Schools your kids love

[Anonymous]

I am getting a little tired of reading the sniping between status conscious parents and those who value fit over prestige.
Also, the many many post on acceptances and rejections.

I know those are the nature of this board...but can we drum up some posts from parents of older students, who went to college in the last five years and were very pleased with their choice of school?

(Please refrain from putting down the schools kids loved...Happy Holidays).

[Anonymous]

UVa---not helpful, I know, but it's a great school.

Gettysburg---got a half-tuition scholarship and has worked his butt off. Is highly regarded by faculty and has been given opportunities and recognition he wouldn't likely have gotten if he'd gone to a school that others with his high numbers attend.

Lehigh---great engineering program and a good place for a kid with high numbers but not much self-confidence to start to believe in himself.

Virginia Tech---prepared another strong student well for applying to physical therapy programs. He currently attends U Delaware, always considered one of the top programs in the nation. Only problem he had was finding it more difficult than expected to get a spot in marching band freshman year.

RPI---great for engineering. Got a job with a nationally known company straight out of college.

Catholic U---turned down Johns Hopkins for a full-tuition scholarship and the traditional Catholic education she wanted. Got both an undergrad and Master's degree in biomedical engineering in 4 years, and got a job as a medical researcher at NIH before graduation. Liked Catholic enough that her younger sister and brother decided to go there, too.

[Anonymous]

VCU- his stats are much higher than their average but he loves the city aspect, music venues, restaurants, near the river. He should get decent merit and if he still lives it all the better.

[Anonymous]

I am directly copy-pasting this reply to a thread that I found extremely helpful, honest, and positive (nice change of pace for DCUM, lol!). So, thank you, whoever wrote this!


-------------------


I'm the recent alum commenting again - apologies in advance for the very long answer ahead.

Quarter system: Granted, I didn't have a true point of comparison since I never attended a semester school (though my high school was on the semester system), I really loved the quarter system. I loved that each quarter had a very distinct vibe (fall, winter, spring), with different things to look forward to each quarter. It almost felt like I was getting more out of college, if that makes sense. The obvious upside is that you have so much more leeway to take classes, double major, minor, dabble in certificates, etc. The downside is that midterms start up at around week 3-4. For most students, it'll require above-average time management skills.

Registration for Classes: Very easy and straightforward. Sometimes you might have to, say, wake up early to register for a specific class, or get on the waitlist and email the professor directly, but I didn't know anyone for whom registration was a problem. In fact, I honestly didn't even know class registration could be such a huge issue until I heard horror stories from friends at places like Berkeley or other larger schools like NYU.

Research: Again, really easy, and the university goes out of its way to make research opps for undergrads as accessible as possible. I knew kids who had landed research positions within the first few weeks of freshman year if they were looking for it. Super easy to work directly with a professor, land a lab position, do an independent study (and get funding for said research), etc.

Internship opportunities: Most students will put in the legwork here on their own, but again, the university puts out a lot of opportunities for students to pursue internships. Two schools, Medill and SESP, require their students to do an internship during one quarter, usually their junior year, and connect you with a site (called "journalism residency" and "practicum" respectively). Medill, especially, has some fantastic opportunities through JR - major media companies and places like Instagram and LinkedIn. Anecdotally, there's also a great program called Chicago Field Studies which connects students with companies in Chicago to intern during the off-season. Had a friend my sophomore year who interned with Goldman during her winter quarter through CFS.

All in all, I loved my time at Northwestern and have such fond memories. Now that I'm a few years out, I also have a newfound appreciation for the particular brand of... down-to-earthiness/relative lack of pretense of my friends from NU. All are smart and have that Midwestern work ethic down pat, but they tend to wear their learning lightly, if that makes sense. Due to the structure of the university, there's also a true diversity of academic/career interests at NU, and I count engineers, journalists, working artists, doctors, academics, and (of course) legions of consultants/reformed consultants among my close circle of friends from college.

That said, I know how privileged I was to attend a school like Northwestern, and how lucky I was to be in a position where I was able to enjoy it and take advantage of its opportunities so fully, so I don't want to be too effusive. Northwestern was the perfect school for me, and it's an amazing place for many, many kids, but it can be difficult, and it certainly isn't utopia for 4 years. Northwestern leans pre-professional, and there can be a buzz of "busy-ness" around campus, with students always trying to figure out their next move. Winters can be brutal, but the fall and spring are truly beautiful (and I always encourage students to spend one summer term on campus/in Evanston - they call it Heavenston for a reason).

