@cakeisgreat - CMU was our initial top choice, for all of the reasons you cite. But S2 is currently firm in his geographic circumscription, and 6 hours or so to Pittsburgh is not cutting it with him. Really a shame, but it’s what it is…
@BrooklynRye What about Tufts?
@BrooklynRye - What about a SUNY? Rutgers? Lehigh? Penn State?
Regarding WPI, the school itself is a good hour drive from Boston. I wouldn’t say the kids that go there are going tthere because it is a “Boston” school. they go because the style and quality of the education for engineering, and the chance to intern with local firms during their time there. The kids spend most of their time on campus or exploring Worcester or getting out to go skiing and outdoors stuff nearby. There are tons of good food places in Worcester for the kids to visit. It’s a pretty safe zone, certainly feels a little less sketch than Troy overall, although both have cruddy parts. The campus is alright for an urban-ish kind of school. Its easy to get to, safe, plenty of parking, it isn’t falling apart, new buildings being erected. The WPI grads easily find jobs in the local Boston economy.
I don’t have any ties to WPIl, but I have been there many times for events and I know several kids there right now. The kids at WPI seem to be a happier lot vs the kids at RPI, where I also know a few kids attending. RPI is a grind kind of school. WPI s more relaxed. The whole focus at WPI is collaboration and I did not get that vibe at RPI. I do like RPI though, nothing bad to say about it, other than low male to female ratio and Troy kind of stinks. My older son almost went there, but chose NEU over it in the end.
Carnegie Mellon was mentioned and I would agree he should keep that on the list if he likes tech schools in an urban setting.
I was going to suggest Bucknell, but that’s hardly urban is it? Lol. Neither is Penn State, but I’m told it is its own city.
@BrooklynRye My first thought was Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken. Great school, successful graduates. The only downside is the 70/30 male female ratio that your son doesn’t want. Not sure if the ratio is becoming more balanced as more girls go into STEM.
@BrooklynRye Others are ahead of me. I was going to suggest CMU and UVM. I would also throw McGill into the mix. Like CMU is a bit out of the driving range, but it has all of the other criteria. (My S17 is entering his second year there. He had many of the exact same criteria.) Penn was his other top but for reasons relating to athletics he did not apply ED…and we knew that RD he was a TOTAL hail mary. (My wife and I are both Penn alums.)
My son had also considered both Northeastern and BU. He preferred Northeastern’s campus to BU’s mostly because it had slightly more green space. Both are terrific schools (our suburban Boston high school sends a ton to each) and Boston is a great college city. In the end, my son chose McGill over both based on cost and a few other factors. He is really pleased with that decision.
@Wisteria, Tufts on our short list. A bit of reach perhaps and on the small side. Also still about 20-30 minutes outside of Boston. Have some concerns about the ‘vibe’ there. A bit snobby?
@Trixy34 - SUNY Stony Brook on the list as his safe school. Supposed to be a pretty up and coming Engineering program. Not at all worried about admission which is why no Rutgers or other SUNYs. S2 hated Lehigh on our visit. For him at least, very small and isolated. A lot of social life tied-up in Greek. Penn State too far and no city. Yes, Penn State kind of a city unto itself, but not the urban setting S2 is looking for (where’s the Newbury Comics up there…lol?). Bucknell is even more remote, pretty small, and, hey, it’s Lewisburg, PA…lol
@Rightcoaster - Your insights into the vibe at WPI vs. RPI are very important, mostly because we got the same sense about RPI and not sure S2 would thrive in this environment. Thank you!
@Aida - S2 did precollege at Stevens, also in an engineering discipline. The school is a real gem and has some of the absolute best panoramic views of the Manhattan skylight. Hoboken is a wonderful small city and access to NYC is great. But the school, despite about 4,000 undergrad is really (really) small. The 70/30 is a very tough hill, particularly if you are not a super outgoing personality. This is indeed changing, as it is at RPI, as more women go STEM.
@SwimmingDad - Am keeping (quietly) CMU on the list. Too good a school and too good a fit to just castoff. McGill is a wonderful school. At least your kid seriously considered your alma mater. I’m a Swarthmore alum…You get the picture. Do love Penn though and would wholeheartedly support an ED app, but S2 does not seem so inclined. What sport did your S17 play? Curious because my S1 was an athletic recruit who loved Penn but for coaching reasons chose Columbia to be in NYC.
Amazing feedback. Thank you all so much.
