If you are looking for a liberal school, pretty campus, school pride and a good political science department, I would probably NOT choose USD or SMU which are schools that do have wealthy students that probably are more conservative. In fact USD is a Catholic school. Moreover, USD has no school pride (I did go to grad school there) and never went or a single game or did anything while there other than go to class and study. SMU seems to have more school pride and their sports teams are relatively competitive. But since you live in Texas, Iām sure itās nothing like UT Austin or TA&M!
I understand that American and GW are considered more liberal and that may be a good fit for you. I donāt know much about their programs, but assume it has to be pretty strong in Poli Sci being in DC. I believe GW has more school pride than American. I donāt know about the campus, though GW doesnāt have much of one if I recall.
Penn State, Syracuse, and LSU have a ton of school pride and their sports programs are strong. I donāt know how strong their Poli Sci programs are, but I hear good things about State College as being a really good college town. I visited Syracuse and I did not really care for the school or city. Seems a bit grey and gloomy. It also gets very very cold there in the winter.
Fordham is probably a solid school but no school pride that I know of. I hear that the fact that the college is split into two parts can be a bit tricky on getting to class.
Lafayette I know nothing about.
If there was one school I would choose from the bunch, if I were you from what you mention, Iād probably choose GW. You received a nice scholarship, good school, leans left, and probably good Poli Sci program in DC.
I would choose Georgetown if it comes off the deferred list (I know you said this was unlikely). Northeastern is an interesting option w/the coop program if you come off the waitlist.
GW and Syracuse seem like good options as well. You have great options already!
Thatās terrific! Please give them a big hug too for supporting your higher education costs. Some donāt do this even if they can. Itās a wonderful gift.
I will comment only on the Jesuit colleges. Our DD graduated from a Jesuit college on the opposite coast. In my opinion, the Jesuits have higher education well crafted. Their commitment to giving back to the community is woven into course, dorms, actually the whole campus experience. This seems to align well with your interests. The Jesuit colleges are very ecumenical. We are not Catholic, and neither were most of DDs friends in college.
And a shot comment about U of San Diego. I agree it has a gorgeous campus and weatherā¦but that campus is up on a hill, and not an integral part of the city itself. Yes, the school runs shuttles, but itās not a āletās walk downtownā school unless you like LONG walks up and down a big hill.
At this point, you have excellent acceptances. Perhaps the way to whittle away is to look at each and see if there is something you donāt think you like at allā¦and scratch that school.
Syracuseās Maxwell School has a phenomenal reputation- top notch, highly regarded program. It also has a beautiful campus. Winter is very cold, though (with the exception of this year), hasnāt been terribly snowy the past couple of years. Either way, students embrace it; sledding down the main campus hill, snow ball fights, etc.). TONS of school spirit.
I do not want to start a debate. Itās against the rules. But Mystics made some factual statements which I canāt let stand.
The smear on USD is out of line. The fact that students there are from wealthy families is irrelevant. Every private school has kids from wealthy families. No one else can afford them. No student bodies are wealthier than the Ivies, but no one would accuse them of being conservative as a result. To compound the problem, you close your case by saying that USD is Catholic as though that somehow confirms that USD is conservative. There are plenty of liberal Catholics; Iām one of them and I resent your use of religion to smear one of the schools on the list. The OP applied to several Catholic colleges, so she seems to be comfortable with that environment, and thatās what matters.
Your comment about Fordham is factually erroneous. I sent my son to Fordham, so I know how the place works. Kids on the Rose Hill campus stay on Rose Hill, kids at the Lincoln Center attend class there. There is no split campu issue for getting to class; you invented that. In second semester of senior year, my son decided to take advantage of a program that existed only at Lincoln Center and not at Rose Hill. He was the rare exception in this regard. Despite the fact that he lived at Rose Hill, he got to class at Lincoln Center by campus van without a problem. Never a glitch.
I assume that your comments about lack of school pride are also invented. Itās not true at Fordham. And the fact that as a graduate student, you chose not to go to ball games is not reflective of the attitudes of undergrads.
