I think if she gets direct entry into the major, #2 dominates #4. Is it worth 56% to maybe play the sport? If not, eliminate #5. #4’s possible value is from the masters. If it is a normal MBA, that isn’t highly valuable after a BS/BBA in business. An MS in data science may have some value. But that needs to be discounted by she may decide that she actually doesn’t like the field. I think it is really between #1 and #2 (#4 if she doesn’t get direct entry at #2)
Thank you for all of your thoughts. It has given me greater clarity, some great “big picture” principles to share, and a few ideas I hadn’t considered.
Much appreciation to all who responded!
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Personally, I love a good spreadsheet. Give each of the schools a score between 1-10 on the qualities that are important to you. Weight the more important qualities more heavily than the ones you care least about. See what pops out as the high scorer at the end.
What I find most telling is not necessarily who “wins”, but which ones I am disappointed in their placement, and find myself going back to game the system so they rank higher. The one I do that for is the one I actually like the best.
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If you make a spreadsheet and assign weights to the various factors and aren’t happy with the one that comes put tops, you can eliminate it.
It is also a really good idea to try to map out the 4 years at each with any distribution requirements as well as major requirements. Some differences will emerge and might tip the scale.
It’s worthwhile to remember that the academics are one piece of it. This is also where she’ll live. It’s not unusual for adults to turn D own jobs that are amazing because they don’t want to live where they are. Which is all to say that she should be evaluating cost, academics, and what matters,to her in a community.
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I would not ignore gut feel as part of the decision process.
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I think that’s arguably the most important thing.
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I thought it’s interesting that some folks think location isn’t important for internships. While that might be true for summer internships, I think a lot of kids in more city environments have part-time internships during the school year.
My college D and I were actually talking about internships the other day, and even though she’s in a medium sized city, she was saying how grateful she is that she has a car since this facilitated her working. And that she felt badly for two of her friends that don’t have cars since one has an internship but wastes a lot of time on public transportation to get there, and the other one hasn’t been able to get an internship during the school year because they would all be too inconveniently located. The second friend has had a summer job, but it’s nice having internships during the school year too because you can get more experiences and try out more things.
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Me too. I also found great value in joining parent groups on FB for the top schools my D was considering - just so I could get a vibe on not only the college culture, but also the parent culture - not that the parents are “make or break” but they can tell you a lot about the kids that your student would be interacting with. You’ll also learn a lot about logistics like dorm selection, registering for classes and off campus living options (you’d be surprised how many people choose a college and are unaware that their kids will likely move off campus after the first year, and how expensive those living options are).
My daughter’s main criteria was fit - not that she had to have an “angels singing from the heavens” moment, but she had to picture herself being a student there (and even then, it’s a leap of faith that it’s what she thought it would be). All of the schools she applied to would have been perfectly fine options for her major (which she wasn’t married to and is in the process of changing anyway).
You put cost first and seemed to be framing the question are these schools worth the price.
Second factor that seems to loom large in how you frame this is graduate school. Many graduate programs are funded so paying for graduate school may not be a factor. It is also common to change direction in college.
Does your daughter actually feel like she can choose the most expensive option if it is her first choice? You don’t say much about her preferences except to note that she isn’t all that into the least expensive option and that she is drawn to the LAC and could continue her sport there.
As a fellow parent, I recommend that you be honest with yourself and your daughter about the role of cost. If you don’t truly feel comfortable with the higher cost options you need to own it and take them off the table. If you are happy to pay, tell your daughter that you can afford all the options and she should go with her first choice regardless of cost.
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It would be really interesting to see what your daughter would write if she composed a similar post about these options.
Can she visit schools 2 and 4? It’s tough to compare schools that she has seen with schools that she hasn’t. It may not be feasible, but that might help with a decision.
Are you ok with all of these choices? She’s got time to visit them all if she has not. Has she been going to virtual meetings with current students?
I ask because I’m also in favor of going with her gut.
Both of our kids had multiple options (S19 had nine, D21 had eight). Of course there were pros and cons to each. They both knew their choice, though, when they walked on campus. S19’s choice was not a surprise but D21’s kind of was. She swore up and down she wanted warm weather and she’s ended up and arguably one of the coldest, snowiest colleges in the country! I know it’s a luxury to go with the gut but, if all of those schools are still in the running, might be time for visits.
If your D can make a decision about how much money matters, she can eliminate the most expensive options and then choose from the others.
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We’ve already told her all the schools are within budget and we are happy to pay for her first choice.
It is her own reluctance holding her back, even at schools she enjoyed visiting. And it isn’t cost that she is hung up on. For instance, she liked the people at the LAC, but is concerned there just aren’t enough of them. Size and location are her biggest concerns there.
Yes, she will visit the others in January.
Maybe visit as many as you can again. Not sure how far apart they are geographically. Also, she has until May 1 and that’s a lot of time to let thoughts just hang out for a little bit. There’s no rush.
And, yes, in the end she has to choose. Prioritize the things most important to her. Dig deep to find out about those things. If internships are important, get going on finding out how that really works for students. Don’t assume a rural college won’t work as well, etc. D is at a VERY rural college and those kids do have local internships as well as an amazing alumni base and career center that helps students find summer options and jobs after graduation.
How sure is she of her major? Many many kids who think they know still change.
In the end, we decided our kids should choose where they thought they had the best chance of being happy and supported. They will live there for four years. If they don’t like the environment, they won’t do well in class. Some wise person told us to ask them “on your most stressful day, can you see yourself here?” That really worked for them.
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I think you will stay in a holding pattern until you visit all of the schools on her list.
S18 really did not have a stand out favorite during the process, however one school did end up standing out during admitted student visits. Being able to spend time with current students and attending a few classes really helped him solidify what school was the best fit for him. Having said that, I believe he would have had a great experience at several of the schools where he was admitted.
Congratulations to your D on her acceptances. She seems to have some great options!
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I think it depends on the location and type of school, which we don’t know from this poster. My D goes to school in the middle of nowhere but there is a thriving industrial and tech center in the small town that has sprung up around the University. Plenty of opportunities to work during the school year. I think it’s different for SLACs that are in rural settings.
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As you know, D is at a rural LAC and there actually are opportunities for internships during the year. Yes some require a car but some do not. Honestly? I don’t know many college kids doing internships while taking class. For most majors, it’s just fine to work summers. Also, some on campus jobs can serve as job experience and those are available on all campuses.
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It’s really OK for a college kid to focus on their studies and a couple of EC’s (or one) that’s meaningful to them, and have time to volunteer for the university coat drive for the homeless, organize a blood drive in the community, have a job at the college library or cafeteria, etc. This mania for in-term internships? Where does that time come from? Sacrificing everything else.
it’s ok to be a college kid.
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@melvin123 your post made me realize that I was wrong when I said that the only Collegekid who did local internships was the DC kid- I completely forgot about the ones who did (usually paid) internships on campus! B/c they were mostly research positions through their major department, from my perspective they just happened as part of school. I think that may also reflect the interests of our particular gang (another reminder that the plural of anecdote is not data!).
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I completely agree that if you have the luxury of visiting, it will help a lot! My son had narrowed things down to 3 schools, but was very much leaning one direction and completely changed his mind after visiting.
Both my kids also put pretty heavy weight on extra-curriculars, but that’s obviously very much student driven. They only applied to schools with strong academics in their area of interest, so that filter was already done - so the intangibles ultimately swayed their final decision.
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