Plus you can cross-register for classes at CMU.
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Pope’s “colleges that change lives” also includes colleges that are all over the place. St. John’s College and Evergreen State, for example. Or maybe Oberlin and Wheaton (IL) (or Hillsdale).
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In fact, if you do architecture there you automatically take a couple of classes at CMU.
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I did not find this to be true. My test-optional student was offered significant merit aid to Denison while some parents on CC were bemoaning the fact that their high scoring kids did not receive merit aid. I think Denison looks at the whole student, not just the “top” students, and would encourage anyone interested to apply.
As for Elon, while it is more expensive than some colleges, it was significantly less expensive than other colleges with similarly strong business programs, i.e. Syracuse. Due to Elon’s 3+1 accelerated program, students can get master’s and bachelor’s degrees in certain fields in four years. Other colleges with higher tuition would take five years for the same BS/MS. So whether it’s a “hidden value” or “hidden gem,” it’s a good deal.
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Yes, through PCHE (Pittsburgh Council on Higher Education). There are cross registration opportunities among 10 Pittsburgh area colleges through this program, including Duquesne University, which is similar to some of the “dream” colleges on this list.
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Duquesne and Chatham are excellent choices for someone who wants medium or small + city/Pittsburgh + scholarships&safety (as in, it’d be a safety for anyone who could get into Pitt and a good likely for B/B+ student).
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At the risk of stating the obvious, or stating what some of us might be thinking: I like this list. I like the list because there is often too much attention paid to the overall highest ranked schools. There are a LOT of universities in the US where a student can get a very good education, and it really is not necessary to attend a “top 50” university to do very well in life.
I know a bunch of people who have attended one of the schools on this list and done very, very well in life.
There are a few schools missing from the list that I might have wanted to add. UVM is one example.
And of course there are some schools on this list which are very, very excellent for some specific very strong programs. Cal Polytech and U.Mass for computer science and UC Davis and Colorado State for veterinary medicine come to mind, but of course there are other great programs all over this list.
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Pretty severe housing issues at the University of Vermont might deter some.
Maybe.
UVM’s downtown location means that there are lots of off campus options, including university affiliated but privately managed, furnished apartments. And being in the city, there is good bus service to campus if needed. My kids and grandkids all looked forward to moving off campus at some point.
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Case in point. I was at dinner recently at our boat club and one of the guys mentioned that he had gone to Manhattan College (now “University”). A newcomer who commutes down to NYC piped up, “Half the guys I work with are from Manhattan College.” He works at Con Ed and he was talking about the other engineers he works with. Manhattan has a good engineering school with about 900 students in a small “university” of about 3000. It also has a business school with a big NYC network. As reported by Payscale and other similar salary sources, their graduate do quite well.
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Really excited to announce that we are hosting an exclusive AMA w/ Jeff Selingo on Oct 30 @ 7pm ET where he can answer questions about the book, as well as college admissions or how to create a “Dream Schools” college list. You can submit questions on the event page here:
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Agreed! I was also surprised to see Clemson on the list. Our high achieving New England high school has a hard time getting anyone in there!
Clemson gas a 35% out of state acceptance rate.
Exactly! I was expecting to see schools with 50% plus on that list.
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I’m surprised Rose-Hulman and WPI aren’t on this list. Both have high acceptance rates, generous merit and excellent ROI.
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It’s because no one can pronounce Worcester 
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Another thing to consider about schools like Pitt - they often have an Honors College that offers more personalized guidance and opportunities than the larger university (although some are just as hard to get into as some of the “elite” schools). My daughter was in Pitt’s honors college and took advantage of special housing and some topical sessions not always available to everyone. She loved her time at Pitt—sang in the choir, travelled for Model UN conferences, was a TA, and loved having free transit that comes with being a Pitt student to explore the city, as well as free entry to many museums and discounts to performances and events. And she worked p/t too. She had a great internship experience (that carried from spring through the summer of 2020, during Covid), and was able to study abroad in Paris for a “mini-mester” since she wasn’t sure she could do a full semester. These are the kinds of things pure rankings don’t get into, and they’re so important to consider in the application and decision process.
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