DD is interested in majoring in chemistry and would prefer a larger (5000+) non-liberal arts school. However, she also wants to run in college and is best suited for division 3 (possibly a lower division 1). She would like to stay on the east coast (MA to VA).
Any suggestions? I’m new at this and have no idea where to start.
Lehigh?
Really though it depends on her GPA, test scores, budget, along with recruitment.
The University of Rochester?
Tufts, RPi
MIT and Johns Hopkins spring to mind if she has the grades and test scores. CMU, Brandeis, NYU, Ithaca, and WPI are a few other options not mentioned yet. Emory (Atlanta) and Case Western (Cleveland) are worth a look if she’s willing to be a little flexible on geography.
I second @momofsenior1-- we can’t provide accurate suggestions without knowing more about her stats and budget. In the meantime, Wikipedia and the NCAA have lists of the DIII schools. It shouldn’t take too long to go through the list and eliminate LACs and schools outside the Northeast. Both lists are sortable by state.
https://web3.ncaa.org/directory/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_NCAA_Division_III_institutions
Thanks everyone! I have the lists - still working through them. Her GPA is probably 3.7 unweighted (school only provides weighted), NHS, got 1200 on the Kaplan practice SAT (takes real one in Dec). Not sure if she is quite on teh level for Hopkins or Tufts. Will have 5-6 AP classes upon graduation next year. As far as budget, we would need to see what aid she is eligible for.
I will check out the other suggestions. There are so many colleges near us that we need to narrow things down.
Some of the STEM schools are in DII and are about the right size. The PA schools (West Chester, Kutztown) are DII, many of the Carolina and Florida schools. Illinois Tech, NY Tech
I would suggest you take a look at TCNJ
Yes, good recommendations, especially Case Western (CWRU “Crew”), Rochester, Lehigh, and WPI. All are competitive. All outstanding. CWRU: STEM school in nice area of Cleveland about a 6-hour drive from DC area, mid-size national university (about 4500-5000); Rochester: similar size, nice riverfront campus outside of town, excellent in sciences; WPI, really a hidden gem, one of our favorites after many, many college visits, similar size, nice area, great campus, great campus vibe, very much a unique hands-on, project-oriented approach, pretty even gender balance in recent classes. Lehigh fairly similar to Case, STEM school, similar size. We favored RPI a little less, though an excellent school, definitely check out to see how it fits for your daughter. I don’t know TCNJ well but also seems like a great suggestion. Some of these may be a challenge in terms of admission but I certainly think that would be the case for Tufts and JHU, just extremely competitive admission at those.
Good luck!
https://www.wpi.edu/project-based-learning/wpi-plan
https://www.wpi.edu/project-based-learning/global-project-program
Also Stevens Institute of Technology, an urban option that is top notch
https://www.stevens.edu/about-stevens/facts-statistics
Also, Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, if Indiana is not too far.
If your daughter is borderline D1, then she may be a recruit for D3, which would lower the admissions bar at all schools.
For D3 schools you typically contact the coach via email to see if there is interest.
Contact info can be found on the school’s athetics web page
Good Luck!
http://www.gotuftsjumbos.com/recruits/recruits_home
https://hopkinssports.com/sports/2018/6/13/recruiting-faq.aspx
I don’t think Rose Hulman meets the size criteria. Only 2,100 students.
Note that some of the technical institutes mentioned – RPI, WPI, Stevens – graduate fewer chemistry majors than some smaller liberal arts colleges. For a student interested in general chemistry, there may be better choices.
Yes, thanks, I was forgetting about the 5000 student body goal when I put down Rose-Hulman. I think all the rest I recommended are 4500+ undergrads. Being a female applicant will be a plus at all these schools, I believe. I do think several will be looking for 1300-1400 SAT type scores (and comparable on ACT).
It would be great if your D will do whatever test prep is available–tutoring, classes, online, etc. A little practice can go a long way. And note the scores you see from schools are often super-scores.
Sign up with any schools that look good. A few years ago, we had signed up with Lehigh and got a notice from them that they would be interviewing in our area, which went well, and saved us a trip back to the school (about 4 hours away). Also, signing up on the admissions page can create a record of long-term interest in a school. I know when we visited RPI–an informal stop on our way through the area–a very nice, helpful person in the admissions office, where we stopped to get a map, suggested we register with them, just for that reason.
Good luck!
@merc81 - RPI, WPI, and Stevens are several of the oldest technological research universities in the United States. They are universities that offer the entire range of undergraduate and graduate education up to and including the doctorate. They all have high level research programs and outstanding chemistry programs and faculties. They aren’t “technical institutes”. They may have fewer undergraduates in chemistry than some larger institutions, but that is an advantage. The low student to faculty ratio and the opportunities for undergraduates to participate in faculty and graduate student research are far greater than the majority of liberal arts colleges. All three universities enjoy significant industrial and government funding for research in chemistry, materials science, chemical engineering, and related areas. That provides opportunities that do not exist in most liberal arts-based colleges.
Look at larger D1 universities and their club sport programs. My son was a D3 level recruit and is very happy doing his sport at the club level. I know kids at Penn State doing the same. Might be a good option if she wants a larger school and stay involved athletically at a less demanding level.
I second the recommendation for TCNJ
Both good academically and athletically
Has between 6000-7000 students
@Engineer80: Labels aside, it appears (through IPEDS) that RPI, WPI and Stevens graduated twelve, ten and one chemistry majors, respectively. My point above was that these schools register fewer students of general chemistry than that indicated for several of the smaller colleges I sampled.