<p>I’m not as up on this segment of schools because ShawSon was going for the top 15 schools and ShawD did not want to go to school nearby for fear ShawWife would drop in for breakfast and then opted for Canada. But, in NJ, there are Fairleigh Dickinson and Drew, in NH, there’s Franklin Pierce, in Maine, Husson has business program though I don’t know about Jews, in MA, there’s Clark, which is a really good choice for quality/price ratio, Dean, Wheaton, Babson and Bentley for those interested in business, Mount Ida which even has a program in sports management as part of business (someone’s interest if I recall). I confess that we don’t qualify for FA and ShawSon’s application list didn’t include many schools that offered merit aid, so I don’t know as much about costs. There have got to be schools with Jewish populations in Florida. ShawD was looking at New College of Florida. There’s Rollins, Flagler, Eckerd, … plus state schools. </p>
<p>On actuarial careers, blossom, would actuarial firms hire kids with statistics majors? They’d learn much of what was needed for the first bit of actuarial stuff. They might get a smarter breed of kid but that might be doable at smaller schools.</p>
<p>Drew does not have a business school. I don’t know if all of the other schools that are listed in 2621 have a business school. Some of the schools that are listed to have high sticker prices (ie: Rollins, Drew, Bentley). I have not looked up sticker prices of the other schools, but Fairleigh is not known for great financial help either. FDU is known for supportive services for learning disabilities. Clark’s business school might only be for graduate students, but I am not certain about that. In my opinion, Babson has a very high percentage of wealthy international students (just my own observation). I don’t know how that translates for admission to a US student applying and requiring financial aid, so I thought I would give whoever is reading this a “heads up” about my observation.</p>
<p>Wow…away for one day and so many posts to catch up on! Rockvillemom - Congrats. Yabeyabe - terrific news about your son’s adjustment to college.</p>
<p>Since we again our revisiting and fine tuning - UDEL from our high school is a high B and Low A student with fairly decent test scores. OOS tuition had a significant increase this year. OOS tuition in this economy is scary.</p>
<p>Rockville - have you looked at Drexel? I am not sure about grad school either, I love the co-op opportunities.</p>
<p>Rockville, I am sensitive to the “marketable skills” issue but I think many schools with narrow undergrad business programs over-sell and under-deliver the marketability of the skills they teach. Do you think a kid with a marketing major is better prepared for an entry level job in the market research department at a consumer products company than a kid with a degree in applied math? Do you think someone with a “certificate” in Human Resources has better skills for an entry level role in labor relations than a US History major? Or that “sports management” is better preparation for a job at a network than a degree in economics?</p>
<p>So it concerns me that so many parents are loading up the sled of “must haves” with the additional criteria of a certain, highly focused degree program which the kid may or may not be interested in, and which may or may not yield the desired outcome, i.e. a good job right off the bat. There are many kids with degrees with linguistics and anthropology tending bar; my guess is there are just as many if not more kids in dead-end, non career jobs with those “highly marketable” degrees in business management.</p>
<p>And Shaw- any mathematically concentrated major is a good prep for an actuarial career. Like CPA’s, there are qualifying exams and a licensing procedure.</p>
<p>I’d encourage a kid 100% who wanted an undergrad business major if the kid actually knew what various careers entailed. But as a place-holder for “I don’t know what I want to do with my life but this seems to be a good guarantee of an upper middle class lifestyle”, a degree in business (especially if not from a highly regarded and well known program) seems to me to be a waste of time and money unless your kid gets lucky and in fact, lands that upper middle class job/lifestyle right out of the gate.</p>
<p>I want to thank everyone for opening my eyes to other schools and will spend a lot of time tonight investigation the web sites of your many suggestions. I started with Univ. of Denver and it looks good. Never thought of this school before. It has 1,000 Jewish students and a new Hillel, Business program with many majors, over all cost is a little more than in state here (certainly far below $50,000 a year). It sounds promising. Anyone else here with kids at U. of Denver, please post your impressions and let me know what the surrounding area is like. My only hesitation with U. of Denver is that I don’t see Actuarial Science offered and have to see how flexible my son is about this major since Denver has many other Business programs.</p>
<p>U. Delaware: Will discuss this school as well and will check on many web sites listed. </p>
<p>I think my minimum consideration is wanting to keep costs within our savings as I don’t want my son to take any loans. I feel it is just too hard to pay back enormous debt. I also have to be sure the college offers at least 2 good majors that appeal to my son so that if my son changes his mind, he can switch to something else at the same school.</p>
