<p>From an earlier post----“Any suggestions for pulling him out of this funk? We’re not even going away this weekend (we were supposed to) because we don’t want to leave him alone in case he gets another rejection letter in Saturday’s mail.”</p>
<p>Ummm, sounds like asking for advice, but then again maybe I missed something.
In any event, I wish nothing but the best for ctmom2boys. From what I know reading her posts, her son is an athlete, a committed student, very conscientious about his responsibilities, and comes from loving and dedicated parents.
I have no doubt his future is bright.
But I do hear ya and I, at times, can be prone to giving advice. Her concern is real for many . What do you do when the targets don’t work out and the safeties don’t look so appealing(because they are safeties).
I agree with ctmom on so many issues. The whole admission process can be so random that for many it borders on unfair.
No harm intended, just openly musing (I like the way that sounds instead!)</p>
<p>And here I am asking for advice Do any of you have a son or daughter like mine that has a technical (geeky) bent but is NOT a stand-out at math? Our college search is becoming slightly crazy. Son really loved Drexel and WPI but the latter is a real reach and I have some concerns about the whole co-op program and the logistics of that. I think those may be more my worries then my son’s. He’s actually very organized and good at time management. I haven’t had to wake him up in the morning for school since fifth grade. (Weekends are a different matter!)</p>
<p>Mathwise son has done Alg I and II, honors Geometry and is now in College Alg (a dual credit program) and next year will either do Calc or AP Stats. The teacher seems to make as much a difference as his grades. He is NOT a self taught learner for math. His passion though is computers and he’s doing very well in AP computer Science right now and would like to major in something in CS, IT, IS or MIS.</p>
<p>A couple of weeks ago son attended an overnight program at his sister’s alma mater (tiny college, so I’d rather not mention the name) which is an LAC and he decided he would like to attend a college like that where the prof’s would rather help the kids understand the material and not intentionally try to weed out the weakest links, which seems to indicate an LAC to me, with (if possible) a strong CS program. Last weekend though was when we visited Bryant and WPI. He really, really liked WPI and it’s geeky but laid back atmosphere and he had a smile on his face the whole time we were there. Nothing about Bryant, except for the free laptops, interested him.</p>
<p>And to top it off, merit money is important since we will not qualify for need based aid but cannot afford $45,000 a year.</p>
<p>Is there an affordable LAC out there with a good CS program and how do we find it? East of the Mississippi would be best. I’ve done probably 2 dozen college visits altogether and we have never had a tour done by anyone except a humanities student with the exception of Champlain College in Vermont. Champlain, BTW, is probably just the kind of College that would work IF we could just get a bit of financial aid and they’re not known for that.</p>
<p>Although I do not have personal knowledge of their CS programs, my suggestions would be:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>LACs off the coast viewed as being affordable/good with merit and nurturing–such as the Central PA group of Susquehanna/Lycoming/Elizabethtown/York; Alfred in NY; and places in Ohio. </p></li>
<li><p>Smaller, affordable publics–Bloomsburg/Salisbury/Rowan/Ramapo/smaller SUNYs.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>These strike me as most likely to be aimed at helping CS students, rather than weeding out the weakest, although their depths of offerings may be less.</p>
<p>kathiep, my S liked WPI too (he toured with a friend’s family), but merit was a concern for us too, I think they are up around 50K.</p>
<p>S was accepted at Drexel, but with no merit, so that didn’t pan out either. So it’s good you’re being realistic about what you need to look for in terms of what you can expect a school to give your S based on his stats. </p>
<p>I’ll see where my S’s friend applied. I think he’s looking for CS and his stats are similar to others in this thread (maybe a little lower)</p>
<p>Kathiep,
WPI is great. I loved it when we visited with our oldest son. They did offer him a very high scholarship, but it’s true, a very pricey institution. The things that are going on with WPI and its future may be worth it though, really exciting stuff with Bio-Engineering and even Computer Game Design. The neat thing about WPI [and some other engineering schools] is that it also has really nice offerings in the Arts. Great music, plays, etc. The campus is nice and I even have a friend whose son joined a fraternity there and that too has been a good experience. If your son had big smiles it was for a reason.<br>
Good luck with all your college touring. In the end it’s the student who needs it to ‘feel right’. The things that blew me over did not do the same for my oldest. When he turned down an incredible opportunity at one school I nearly got sick, as only 40 kids in the world would take those spots. But it just wasn’t for him, and I’m so glad that he knew and felt that himself.<br>
Best,
CCL</p>
<p>yayabe,
So far we have looked at Lycoming and while son liked it, when we visited he said that he thought that Information Science or Information Technology would be his major and they have neither. Now he is back to considering CS and they do have that so maybe it’s back on the table(!) I hope we can visit Elizabethtown, he’s gotten several pieces of mail from them and I’ve only heard good things about that school. York, eh, I visited with my older son and think it’s sort of lacking. I feel the same way about Bloomsburg. Susquehanna is a college I visited with my daughter and I liked (and so does his cousin) and may well get on the list. I think we may need to spend some energy looking more at programs then I did with my other two kids. </p>
