I don’t see the significant reputational gap that you seem to perceive between the schools you’re considering, and the “safeties” that you’re ruling out. Are you sure the more generous merit isn’t backfiring in terms of your perception of these schools? There’s nothing wrong with accepting a good merit offer! And a school like Ithaca or Muhlenberg or Temple could potentially offer more strength on the music side compared to your more expensive choices. Of course, only one of those is urban. So maybe it’s just Temple that deserves stronger consideration.
Yes, there are some grittier urban areas around Temple. But I have known high-achieving kids from OOS suburban areas who have taken the merit there and had fantastic experiences and outcomes.
For a student who wants a business+music combo in an urban setting, I would question paying a lot more for Drexel over Temple. Co-op is great, and Drexel packages it well, but Temple business students can do co-op too, if they want to.
The music school is top-notch, and the minor requirements are flexible enough to be focused on the student’s particular interests: Music Minor < Temple University
(Temple also has its own satellite campuses in Tokyo and Rome, if semesters in either of those cities would be of any interest.)
Diversity-wise, Temple beats every other school on your list.
Would he be in the Honors Program at Temple? If so, note that it has its own Living Learning Community in addition to the academic enhancements.
Anyway…
No way would I full pay for Syracuse without even being assured of access to my desired major. And tbh, that sentence could end after the first eight words, but that’s just me.
I don’t think American, for business, is worth almost 80K/year either. (Even for poli sci, AU’s biggest strength, I would question that price tag; but for business I really do not see the value-added over Drexel, Temple, Stevens, etc.)
If he does get the direct-admit at Michigan State, that deserves to be in the mix too.
In summary… I would cross off Syracuse and American, give Temple a second look, and narrow the decision down to Drexel, Stevens, MSU, and Temple. (Your son should consider not overpaying for a not-manifestly-superior school to be his first business case study - what is the opportunity cost of that money?) How many of these schools have you visited? Can he go to admitted students’ events and form his own impressions? Good luck with the decision!