<p>UT Dallas has everything my son wants–the academics, the beautiful housing, active Chess club, but minimal Jewish population–would have to check further if he is accepted.</p>
<p>I simply think the state schools are going to be showered with thousands of applicants this year, and just want to be sure we have some safeties. </p>
<p>Many thanks to all of you caring parents. You are a great group.</p>
<p>Forgive me as I catch up - Blossom - where do your students attend? looking at? What were your general “points of interest” as you started the college selection journey?</p>
<p>"I simply think the state schools are going to be showered with thousands of applicants this year, and just want to be sure we have some safeties. "</p>
<p>and next year and next year! I was thinking about throwing into the mix of interests - locked tuition for four years! Do any schools offer that?</p>
<p>Cherryhill: The only school that we visited that locked in tuition for four years was GW, one of the most expensive schools in the country!</p>
<p>The discussion on business vs. liberal arts degrees is very interesting. I’ve always believed that the critical thinking and writing skills you gain in a traditional liberal arts program are very valuable, but in the current economy, I think it is easier for recent graduates to find jobs if they have a more practical major. However, I think that the most important factor in landing a job after graduation is doing internships. I have been very impressed with the internship opportunities at some of the urban schools we visited. We haven’t really discussed this, but I think it’s another thing to look for when you consider schools.</p>
<p>mdcissp, I spoke with someone who had a daughter with at U. of Denver and she was very happy there. No other info. As Blossom says (and as I suspected), you can prep for an actuarial career by studying statistics, applied math or other things with math in them.</p>
<p>momjr raises a very valid point. Maybe check out schools with strong internship programs. We all know that Northeastern is known for this and they probably have several majors that would be good for him…not to mention that they work very closely with students to help find the right internship program…if your son has aspbergers then I would only imagine they would work more closely with him to find major, career path, internships that will fit his interests…they are an expensive school, but you never know what it’s really going to cost you until you apply and get a response!</p>
<p>Although I’m not Jewish, my son fits in the B range for grades so I have been following this thread. I hope no one minds!</p>
<p>I know most of you are interested in schools closer to your homes but it seems like in the later posts some may be looking to branch out to other areas.</p>
<p>One of my friend’s kids is looking at Bradley University in Peoria, IL. I don’t have first hand knowledge of the school or the area but from what I understand it may be a fit for some of your kids.</p>
<p>It has AACSB accreditation and the business majors include accounting and actuarial science. It sounds like it has internships and all seniors gain some sort of real world experience before graduation. They are supposed to have around 92% placement of their graduates. I think Peoria is a pretty big city so I would assume there would be things to do. Additionally, a bus takes kids to O’Hare and Midway if they need to fly out of Chicago. Chicago and I think St Louis are each about 3 hours away from Peoria. COA is around 35,000.</p>
<p>And thanks to all of you increasing my Jewish knowledge I even checked and it does have a Hillel (which looks busy to me) and serves kosher food.</p>
<p>My son is only a Junior so we have time yet but to all of you with seniors Good Luck with the application process.</p>
<p>On the issue of practical major - business, sports mgmt, etc. vs liberal arts degree in economics, history etc. - why does it have to be a choice between the two. I think yabeyabe was the person who suggested to me many weeks ago to do the practical major - but add a minor that the student is passionate about or that would simply be a nice complement. I think that is a wonderful piece of advice. For example, S1 is at Wake and is planning to be an undergraduate business major at their Calloway school - quite well-regarded. But, he might also add a poly sci minor - since he just loves the topic. Best of both worlds - and I truly believe he will be more marketable upon graduation than a history major. Only time will tell.</p>
<p>proudwismom - thank you so much - join in at any time! Just like you don’t have to be Jewish to attend a Hillel function - you don’t have to be Jewish to join our thread. Bradley is a wonderful suggestion - I have heard great things about it and it probably would be on the list if it were closer. We really want our kids within driving range - at least for undergraduate. I know some would disagree - but for our family - this is what we are comfortable with. But I think it is a wonderful suggestion for families closer to Illinois or those who don’t mind a flight.</p>
<p>MD,
I was the poster who suggested University of Denver–my son is in his senior year there and has had a good experience. The price tag at University of Denver is high (it is a school on the quarter system, not semesters) but there is a lot of both merit aid and financial aid available. The school also seems to be one seeking male students and I have heard they are more generous with $$ to boys—just rumor, though.</p>
