To be fair, nobody is actually committing yet. You are seeing parental anxiousness. (Not pointing fingers, my thumbs point right back!)
So does anyone have opinions of Ohio University vs Miami Ohio? Both seem to have good merit. How are they for computer engineering/computer science? I’m thinking OSU is ranked best in Ohio, but it seems so huge. I guess we’re trying to decide whether to include Ohio schools beyond Case on our list.
Would also like to know what their “personality” is like.
@bearcatfan I am no expert, but I saw people mention that if the housing deposit is separate from enrollment deposit it’s ok?
@Chatta Chia You could look into U Toledo for engineering. I have heard good things about Ohio U, but don’t have personal experience.
@Booajo no worries if he changes his mind I’ll change the list;-) DD16 is a current NMF at OU and she loves it! I can’t believe all the opportunities she’s been given, it’s truly been an awesome experience for her so far so I’m rooting for OU!
To be fair all my kids have been ‘early adopters’ DD told me her sophomore year of high school that she would be going to OU, DS18 made the same proclamation about UTD his sophomore year and it looks like DS20 will follow suit. They are solid schools that work for their intended majors and it sure makes planning easier!
Re: committing - Yeah, I wouldn’t call us committed just yet. More like, UNM, at least for now, is probably where S will end up. At the moment, he doesn’t want to apply anywhere else, not even Michigan State, Tulane, UCR for the Haider program or CSULB for one of the only NMF full rides in CA.
As with just about anything else related to teenagers, this all could change by next week. When we came home from our first four visits, Texas Tech was in first place, UNM was second, OU was third but he probably wouldn’t apply, and UTD was off the list. He still wanted to see Michigan State, and he was wavering on Tulane.
By the time we hit June, UNM was first, Tech was second and I had to lean on him to apply just to have a back up in case something went pear-shaped with UNM.
Is this where we’ll be in three more months? Maybe. Maybe not. I’ll let you know when we get there. Until then, Go Lobos!
Ya I should have put “committing” in quotation marks. D has her favorite but that deadline isn’t until 11/1. I’m just envious some of you have locked in/down schools.
@ChattaChia I am an Ohio U grad, so take this all with a grain of salt.
I loved my time at OU, back in the day. The classes where the right size, the professors where accessible, the people were friendly, the campus is beautiful, Athens is charming. What’s not to love about OU? My OOS, B average, DD’16 was accepted at OhioU and given a very nice merit package. We would have paid less to send her to OU than to send her in state to TAMU or TX Tech. Ultimately, she did not choose OU. My friends that graduated with me have gone on to lead comfortable lives, with great jobs/careers and many of them are sending their kids to OU. My friend with a degree in Physics from the Honors college went on to study at Princeton and is now an adjunct Professor at Princeton, my friend with a degree in journalism is the editor of a major business publication in Washington DC, my friend with a degree in mechanical engineering works for Boeing. OhioU is laid back, socially conscious and homey. We partied but we took our classes serious as well. If you don’t learn the balance early on you will sink.
My best friend from HS went to Miami, she taught for a few years and now runs a B&B in Kentucky. When I visited her at Miami periodically over the years there was a BIG difference in campus vibe. Miami was definitely more preppy, in every sense of the 1980’s word and far more monied, conservative and clique-y. The campus was just as beautiful, but I did not feel the town was as charming. My friend would tell you she “liked” her experience at Miami, but I have never heard her use the word love. While I would agree that the students were statistically “smarter” at Miami, with slightly higher GPA and test scores, I never got the impression that she was receiving an academically better education that I was receiving at Ohio.
I never liked OSU, too big. But Buckeye fans are true Buckeyes, through and through.
Have you considered Oberlin? I dont know much about their computer science program. I have always felt there was a healthy mix of arts and sciences at Oberlin that make it very appealing.
Of course if I were picking, I’d pick OhioU. I think Miami and OhioU are about equal in educational outcome but substantively different in atmosphere.
BTW, my husband is a Case grad in Chemical Engineering and he loved Case.
My kid will probably not decide where she’s going until 11:59pm May 1, 2018.
@ChattaChia, I am a Miami grad so take this with a grain of salt. 
Miami: still very preppy, very Greek, really pretty campus with lots of new construction. It offers a lot of good merit. It still ranks very high in the US News quality of undergrad teaching. Like top 5 still? D does not like it and does not want to apply. Too much of a party/Greek school, and I agree it would not be a good fit.
OU: still a party school with a beautiful campus. I think good merit is available, not sure. Still has a very good journalism and marketing reputation. D not interested. Older daughter has friends there who are doing very well and are happy.
OSU: D’s safety school. Very very big. Lots of school spirit around sports. This school is attracting tons of kids at D’s school with stellar stats. D’s exBF is attending with 36 ACT, rank top ten of 600+ students, etc. He got one of the big scholarships - at least full tuition. Older D has lots of friends there who love it and are doing well.
