I’ve been through college admission with my older son (now a sophomore at CMU) but have another one coming up. I think we’ll be looking at a different set of schools so I would love to hear any ideas you have on his initial college list for us to start exploring.
Well-regarded Public High School in NYC
97 unweighted average
School limits AP to junior and senior year and allows up to three a year - he will do the max allowed but that’s only 6
Test optional
EC’s will be strong (multiple varsity sports including caption and state awards) but not standout (has not yet cured cancer or solved world hunger)
Not 100% sure on major but likely health sciences (with possible post-graduate pursuit of physical therapy) and not engineering or business
Ideally within a day’s drive of NYC
Needs to have a high amount of small size classes (don’t want huge lecture classes even in freshman year)
Would love the coveted mid-size school (4,000-8,000) so its not overwhelming but still lots to do and lots of choices (but open to things slightly bigger or smaller)
Prefer non-religious
No preference at this point to City, Suburban, or Rural
Will likely want to try to run XCTF (distance) and will depend on where his times land but could be a hook
We do not qualify for need and would prioritize a school offering merit (but merit is not absolutely necessary)
So far I’ve come up with schools like Ithaca College, Bucknell, Lehigh. Trying also to figure out where he might fit in the SUNY system as the only ones we looked at for our older son were Binghamton and StoneyBrook, both I think too big for this one.
Oh, yes, Rochester! How did I forget about that? We looked at that with my older son and liked it.
We are paying full fare for our older son so we’ve said we’ll do the same for the younger one if necessary. We are not sure all schools for all majors are worth the sticker price so when we get to the point of having options, we’ll be comparing for relative value. But for the initial list, all prices are on the table.
(I ask because I am surprised by a few of the schools noted in this thread in light of your son’s 97 uwGPA at a well regarded NYC public high school and your desire for merit scholarship grants which all suggest that your son is intelligent,motivated, and hard-working.)
Generally, no. I think his scores will be okay but not great and all other parts of his application will be stronger than the score, which is why I’m thinking test optional. But let me know if you have insight, or if you think there is a threshold, etc.
No, I do not have any particular insight for a health sciences major other than large universities such as UNC, Ohio State, and other universities with major sports programs. To the best of my limited understanding, large universities offer a lot of sophisticated opportunities for those seeking to become physical therapists. Unfortunately, large public universities usually involves large lecture classes during one’s first year of college.
OP: Are you researching “health science” as a major or are you/your son considering exercise science, kinesiology, biology, chemistry, etc. ? I ask because health science areas also include business/management majors with a focus on the health industry.
If your son wants to become a physical therapist, why not look for those programs ?
Thanks so much for your insights. I think I meant health sciences as a general area rather than a specific major as I don’t think he is interested in the business side. I will definitely look into 3+3 programs. I think also possible that he won’t be 100% sure and ready to commit to one of those programs but would want to make sure to do all of the pre-requisites to be prepared to pursue physical therapy after undergrad (which I know can be done with any major but is often “built in” as a bio major or something similar).
If seeking merit scholarship money, then St. Lawrence University in upstate New York might offer a $35,000 or $40,000 per year scholarship for a strong applicant. Very athletic school. Private school with a beautiful, but remote, campus.
If it’s an undergrad school he likes, a 3+3 program could be fine even if he isn’t 100% sure; he could always change his major and just graduate with a bachelor’s degree.
Drexel’s program isn’t direct-entry, but they have a “bridge” program that might be particularly worth a look, because the co-op time might help him get clarity on his career path. Plus, they have a good variety of other health-related tracks, if he decides against PT. BS/DPT Bridge Program for Physical Therapy Option | College of Nursing and Health Professions | Drexel University And I think it’s realistic to hope for good merit there, with his stats. It’s a little larger than you’re looking for, but there may be enough partitions between divisions/programs to make it feel smaller.
How important is it to your son to have some health-related majors (like exercise training, allied health, etc) vs. a bio major? Most of the schools below were included based on the assumption that a health-related major (beyond bio) was desired, but if that’s not the case, please let us know.
These are some schools, most of which would probably be extremely likely admits, that have no religious affiliation.
Case Western (OH): About 6k undergrads
East Stroudsburg (PA ): About 4400 undergrads
Elon (NC): About 6300 undergrads
Johns Hopkins (MD): About 6k undergrads. Part of a consortium with Loyola Maryland, Goucher, and other colleges in the Baltimore area whereby students can cross-register.
Marist (NY): About 5500 undergrads
Millersville U. of PA: About 5800 undergrads
Monmouth (PA ): About 3800 undergrads
Quinnipiac (CT): About 6100 undergrads
Rider (NJ): About 3200 undergrads
Salisbury (MD): About 6400 undergrads
Slippery Rock (PA ): About 6800 undergrads
Stockton (NJ): About 8100 undergrads
SUNY Brockport: About 5100 undergrads
SUNY Plattsburgh: About 4k undergrads
Thomas Jefferson (PA ): About 3800 undergrads
U. of Hartford (CT): About 4k undergrads
Westfield State (MA): About 4k undergrads
If your son becomes open to looking at schools with religious affiliations, these are some others that he may want to consider.
American (D.C.): About 7900 undergrads. Part of a consortium with other D.C. area schools like Georgetown, GW, and U. of Maryland – College Park whereby students can cross-register.
Duquesne (PA ): About 5100 undergrads. Part of a Pittsburgh consortium with U. of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon, among others, whereby students can cross-register.
Loyola Maryland: About 4k undergrads. Part of a consortium with Johns Hopkins, Goucher, and other colleges in the Baltimore area whereby students can cross-register.
If bio is sufficient (no pre-health major needed), then some other schools he may want to consider include:
Brandeis (MA): About 3700 undergrads and part of a consortium where undergrads can take classes at Babson, Bentley, Wellesley, and Olin, or arts & sciences classes at Boston College, Boston U., or Tufts.
Christopher Newport(VA): About 4400 undergrads and the easier to get into relative of William & Mary.
Howard (D.C.): HBCU of about 9800 undergrads and part of the D.C. consortium where students can take classes at Georgetown, GW, etc.
Penn State Erie – Behrend College: About 3200 undergrads at this residential branch (where most students stay all 4 years rather than switching to University Park after 2 years).
UDel is ranked #2 for its DPT program, my daughter was an exercise science major in honors (3.9+ uw, 34 act), lots if smart students. She’s at BU now for DPT (got into a UD but wanted urban for grad school). Great facilities. My friend’s son went for AT. They have an Amtrak station on campus(which is very pretty).