“Hot Colleges” (2018 admissions cycle)?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Try raiseme. You sign your kid up for an account, they put in grades, extracurriculars, awards, etc and earn micro scholarships. Also for college visits, college interviews, college fairs, taking the PSAT, SAT, ACT. If they get into a school that participates, the money is theirs in the form of a merit scholarship. It’s new, and lots of schools don’t participate. But, with 2 years of grades, 2 big extracurriculars, PSAT 10 and some college visits, my kid has $7500 from Oberlin in his account, over $20,000 from Denison and over $30,000 from Wooster.

We also learned this weekend that Wooster and Oberlin both now do early aid. You file a transcript, SATs and extracurriculars, plus that FAFSA in August, and they will give, you an financial aid estimate (need AND MERIT) before you have to apply for ED.

Yes we did this at Oberlin two years ago before my daughter applied ED. It was merit only but we knew going in how much she would get.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe Lafayette or bucknell but for the rest....none.

Wut?

My DC is at Denison with $26K/year in merit aid.

Yeah, Denison gives merit aid. Their net price calculator says a student with parents making 500k a year and a 3.75 gpa and 31 act gets 24k a year

Wow! Had no idea. Insisted on instate.

We just did the Ohio tours.

Wooster is a College that Changes Lives school that really, really impressed me, and they do an ton of aid. Denison does. Kenyon and Oberlin do, but you would need higher stats (but not ridiculous). Next up for us? Grinnell and Macalester, which are also generous with merit aid for smart kids. Lots of CTCL schools out there that are excellent and have great merit aid, if you look for them.

I loved pretty much all of the Ohio schools.

Wooster was the eye opener for me. Kenyon and Oberlin I knew. Wooster? I knew nothing going in. But they are teaching hardcore science research and writing and practical skills (we were looking at the science department), and then requiring every graduate to do a major senior thesis. If you are English, you are writing a book or play. Or doing social science research, Etc. So much hands on research going on among the undergrads, and such nice, smart, down to Earth kids. Who love the school. And not just the kids leading tours— the ones we stopped and talked to who were working in the library. Most years they have 100% med school placement, and one of the highest per capita PhD attainments in the nation among grads. With an unbelievable percent of alums donating.

My kid really wants to apply. And I would be all for it, except... my kid is at TJ. And the issue isn’t that Wooster somehow isn’t good enough. It is. But, the Wooster science skills practicals and science research and writing classes and senior project closely track the TJ curriculum. So I would need to really talk to someone at the school and be convinced he would be getting added value, and not a rehash of HS, or that he could place out of classes where he had the skills. Otherwise, I think it would be a wonderful place for him to be, and would encourage intellectual risk taking and creativity and exploring passions in a way TJ does not because there are so few electives.

Kenyon impressed me. Oberlin impressed me. We skipped Denison because it was missing an academic program my kid wants. But Wooster was something special. If you make the trek to look at the Ohio SLACs, I would encourage you to read the CTCL profile on Wooster and go tour. I significantly underestimated them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Try raiseme. You sign your kid up for an account, they put in grades, extracurriculars, awards, etc and earn micro scholarships. Also for college visits, college interviews, college fairs, taking the PSAT, SAT, ACT. If they get into a school that participates, the money is theirs in the form of a merit scholarship. It’s new, and lots of schools don’t participate. But, with 2 years of grades, 2 big extracurriculars, PSAT 10 and some college visits, my kid has $7500 from Oberlin in his account, over $20,000 from Denison and over $30,000 from Wooster.

We also learned this weekend that Wooster and Oberlin both now do early aid. You file a transcript, SATs and extracurriculars, plus that FAFSA in August, and they will give, you an financial aid estimate (need AND MERIT) before you have to apply for ED.

Yes we did this at Oberlin two years ago before my daughter applied ED. It was merit only but we knew going in how much she would get.

That is so nice. DS will not qualify for need based, and needs X amount of merit to make it work. And Oberlin is a clear front runner. I love the idea of being able to ED, even if you need financial aid. I wish more schools did this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe Lafayette or bucknell but for the rest....none.

Wut?

My DC is at Denison with $26K/year in merit aid.

