Rolling admissions, $40 application fee and they accept the Common Application.</p>

<p>Two hidden gems among the larger and more well-known colleges and universities in MA.</p>

<p>Northeastern University in Boston (very near Simmons) also has a very good nursing program, however it is large and can be overwhelming for some students. If I were advising my daughter, Simmons or Regis would be my first picks, locally.</p>

<p>Good luck, Berurah, this is a very kind thing you are doing. I always like to see students stretch their possibilities…and it is nice to have choices in April. Older son and daughter attended private colleges locally, mostly because of choice of majors and financial aid. Third child boldly chose to go where no sibling went before and is having the time of her life and succeeding quite nicely in Washington DC. I hope your protege has a nice basket of acceptances and financial aid options to choose from in April.</p>

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<p>One more idea, TCNJ</p>

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<p>Check out Texas Woman’s University in Denton. They do their clinical training in either Dallas or in Houston—both outstanding centers for health care–after completing 2 years in Denton. TWU also has outstanding physical therapy and occupational therapy programs, in addition to other quality health care programs. Your friend clearly meets their admission criteria and would probably qualify for merit aid. Education is another strength of this school. TWU has a diverse student body and Denton is a nice college town only about 30 miles from the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex. University of North Texas is just across town and offers additional activities for TWU’s students.</p>

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<p>I do not think TCNJ is a good idea. I think that she would easily get in. They are looking for oos students, and someone from Kansas is desirable. I live in NJ, and many parents that I know would not allow their children to apply. It is a beautiful new campus, has many new buildings, stats of admitted students climb annually. It is my observation that there is also a surrounding area that many parents do not want their child near. Sending your child from Kansas to NJ is tough enough, but the surrounding area here is just an additional hurdle. There are some nice areas surrounding the school too; it is not all bad. There is also an industrial section. Ironically, one of my friends has a D that was not allowed to apply here. She was allowed to apply to Tulane before Katrina.</p>

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<p>I dunno Berurah – you’re trying to make this process LESS overwhelming for her, and you’re going to throw all of these great ideas at her? She might explode. You should probably feel her out more on location, size, etc. with the hopes of presenting a manageable list (10, maybe?) to focus on and narrow down.</p>

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<p>B , trying to be cognizant of what you sensed was some geographic uncertainty, I’ll avoid the coasts and the southeast and I’ll steal one choice from a previous carolyn post and one from my own research. </p>

<p>First carolyn has suggested the University of South Dakota before as having an LAC feel. I looked at it online and it does seem that way to me, too. It has nursing. (As you know and we have discussed, Kansas has good publics but not a flagship one of this size.)</p>

<p>Second, and my favorite suggestion for this kid, College of St. Benedict/St. John’s College in Minnesota. I really wanted my D to apply. Great bio and has a nursing school. I think it’s the perfect situation-girl’s school connected to a boy’s school. Gorgeous campus from what I can tell from the pretty pictures. </p>

<p>Good luck.</p>

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<p>William Jewell is a great small liberal arts school with a nursing program. Princeton Review rates the school quite highly. They’ve also been recognized nationally for their freshman orientation program which earned them a “hot college” listing. I think both US News and Newsweek have recognized the college in recent years. They also have some interesting programs in leadership and an honors tutorial program called Oxbridge if she does not go the nursing route. It’d be a nurturing environment as well as some good opportunities if she decides she wants to stay closer to home. It’s in Missouri not too far from Kansas City. The nursing school dean is great (her son is at Yale this year).</p>

<p>From their web site:
After scoring the top slot as the nation’s “Best Bargain” among private colleges in The Princeton Review’s “Best 357 Colleges” in the fall of 2004, William Jewell College has been placed among the top 10 in The Princeton Review’s new guidebook to “America’s Best Value Colleges.”</p>

<p>The Princeton Review compiled its list of 81 public and private “Best Value” colleges based on data obtained from administrators at more than 350 colleges and from surveys of college students. Rankings were based on more than 30 factors in four categories: academics, tuition, financial aid and student borrowing. In naming its “Best Value” colleges, the guidebook service cited the schools’ outstanding academics, generous financial aid packages and relatively low costs.</p>