@BrooklynRye - When you figure it out, let me know. Lol. I’m in sort of a similar situation with my son. He’s undecided, but probably leaning STEM, engineering, etc., though he has thrown out the idea that he might be a good professor (probably because he was able to explain calculus to me - I swear, even after taking Calc 101 in college, I was still clueless) I keep trying to suggest schools in the Midwest or South that might be a good fit for him, and he is so resistant. Not that I want him to go far away, but I don’t want to pay Northeastern prices.
Anyway - yes, we drove through Bucknell’s campus last summer and it’s very much in the middle of nowhere. I thought Lewisburg was a really cute college town, but probably not enough to make up for the remoteness. That said, DS19 really loved Colgate when we visited earlier this week, so I’m thinking maybe Bucknell should go back on our list.
@Trixy34 Is Lewisburg walkable from Bucknell’s campus? Do kids spend any time there? I’m finding rural schools seem much more palatable if the town is very near campus and kids can hop over for a movie or a meal…even if the town is small.
@homerdog - there is a main drag in Lewisburg that is adjacent to the Bucknell campus. If I recall correctly, the Barnes and Noble on that street serves as the campus bookstore. It’s really just one street, but cute with a bunch of eateries and shops. Has a historical feel to it. Don’t recall a movie theater.
@BrooklynRye From what I hear the trip into Boston from Tufts is easy and kids do it regularly, plus there’s stuff going on right outside campus. As for ‘snobby’ vibe, I honestly don’t know what causes some posters to describe schools that way. I didn’t get a snobby vibe there, then again, I didn’t find snobby at any school I have visited. FWIW, I have heard Tufts described more as quirky, eclectic.
There is a movie theater in Lewisburg on the main street, it is old and shows 1, maybe 2 movies at a time. Some new releases, some older films, sometimes a free showing of the Wizard of Oz on a Saturday morning.
Just curious, but is there anyone in this thread from Texas, who is looking at Texas schools? I know there is a Texas school forum, but it’s not very active.
There is a Bucknell run movie theater on the Main Street and it’s a super cute town. Walkable from campus as well. Our S19 engineering list (civil) is all over the place as we are trying to take advantage of a tuition consortium where hubby works. They are competitive so the net needs to be cast wide. I have no clue what son’s weighted GPA is but I think maybe about 4.25ish. They don’t share class rank until this fall so no clue there. Took ACT twice and scored 34 both times. Our list in no order includes:
George Washington
Bucknell
Wentworth
Lafayette
Villanova
Norwich
Quinnipiac
Stevens
Clarkson (haven’t visited yet)
UMass (Lowell and Dartmouth probably)
Roger Williams (home institution)
WPI was a no in his eyes. Didn’t like the large classes during the early years. We are there often for athletic events l, know the campus, and they non guarantee of housing is a deal breaker as well. Worcester is pretty gritty.
@wisteria100 -Thanks for the feedback on Tufts. No offense (or prejudice) intended. I don’t quite know why I have it in my head. Perhaps from the type of kids I knew growing up who went to Tufts or perhaps due to friends of my kids who have gone there. In any case, it’s on our list but, vibe aside, is probably less desirable being smaller and outside of Boston.
Hi @4MyKidz. I am in Texas. D is sort of bent on getting out of Texas, but I have looked at a lot of TX schools. IF D can get in to UT Austin, and that’s a big if, she would consider it. She is not in the top 6% in her class, which is what you need to be in order to get automatic admission. I think UTSA is her safety, but since we live in San Antonio, she’s not too crazy about it. I hear they have nice dorms, and we would let her live on campus. BTW that app finally opened a few days ago. I think that is the only university application that was not open by Aug 1. The didn’t seem to know when it would be up on ApplyTX, and that to me was astonishing since I would think they are trying to attract students. What schools are on “the List” for y’all?
@maandmemom nice college list! I worked with a student doing a coop from Clarkson…nice person and competent. Really liked his school. Love to hear your thoughts when you visit!
S19’s list so far:
Elon U
Virginia Tech
College of Charleston
Quinnipiac U
Stockton U
Marist College maybe …have to visit. Anyone have any thoughts about this college? Especially with premed in mind?
Rowan U maybe…have to visit
I loved so many other colleges that I would love for him to apply, but these are the ones he felt he could see himself at.
@BrooklynRye He is a distance runner. When he started looking (summer between Sophomore and Junior years) he was clearly going to be close to the walk in times. BUT they had a kid who went a 3:57 mile and their recruiting went nuts…so what seemed to be within reach a year later was most likely out of reach. That said, I honestly believe that though he would have been happy at Penn that McGill was the right choice for him.