Yeah, Denison gives merit aid. Their net price calculator says a student with parents making 500k a year and a 3.75 gpa and 31 act gets 24k a year

Wow! Had no idea. Insisted on instate.

We just did the Ohio tours.

Wooster is a College that Changes Lives school that really, really impressed me, and they do an ton of aid. Denison does. Kenyon and Oberlin do, but you would need higher stats (but not ridiculous). Next up for us? Grinnell and Macalester, which are also generous with merit aid for smart kids. Lots of CTCL schools out there that are excellent and have great merit aid, if you look for them.

I loved pretty much all of the Ohio schools.

Wooster was the eye opener for me. Kenyon and Oberlin I knew. Wooster? I knew nothing going in. But they are teaching hardcore science research and writing and practical skills (we were looking at the science department), and then requiring every graduate to do a major senior thesis. If you are English, you are writing a book or play. Or doing social science research, Etc. So much hands on research going on among the undergrads, and such nice, smart, down to Earth kids. Who love the school. And not just the kids leading tours— the ones we stopped and talked to who were working in the library. Most years they have 100% med school placement, and one of the highest per capita PhD attainments in the nation among grads. With an unbelievable percent of alums donating.

My kid really wants to apply. And I would be all for it, except... my kid is at TJ. And the issue isn’t that Wooster somehow isn’t good enough. It is. But, the Wooster science skills practicals and science research and writing classes and senior project closely track the TJ curriculum. So I would need to really talk to someone at the school and be convinced he would be getting added value, and not a rehash of HS, or that he could place out of classes where he had the skills. Otherwise, I think it would be a wonderful place for him to be, and would encourage intellectual risk taking and creativity and exploring passions in a way TJ does not because there are so few electives.

Kenyon impressed me. Oberlin impressed me. We skipped Denison because it was missing an academic program my kid wants. But Wooster was something special. If you make the trek to look at the Ohio SLACs, I would encourage you to read the CTCL profile on Wooster and go tour. I significantly underestimated them.

Grinnell is the class of all the schools that you've listed, gives excellent merit aid to top students (which your TJ student undoubtedly is), and has a very strong science program. Its endowment is a billion dollars more than oberlin and denison and macalester and five times wooster. It has a lot of money to spend on the sciences -- you'll see when you tour.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe Lafayette or bucknell but for the rest....none.

Wut?

My DC is at Denison with $26K/year in merit aid.

Yeah, Denison gives merit aid. Their net price calculator says a student with parents making 500k a year and a 3.75 gpa and 31 act gets 24k a year

Wow! Had no idea. Insisted on instate.

We just did the Ohio tours.

Wooster is a College that Changes Lives school that really, really impressed me, and they do an ton of aid. Denison does. Kenyon and Oberlin do, but you would need higher stats (but not ridiculous). Next up for us? Grinnell and Macalester, which are also generous with merit aid for smart kids. Lots of CTCL schools out there that are excellent and have great merit aid, if you look for them.

I loved pretty much all of the Ohio schools.

Wooster was the eye opener for me. Kenyon and Oberlin I knew. Wooster? I knew nothing going in. But they are teaching hardcore science research and writing and practical skills (we were looking at the science department), and then requiring every graduate to do a major senior thesis. If you are English, you are writing a book or play. Or doing social science research, Etc. So much hands on research going on among the undergrads, and such nice, smart, down to Earth kids. Who love the school. And not just the kids leading tours— the ones we stopped and talked to who were working in the library. Most years they have 100% med school placement, and one of the highest per capita PhD attainments in the nation among grads. With an unbelievable percent of alums donating.

My kid really wants to apply. And I would be all for it, except... my kid is at TJ. And the issue isn’t that Wooster somehow isn’t good enough. It is. But, the Wooster science skills practicals and science research and writing classes and senior project closely track the TJ curriculum. So I would need to really talk to someone at the school and be convinced he would be getting added value, and not a rehash of HS, or that he could place out of classes where he had the skills. Otherwise, I think it would be a wonderful place for him to be, and would encourage intellectual risk taking and creativity and exploring passions in a way TJ does not because there are so few electives.

