Thanks everyone for the feedback and suggestions! Didn’t mean to be stubborn about the UWGPA. Will post back in a results thread when this roller coaster finally comes to a halt.
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Updating because DS improved SAT by 50 points which was shocking since he did absolutely no prep after the summer test. I expected to it to actually stay the same or even go down slightly. Anyway happy for the improved score and I’m sure it will help his odds at least some. Just received acceptance to Auburn EA2 round. He’s very happy of course. Will update on others as well.
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Congratulations to your son and the acceptance to Auburn! Appreciate the update and looking forward to more in the future!
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Clearly it’s shaping up to be a pretty rough admissions cycle based on what friends are reporting and even local news. Wanted to give an update on how things are going. It’s well aligned with earlier poster’s predictions. All in all, DS feels very lucky and happy with his options. All submissions were specific to business program/school. Test scores submitted to all regardless of TO.
- Penn State Smeal: accepted with offer of 2+2 in Erie.
- Auburn: accepted
- TN: accepted
- GT: rejected with suggestion of pathways program after year 1. (Assume that’s a throwaway to all rejected applicants).
- JMU: accepted
- VT: accepted
- IU: accepted and waiting on Kelley petition
- UGA: deferred
- Clemson: deferred
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Congratulations on all the acceptances so far! It’s great that your son feels happy about them. Are any schools in the lead right now in terms of your son’s preferences?
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Thank you! We need to visit some of these and consider the merit offered, etc. The easy front runner is VT. If UGA comes through it will be a strong consideration I believe.
For undergrad and business focus, it is hard to make a case for OOS with a few exceptions. As an example, while TN seems well regarded by students, etc, would it really provide a much different or better outcome than VT? Even with merit, the cost difference isn’t small. And then there are logistics.
Even if the Kelley petition comes through (low probability) would it really make a big difference? Several posters in this thread have argued it wouldn’t. Don’t think we have enough info to know really.
Thoughts?
For business and marketing, maybe (just maybe) IU would make a difference depending on the end goal.
Pamplin at Va Tech is excellent but so is Haslam at UTK. It’s really fit - the campuses are very different. If you were to say, for example, Supply Chain (not your current interest), then UTK would be #1 of all the schools you mentioned.
But for most in marketing, a UTK, Va Tech, Auburn, UGA Terry (and it’s not an option yet), I’d call them substitutional.
But their campuses aren’t necessarily the same - certainly not UTK, Va Tech, or Auburn. And that, along with budget (you have merit offers), is what you should focus on.
Great admits. Congrats to you.
Did you give your son a budget or any parameters about how financial considerations would come into play in the decision-making process? If you provided your son with a budget, then only schools that fall within that budget would be considered. But if you’re saying, these schools fall within the budget, but school A is $15k/year cheaper than school B and is it really worth it, was your kid aware of this dynamic? If not, I’d have that conversation NOW before anything further goes on.
I’m not in business, but I suspect that outcomes between Virginia Tech and UTK would be similar. That said, however, if your son has a preference as to which state he would like to live in after college, if a college is in THAT state, then I think it would provide a slight boost. Of course, students can go anywhere in the country (or world) no matter where they got their degree from, but big state schools like these do have bigger fan bases and networks in their home states.
If both (or all) schools are within budget, these are some of the things I would consider:
- Does my kid have a guaranteed spot in the business school or a guarantee to be accepted into the business school if he maintains an accessible GPA?
- Does my kid have a guaranteed spot in his choice of major or a guaranteed spot if he maintains an accessible GPA?
- Are there programs that are particularly attractive to my kid? Whether that is a particular living learning community in the dorms, or a particular exchange program doing business in Shanghei, or participation in a smaller cohort, etc, those are things that can help a kid adapt faster and better or be particularly enriching.
- If your kid has any needs or strong particular interests, does one community meet those needs better than another? That could be access to certain types of professional care, or coverage within your health insurance policy, or teachers who can continue harp instruction, or whatever it is that’s specific to your kid.
- Look at how they onboard their incoming students. Is it a 1/2 day orientation and then everyone moves into the dorms at the same time? Or are there special programs that will increase the odds for your kid to successfully transition to college, including socially? Examples could include taking a class on campus early, or an outdoor exploration program with incoming first years, or a weeklong orientation, or…
- Figure out if your kid is seriously affected by the amount of sunlight (or cold, heat, altitude, etc). If so, if a college has a more favorable climate for your kid, that would be a factor.
All of the above are things that I would consider spending more money on. But then there’s also just the vibe/fit. Sometimes, a kid just feels more at home at a particular campus and they just click. If it’s within budget, I think that’s also worth something.
All of that said, however, is whether a school is within budget. If a school is not affordable/within budget, then it doesn’t get considered.
If you’re still at the point that schools are within budget but there’s a significant difference in price, you can talk to your kid and see whether price would sway them. For instance, what if the difference allowed them to study abroad, or have a car on campus after the first year or two, or to get a new car at graduation, or help paying for grad school, or towards a down payment on a house, or…? Those might be alternatives that would sway your kid’s feelings toward a less expensive school as well.
Wishing your family the best of luck with this process!
GT is not throwing passway to all rejected students. Students who get it are luky. However, I agree there is no reason for your son to go to GT.
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Thanks! Great points and I agree with your assessment. We do need to visit and understand how the different campus vibes and specific programs may come into play.
Thanks. We didn’t realize that. Also thought it was more common for GA students for some reason.
Great feedback for us to consider as the decision is being made. Agree with all those points and re: the direct admission status, we need to do more research to confirm. As far as budget is concerned, with the merit offered we are good. For me a big consideration is the location vis a vis where he believes he wants to live long term (more south). Points for that go to TN, Auburn and GA if it is an option.
Thanks again to all the suggestions and responses from posters on this board!
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