Again, I apologize for the very, very long response (probably way more than you asked for... kudos if you actually read this), but best of luck to your kid if they end up applying, and to all other applicants!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am directly copy-pasting this reply to a thread that I found extremely helpful, honest, and positive (nice change of pace for DCUM, lol!). So, thank you, whoever wrote this!


-------------------


I'm the recent alum commenting again - apologies in advance for the very long answer ahead.

Quarter system: Granted, I didn't have a true point of comparison since I never attended a semester school (though my high school was on the semester system), I really loved the quarter system. I loved that each quarter had a very distinct vibe (fall, winter, spring), with different things to look forward to each quarter. It almost felt like I was getting more out of college, if that makes sense. The obvious upside is that you have so much more leeway to take classes, double major, minor, dabble in certificates, etc. The downside is that midterms start up at around week 3-4. For most students, it'll require above-average time management skills.

Registration for Classes: Very easy and straightforward. Sometimes you might have to, say, wake up early to register for a specific class, or get on the waitlist and email the professor directly, but I didn't know anyone for whom registration was a problem. In fact, I honestly didn't even know class registration could be such a huge issue until I heard horror stories from friends at places like Berkeley or other larger schools like NYU.

Research: Again, really easy, and the university goes out of its way to make research opps for undergrads as accessible as possible. I knew kids who had landed research positions within the first few weeks of freshman year if they were looking for it. Super easy to work directly with a professor, land a lab position, do an independent study (and get funding for said research), etc.

Internship opportunities: Most students will put in the legwork here on their own, but again, the university puts out a lot of opportunities for students to pursue internships. Two schools, Medill and SESP, require their students to do an internship during one quarter, usually their junior year, and connect you with a site (called "journalism residency" and "practicum" respectively). Medill, especially, has some fantastic opportunities through JR - major media companies and places like Instagram and LinkedIn. Anecdotally, there's also a great program called Chicago Field Studies which connects students with companies in Chicago to intern during the off-season. Had a friend my sophomore year who interned with Goldman during her winter quarter through CFS.

All in all, I loved my time at Northwestern and have such fond memories. Now that I'm a few years out, I also have a newfound appreciation for the particular brand of... down-to-earthiness/relative lack of pretense of my friends from NU. All are smart and have that Midwestern work ethic down pat, but they tend to wear their learning lightly, if that makes sense. Due to the structure of the university, there's also a true diversity of academic/career interests at NU, and I count engineers, journalists, working artists, doctors, academics, and (of course) legions of consultants/reformed consultants among my close circle of friends from college.

That said, I know how privileged I was to attend a school like Northwestern, and how lucky I was to be in a position where I was able to enjoy it and take advantage of its opportunities so fully, so I don't want to be too effusive. Northwestern was the perfect school for me, and it's an amazing place for many, many kids, but it can be difficult, and it certainly isn't utopia for 4 years. Northwestern leans pre-professional, and there can be a buzz of "busy-ness" around campus, with students always trying to figure out their next move. Winters can be brutal, but the fall and spring are truly beautiful (and I always encourage students to spend one summer term on campus/in Evanston - they call it Heavenston for a reason).

Again, I apologize for the very, very long response (probably way more than you asked for... kudos if you actually read this), but best of luck to your kid if they end up applying, and to all other applicants!

Drats, I meant to clarify - it's a recent alum's thoughts on Northwestern.

[Anonymous]

I went to Northwestern. Loved it.
But Heavanston?? Lack of pretense?? Let me recover from my laughing fit.

[Anonymous]

Santa Clara University. Heaven on earth and a quality education and great alum network. Love it!

[Anonymous]

McDaniel College- my nephew had a great experience. Supportive faculty and administration, made nice friends from diverse racial and socioeconomic backgrounds, he was an athlete and there seemed nice school spirit and support across sports.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went to Northwestern. Loved it.
But Heavanston?? Lack of pretense?? Let me recover from my laughing fit.

We visited Evanston late summer 2020 and it was gorgeous.

[Anonymous]

UIUC, really good for business and engineering.

[Anonymous]

Favorite reach: Lehigh
Favorite match: GW
Favorite safety: Elon

[Anonymous]

Pepperdine

[Anonymous]

Juniata-great support from faculty. Strong science preparation. Campus vibe builds community rather than cliques. It is a safe, sweet place , that has helped boost my child’s confidence. The administration (and students) have also done a great job around COVID response.

[Anonymous]

USC
Immediately fell in love at the first sight and still loving it.

[Anonymous]

Elon---turned down at Princeton and other highly selective schools, and was given a half-tuition scholarship to Elon. Prepared him well enough for the MCAT that he got a 514 and is now waiting to see where he's accepted. Peers were very accepting of his being gay.