<p>Not sure about the SUNY’s. If we’re going to look at public colleges it will be in-state or low cost oos. We are planning on swinging by UNC Charlotte and UNC Greensboro but only because we’ll be in the area. Last week we swung by SUNY- Purchase because we were going past and needed to stop for dinner and were not impressed. (or maybe we were just tired and hungry)</p>
<p>However, we will definitely be looking for an in-state public. My biggest concern there is the reputation for weeding out and the more party school reputation. </p>
<p>I started a thread a couple of months ago asking about how smart would it be to go into debt if the intended major was one that is expected to earn a high salary and with a co-op program would also earn the student money in college? The overwhelming response was not to do it. I think I needed to hear it and may need to hear it again next April ;)</p>
<p>Both of my nephews got very good merit at Drexel but one chose RIT and the other chose an OOS big U.</p>
<p>Kathiep, we took the SUNYs off our list once we saw the price increase for OOS. At that point, I thought we could just stay instate, as there was little incentive. There are some SUNYs that seem to offer merit scholarships specific for OOS students, I believe. If my memory is correct, SUNY Oswego does. Your son would have to love snow to enjoy his 4 years there! Also, you might want to look into East Carolina while in NC. I just do not know how far that is from other places you will be looking at. My son has a friend who is instate for that school and will be attending and majoring in some type of computer major.</p>
<p>ECU offers both a BA and BS in Comp. Sci.
Also:<br>
Information and Computer Technology-Computer Networking BS
Information and Computer Technology-Information Security BS
Information and Comp. Technology-Information Technology BS
Information Technology BSBE</p>
<p>S2 goes there so it was pretty easy to pull that up,lol.
Not really in the area of NC Kathiep plans to visit but maybe another trip.
It is a big state u. though so prob. bigger than what her S is looking for.</p>
<p>MaryAnn,
I have a friend from church whose son is a sophomore there currently. They are so happy with Emmanuel. We didn’t look at it as it didn’t have my son’s major, but it is a nice school and right in Boston. I worked across the street for almost 20 years. There are many colleges around and of course, the best medical care anywhere, just outside your doorstep. Boston can be a great college town, but folks have to remember it’s a city and city rules apply. I lived across the river in Cambridge for a number of years, and honestly I still miss it to this day. Good luck!</p>
<p>katheip,
I don’t know anything about UNC-Greensboro’s computer studies but the school have a a couple of interesting programs. I went to graduate school there many years ago and the campus is quite beautiful. I think the big strengths of the school are in the arts, business, human sciences. If the FA doesn’t come through for son at one of the LAC’s he was accepted to, he has applied to UNCG’s residential college program. The program is called the Warren Ashby College-it is an residential experience with professors teaching some of the classes in the dorm (rest of classes are taken with the general population) and only has 110 kids in it. The program has special weekend retreats for the students, workshops on campus, unique courses and advising and, based on the alumni newsletters from this program (you can review them online), the kids go on to do some impressive things and loved their time there. I don’t know about GPA requirements but they seem to prefer “serious” (their word) students. The program is for the first two years of college when most students are completing general education requirements so it works for any major. additionally, there are other similar residential college programs on the campus (an honors program, international studies, music and theatre arts) that you might want to look at.</p>
<p>Hi Guys,
The mail came today, with GOOD NEWS!! My son finally heard from Clark University. We’re so excited, as the folder inside in huge letters said ‘You’re In’ in clear sight as you opened the envelope. My son is so happy. 7 acceptances and 1 waitlist for this wonderfully bright and talented 3.0-3.3 young man! They even were kind enough to include the FA package inside, which at first glance looks pretty good.<br>
Now time to re-visit everywhere…cannot wait.<br>
Had to share, please forgive me those who are still waiting at the mailbox! I feel your pain! So glad the waiting is over for us.
Best,
CCL</p>
<p>CCL, we just got the Clark acceptance too! </p>
<p>So far the bottom line there looks the best of any of the places he’s been accepted to, mostly because their room & board fees are more than $3K less than anybody else’s. I just hope they heat those rooms! :)</p>
Do any of you have a son or daughter like mine that has a technical (geeky) bent but is NOT a stand-out at math? Our college search is becoming slightly crazy. Son really loved Drexel and WPI but the latter is a real reach and I have some concerns about the whole co-op program and the logistics of that. I think those may be more my worries then my son’s. He’s actually very organized and good at time management. I haven’t had to wake him up in the morning for school since fifth grade. (Weekends are a different matter!)</p>
</p>