@ShrimpBurrito Thanks for the suggestions. If UBC doesn’t have grade deflation, that sounds like a perfect option for your son! I visited Vancouver once and loved the city.
@traveler98 how wonderful for you that your S may be done and for a good price too!
@labegg @suzy100 thanks both for your input. That is kind of what I thought. So a little more about my son, he doesn’t do sports and could care less about them. I’d be surprised if he had any interest in Greek life, though if it was the right nerd group, maybe. He doesn’t want big, but he would consider honors within a big campus. He’s pretty intellectual and wants an equally talented peer group available to interact with. He attends a small high school with a graduating class of about 70. Of the schools we’ve toured, he loved W&M, but it doesn’t have engineering (thus ruling out Oberlin, although the school itself looked good from a fit perspective).
By the way, my nephew attends OU, but he’s studying business and is more of an average student, not as academically oriented as my son.
@ChattaChia Sounds like Case to me☺ if you visit Case and OU, you might get the impression you are visting the sun and the moon, two completely different places. The Honors College at OU is truly exceptional and I would put those who graduate from it easily equal to a Case grad (don’t tell my husband I said that).
@melvin123 My sense/understanding is that U of Toronto (“UofT”) has the most grade deflation of the Canadian schools–and it may be a significant issue in going there (I’m still not certain that it might not be just sour grapes; but it does truly seem that it’s just a tough curve there–at UofT).
I believe grade deflation is not really such a big deal at McGill (one of the other “big 3” schools in Canada).
For UBC, I have not heard that there’s anything untoward there, in terms of grade deflation. Keep in mind that any decent school in the U.S. won’t being handing out “A’s” like candy, either.
In general, I would think that a good student (good habits, reasonably ambitious) would do well at UBC (and quite likely also at the other two, of the “big 3” Canadian schools, UofT and McGill).
As it happens, UofT might be a very good pick for one or both of my two daughters, and it’s just (unfortunately) the possibility of significant grade deflation that puts me off of UofT a bit.
UBC may end up being the top pick for one or both of my daughters, as it checks a lot of boxes. We will be taking a tour of UBC (and probably also UVic–that is, the University of Victoria) at some stage in the future.
We previously toured UofT in the summer of 2016, and my two daughters were both very impressed.
Now we will soon visit McGill (in a few weeks), and we’ll see how my daughters perceive that possibility.
We are a California-based family, and currently the evolving plan is that my daughters likely will go to a UC school (UCLA probably being the favored choice of the UC schools) or else a Canadian school (if my daughters choose to go out of California–which at the moment they both say that they very much wish to do).
Just to add my own two cents to the issue…
@ChattaChia I missed where you are from, but you might want to look at University of Cincinnati. Great engineering program, the first in the country to have co-ops which are invaluable. The kids graduate in five years (I think - check that), but one of those years includes a lengthy co-op where they get experience AND get paid. They are even expanding the co-op experience into other majors. It is a huge campus but it does have an honors program. Cincinnati is home to many major corporations that go on to higher UC grads.
My husband is a dual degree from there - chemical engineering and law. So that’s why I have it as my user name and profile pic. I went to Syracuse. :x
Checking in - we’re in CA & D had today circled on her calendar to get her AP scores. I offered her the work-around to check them early but she thought that was “cheating” & wanted to wait. She did get up at 5 this morning to check them though. Four 5’s, so she is over the moon. This kid blows me away, I don’t know where she came from. So now I feel like application season is in full swing. I’ll have her start apps to UNM and AZ state today. We’re planning a fall visit to the Northern schools on her list (Pitt, Temple, Fordham, possibly UDel) and will hit the Southern ones in Feb (AZ, Tulane, UCF, possibly Miami, possibly UTD). UNM will hold a back-up position.
@melvin123 Not a parent, but if you’re worried about grade deflation for med school, look into McMaster University’s Health Science program. It’s very competitive, but if you get in, it’s much more likely to get high grades. They also have a really unique inquiry based teaching system with lots of hands on work. It’s well known in Canada (considered a feeder program to med school) and is one of the few programs that requires a supplemental application. Might be something to look into.
Gertrude: congratulations on your daughter’s scores!
My son told me last night he finally realized why I wanted his Common App essay completed by end July. (He’s on draft 2 right now). At first he thought I was just nagging, but he realized last night he has more time now than in August when school starts. After the Common App essay, he has a supplement to write and a honors college essay.
Well we also got the final reveal this morning. It was… not great. But it was also expected. She only had the one, calc AB, a class she struggled with all year. So no real disappointment here. Bonus: since she only took ACT and is an IB student (no more APs), we are done paying the College Board! ;)) Of course we will be paying a horrific amount to IBO so I guess it all balances. :-?
^unless you apply to CSS profile schools, that goes through the Collegeboard as well.