Large schools for the talented late bloomer/lazy underachiever

Parents Forum
#1

<p>My son wants to go to a big school, with an excellent business school and a big-time sports program. Without specifying his numbers, suffice it to say that he has an ACT score which would make even most CCers envious, and which, by itself, would be sufficient to get him in anywhere in the country, but grades which would not. His curriculum is very rigorous, his public high school is very well thought of, and sends kids to the Ivies, major privates, and high ranked LACs, as well as large schools, his extra-curricular activities, while not numerous, will likely help him, since he was a national finalist in a business related activity, and his recommendations (both teacher and counselor) will be very good. In short, everything will be very positive except for his mediocre grades, which do have an upward trend.</p>

<p>He has a preliminary list ranging from Michigan to Indiana, with schools like Texas, Virginia, Washington (the University of, not WUSL), Maryland, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Illinois, Penn State, and several others included. Does anyone know which of the large, highly regarded state schools (the ones listed or others) are more prone to look favorably upon kids of this type?</p>

#2

<p>Without knowing his uw gpa, it's difficult to help. Virginia, Michigan and North Carolina are reach schools for nearly all students, including those with ACT scores as high as your sons plus excellent grades. If you live in Texas, unless your son is in the top 6-8% of his class, his odds of getting into UT are very slim. </p>

<p>Perhaps add Florida State University, as I know they have a good undergrad business school.</p>

#3

<p>Check out University of Alabama - great school with super sports, too. They have "automatic" scholarships for qualifying test scores (can't remember if GPA, class rank is part of that) but my son received all OOS tuition paid and with his music scholarship had a full out of state ride. He was #2 in his class with a 4.995 weighted/4.0 UW - but I think if your son is in 32+ composite they may have something for him - go to their website. My S elected to attend NU but UA was high on his list had he not been accepted at NU. Several of his high academic friends did choose UA and are attending, and are very excited with the school. Good luck!</p>

#4

<p>Also consider U. of Pittsburgh.</p>

<p>I know a kid who got into Maryland and Indiana (OOS from NJ) who sounds like your description.</p>

<p>Look for scattergrams, from Naviance and various internet sites to see how the data points in the far right have fared.</p>

#5

<p>How about the University of Iowa?</p>

#6

<p>Also want to add that Michigan and Pitt have rolling admissions. For a kid with mismatched stats, it is really hard to determine "match" schools, so applying early to EA and/or rolling admissions is really useful. You can either get an acceptance under your belt early, and aim for reaches later, or you can learn early that you need to concentrate more on safeties.</p>

<p>Maryland also has an earlier "priority" application period.</p>

#7

<p>Indiana U has a very well respected business school, and is not too hard to get into.</p>

<p>U Pitt is also a good choice.</p>

#8

<p>Took a look at our scattergrams - large, public pretty good high school. U of Indiana accepted most people with SATs over 1600, as long as weighted GPA was over 83. Pitt looked similar, but GPA cut off looked more like 85. U of Wisconsin looks almost impossible - they didn't accept anyone from our school with less than a 93 except for one person with a 2000 SAT and 83 GPA. U of Md looked like pretty good odds if the SAT is over 2000 if the GPA isn't too low say 85+, it's almost a sure bet with 90+. (There were only two points with an 83 GPA, one got in and one didn't at that SAT score.)</p>

<p>How about Buffalo for a safer school? Not sure if they have business for undergrads. Syracuse is another popular school for B students around here.</p>

#9

<p>University of Washington will be a difficult one if his GPA is not good. Washington State University in Pullman might be a better choice. Good business program, very big sports school, only downer is that it's in a relatively isolated part of the state. Still, in addition to business it has one of the top national hotel management programs, so it might be good fit.</p>

#10

<p>Jeeze, parents on CC are harsh towards their kids.."lazy underacheiver"? Ouch. If he truly is a lazy underacheiver, what is the point of him going to college?</p>

