We were hoping for significant merit aid from reasonably selective schools - until my son’s junior year. He had a concussion in his Junior year and his GPA dropped from 3.8 to 3.6 (unweighted). He has taken the most rigorous courses offered at his HS (honors + AP). Here we are at the beginning of Senior year with a GPA lower than he expected. Here are his other stats:
35 ACT (one sitting)
800 SAT Math 2
790 SAT Chem
5 AP Chem
4 AP US History
Varsity soccer, varsity track, club soccer
Violinist in the orchestra, some regional competitions
NHS and honor roll
Various other EC and volunteer work
His recommendations will be strong and he’s a very outgoing, likable kid. White, Jewish male from the Northeast.
We are looking for a strong, liberal arts focused school, medium sized, east of the Mississippi with significant merit aid (we will not qualify for need-based aid). Open to all suggestions!
It won’t ruin his chances if he looks at the right schools. He still has strong stats and the concussion might be an essay topic. What is his weighted GPA?
Make sure you have documentation of the concussion including medical and school documents, if and only if you want him to tell colleges about it. Otherwise, his stats are pretty good.
Schools are supposed to accommodate medical issues, so technically if they did not accommodate his injury properly, they are at fault. If they did accommodate his injury, but it wasn’t enough, I would strongly consider not mentioning the concussion.
My son had a concussion in junior year as well, and had some accommodations because of it. It was taken into consideration for his placement senior year, so he was not dropped from honors/AP.
If he plays two varsity sports, is there any consideration of trying for a D1 or D2 school to get an athletic scholarship?
(as I noted, my son had a concussion but still plays high-level sports despite it)
His weighted GPA is 5.4/6.0. The school did provide academic accommodations for his concussion and it is all documented. I know is GC will mention it in her letter of recommendation. It was his choice to maintain his very rigorous courseload during his Junior year, in spite of the concussion. Basically, he got Bs in AP/Honors classes instead of dropping down to standard level classes and potentially getting As.
While is is a good high school athlete, he’s not good enough for an athletic scholarship. But he is interested in schools with relatively athletic kids and will definitely play Club sports in college.
OP, I am so sorry to hear about your son’s injury.
My DD (now a college senior) suffered a severe concussion during her sophomore year of HS. She had to drop several of her classes and wasn’t able to return to school full time for six months. This put a dent in her GPA and transcript. However, she was accepted to her first choice school (a midwestern research university) with a very generous merit package.
DD is home on break and has a few application tips for kids in her same situation.
Have the guidance counselor address every part of the injury and its effect on the transcript/ECs. DD and I had several meetings with her guidance counselor and gave her a "fact sheet" on her injury and talking points. It's easier for adcoms to read about the injury and aftermath from someone else... that way they can't misinterpret anything as "just making an excuse" for a dip in grades.
The essay isn't a good place to talk about the concussion. Essays about injuries are really tricky to pull off. But more importantly, your son and my DD are much more than just this concussion. Write about an EC or something else.
Keep in mind disability services when researching schools. DD's symptoms didn't resolve until her second year of college. Hopefully this is not the case for your son! But disability services were tremendously helpful with arranging for a single room and other accommodations to manage concussion symptoms.
Best of luck to your son; he sounds like a great kid! Feel free to PM for more details or with questions.
OP,
repost your query on the parents forum and on the Financial aid forum. That is where you will get a LOT of good advise . The cafe is for non college related conversations.
Did he take the PSAT? if so did he score above your states NMF cutoff score?
Many colleges offer 1/2 to full tuition scholarships to NM finalists.
here is a link to a list of schools that offer merit scholarships compiled by CC parents. http://nmfscholarships.yolasite.com/
I’d say your son has excellent chances of getting some merit aid, but he should not limit himself so much geographically
Spread a wide net when looking for substantial merit aid.
My DS had similar stats and was fortunate to win a full tuition scholarship from treh University of Southern Calif.
they offer 1/2 tuition scholarships to NMF’s that they accept.