<p>mdcissp - we are visiting JMU at the end of June and I will post my impressions. I have no intention of buying S2 a car at this point. S1 did not bring his car to college this year as a freshman - and it worked out just fine. He had a few friends with cars - which was great - he always chipped in for gas. He was able to find rides home some of the time - we did make a few trips back and forth to NC. Back to JMU - please don’t classify an entire university as a “party school”. With 15,000 undergrads - I am sure there are many who have other priorities. Frankly, if I have a concern about JMU it is the size of the campus and the issue of off-campus housing. But, that’s why we are visiting.</p>
<p>Pitt seems to be generous with merit aid (including to OOS students). There are a lot of threads on the Pitt board. Here’s one recent one: </p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-pittsburgh/911736-pitt-made-me-offer-i-couldnt-refuse-thread.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-pittsburgh/911736-pitt-made-me-offer-i-couldnt-refuse-thread.html</a></p>
<p>mdli, Dickinson has done an interesting marketing tactic–to stand out from the crowd, especially in the crowded PA small college spherethey have chosen to emphasize international aspects of every subject. Depending where you fall on the B spectrum, you will be near a lot of other options during your trip.</p>
<p>Regarding Delaware’s transportation-----there is a train station within walking distance of most dorms (except north campus—you’d take the campus bus). Many people from town commute to Philadelphia and to Baltimore by train. It’s part of the Northeast corridor route system.</p>
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<p>The Amtrak station there is between the center of campus and stadium, right on the main street there, College Age (not Main St). Soooo easy. I already told my D that she is taking that to/from school on Thanksigiving weekend as well as (probably) on Super Bowl Sunday, which is when the dorms open for Spring semester! (Well, maybe I would drive her back early that day…) You can check the schedule on the Amtrak website. Not completely cheap, but better than driving.</p>
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<p>I know that Pitt does give merit aid. A good friend of my D got a good deal from them - it was the only school he heard from before March and said that, even if nothing else came through, Pitt would be great. In the end, he is going to GW.</p>
<p>mdcissp - what about Stevenson? It meets some of your goals - would be a safety compared to Towson, has an undergraduate business major, tuition is $22,000 (plus room and board); 3100 undergraduates. From their website:</p>
<p>AVERAGE ACCEPTED APPLICANT</p>
<p>The average accepted applicant:</p>
<pre><code>* High School GPA: 3.4
- SAT score: 1560, Middle 50%: 1410-1710 (Critical Reading, Math, and Writing)
- ACT score: 24
</code></pre>
<p>The average accepted honors applicant:</p>
<pre><code>* High School GPA: 3.8
- SAT score: 1920 (Critical Reading, Math, and Writing)
- ACT score: 32
</code></pre>
<p>There is a Jewish Student Union - but I have no idea about the actual number of Jewish students. The school is split into 2 campuses - about 6 miles apart - guessing this is due to lack of land for expansion at the original location.</p>
<p>Might be worth looking at. [Stevenson</a> University - Explore SU](<a href=“http://www.stevenson.edu/explore/]Stevenson”>http://www.stevenson.edu/explore/)</p>
<p>FYI --Pitt contracts with bus companies to take students --ONLY STUDENTS- home for school breaks–to places like Philly, NYC, Baltimore, somewhere in Ohio. It’s not free, but at least it’s only Pitt students and its timed perfectly after exams.</p>
<p>Rockville mom-thank you for thinking of us. We went to see Stevenson. It is very small.
The dorm was nice-like a newer apartment. My son did not like the split campus (a drive, not walking distance) to the other campus and classes can get into different areas. We went on a Sunday and the place was nearly empty which says you have to go home on the week-ends. Although it is near Baltimore, I would have to buy my son a car. I think he wants a campus where there is more to do on the week-ends and some decent restaurants, grocery store, walking distance. Stevenson is off the main road. Towson is more lively. I don’t think Stevenson is a match.</p>
<p>mdcissp, would Salisbury or MsDaniel fit? A friend liked Salisbury’s cost, laid back atmopsphere, etc and McDaniel was praised in Colleges that Change Lives</p>
<p>I don’t think that the neighborhood around McDaniel is all that great. I did not care for it.</p>
<p>mdcissp - thanks for the info on Stevenson - I have never seen it. I was wondering how having 2 sections of campus - 6 miles apart would work. Incidentally, I am curious to see how James Madison works in that regard - my understanding is that rt 81 runs through the campus - cannot picture this. I believe there are shuttle buses - reserving judgment until we visit at the end of June. We did see Salisbury last summer - very quick look - DH and I were enjoying a weekend away at the Chesapeake Hyatt and since we were so close - drove over to Salisbury and looked around briefly. Quick impression is that it is off a main road with a lot of fast food places, gas stations and so forth, but the area right around the campus was nice - kind of quaint older homes. Campus itself looked ok - nothing extraordinary - but not horrible either. It was a Sunday evening in August, so of course no one was around. But for the in-state price, it looked acceptable.</p>
<p>Just wanted to say thank you–what a great thread. Right now D2’s top two choices are Elon and Bucknell but she has a much longer list that she’s considering. It’s been great to read the positive things about Elon. Anyone know about the Jewish community (if there is one) at Bucknell? </p>