<p>“We chose the schools that appear on our Top Ten Best Value Colleges list based on institutional data and student opinion surveys,” said Robert Franek, vice president for publishing at The Princeton Review. “Broadly speaking, the factors we weighed covered undergraduate academics, costs and financial aid.”</p>

<p>More specifically, academic factors included the quality of students the schools attract, as measured by admission credentials, as well as how students rated their academic experiences. </p>

<p>“It’s interesting to note that Princeton’s number one ‘Best Value’ college [Bates College in Lewiston, Maine] costs about $40,000 a year,” said Dr. Ned Harris, vice president for enrollment and dean of admission at William Jewell. “Jewell’s tuition, fees, room and board for the 2004-2005 academic year was less than $23,000. We firmly believe that William Jewell provides an outstanding liberal arts education that is also a tremendous value.”</p>

<p>William Jewell, located in the Kansas City suburb of Liberty, Mo., was ranked in the number nine slot and was the only Midwestern institution named to Princeton’s list of “Best Value” colleges.</p>

<p>Financial aid factors considered in compiling the list included the average gift aid in grants and scholarships awarded to students, along with the average percentage of financial need met for students who demonstrated need. </p>

<p>“In a nutshell, the Top Ten Best Value Colleges names schools that we believe offer outstanding academics and enroll good students who are happy with the education they are receiving,” Franek said. “Additionally—and more importantly—it names schools in which students do not have to mortgage their futures to pay for their education.”</p>

<p>William Jewell was named the number one “Best Bargain” among private colleges in the 2005 edition of “The Best 357 Colleges,” which was published by The Princeton Review in the fall of 2004. The college also scored among the top 20 in several other categories, including capturing the number two spot in “Happiest Students”; the number five slot in “Town-Gown Relations,” which indicates how well the college is integrated into the surrounding community; the number eight slot in “Best Quality of Life”; and the number 11 slot for “Great College Radio Station.”</p>

<p>“We have always believed that William Jewell provides an outstanding value for students seeking a top quality liberal arts education,” said President David Sallee. “We are gratified that the Princeton Review has affirmed the value of the Jewell experience, and at the same time has indicated that students have expressed an extraordinary level of satisfaction with the education they are receiving.”</p>

<p>The Princeton Review is a New York City-based company known for its college test preparatory courses, education services and books. The firm first published its annual “Best Colleges” guide in 1992. The book is the only resource that offers college ratings based on student rankings of schools. </p>

<p>For a link to The Princeton Review’s rankings of William Jewell and other top colleges, go to <a href=“http://www.princetonreview.com/college/research/bestvalue/default.asp[/url]”>http://www.princetonreview.com/college/research/bestvalue/default.asp&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>B~ it was a male who received the $ at Allegheny and his grades were NOT as good as your friend’s. He was a talented musician, if that made any difference, and he was interested in science.</p>

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<p>Wow, that’s a really tough assessment of suburban Mercer County, NJ. I’d only suggest that someone interested in TCNJ visit for themselves. There is no industrial area near the college, unless you mean the city of Trenton which is several miles away. The area surrounding the college is entirely boring, middle-class suburbs, another problem in itself, but safety should be no more of a concern at TCNJ than at any other college in the northeast.</p>

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<p>Here’s the list of LACs I have that have nursing programs (I’m sure there are others)— some of these may have already been mentioned, she’ll have to check the deadlines on them:</p>

<p>Barry (FL)
Gustavus Adolphus (MN) very good with merit money
St. Olaf (MN)
Azuza Pacific (CA) VERY good nursing program, Christian school
Cedar Crest ¶ Like Simmons, all female. Very strong nursing program
Dominican U of California (Catholic, very good merit money)
Gannon ¶
Goshen College (Indiana)
Hartwick College (NY) good merit money
MacMurry (IL)
Augustana (SD)
Regis U (Colorado)
St. Scholastica (MN)
Villa Julie (MD)
Widener ¶
Alverno (Wisconsin)
Russell Sage (NY)
Clarke (Iowa)
Gwynned Mercy ¶
Luther College (Iowa)
York College ¶
Seton Hall (NJ)
Pacific Lutheran (Washington)
Calvin (MI)</p>

