I am just going to bluntly agree with you here, and my purpose in doing so is just to observe it probably doesn’t make sense for her to put any undue pressure on herself.
Like, obviously she should reasonably challenge herself, and do her reasonable best. But reasonable means as consistent with healthy, sustainable practices. And that is very important because the kids who have done a good job establishing such habits in HS tend to have a smoother transition to college.
Because I do think there is a very good chance that no matter what she does this upcoming year, she will end up picking her favorite SUNY offer. This is because of a combination of budget and what she is looking for, and really that is not at all a bad outcome! And if she specifically goes there well-prepared with sustainable habits, then I foresee good things for her generally.
Or she will end up with another affordable offer to consider, or multiple–I certainly can’t rule that out. I again just would not want her to think that depends on pushing herself unreasonably, which if anything is more likely to backfire.
It’s worth adding that a school doesn’t have to be D1 to have school spirit. Plenty of students root for their teams at D2 and D3 schools, and it can be a lot of fun at those colleges because there’s less social distance between the student athletes and the other students than there might be in a D1 school – they know each other from class, it’s easier and cheaper to go to games, and there are conference rivalries and post-season tournaments just like in any D1 school. And of course, sports aren’t the only factor that contributes to school spirit. So as you’re looking at schools, ask about general student engagement in the athletic scene – but also the arts and other cultural activities, community service, clubs, research, and so on. All of these elements of student life can contribute to school spirit.
they actually have listing, and I think they use something roughly akin to Umass weighting
scale so you can figure it out. (This is based on my own kid applying and their gpa, etc).
I agree with above, I think getting to 28K with only merit is going to be hard in the northeast regardless of grades. (It sounds like her grades and rigor are quite good.)
FYI on the common app you will report what is on your kids transcript, which very well could be a 93 (not a 3.7 or whatever). Colleges know how they want to adjust!
Agreed - we have some good choices with SUNY. I’m just trying to get a handle on what our universe of choices is, and it looks like it’s smaller than I had hoped.
Thank you so much for saying this. She is a diligent student with good study habits. If raising her grades by three points isn’t going to change our options, it isn’t worth pushing her so hard she burns out. I’m going to come back and re-read your comment every time I stress over a less than perfect grade.
It sounds like she wants big time sports. So you either go to another part of the country or expand a bit. In addition to WVU, on a lesser scale you have the MAC schools which aren’t so far - and some might hit.
The smaller schools don’t sound like what she’s looking for.
Maine is another to look but while you’ll find D1 I don’t think it’s over spirited. But they might match other states tuitions.
Seems to me a WVU (I’d call it Northeast) is a need to look into school.
Easy admit.
$43k for tuition, room and board.
Scholarships to get you to budget with a 1360 SAT or within a thousand or two without.
Big 12 sports.
Louisville - further away but not far and a great town ACC sports.
You have to flex because the reality is what she seeks (as it sounds to me) is not largely available in your region but it is a close flight or drive away.
Edit - few nationally will be Penn State but your best bet is where you don’t want to be - the south - of which many NE kids go to school.
Agreed! I went to a DIII school and loved cheering my friends on while they played! She just loves attending sports events, so any school with a lot of school pride, enthusiastic supporters, and traditions would make her really happy. I know we can’t afford Penn State, so I was just hoping to find out about some hidden gems that have more school spirit.
Thanks for the suggestion of WVU. It isn’t as far as I thought, so we’ll put it on the list as a possibility.
To be honest, while I think a large DI would be amazing for her, I think she would be just as happy with a DIII that is small if the student section at games was enthusiastic, there were rivalries and traditions, and people had a lot of pride in their school. So I guess I’m looking for some ideas for some out-of-the-box ideas for those types of schools.
Agreed we all have to be flexible and she is probably not going to get what she wants, since cost is the most important factor.
Albany, Stony Brook and Bing have D1 hoops. Only Buff D1 football. Albany might be worth a look.
Syracuse if you can figure out the NPC but it’s harder to get in and is need aware meaning they could turn you down on the basis of how much need you have.
SUNY Cortland was mentioned earlier and they have a pretty fun rivalry with Ithaca College. Even a big football game every year called the Cortaca Jug.
If a school is D1, it is D1 (may have club level at some sports) for all varsity sports. Or are you saying that for these NY schools, only Buffalo has football?
Both my kids went to schools where all students can attend all athletic events by showing a student ID (no additional charge), Wyoming (D1) and Florida Tech (D2). Definitely more excitement at the D1 (band, cheerleaders, mascots, tailgating). However, we also looked at the smallest D1 school there is (Presbyterian) and definitely more excitement at the D2 school.
In all divisions, there are tiny schools and gigantic schools. Some have football as the big sport while others have hockey, basketball, soccer. IMO all have their version of spirit and traditions.
I’d have her put the sports/spirit into the ‘feel’ column of the checklist, sort of you’ll know it when you see it but you can’t really define what it means.
WVU is in the Big 12, so there is excitement and it comes to a stadium near you!
SUNY - those schools all have hoops and other sports but not D1 football (except Buffalo in the MAC) which let’s not confuse with the Big 10 or ACC.
It sounds to me like this student wants the big school experience although the parent notes budget rules. Hence, if the SAT is decent, WVU could be a home run.