#11

<p>Without knowing his weighted/UW GPA, it's hard to know. If his GPA is sub 3.0, then schools like UMich (Ross), UVa, UNC-Ch, and Penn St are unlikely. </p>

<p>Is money no object? If you can afford to send him anywhere, then great. However, if he'll need some kind of money help, that will make a difference.</p>

<p>What did your son score on his PSAT? Is he a likely NMSF?</p>

#12

<p>I don't know how easy it is to get into the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University - Bloomington but the business school has required classes that are definitely not for a "lazy underachiever"!!!</p>

#13

<p>It all depends on what his "mediocre" grades are exactly. Michigan, Virginia, and Texas are all highly competitive for OOS, and will have high GPA cut-offs. </p>

<p>Virginia Tech has a good undergraduate business program with lower requirements.</p>

#14

<p>Check out University of South Carolina - sports are definitely big there! - the international business program is highly rated.</p>

#15

<p>James Madison University in VA depending on GPA... the average admitted student GPA at JMU is about a 3.7/ 3.8 with a rigorous HS course load. Generally speaking JMU is a much easier admit than UVA... similar, but different that VTech, which seems to weight test score a little more? JMU tends to be more GPA/ EC driven. </p>

<p>The sports teams are not ALWAYS the tippy top, but students have a ton of school spirit.... go to games... etc... </p>

<p>I believe that the COB at JMU has gateway requirements that students have to meet before they can officially apply to the major. -- "Admission to the College of Business Students desiring to major in any BBA program in the College of Business must formally apply for admission. The application may be submitted upon completion of 45 credit hours. Formal admission to a major will be granted when the student has met certain requirements. Refer to the undergraduate catalog for additional information." </p>

<p>COB website -- JMU</a> - About the College of Business</p>

#16

<p>To be clear, I don't think of my son as a lazy underachiever--he's a great kid, and I'm really proud of him. Some admissions officers, however, tend to view this imbalance as a sign of an underachiever, rather than as a late bloomer, so I thought I'd pick up both halves of the characterization.</p>

<p>Having read what's been posted, I decided that I need to give a little more info to make the situation clearer. His ACT is a 35. His gpa is 3.1 uw/3.6w. He will have taken 7 AP Tests by the time his high school career is complete (3 to date).</p>

<p>Thanks for the responses to date. Additional help is greatly appreciated.</p>

#17

<p>Did he take the PSAT? If so, do you think he'll be Commended, Semi-Finalist or Finalist?</p>

#18

<p>I would say with those stats he is very likely to be admitted to the University of South Carolina, and he can apply directly to the business school as a freshman.</p>

<p>Definitely worth considering as a safety at the very minimum.</p>

#19

<p>
[quote]
For a kid with mismatched stats, it is really hard to determine "match" schools, so applying early to EA and/or rolling admissions is really useful. You can either get an acceptance under your belt early, and aim for reaches later, or you can learn early that you need to concentrate more on safeties.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>A great game plan suggested by saachi. Results from mismatched stats are hard to predict--whether they are a GPA/SAT mismatch (going either way) or a Math/Critical Reading mismatch. Best to apply early in the season and try to nail something down.</p>

<p>A late bloomer could be differentiated from a lazy underachiever by having the GC emphasize the upward trend in grades. But many of the higher stat colleges have lots of applicants who have great test scores AND worked hard for all 4 years. Your son will have to bring something special to the table to overcome that--make sure his essays or ECs spotlight whatever that something special is. </p>

<p>Then cross your fingers...</p>

#20

<p>you can give Penn State a try - although they count GPA 2/3. If you do, a couple of pointers. Apply DUS (he can apply to the business school later, it's harder to get admitted to Smeal as a freshman). Apply EARLY. And agree to go for summer session. All of these will give your son an admissions boost. Smeal is a good business school. And the football is awesome. Basketball is NOT. </p>

<p>Honestly though, I would try to go somewhere where his ACT score would give him scholarship money. These are usually schools that don't have the best GPA/ACT profiles. . How about Arizona? Do some research online...</p>

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