@srk2017 – I did sign up for the upgrade on essay organizer but need to go back in and see what it actually gets us – will take a look.
@2muchquan I am not going anywhere! There are too may darn things about this experience to talk about and I still have a D19 and D21!
@srk2017 I’m too lazy to do the report on RPI. You will have to take my S’s word for it and it’s a go. :))
As I said, it’s in Troy, an urban location close to Albany airport. At similar driving distances to NYC and Boston as well as (slightly closer than NYC/BOS to) Syracuse and Hartford airports.
The campus is a mixture of brick buildings and newer concrete buildings. I thought the main, green quad area was pretty. The campus is located on a hill and the view from the interesting looking performance center building was nice.
The dorms are at quite a bit of walk but there is a shuttle, I think, that may be useful in winter.
The dorm we toured was pretty basic, long corridor with rooms along one side.
Some parts of campus looked like more of historic military fort/armory rather than a college campus.
Neither that nor the dorms deterred S from getting a good overall feel during our Spring break visit.
I have a number of colleagues who went to RPI (for undergraduate and grad school) and couple former coworkers teach there so I know that it is a good science/engineering school.
It met the diversity criteria of mine that will be different from yours, caucasian % is 68, a bit higher than those of our other schools.
The gender ratio is 2:1 male:female, oh well, but not as bad as at CO School of mines with 4:1.
It will be expensive for us (close to BU costs) so we will have to see what they offer at the end of the day.
I wish I knew about Rensselaer Medal earlier. I am going to inform our GCs about it for future applicants from our school.
@payn4ward - Thanks for the info on RPI. I have been to Albany couple of years back to visit a friend but didn’t visit RPI. Our main interest is BS/MD program (with science or engineering undergrad). I came across Rensselaer Medal last year and requested our GC to have the school approved (no one else tried before) in time for him to apply. I heard they do offer better packages than Rensselaer Medal for some.
I like it being hilly, S will get good exercise (he is not that motivated to exercise) 
@thinmints …she had the conscious/IV sedation. I swear it took less than 15 minutes! She had four to remove. Are they doing just the gas because there are just two to remove or is that just your preference?
@srk2017 I have a friend who will be doing the BS/MD program at RPI.
Thanks @readingclaygirl - Do you know why your friend chose RPI? Any info regarding the school and BS/MD application process will be great help. Are you a student or parent? just curious 
Well, I was able to insert a visit to tOSU on our way to Pitt this weekend in exchange for removal of Kenyon and Wooster on the way home. I thought OSU would be a no-visit application, but there’s a program that D17 is interested in that behooves a visit, so this is good.
I don’t think I’ve actually unpacked since June.
@srk2017 class of 2016 Student I think it’s because it’s where she got in. She got into there and SUNY Geneseo, denied at BU and wait listed at Northeastern. RPI is closer than Geneseo and her parents wanted her closer. That’s pretty much all I know. She says the male to female ratio isn’t as bad as she thought it would be and she just really liked it.
** University of Chicago: **
This was something of an accidental, last-minute visit as our CWRU visit was cancelled on short notice due to the campus housing additional security forces for the RNC. We visited University of Chicago on a special “summer visit” day, an experience I do not recommend. While there were some extras – including an appearance by the man himself, Dean of Admissions Jim Nondorf, there were more visitors than the campus could readily absorb. Several hundred people gathered in the Rockefeller Chapel on a sweltering hot day. We got little UC decorated fans to compensate for the lack of air conditioning and some UC logo sunglasses.
While waiting, suddenly we were greeted with very loud organ music; this was more than a little startling. Then Nondorf bounded in – he was not what I expected at all. It felt like he was trying too hard to be upbeat and jolly but didn’t quite hit the right notes, referring to the prospective students as “youngsters,” and using the word “awesome” too much. He reminded us that admissions are fickle and there is little to distinguish the accepted from the waitlisted. Don’t worry, you’ll get in somewhere….
A younger admissions officer then dialed it down a bit and did the usual presentation about the school’s history, notable faculty and their scholarly contributions, the common core curriculum, the residential house system, the various clubs on campus (zombie readiness task force, free hot chocolate distribution, etc), the great arts and culinary offerings of the city of Chicago, and went through the components of the application.
Afterwards there was a student panel with a half-dozen undergraduates from different majors. They fielded a variety of questions. I confess that my attention lagged a bit as it was very hot – high 90s and HUMID.
