UChicago has early decision for transfers.
1 Like
U Chicago and Swarthmore, possibly Haverford, came to mind for me.
He sounds like someone who would love Williams tutorials, but might be lacking on the social justice front (not saying it doesn’t exist, but it’s not what I think of).
I have 2 kids at WashU. Feel free to DM me!
I am coming to this late. My three kids are past college, I have spent a lot of time in college dorms, and also on this site.
It is extremely common to be unhappy and not find friends at this point in freshman year. Adjustment seems to happen in spring semester. I think the huge transition from home, school, friends and all that is familiar is not recognized enough in our culture.
I am from the area and very familiar with Tufts. One of my kids actually did music there during high school so I hung around. I get the privilege thing but I know several “cool” students both in the arts and social service contexts.
David Square is hopping, Harvard Square is 10 minutes away and Boston a little farther. So much to do. Maybe he could tutor in the schools. Cambridge Rindge and Latin is I believe the most diverse high school in the country, and has a tutoring program. There are also local programs for the homeless.
The barriers with sports and clubs are unfortunate but temporary. Once he has a major and is a member of a department, things get better, too.
I don’t see any harm in applying for transfer, though that means a whole other period of adjustment. In this forum this situation comes up a lot. I vote for trying to stay. He can go to the counseling center and join a group though he may be resistant. Often counseling offices help with adjustment and tips and ideas.
I like the Colleges that Change Lives website and Clark U. in Worcester is one possibility. But I would suggest he try to stay at Tufts and if he does apply for transfer, continue trying to make Tufts work rather than stop those efforts because of the applications.
9 Likes
I have two kids at BC. Can say from their experience so far that the religion aspect of the school is not as prominent as one might think. It is more about values – “being men and women for others.” This is something that is relatable to anyone, regardless of their religious background.
3 Likes
Since he is in the first semester there, is it too early to tell if it is not the right fit?
Were there schools that accepted him when he was applying as a HS senior that might be a better fit than his current school? Are there schools where his HS friends landed that might be a better fit? (He could get lots of intel on what life at those schools was like from trusted sources.)
If he wants to get out of the priveleged/entitled environment strong public universities would be the way to go. I’m in the midwest, so UIUC, UW Madison or UofM would fit the bill with students from all ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds (though Madison and Ann Arbor are pretty granola/woke). Not sure where he wants to land geographically, but I am sure there are similar options throughout the country. Since you are in CA and benefit from in-state status from a strong public university system, would you consider OOS publics?
OP is not in CA. They used to live in CA.
My sister, niece, mother and father all went to Northwestern some time during their academic careers and all had good experiences. It is basically the Ivy of the midwest (they used to sell T-shirts that said “Harvard - The Northwestern of the East”). You might run into the same issues as at other privite elite schools with wealthy and entitled classmates, so do some research about income level for students, scholarships, etc.
It is also outside a major city with much to offer in terms of culture and entertainment.
Thanks, I misunderstood that as I scanned past posts.
1 Like
I second BC. My niece and nephew both went there and had great experiences and were well prepared for their chosen careers.
1 Like
For those worried about suppression of free speech on campus, FIRE ranks schools based on their support of free speech and open debate.
If the OP’s son wants a more realistic option for transfer in the event that some of the hyper competitive schools don’t work out, maybe UVM would fit the bill. Burlington is a nice college town and the student body leans activist. I can’t comment on the quality of the academics but I know a lot of kids who have gone there and liked it a lot.
1 Like
This is so hard! I hope he will consider staying only because it may not be better elsewhere. The academic rigor piece is hard to assess as freshmen. We know current students at Uchicago, washU, Penn, Duke, NWestern, Wake: they all have some easy classes and they all have some super challenging ones! The Uchicago kid has the most easy ones and does not feel challenged—but they also chose to not take the hardest FL or math they placed into and instead step back.
Kids at some of the other schools stepped back AND are still extremely challenged. The wake kid feels its too easy; their roommate says Work Forest is an understatement and they are overwhelmed. They all report intellectual conversations and all are finding their people so far, yet also are dealing or dealt with feelings of transition away from friends back home.
My point is: perception of rigor all depends on the student, the major, the class choices; changing schools may not be needed and may not help.
4 Likes
In that case American 
This has most definitely added to the stress of all students. Some students understandably feel afraid, and others feel afraid of sharing opinions that might land in a way that could be hurtful to others.
If the student graduated from a California high school after three years of attendance, then the student may be eligible for a non-resident tuition waiver in California public colleges and universities, even if not otherwise eligible for resident tuition due to parents no longer being residents. Look up AB540.
This is very helpful, thank you. He is most definitely not stopping his efforts at Tufts and he continues to seek out academic, social and volunteer opportunities. He has joined a counseling group as well., Thanks for making that suggestion. Transfer applications will keep options open but we are all hoping he finds his peeps at Tufts. The suggestion about off-site tutoring is great and something we had not considered. Thank you
1 Like
I have read through the thread and I really hope he chooses to stay.
If he is interested in social justice, he will find ways to do that. Seventeen to nineteen year olds all enter into college with a wide range of life experiences and maturity levels. I personally think he would be closing himself off to his own learning if he keeps trying to only find others “like him.”
You say he is social and outgoing. It does not seem like he is struggling with isolation or meeting people. It seems his main issue is his own perception of those around him perhaps not being “as worthy” as he feels he is. As someone else pointed out, first semester of freshman year in college I think a lot of students are finding their way and holding back a bit. Just because your son is comfortable being very open with his beliefs does not mean others don’t have similar interest or that they don’t have strong opinions. I know many freshman students may have come from families where their opinions were not asked for nor valued. Kudos to you for making your son comfortable at his age!
As a college professor, I don’t think that students should judge their own learning based on how “hard” they perceive a course to be either. I teach classes with very advanced concepts and require hands on application of knowledge. While many may consider my courses “hard”, my students who truly love the content and simply just love learning don’t view my classes as difficult at all. Just because they have an A and are doing well in the class and enjoy it does not mean they aren’t learning. They are just fortunate to find the right fit for them and I consider it more validation for the student that is it “easy.” Of course those students who were lucky enough to have a solid high school foundation and/or who supplemented their own learning for the love of it will find lower level classes easy. I wouldn’t judge a college based on that though.
6 Likes
Thank you for sharing. He will be very interested in this!
Classes such as La guerra civil española or Voyages&Decouvertes or any non-latin-alphabet language course will be interesting challenges.
Any course in philosophy is likely to tease his brain but if he doesn’t like science, he could pair “Ethics of Food” with “Human Nutrition” or “Ethics of Climate change” alongside “Principles of economics with environmental applications”, “Intro to climate science”, or “Global change biology”.
Math of Social change sounds perfect for him.
3 Likes