Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:My kid starts its junior year and it seems time to start thinking about college. Maybe do some visit.
I come from Europe, so open to UK and European schools, but I know little about US schools.
A- minus kid taking advanced math, and physics and wants to study science.
Maybe biology, genetics or even engineering.
She is an avid reader, intense climber,...
Which schools should we consider for bio/genetic?
A- student in "advanced math" yet it sounds as though it is regular physics? Unless advanced math means Calculus in 11th or 12th grade and there are lots of IB or AP classes, the student seems a little above average at most high schools, not likely to be top 25% considering most publics set the average to around an A- , so VT is going to be mildly reachy and William and Mary and UVA will be out of reach. In virginia, a slightly above average student from a typical public high school should target JMU ,VCU, or GMU which are great for many subjects including science, but also good if the major changes. In state is the best bang for buck, no need to spend on OOS publics or on privates, it is a waste of money almost always. All three give an excellent education and can lead to great careers in science.
OP here: thanks, their advanced math math class is Calculus in 11 grade, and they are taking upper level physics as well.
You haven’t given a lot of details. The fact that you seem to be picking her schools and that she might not have done much on her own is a sign that she’s not a great fit for the admissions rat race.
She might be a bright student who’d do fine at Harvard, but, if she hasn’t had a preliminary list of schools in mind since she was in middle school, she might not be resourceful enough or ambitious enough to have great odds of getting into places like Harvard or Oxford.
Or, maybe she’s just too mature to want obsess about college rankings. But, whether you’re the one pushing this forward because she’s overwhelmed or mature, that’s a sign that she doesn’t need the stress involved with applying to places like MIT. So, if you’re managing this process, ignore lists of “top” or “best” schools. Look for pleasant, well-funded schools in satisfactory locations that aren’t that hard to get into.
If your daughter can handle state schools, the options might include your state flagship, regional schools in your state, and equivalent state schools in states with nice mountains, like New York, Massachusetts, Vermont or New Hampshire.
If she prefers a smaller school, she should look for liberal arts schools neer those state schools.
If I’m misunderstanding your situation, your daughter is really handling this and you’re just cross checking:
- Make sure you and your daughter know what you can afford to pay, and provide enough financial information that your daughter can get realistic net price estimates from college price estimator tools.
- Commit to providing that money even if your child changes gender and your wife runs off with the gardener. It’s just so mean when kids get into places like Yale and the kids can’t afford to go simply because the parents are childish, not because of genuine financial problems.
- Make sure your daughter understands the concept of financial safeties. Putting your state flagship on the list is easy. The hard part is finding the well-funded, well-run public regional school that would be thrilled to have your daughter, would give her a good scholarship and would do its best to give her a flagship-level education.
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