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ShawD was very anxious about the holistic admissions process and decided to apply to university only in Canada (she is a dual citizen, though was born and raised in the US). She attended a summer science program at Mt. Allison University in Sackville, New Brunswick. Unlike most of Canadaâs major universities which are huge and offer many courses of study from physics to kinesiology, it is more like a liberal college and, according to the President, sees schools like Amherst and Williams as aspirational targets. Both ShawD and I really liked the spirit and approach of the university.
I worked with a Mt. Allison alum who had been a Rhodes Scholar and learned that Mt. Allison is a Rhodes Scholarship factory. Massachusetts, RI, NH and VT with with schools such as Harvard, MIT, Brown, Dartmouth, Amherst, Williams, and Tufts get two Rhodes Scholars. Maritime Region (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island) also gets two Rhodes Scholars, which is smaller from a population standpoint and much less strong in terms of universities in the region. Mt Allison figured this out and identifies strong candidates early and, in effect, preps them for the Rhodes process. Mt. Allison has produced something like 56 Rhodes Scholars. The alum I worked with introduced my daughter to the President and his wife when she was there and they were very encouraging about the experience she would have if she attended Mt. Allison. I think she probably would have been among those boosted for the Rhodes.
ShawD went back for a visit in early May (I think) and there was a white-out. Moreover, she was concerned that she would be one of a very small number of Jewish kids and that it was very remote. She was a dress-up/not outdoorsy kind of girl though now she is very outdoorsy and physically active. So, she attended Queens for one semester before transferring to the US. At Queens, she was very active in their Jewish community and in the US, she was president of Hillel for two years. The transfer to the US was to an accelerated BSN/MSN program where she became a Family Nurse Practitioner at age 23 and has remained very happy with her career choice. So all is well that ended well, but I really liked Mt. Allison for her.
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Notre Dame. I think a lot more kids would love it if they were open to learning more. I know South Bend and Catholic is a tough sell for many.
The school is actually very open and religion doesnât need to be a part of the experience in any way. I do think some kids would appreciate the general tone of kindness, care for others, and service that permeate.
The school on all levels could not be more warm. A personal letter from AO on acceptance and a safe travels email before admit day. We walked into a dining hall and the woman at door insisted on a private tour of offerings and took great pride in working there. Kids would stop us and say hello or ask if we had any questions that werenât part of the admit experience.
The classes are small, undergraduate focus, residential college system that truly becomes a family. Forever more as an alum youâll be identified by house. Each has their own charm and traditions. Football Saturdayâs start on Friday and are family affairs. Same is true for orientation programming. They want you to be a part.
My child reached out on linked-in to 5 doctors for shadowing and got responses from 3 almost immediately. The alumni network is very real and very strong.
Youâre also immediately put in alumni club. Ours has a baseball game with local team, cooking class, and something else that I canât recall set-up for months ahead.
Itâs a phenomenal school and provides a great student experience, youâre Irish for life not for 4 years. We will always hold a deep fondness.
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It doesnât sound like ND got away but that your child went there.
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Committed and then got off a waitlist, but yes, got to experience a lot of what ND had to offer between March and May. Also have a few nieces and nephews that attended so know how strong the alumni network has been for them.
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For my kid itâs UA-Huntsville. It was both a financial and academic safety, but kid loved their clear communication. There wasnât a lot of complexity - much merit was automatic, it was rolling admission, all dorms on campus have the same layout (and itâs a good one - 4 small private bedrooms off of a common living room, kitchenette, and bathrooms), and everybody was very friendly. For a kid with a no-drama engineering mindset, this is a good fit. Weâve actually recommended it to a friend who is a year younger and itâs high on their list now.
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Swarthmore. D24 was admitted and committed but chose Pomona when offered a waitlist spot. Of course, whenever Swarthmore is mentioned, everyone talks its putative âintensity.â So Iâd like to disabuse folks about a few misconceptions. First off, from what Iâve read, the actual workload of Swat is no different from peers like Williams and Pomona according to students whoâve had experience at Swat and one of these schools. Second, intensity does not mean competition. Every firsthand account from Swatties indicates that it is overwhelmingly collaborative and anti-competitive. Third, the most positive spin Iâve heard about Swatâs intensity is that itâs largely self-imposed by the students themselves and mostly the result of their organic desire to learn, which also explains Swatâs PhD production.