<p>Most of the focus in this thread has been on the east and in the south but we’re also going to look at Lewis and Clark and Puget Sound next month. In response to a post a few pages back, when we were talking about Tulane, someone brought up SAT scores…D’s score was 2060 from the March test–she did really well on two sections but she’d like to bring one score up so wants to take it again in October. Hoping that, along with her 3.45, some of these schools will be a good match for her. D1’s process was much more straight forward–D2’s process is very different and I feel like I have a lot to learn!</p>
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Damning it with faint praise, LOL :)</p>
<p>I am also following this thread (I have a son who is a rising Junior in HS). I have a problem with the B+ student thread in that it seems that most of the posters there have kids who also score very high on the SAT/ACT’s so this changes everything. A kid with a 3.4 GPA who scores above 2100 SAT is the norm there. My son hasn’t yet taken the SAT/ACT tests but he does not tend to do well on standardized tests in general. We are also looking for a college with a significant Jewish population. I have heard wonderful things about Muhlenberg college here and we will plan to visit that one. Elon still sounds pretty remote to me but we will research it. It is early yet for my son, since this coming year will determine which category of colleges are his reach/match/safeties (after he takes some SAT/ACT’s and tackles this coming years tough/killer schedule). </p>
<p>I will bookmark this thread.</p>
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<p>My D applied to the schools I’ve mentioned here with a WGPA of 3.6 and ACT 26 (didn’t even submit SATs). She is a very consistent honors student, with all-around ECs (showed commitment throughout HS), but is not a great test-taker. The Jewish population was critical requirement for her for college.</p>
<p>seiclan: Feel free to ask away as you go through the process!</p>
<p>Collage and seiclan, welcome!
Collage, a Jewish neighbor who was considering Brandeis wound up at Bucknell, so I imagine it is not an issue, but I am sure you can find stats somewhere.</p>
<p>collage1 - a 3.45 unweighted and 2060 SAT should result in an admission to Tulane, assuming everything else is good (EC’s, number of AP courses, rec’s). Merit aid is much iffier, but I would predict a positive response regarding admission, especially if the grades are steady or even rising, rather than a downward trend. Naturally a better SAT score can only help.</p>
<p>collage1 - here’s the link for info on Bucknell’s Hillel in case you have not seen it:</p>
<p>[Bucknell</a> Hillel](<a href=“http://www.orgs.bucknell.edu/hillel/]Bucknell”>http://www.orgs.bucknell.edu/hillel/)</p>
<p>I did not find a hard number anywhere as to the actual number of Jewish students - but judging from the webpage and the brochure - it does appear to be a fairly active Hillel. I think very highly of Bucknell - if S2 can get some decent ACT scores and get his grades up a bit next year - it will be on his list.</p>
<p>seiclan - Elon really is fabulous. S1 applied and was accepted - he would have done the Leisure and Sport Mgmt major had he matriculated. It is a beautiful campus with wonderful facilities and has a very wide array of majors. Very reasonable price tag. Excellent study abroad program and overall emphasis on experiences outside the classroom - leadership, community service, etc. If you are researching Elon - read George Keller’s book - “Transforming a College”, which details Elon’s metamorphosis from small regional mediocre college to rapidly rising university. It’s a thin volume but really explains a lot about the vision of Elon and how they have managed to undergo such a complete realignment in a relatively short time. Elon is at the very top of S2’s list - might even apply ED.</p>
<p>This thread has gotten so long, I appologize if I’m asking for information already given. Like the OP’s my S is a rising junior and is interested in a business major. Unlike him, he (and I) are interested in him going to school in the southwest. As I understand it networking opportunities are key to business and therefore it is helpful to go to school in the vicinity of where you want to live. So many of the business schools that qualify in this region have strong Christian affiliations so I am really concerned about the Jewish Life at these schools. Mainly I don’t want my kiddo, who is usually comforable in any enviornment to feel like an alien. My question is how do you go about exploring Jewish life at these schools? From what I know of, talking to Hillel or other Jewish orgs on campus is a good is a good start but does anyone have any specifically good questions? Other than checking with Hillel where do you find the numbers of Jewish students on campus? We are not in a Jewish community so it is difficult to discuss this with peers. </p>
<p>Rockvillemom: I don’t mean to hijack your thread, this just seemed relevant to the topic I thought I’d put it out there. I hope you don’t mind. I’m getting ready to start making some phone calls. I think you have spurred me into action!</p>
<p>spectrum2: welcome to the thread! We did research ahead of time on the Hillel website (the basics), but got the best feel by talking to the students when we were on campus. Spending time at Hillel for a dinner and service was especially helpful - you can talk to the kids who attend, not just the students who are in charge. There wasn’t anything specific that I remember asking, it was just important that there was a Jewish population that got together, we got great reactions from students when we told them we were going to Hillel for dinner (or had had dinner at Hillel) - many chimed in about their Hillel experience so we knew there was a good sized Jewish population. Plus, there were Jewish students (those we met at Hillel and others we met on campus) that I think D could see herself hanging out with.</p>
<p>It also helps that at D’s college (Univ of Delaware) they have a special program for incoming Jewish freshman (Freshman Fest) to welcome them and get them connected even before the official move-in day. (If you read this whole thread, this is a repeat - sorry!).</p>
<p>Specific questions would depend on what is important to you and your S.</p>