<p>Finding “education” programs at LACs is more iffy - is she talking about elementary education (very rare at LACs, but look at Conn. College and Skidmore as possibilities) or certification for h.s. teaching (more options at LACs, including some of those above)</p>

<p>Additionally, she might look at Juniata College ¶ which has a very good pre-medical careers program. Bellarmine in WV also is mentioned frequently as having a good nursing program.</p>

<p>Mid-size/small universities to consider: Creighton(Nebraska), Seattle U, U of South Dakota, Duquesne, Evansville (Indiana), Truman STate (Missouri), Valparaiso (Indiana), Villanova, Fairfield, U of Portland (Oregon), U of North Dakota, Bradley (IL).</p>

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<p>I have to add, however, that I think Iderochi has a point. She needs to narrow down what she is looking for (especially in terms of geography) QUICKLY and then focus in on a list of about 10 schools. It is probably a bit late to start looking at options all over the country at this point if she doesn’t already have a very clear idea of what she wants.</p>

<p>Beurah, you might do her a favor and suggest that she post here on the parents board herself. That way we could ask her questions about what she’s looking for more directly and perhaps help her narrow down her options a little more efficiently.</p>

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<p>She could check St. Louis University. It has both nursing and education. While the recommended deadline for application was Dec. 1 to be included for their academic scholarships, they will consider later applications for merit aid on a “what we have left” basis. While larger than the LAC’s, it is a friendly school. Jesuit instuition, and not too far from Kansas.</p>

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<p>My friend’s daughter is at Simmons for PT and is just loving it. I believe she got a sizable aid package too - coming from a rural New England town.</p>

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<p>Momoffour, The industrial area that we saw could be in another city/town, and was not in walking distance, but was not all that far away. None of this stopped my S from applying. Many of my son’s friends applied, but I know of others who did not b/c their families did not think parts of the surrounding area was safe. I am just noting my observation when speaking with others about the school, and I am trying to be truthful about how they felt.</p>

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<p>Simmons College also offers an education program with classroom experience beginning first year. And also has a nice selection of other majors should one change one’s mind about a major as does happen frequently. Simmons PT program that twinmom mentioned is also highly regarded and is a 6 year PhD. program in physical therapy.</p>

<p>Regis College in Weston MA that I mentioned previously also offers an education program as well as nursing. Regis does not have as wide a selection of majors as Simmons College.</p>

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<p>We looked at a very nice, very small college - Moravian College, in Bethlehem PA. A friends’ daughter is in the nursing program there.
Worth a look, I would think.</p>

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<p>In California a number of the local Hospital/HMO’s offer scholarships and jobs to students who commit to working for them for a few years after becoming a nurse. I suspect there is something like that in most states where there is a nursing shortage. .There are a number of scholarships and loans available to nurses these days, if she commits to a program. I googled “Kansas nurse scholarship” and found a variety of programs. Here is one.

There were a lot more and of course education scholarships also can be found. Deadlines vary.<br>
If she were committed to either path this would be simpler, but she sounds unsure, which is not a bad thing. Of the schools mentioned above in other posts, I have met some students from Sr. Olafs (post 31) and they were very happy with their education classes.</p>

<p>Sometimes a year at a community college is not a bad thing while you get your kit bag in order. My best wishes to you and yours in the coming year.</p>

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<p>Rice might be a good one… deadline’s are January 10</p>

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<p>I am surprised about safety concerns at TCNJ and would think that if anyone restricts themself by not applying to TCNJ, he/she may have to rule out 80% of the colleges out there for the same reasons.</p>

<p>Allowing a son/daughter to apply to Tulane, but not TCNJ because of security concerns is interesting and highly debatable. I have a son and daughter at TCNJ and am very familiar with it. Suburban Mercer County is a highly desirable place to live. The only questionable spot is a couple of miles south of the campus where the outer ring of Trenton begins, but that area is still highly commercialized.</p>