Anyhow, hereâs whatâs great about Swat: Gorgeous campus; convenient access to Philly; incredible diversity; Quaker egalitarian ideals; really interesting students; amazing financial aid; great study abroad; a cash-free campus; cool traditions; crazy endowment; learning for learningâs sake; and unquestionably top-notch academics. Itâs not for everyone, but I think itâs a pretty special place.
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Beloit College for us. Weâd never heard of it, but my daughter wanted a small school strong in humanities so it ended up on the list as a likely. The visit blew us all away. The faculty was so nice, friendly and open. Their new student union is amazing, and the town was very cute. They also had a very strong merit aid package. Beloit was her runner up school over many other more selective colleges. But in the end, D24 selected Kenyon after the visit for the beautiful campus and the strong student community.
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We just did an East Coast College Tour.
My favorite was Wellesley. It seemed more like a Summer Camp than a College. Just a beautiful wooded setting on Lake Waban. Gorgeous old buildings that were updated on the insideâno musty odors. Top tier academics and a great message of female empowerment. Campus was OPEN unlike a lot of schools during the summer. Great little town right off of campus. I was blown away.
My daughter was likeâŠmeh.
She absolutely loved Holy Cross and I was likeâŠmeh.
But it is 100% her decision, so we will go with what she wants.
Perhaps Wellesley will take me (50+ year old man)?
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@NemesisLead lol-ing over here. Wellesley was the one that got away for MY dad many decades ago. He wanted me there more than anything and would have loved for the school to take him as a 50+ year old man. I can still see his face when I turned down the early action admissionâthought he actually might cry.
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stumbled across this and feeling comforted that Iâm not the only one with a strong attachment to a school that my S24 declined a spot on. Totally fell in love with Northwestern and really hurt my heart watching him click on that withdraw/decline button.
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For S22 it was Lee University. He ended up at UTK which is very large and crowded but I think he would have thrived at Lee U. They were awesome on the tour and let the students meet with professors in their intended majors and those guys were so engaged with the students. I think my son would have appreciated more of the one on one.
For S24 itâs Hillsdale. They wanted him badly and his interview with them was really good.
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@NemesisLead I felt that same way as you, only my daughter felt the same as your daughter. Had Easter brunch in that amazing coffee/breakfast place in town, the campus is stunning to say the least, their network is best in class, the empowerment is real, but wow, my kid was right there with yours.
âI donât like the vibe from these girlsâŠat all.â
Wanted my DD to be a Wellesley kid, and things have been great for her at school, but yeah, I did love the campusâŠ
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I loved Elon. Campus felt like a safe bubble with happy kids and we were super impressed with all of their communications. Daughter even got a personal phone call from the AO letting her know she was admitted. Seemed like the right size and a good fit, but she chose Syracuse (and we are super excited about that, too)
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Any updates? For those of you who have received (or whose kids have received) an ED admission recently, what schools are you sad to have to kiss goodbye?
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Not a recent admit, but I thought this was sweet: My S23 still loves the school that he turned down (Oregon State) so much that he went to visit it over Thanksgiving break!
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I remember how much your son loved Oregon State. When he got into Cal, even I was a little sad.
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Lafayette College and Washington & Lee
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University of Puget Sound had my daughters heart from the beautiful campus, interesting students and faculty, coffee shop in the middle of campus all while being in a bigger city but not urban. She got in with a nice scholarship but when starting at $80k she needed an amazing scholarship so had to let UPS go. Iâm still a little sad about it.
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Are you still on, i have 2 kiddos and they looked at a lot of the same schools, Butler was a nice surprise, great campus feel near a big city but not in downtown. Dayton - great dorms and junior/senior living in houses. Clemson - would be my choice , warmer weather and lake nearby