A close friend on mine is on the faculty of UD, by the way, and loves it there. She only has very positive things to say about the students and overall campus environment. It’s a good place to be.
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My daughter appreciated having a sitting president speak at her graduation.
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You also have to “own” Chris Christie is my kids response😀
She did not apply to any Ivy League schools. Hubby wanted her to, but I know she did not have the stats, so it was a pointless application and application fee. She was rejected at UVA in state and OOS UNC Chapel Hill. Both expected rejections but worth a shot.
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she is hoping to do the 4+1 program at UD.
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UD sounds like the right decision for her.
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I agree. I think maybe Delaware just isn’t talked about here in Virginia. At all. It’s UVA and VT and lots of JMU. It definitely doesn’t have the name recognition of some of the other schools she applied to. Even some of her teachers had to look it up as they hadn’t known anyone to apply there and she is at a very competitive, large high school. We knew nothing about it either. It just seemed like a good option since she wanted the vibe of the northeast but didn’t want to be a plane ride away from home. We were so pleasantly surprised when we visited.
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So I go back to - the entire conversation is folly. Does your husband realize this? He can only demean her, hurt her. There is no “win” here.
Does he want her to take a gap year and try again? Or go to a CC and transfer?
She did reach - and it didn’t happen. And even if she got in - who’s to say she’d still not have chosen UD?
I go back to she’ll “happily” attend - you don’t hear that too much - and with such great acceptances, that she’s decided this early says a lot!!!
Best of luck to her.
PS - no one heard of Delaware? That’s regional bias - because nationally, more will have heard of it than JMU - but those two are football rivals - they sort of already share a commonality.
Not that it matters but UD is #76 in US News and JMU #124. Penn State is #60 - not sure who’d they rather she choose - but #60 and #76 - and even to #124 - is - really - nothing.
Hopefully she can keep her enthusiasm up - she’ll soon be a Blue Hen. That’s pretty cool!!!
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it truly is weird. when we say “Delaware” people look at us like we have 3 eyeballs.
I promise he fully backs her decision and is excited for her. He just wants to make sure she is making the right decision among her choices. (and these are private conversations between him and I) High school was not easy for her…not a ton of friends, some new chronic health issues, etc. but she still made excellent grades and is adored by her teachers.
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Delaware is a popular choice among many kids in the northeast.
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Because of sports 
People know schools because of sports. It’s why everyone (I say that kiddingly) is looking at SEC schools - solid academics, cheap costs, great weather and BIG SPORTS. When I applied to Syracuse, it was because of basketball!
So look at your list - all great schools:
U of SC - big sports
Clemson - big sports
Penn State - big sports and historically a great name
Pitt - ACC sports - big at times
WVU - ACC sports - big at times
Delaware - historically - 1AA sports - now moving up for football.
JMU - historically 1AA sports - now moving up for football - in your case regional bias.
All these schools will have areas of strength where maybe they stand out over others in that particiular area - like U of SC and International Business…and then just lots of solid programs. WVU has made budgetary decisions that might impact students and the State of PA is trying to wrangle efficiencies from its publics - which could impact Penn State and Pitt.
But these are all GREAT schools - but everyone knows Clemson (Football, of course) - and yes, so not everyone would know UD. Just like outside of the mid atlantic, most won’t know of JMU.
But that’s all sports related - in my opinion.
Anyway, every thing I read about UD on this website is awesome. Of course, each kid is different and if HS was tough, college may or may not be. No one ever knows til they’re on campus.
One thing I might add and I’m sure you looked into this - you noted health issues. Campus medical is often strained - so hopefully you’ve found or will find private practitioners ample in the UD vicinity.
Get dad a hat and make him wear it proudly
Best of luck to her.
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To be honest, if I had to rank all of the universities that your child was accepted to based solely on what I know (without checking any ranking on-line), I would either flip coins multiple times or put them in alphabetical order. They are all very good universities. None of them are Ivy League schools – and that is entirely okay.
I have two very close family members who got their bachelor’s degree at universities that are ranked lower than Delaware. One then got two related master’s degree at an Ivy League university, the other is getting a DVM at a very good (top 5) program.
From everything that I have heard the University of Delaware is a very good university. If a daughter wanted to go there (or a son if I had one), then I would look at the budget, and if this was fine then I would be supportive.
Your plusses for Delaware are valid. Assuming that the budget fits, the next question might be: Who is going to be attending classes, doing homework, and taking exams? How do they feel about it?
Fit is important. I think that your child made a good choice.
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Which other school(s) does your spouse see as being significantly “more prestigious”?
I’m asking myself the same question. If I had to rank these these schools, maybe Pitt and Penn State would be a hair above the rest in terms of national reputation, most would be tied immediately below that, and then JMU and WVU would round out the bottom (the latter because it’s going through some changes right now that will detract from the overall quality from the university, not because of past reputation). But these are not significant distinctions – fit is what matters. Delaware is a great school with a well-established reputation (in the Northeast, especially). Excellent choice.
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I could understand this situation if your son/daughter had chosen WVU over the others, but–other than Penn State–her choices seem similar.
U Delaware offers some top notch engineering majors & is a more manageable size than PSU.
Was your son/daughter admitted to any honors college ?
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I had to look up what JMU is. Not from that area. And I have a kid at Lafayette College, which no one in MN has heard of. Blank stares.
What is this?
I believe the OP has said that the spouse is not demeaning this kid in front of the kid.
I think we need to respect that.
There…
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Probably the same with St. Olaf, Gustavus Adlophus, etc. If you asked me before I got on the CC, I would have asked - did Rose from the Golden Girls attend. Even elite Carleton - no one has heard of.
And yet all these unknowns produce winners - and so will UD !!!
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Something I try to remind myself when I find myself thinking this or reflecting on the schools my friends’ kids have chosen - It’s his journey, not mine. I had my journey. He gets to pick his.
An important factor is “fit”. If your D goes to a reputable school (which all on your list are), she will succeed if she is happy there.
Let’s be honest: for a lot of kids, there will be a graduate degree in their future. And once you have a graduate degree, no one pays attention to the undergraduate. So, if she wants to go an Ivy, she can do it for grad school (and if she doesn’t, that is her choice). I have a number of friends who were Ivy undergrads and have done little with their degrees. And I know of others who went to non-ivys who have amazing lives and careers.
It’s what you do once you graduate that counts.
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