<p>My son started out in the Daniels College of Business but later switched out which didn’t surprise us at all…he is now a public policy major, also an excellent program. I don’t know anything about the actuarial program, if there is one, but since students are so likely to change majors, I wouldn’t make it a deal breaker criteria. Especially as he has yet to take class number one yet, much less any advanced classes…There is a full line up of business majors offered. My son especially enjoyed a class on trading using the direct link to the trading floor.</p>
<p>The school’s facilities are outstanding, especially the Daniels College of Business building–very state of the art.</p>
<p>The school is in a very safe and pretty area (Washington Park) with the usual campus stuff around it although not quite as much as some other schools, because with the light rail stopping on campus students also spend a lot of weekend time at the 16th Street Mall with all it has to offer.</p>
<p>I thought that the question was whether it was hard to find schools that would be good for a Jewish B student. I don’t think it is that hard. What seems to be happening is that this group is narrowing it to a smallish school with a large Jewish population with an undergraduate business program (or even an actuarial science program) with lowish COA. Your post, northeastmom, is a case in point. That may well be a small subset.</p>
<p>It is not hard to find decent schools for Jewish B students. But, if one’s subset becomes small because of the limitations one is applying, the question is how to expand it. That involves tradeoffs. Could a kid do just as well studying statistics or applied math rather than requiring an actuarial science program? Could a kid find a small major in a largish school that would get him/her the attention we want him/her to have? </p>
<p>Incidentally, I’m with blossom or EmmyBet on undergraduate business degrees. While I think that a kid with an undergraduate accounting degree is more employable in the short-run than most liberal arts degrees, a kid with an undergraduate marketing or communications degree is probably not any better off (or much better off) than a kid with a liberal arts education in the short run, but has been shortchanged in the long-run because his/her education in how to think is likely inferior. In my own work, I’ve only been disappointed when I’ve hired kids with undergraduate business degrees, even for accounting positions, because they have tended not to have the intellectual dexterity to change when we needed to change. [Caveat: small sample. But, I think we had to let all three go]. Good point, rockvillemom, on major/minor. In my case, I’d much rather hire a kid with a liberal arts degree with an accounting minor than the reverse. But, maybe that’s just me.</p>
<p>Back to UD – Yes, it was horrible waiting till the end of March for a decision. The only school D heard from after that was Binghamton (OOS heard from Bing much earlier, IS heard from UD much earlier - so not fair). But so many kids wait till then for their decisions. Plus, D had some EAs so she acceptances in hand in December as back-up.</p>
<p>D was not a “gimme” for UD. But she visited, emailed the adcom from our area after the visit (and emailed him again after she applied to tell him some highlights of senior year - even though they do get mid-sr year report, this showed interest), and applied early (October). Good essay and good recs. I have to think it all helped. A friend who had practically the same stats didn’t appy till Dec and got waitlisted (and eventually got in but went somewhere else).</p>
<p>When checking out the colleges, I also look at the college’s Hillel website and now am aware of the Hillel FB page too (admittedly, I try to see what’s going on at UD’s Hillel, but will be looking at those for potential schools for S also).</p>
<p>Visiting is so key… but it’s so much fun talking about it all here also! So glad this thread is like the Energizer Bunny… keeps going and going and going…</p>
<p>LINYMOM - S2 knows about my 2nd life as Rockvillemom and he knows about the thread - I fill him in from time to time. He says he will be a “guest poster” when we hit the milestone of 100,000 views - can’t wait to see what he has to say!</p>
<p>Thanks for the welcome Rockvillemom. I will certainly join in if I can offer something to the conversation. Most kids in our area stay instate so I’m not that familiar with a lot of schools, especially those outside the Midwest. It has been fun though reading about all the different schools discussed here. </p>
<p>I understand your desire for your kids to stay within driving distance. I would prefer that myself. Unfortunately, my son want to go far away–the farther away the better in his mind. We’re going to look at schools within a 3-4 hour driving distance to make me happy and then some that range from 8-13 hours to make him happy. He has a lot of time yet to change his mind so we’lll see how he feels come decision time his senior year.</p>
<p>proudwismom - Happy to have you here! Nice to know someone is from nearby! I have a neighbor whose son is extremely happy at Bradley.</p>
<p>If you haven’t already, check out the other B student threads. There are some older ones and also ones specific to grad year (I’m guessing you are '12?). They are a great source of support and info for those of us outside of the “tippy-top” school range.</p>