I apologize if I struck a nerve. I attended USD and just visited the campus two weeks ago. I am very familiar with the school being an alum. I lived in San Diego for many years and the reputation is that itās a wealthy school. Itās also a Catholic institution. And it does happen to have a larger white student population. From my limited experience, a school that tends to be predominantly white, Catholic and relatively wealthy student body is likely more conservative than progressive. There are exceptions of courseā¦Georgetown comes to mind. Although I would not consider it a liberal school by any means along the lines of PSU or Evergreen State, but not necessarily full blown conservative school either like Liberty or Oral Roberts or even Biola. My son graduated from a catholic school in the same conference as USD and most of the schools in that conference tend to be Catholic schools, with students that come from upper middle class to wealthier families, and students that tend not to be extremely liberal. Can you find liberal students at USD, UP, SCU, Gonzaga, or LMU? Yes, of course. Probably more liberal than conservative in fact. Can you find conservative students at Portland State or American? Of course you can. But my opinion is just that..an opinion from my knowledge of the schools. Itās not guaranteed fact but an opinion based upon my knowledge and understanding which can be limited or a lot.
As for Fordham, I believe I prefaced it as from what I have heardā¦ and that I know of. I have heard that because the school has two campuses, it can be difficult to go to both campuses for classes on the same day. Whether this occurs frequently or infrequently is not the point. Itās that I know of at least one student who has mentioned this to me. Now my niece graduated from Fordham and I believe she enjoyed her time there and have a co worker who also attended Fordham and he seemed to enjoy his time there as well, though it was pricey. As for the school pride, I donāt know of there being much in the way of school pride. There could be, but I have not heard of it being filled with it. Same with USD. I never witnessed or know of any school pride while there or on my numerous visits to the school. And thatās exactly which I indicated this, is from my experience and understanding. Is it a knock on the school? No. I attended USD and UCSD. I experienced and noticed ZERO school pride. But I donāt care. I would not have changed a thing. I loved going to UCSD and would not have wanted to go to USC or UMich or Alabama or Texas A&M where school pride brims over (from my understanding). I chose to attend USD as well and would not have changed a thing. Do I care that there were wealthy students at the school? That generally Catholic institutions are less progressive than many state and public institutions with there of course being exceptions to the rule? No. All Iām trying to do is to provide my thoughts and knowledge and experience on certain colleges to the OP so that he or she or they can gain a little insight to help them make a decision. If you have a different opinion, more knowledge or a different experience, great, share it. And that too will hopefully help the OP with his or her or their decision.
Whenever someone says that theyāre interested in political science, one of my first instincts is to look at capitals. Thereās the nationās capital (D.C.) and state capitals. Lots of kids interested in political science think of D.C. but overlook state capitals. State capitals tend to have fewer students competing for jobs but most states have a large number of departments and agencies like the feds, but at the state-level. So there are lots of opportunities to gain experience during the school year and then to leverage those connections for time in D.C. during the summer or for a semester in D.C. In this respect, American, GW, and LSU seem like winners. Since you found the students sad at AU, Iād eliminate that one from contention.
You are very blessed to have parents who are willing and able to pay any cost for you to attend the college of your choice. Depending on what type of career youāre interested in post-grad, you may not be in a very financially lucrative field but may need to live in an expensive city. If youāre interested in such a field, you may want to have a discussion as to whether or not your family would let you use the rest of a 529 or the equivalent funds they would have spent on an education in helping you with living expenses as you start your career.
For instance, one posterās D wanted to be a professional dancer and went to a top dancing school that also happened to give her an academic full ride. Because her family saved significant funds on her college, they were then able to help with her living expenses in NYC, I believe, whereas some of her dance friends had to switch to other career paths because they could not afford to live there on the income of an entry-level dancer even though they were extremely talented dancers. So in part the question becomes, how likely are you to want to be in a career that is relatively low-paying but needing to be in a high cost-of-living area (like D.C.)?