Kenyon impressed me. Oberlin impressed me. We skipped Denison because it was missing an academic program my kid wants. But Wooster was something special. If you make the trek to look at the Ohio SLACs, I would encourage you to read the CTCL profile on Wooster and go tour. I significantly underestimated them.

Grinnell is the class of all the schools that you've listed, gives excellent merit aid to top students (which your TJ student undoubtedly is), and has a very strong science program. Its endowment is a billion dollars more than oberlin and denison and macalester and five times wooster. It has a lot of money to spend on the sciences -- you'll see when you tour.

I absolutely love Grinnell on paper. My kid is balking at Iowa. But wants the 2000-3000 SLAC experience and needs merit aid. He has been told that he is going with me in the spring, when he is far enough along his junior year to interview on campus. If I am paying for college, he is going to at least look at a school that has absolutely everything he wants, at least on paper. He tends to resist the unknown, so I am hoping being on campus will help it click. But I agree— impressive place.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe Lafayette or bucknell but for the rest....none.

Wut?

My DC is at Denison with $26K/year in merit aid.

Yeah, Denison gives merit aid. Their net price calculator says a student with parents making 500k a year and a 3.75 gpa and 31 act gets 24k a year

Wow! Had no idea. Insisted on instate.

We just did the Ohio tours.

Wooster is a College that Changes Lives school that really, really impressed me, and they do an ton of aid. Denison does. Kenyon and Oberlin do, but you would need higher stats (but not ridiculous). Next up for us? Grinnell and Macalester, which are also generous with merit aid for smart kids. Lots of CTCL schools out there that are excellent and have great merit aid, if you look for them.

I loved pretty much all of the Ohio schools.

Wooster was the eye opener for me. Kenyon and Oberlin I knew. Wooster? I knew nothing going in. But they are teaching hardcore science research and writing and practical skills (we were looking at the science department), and then requiring every graduate to do a major senior thesis. If you are English, you are writing a book or play. Or doing social science research, Etc. So much hands on research going on among the undergrads, and such nice, smart, down to Earth kids. Who love the school. And not just the kids leading tours— the ones we stopped and talked to who were working in the library. Most years they have 100% med school placement, and one of the highest per capita PhD attainments in the nation among grads. With an unbelievable percent of alums donating.

My kid really wants to apply. And I would be all for it, except... my kid is at TJ. And the issue isn’t that Wooster somehow isn’t good enough. It is. But, the Wooster science skills practicals and science research and writing classes and senior project closely track the TJ curriculum. So I would need to really talk to someone at the school and be convinced he would be getting added value, and not a rehash of HS, or that he could place out of classes where he had the skills. Otherwise, I think it would be a wonderful place for him to be, and would encourage intellectual risk taking and creativity and exploring passions in a way TJ does not because there are so few electives.

Kenyon impressed me. Oberlin impressed me. We skipped Denison because it was missing an academic program my kid wants. But Wooster was something special. If you make the trek to look at the Ohio SLACs, I would encourage you to read the CTCL profile on Wooster and go tour. I significantly underestimated them.

Grinnell is the class of all the schools that you've listed, gives excellent merit aid to top students (which your TJ student undoubtedly is), and has a very strong science program. Its endowment is a billion dollars more than oberlin and denison and macalester and five times wooster. It has a lot of money to spend on the sciences -- you'll see when you tour.

How is Grinnell’s math department?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Try raiseme. You sign your kid up for an account, they put in grades, extracurriculars, awards, etc and earn micro scholarships. Also for college visits, college interviews, college fairs, taking the PSAT, SAT, ACT. If they get into a school that participates, the money is theirs in the form of a merit scholarship. It’s new, and lots of schools don’t participate. But, with 2 years of grades, 2 big extracurriculars, PSAT 10 and some college visits, my kid has $7500 from Oberlin in his account, over $20,000 from Denison and over $30,000 from Wooster.

We also learned this weekend that Wooster and Oberlin both now do early aid. You file a transcript, SATs and extracurriculars, plus that FAFSA in August, and they will give, you an financial aid estimate (need AND MERIT) before you have to apply for ED.

Yes we did this at Oberlin two years ago before my daughter applied ED. It was merit only but we knew going in how much she would get.

