Case Western Reserve
Attended open house day at Case Western Reserve University: Up
Summary: 7.5/8.0 out of 10. Very solid but probably not D26 first choice.
D26 had already been on many college visits (about 12) a couple of years ago with D24. Neighbor recommended we visit CWRU so here we are.
First impression. Easy to get to. Stayed at the Metropolitan 9 Marriott downtown Cleveland. It was an easy 15 minute ride with little traffic during morning rush hour. Not sure if this is normal or because it’s Good Friday (maybe a combination of both).
Got to the Tinkham Veale center around 8:20am for the morning information session. 10/10. Did a great job of selling the university in a natural format that didnt seem contrived or forced. Discussed all the opportunities and resources at Case with a few vignettes of students. It was a nice blend of academics and post graduation outcomes. Also highlighted some interesting facts about Cleveland without hyperbole. Talked a lot about the Sears Think Box which seemed very interesting and a good draw if you’re hands on and intellectually curious. One of the better information sessions we’ve attended. They had professors from different departments spread around the auditorium and were there to answer questions - nice touch. Classics was quite popular.
They had several concurrent sessions so we split up. The mechanical and aerospace engineering professor was great. He was easy to understand, down to earth and not an egghead professor (self described). He got his undergrad at CWRU and a PhD at Cal Tech. Seemed very approachable and congenial. 10/10.
Here was the first con. Class size. It’s normal to have large class sizes freshmen (maybe sophmore) years. However, even in upper level classes, the smallest number of students that he has is one of his aerospace courses with 77 people. The rationale is that once admitted, you can take any classes and since CWRU is a STEM focused school, you have a lot of interest in all the engineering classes. He also said that large classes makes it more collaborative and not cut throat since everyone has access to whatever they want to study. Hmmm.
It seems like a 100+ person upper division class may be normal. Maybe I misheard this since it was in the Q&A session and we werent sitting at the front but if true, is a major red flag if someone likes a smaller environment.
Next, we went to see the dorms. They were fine. No air conditioning. Must live on campus first 2 years. Not great, not the worst but heard some dorms werent the best. Visited a nice little coffee house across the street - good sandwiches and drinks.
Split up again. I attended the admissions and financial aid. MSRP is over $92k all in but I get the sense that few people pay this. Merit scholarship is somewhere between $15-$40k, average is probably around $25-$30k/yr. MSRP is probably very inflated and they make parents feel better with a “$25k merit scholarship!”. Personally, I think most good students get this so it seems kind of fake but whatever. Final cost for full pay families is probably around $60-$65k/yr.
They had some informative statistics. If you have a 4.0 UW GPA, you have about a 39% chance of being admitted. 1500+ SAT, a 43% chance of admission. I’m assuming if you have a 4.0 and a 1500+ SAT, your chances are probably decent. Not a slam dunk but not single digits either. They are still test optional and they do award $2500 for NMF if you select them. And then the usual holistic process discussion, rigor, leadership, community involvement, blah blah blah.
The campus tour was fine. Campus seemed really big but it could be because we had no idea where we were going. Some reallly old buildings, some regular brick ones, and a few very modern structures. Mixed bag. If you want that classic goth architecture, this isnt the place.
Wrapped it up with a couple of student led sessions which were ok. They had a good cross section of different interests. It was obvious they have a ton of resources and if you are ambitious, they have a lot to offer from study abroad to research and internships. Students did a good job of explaining what they did and why they enjoyed them but the moderator didnt really tie in how CWRU helped them get access to those experiences.
D26 didnt get a good feel about the social life on campus although it seemed to be collaborative.
Her assessment: CWRU had a lot to offer to help you succeed academically with very good post grad outcomes. Biggest unknowns are social life, how easy is it to make friends, and the class sizes which are a concern.
The weather was nice but Im sure it can be really awful in the winter if you dont like cold weather, especially given the size of the campus and how much walking you may have to do.
Overall, a solid 7.5-8.0. Really fine university that has a lot to offer.