Then the tours – we were divided into groups of 25 or so and between the construction and the other tour guides trying to make themselves heard, it was a bit of a waste. The campus is undeniably gorgeous – a lovely blending of the old and the new (the futuristic Mansueto library is stunning) with many small quads and whimsical architectural features. Unfortunately, we only went into ONE building – the student union building with the seal that you shouldn’t step on if you want to graduate on time. Did I mention that it was really hot? Then back to the chapel where they handed out ice pops and where we found our regional rep and got a card.
I have a feeling that an ordinary tour day would have offered a more personalized experience. This suspicion was confirmed when we met with a former professor of mine – I did not go to Chicago but he had taught elsewhere before Chicago snapped him up. We had lunch and then he took us inside to some of the academic buildings and the libraries and we had a chance to talk about the undergraduate experience in more depth. That rescued what was otherwise a somewhat frustrating tour experience.
Other considerations – the area to the north of campus, Hyde Park, is a leafy, established residential district where a lot of the faculty and some students live. It’s a nice mix of free standing houses and low-rise apartment buildings with the usual coffee shops, restaurants, independent book stores, etc. The Metra rail station is about a 10 minute walk away and there also are buses to connect you to the rest of the city. The area to the south and west of the campus is lower income and a bit run down. There are campus cops on nearly every street corner at night.
Logistics – we stayed at the faculty club – the location could not be beat; free and secure street parking is readily available. There are lots of nice student eateries on 57th street, just north of the main campus.
Conclusion: Perhaps it was unfortunate that this visit immediately followed Oberlin and that it was so beastly hot and humid. D17 wilts in the heat (as do I). Oberlin felt “restful.” Chicago did not. I suspect it will eventually fall of the list due to the location. There was also some concern about the intensity of the quarter system and how the increasing selectivity of the admissions process has changed the composition of the student body and the tenor of intellectual life.
Next stop, WUSTL
@readingclaygirl - thansk for the info. At least for now my S is not worried about gender ratios :)) may be med school or opt for Indian arranged marriage (already said no to the last option) 
high School to College Food allergy webinar Wed, July 27, 1:00 pm http://www.foodallergy.org/webinars
@2muchquan I had wanted to do a self tour of tOSU, but alas, we had weather-related flight delays and that time slot evaporated. Looking forward to your impressions. It has a lot to offer.
@jeepgirl we are hoping for a one and done scenario for son17. It would be awesome to not have to deal with all this crap. Apply ED to school 1, and EA to 1 backup. If that doesn’t work, 2 more apps RD and that’s it. I think that’s our plan right now.
@2muchquan I will try to refrain from heckling you all or gloating if the plan works. I think some of you are going to have some crazy hard decisions to make.
DS told me tonight that he doesn’t understand why we have to visit all the colleges. He says he doesn’t care whether they are pretty or not, or what they look like. I think we may be near the end of our touring… to his credit most of the tours are pretty similar. Maybe if he knew what he wanted to major in it would help.
Good luck to @TimEnchanter and @CA1543 with the wisdom teeth.
DS is having a consultation to find out what is needed the day after he returns from the summer program. Probably won’t be able to schedule the actual extraction for awhile though. He only has 2, also. They don’t seem to be impacted, but will crowd the other teeth. I kept the 2 I had until my early 40s.
@srk2017 I signed S up for the collegeessayorganizer upgrade. Most of the colleges on his list will update the essays in August, I think. I saw on another thread that MIT released their essay prompts today. Looks the same as last year’s essays on collegeessayorganizer, except that question 3 is reworded slightly. http://mitadmissions.org/blogs/entry/our-2016-17-application-essay-questions
Thanks @Mom2aphysicsgeek I just registered for the webinar
2 more schools’ essay done ( actually only one essay since both schools use the same prompt). :)>-
Son submitted app for USCarolina tonight (with lots of encouragement, prodding and hand holding.) Unfortunately, he couldn’t input his ACT score as he hasn’t taken it yet, which blocked him from doing the honors and scholarship part of the app. I’m hoping he can go back and complete those sections if (when) he scores a 29 or higher.
Anyway, that’s 3 Big MAC apps submitted.
@MichiganGeorgia …same here. We’ve decided to postpone tours until after acceptances.