That is so nice. DS will not qualify for need based, and needs X amount of merit to make it work. And Oberlin is a clear front runner. I love the idea of being able to ED, even if you need financial aid. I wish more schools did this.

And you can appeal if you think they didn't offer you enough - they originally gave us a lower amount of merit and i had my daughter write back and see if they would increase it slightly and they did. Just FYI. She loves Oberlin so we're glad it worked out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Try raiseme. You sign your kid up for an account, they put in grades, extracurriculars, awards, etc and earn micro scholarships. Also for college visits, college interviews, college fairs, taking the PSAT, SAT, ACT. If they get into a school that participates, the money is theirs in the form of a merit scholarship. It’s new, and lots of schools don’t participate. But, with 2 years of grades, 2 big extracurriculars, PSAT 10 and some college visits, my kid has $7500 from Oberlin in his account, over $20,000 from Denison and over $30,000 from Wooster.

We also learned this weekend that Wooster and Oberlin both now do early aid. You file a transcript, SATs and extracurriculars, plus that FAFSA in August, and they will give, you an financial aid estimate (need AND MERIT) before you have to apply for ED.

Yes we did this at Oberlin two years ago before my daughter applied ED. It was merit only but we knew going in how much she would get.

That is so nice. DS will not qualify for need based, and needs X amount of merit to make it work. And Oberlin is a clear front runner. I love the idea of being able to ED, even if you need financial aid. I wish more schools did this.

And you can appeal if you think they didn't offer you enough - they originally gave us a lower amount of merit and i had my daughter write back and see if they would increase it slightly and they did. Just FYI. She loves Oberlin so we're glad it worked out.

Thanks for the heads up. Fingers crossed that I have a kid joining her there soon!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DD attends a top private and is a junior; kids from her school seem to have a growing interest in UCLA and USC. The number attending has been rising the past 3/4 years and over spring break her instagram was filled with LA/California college visit pics. These are kids that 5 years ago would have gone to an Ivy from her school. Smart kids, honors classes at a top private but not tippy top smart or recruited athletes. I know USC has long been called "University of Spoiled Children" but these are kds with a very high caliber of academics.

In the DMV folks often group USC and UCLA and many opinions seemed to be ossified from an earlier era. USC and UCLA are ranked the same by USNWS, both are in LA and they are rivals - but the schools are very, very different. UCLA is an elite public school that has become predominately Asian and ony about 20% OOS. All of the California public schools have faced budget cuts. USC is one of the nations largest private schools and a favored destination of the children of the 1% - now more than 50% OOS.

I'm not sure a campus tour alone would give one an appreciation of the difference between the two.

[Anonymous]

UMASS Amherst, Fordham and Delaware are now hot

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:UMASS Amherst, Fordham and Delaware are now hot

Fordham is shockingly expensive, especially given that there are tons of schools in its class - like UMass and Delaware that you mentioned - that are just as good and half the price.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UMASS Amherst, Fordham and Delaware are now hot

Fordham is shockingly expensive, especially given that there are tons of schools in its class - like UMass and Delaware that you mentioned - that are just as good and half the price.

If the student is looking for a Jesuit education, UMAss and Delaware aren't "just as good."

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UMASS Amherst, Fordham and Delaware are now hot

Fordham is shockingly expensive, especially given that there are tons of schools in its class - like UMass and Delaware that you mentioned - that are just as good and half the price.

If the student is looking for a Jesuit education, UMAss and Delaware aren't "just as good."

Fordham is rated a three way tie 61 school in USA.

Syracuse, Fordham and university of Maryland at college park.

Fordham even more expensive as school has free shuttle bus to Manhattan and rich kids go out in Manhattan a lot

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:UMASS Amherst, Fordham and Delaware are now hot

Fordham is shockingly expensive, especially given that there are tons of schools in its class - like UMass and Delaware that you mentioned - that are just as good and half the price.

Fordham offered my daughter 34k in merit. She selected a different school for a variety of reasons but they were willing to work with us. She worked hard and had good stats - 1550 SAT, top 2% of class, etc. but I sensed they were willing to buy top ranked kids.

[Anonymous]

Anymore “Hot colleges” to list???