Schools like Cortland - sorry - been there many times - that’s a limited dose spirit. If that’s what the family can afford then great, you settle.
If Louisville is too far then no to Miami.
The parent mentioned like Penn State. You can count on two hands the schools that would work.
Schools like James Madison and URI could have a 1% chance of working but would be highly unlikely. Temple another - unlikely but not impossible to hit costs. But these three would be very difficult to hit cost.
And OP should know college often costs more than you think - there are extras so maybe the budget should be $25k, not $28k.
Or maybe Comm College should be considered for two years.
Albany plays D1 football too! In the CAA. So what used to be D1AA and is now FCS. Completing with North Dakota and Richmond etc… It’s not the SEC or anything but they are d1. That said they do not have a stadium of 30k fans. Binghamton has no football. As a family we lived nearby and enjoyed basketball at Albany.
DIII can ‘play up’ to D1 in one men’s/one women’s sport with permission, but a D1 school can’t play down and that’s why some D1 schools play Club in several sports. Union was one of the schools that got a hockey exemption when the NCAA formed divisions. Hopkins plays up in lacrosse, Colorado college in men’s hockey and women’s soccer. Some of the schools that play up get to offer scholarships for the D1 teams, but not all.
Yes, Albany is FCS which is now a subgroup of D1 but isn’t. It’s the old 1AA but is D1 in all other sports. Behind Buffalo, it might make the best choice for OP. As a SUNY it will be very non diverse geographically.
It’s not WVU in spirit but it could fit the financial bill and that’s priority one for OP.
I went through Niche and looked at the athletic grades of colleges in the northeast. Nearly all of the schools with a “B” or better were included below that I thought your D might have a reasonable chance of acceptance. These ratings are based on a combination of factors, including school records, attendance records, and student surveys. These are not necessarily the gospel truth, but it’s a starting point, and there were definitely some surprises for me on these lists.
One of the main things is to run the Net Price Calculators to see if your family qualifies for sufficient need-based aid to bring the school within budget. If the A+ and A schools don’t bring the price within budget via need-based aid, I would eliminate them all as I think it highly unlikely that your D would receive sufficient merit aid to bring the price within budget.
I’ve bolded some of the schools that I think might have the best shot of hitting your budget via merit aid, but that does not mean that there are unbolded schools that might not hit your price point.
A+ Schools
Lehigh (PA ): A+
A Schools
Babson (MA): A
Bucknell (PA ): A
College of the Holy Cross (MA): A
George Washington (D.C.): A
Trinity (CT): A
U. of Rochester (NY): A
A- Schools
American (D.C.): A-
Binghamton (NY): A-
Brandeis (MA): A-
Dickinson (PA ): A-
Drexel (PA ): A-
Fairfield (CT): A-
James Madison (VA): A-
Lafayette (PA ): A-
New Jersey Institute of Technology: A-
Rensselaer Polytechnic (NY): A-
Skidmore (NY): A-
Stony Brook (NY): A-
Syracuse (NY): A-
Temple (PA ): A-
The College of New Jersey: A-
Union (NY): A-
U. at Buffalo (NY): A-
U. of Maryland - Baltimore County: A-
Worcester Polytechnic (MA): A-
B+ Schools
Bentley (MA): B+
Catholic (D.C.): B+
Clark (MA): B+
Clarkson (NY): B+
Connecticut College: B+
George Mason (VA): B+
Gettysburg (PA ): B+
Howard (D.C.): B+
Kean (NJ): B+
Molloy (NY): B+
Montclair State (NJ): B+
Muhlenberg (PA ): B+
Providence (RI): B+
Rochester Institute of Technology (NY): B+
Saint Joseph’s (PA ): B+
Seton Hall (NJ): B+
St. Bonaventure (NY): B+
SUNY Environmental Science & Forestry: B+
Thomas Jefferson (PA ): B+
Towson (MD): B+
U. of Massachusetts - Lowell: B+
U. of New Hampshire: B+
U. of Scranton (PA ): B+
U. of Vermont: B+
West Virginia U.: B+
B Schools
Adelphi (NY): B
Alfred (NY): B
Allegheny (PA ): B
Bard (NY): B
Bryant (RI): B
Bryn Athyn (PA ): B
Carlow (PA ): B
Duquesne (PA ): B
D’Youville (NY): B
Eastern Mennonite (VA): B
Fairleigh Dickinson (NJ): B
Fordham (NY): B
Franklin & Marshall (PA ): B
Gallaudet (D.C.): B
Hobart and William Smith (NY): B
Hofstra (NY): B
Husson (ME): B
Lasell (MA): B
Le Moyne (NY): B
Loyola Maryland: B
Manhattan (NY): B
Marywood (PA ): B
Messiah (PA ): B
Misericordia (PA ): B
Niagara (NY): B
Rider (NJ): B
Roberts Wesleyan (NY): B
Rowan (NJ): B
Saint Francis (PA ): B
Salisbury (MD): B
Salve Regina (RI): B
Shenandoah (VA): B
Slippery Rock (PA ): B - and almost assuredly will come in within budget
Wow, thank you for putting all of this information together! I wouldn’t have thought of thinking about it that way. It’s definitely much bleaker than I thought it would be, but I appreciate the knowledge.