Now, if you have no interest in working for a politician or in public interest areas or other fields that can be low-paying, especially at the beginning, then this whole discussion point may be moot. But if you are interested in something like that, I at least wanted to raise the issue.
Well, it is the point. It makes a difference if itās every day or if itās a couple times a week during one semester in a 4-year period. You choose a campus and thatās where your dorms and classes are. Occasionally someone wants a class only offered on the other campus but thatās the exception. Itās definitely not a reason by itself to turn down an offer.
Exactly. Or you get invited to an activity or party going on at the other campus- you make a decision whether to go or not. Like any other college kid.
Honestly, not a big deal.
And this? "As for the school pride, I donāt know of there being much in the way of school pride. There could be, but I have not heard of it being filled with it. "
The claim is not true. Itās baseless. Students rarely take classes on the other campus. The 2 campuses are designed to be self-contained.
Iām not saying that it never happens, but when it does, itās by student choice. The college runs a van back & forth all day long and on weekends, so transportation is very efficient.
The bottom line is that this split campus item is not the basis on which to make a decision about the university. The mid town campus at Lincoln Center was built to make the graduate schools of Business, Law, Education, and Social Work more accessible to commuters, especially to those who are working in a 9:00-5:00 job in Manhattan. A small undergraduate college developed because its central location in NYC made it more accessible for commuters. The whole concept of the Lincoln Center campus was designed for a different purpose than Rose Hill. There was never ever the concept of students taking some courses on one campus and some on the other.
The one exception to the above is that a Theater minor is available at Rose Hill but the courses are at Lincoln Center. The reason this exists is because the Lincoln Center campus is just a few blocks from the Broadway Theater District. Fordham took advantage of its location and developed a Theater major at Lincoln Center. Denzel Washington, for example, is a Fordham Theater alum. The university makes this program available to Rose Hill students as a minor. Kind of a perc despite the inconvenience of a commute and something you can only do at a school in NYC with Broadway ties.
Some undergrad courses are based at Lincoln Center too, mainly those connected with the area. Some are offered at both (my D could choose). Point being if OP wants to be at Rose Hill all the time, thatās what will happen.
LC is not just commuter, they have dorms on site.
My point was that the history is that the undergraduate college was established there back in the 1960s for the benefit of commuters. It was an add-on to what was built as a graduate center.
As the undergraduate location developed an appeal of its own for those who wanted to be in Manhattan for the full NYC experience at their doorstep (like NYU), they established the dorms so that could happen. As a friend of mine who works at Fordham once said to me, āThatās high end real estate.ā
pretty sure you canāt use a 529 for post-education living expenses. From my (minimal) research it can be used for education or rolled into retirement accounts
I should say, I toured Fordham and really really liked it, but down here in Texas it doesnt really have a name. I have said āOh I am thinking about going to Fordhamā and people say āOh! Ya Florida is a good school.ā Its not the most important factor, but I have taken note of it. I really dont know a ton about Lafayette but I think it is the best school academically overall, not for my major though
I am pretty sure the people hiring for political science degrees will know Fordham.
Reminds me of a classmate I was with at Cambridge (UK), when he told his uncle (they were from California somewhere) where he was going, his uncle thought it must be some state U in Cambridge MA (because he knew thatās where Harvard is). The people that matter in this regard are the ones that will hire you or evaluate your grad school application.
These are all good schools. One is not better than the other academically, or in major. One may see opinions that say this though - such as on here ( I think SU is superior) or rankings such as US News.
The best of these colleges academically and departmentally is the one that fits you best - and fit includes finances.
One can make a case for each school.
A poli sci degree is already a tough nut long term - but find the best combo of budget achieving and feel.
My understanding is that if a student receives a scholarship that the amount of the scholarship can be withdrawn from the 529 without penalty. So if a student earned a full ride, the value of that full ride could be withdrawn without penalty.
I need to look more into it. Itās all in my sonās account so have to see if can get to my daughter. It does hit the 15 years rule. Itās on my to do list.