Loyola University Maryland

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Loyola University Maryland has been recommended for my DS who has a 3.2 GPA with an upward trend. He would need significant merit money. Can someone tell me what the school is like? Is the campus lively and busy? Are there sports to watch? Also, would a 3.2 GPA get any merit money? Thanks in advance for any information.

Fantastic school in a gorgeous area! Highly recommend a visit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I live near the campus. Campus itself is beautiful. Fun restaurants nearby. Very safe. Easy to get downtown or to Towson. Kids seem v happy.

100%

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For B/B+ student most likely interested in Business, would you consider Loyola Maryland over Towson?

Absolutely. It's a different vibe. Much more clean cut and UMC

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We’ve only heard great things about this school over the years, including their generosity with merit money.

One question: Our family is Jewish, and we feel that Jesuit values are compatible with our religion in so many ways. Curious, though, what families with first-hand experience with LM think. How is the school experience for non-Catholic students? Are we correct that it’s a welcoming place?

We’ve only visited but I’d note Loyola has a lot of interfaith a nod ecumenical programs, including an interfaith worship space and Jewish Student Association.

https://www.loyola.edu/department/campus-ministry/interfaith/interfaith-ecumenical-worship.html

Not sure if grad school is the same but my Jewish friends attended Loyola Chicago law school and Fordham MBA and felt welcome and no issues.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For B/B+ student most likely interested in Business, would you consider Loyola Maryland over Towson?

Absolutely. It's a different vibe. Much more clean cut and UMC

I would say MC. . but definitely more clean cut. It's close to both Towson and Hopkins. It's a hidden gem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:For B/B+ student most likely interested in Business, would you consider Loyola Maryland over Towson?

I didn’t go but spouse was impressed by the business program on admitted students day. I imagine the classes are a lot smaller. Towson does have a good rep for business though.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:For B/B+ student most likely interested in Business, would you consider Loyola Maryland over Towson?

I didn’t go but spouse was impressed by the business program on admitted students day. I imagine the classes are a lot smaller. Towson does have a good rep for business though.

We are looking at both for our kid. The small classes at Loyola would be good for him. We toured Towson for an older sibling last year and were impressed. We are not from this area so knew nothing about it. The campus facilities were very nice, the business building was impressive- the tour guide super enthusiastic. Surprised that the other families on our tour were from out of state. Kid would probably get more support at Loyola but we will see how prices end up. Might be willing to pay a little more for Loyola but not sure how much.

[Anonymous]

We toured Towson and Loyola with DS the same day, and he loved Towson (it's now his first choice) and hated Loyola. It is a pretty campus, but the surrounding area is pretty run-down. The Loyola admissions person was great, and it was interesting to see how many other students said hi to our tour guide as we went around campus. It definitely had a smaller, more intimate vibe than big school Towson. It seemed like a place that would be great for the right student, it's just that my child is not that student.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We toured Towson and Loyola with DS the same day, and he loved Towson (it's now his first choice) and hated Loyola. It is a pretty campus, but the surrounding area is pretty run-down. The Loyola admissions person was great, and it was interesting to see how many other students said hi to our tour guide as we went around campus. It definitely had a smaller, more intimate vibe than big school Towson. It seemed like a place that would be great for the right student, it's just that my child is not that student.

Curious if your kid goes to a large HS? Ours are at large public HS with 1,500 students. I think the idea of a college that isn't much bigger is a turnoff. I wish this wasn't the case because I really think they could thrive at a smaller school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son applied with a 3.1 gpa and got $25k. Beautiful campus, smaller classes. He is going to study abroad this spring.

Wow. With a 3.1? They must accept anybody! Not a dis, just sayin'.

Why is the COA so high if they give so much merit to a 3.1? Just bring the COA down to $50K, and give smaller merit to students with a higher GPA/SAT.

LM is on my DC's list, and they have a 3.7 (weighted 4.5) with a 1440 SAT. Would they get more merit?

Last year my son with these stats got merit aid of $40k/yr which brought it pretty close to UMD in-state. He wanted a big school environment and is happy at UMD. Also, we were surprised that he received about 30 credits for APs at UMD which I don't think would have happened at Loyola. Technically, he could save a year in tuition but he is adding a second degree instead. For my second kid who is more of a B+ student, we plan to visit several Jesuit schools as we think the smaller environment will be better for him and he also likes an urban setting which is where most Jesuit schools are.

When I looked Loyola was 78. So, you really need the 40K to make it doable. This is the issue facing many privates. Privates (with merit) really aren't that close in cost to many state schools for average donut hole kids. We are in PA, so Loyola with 40K in merit is close to PSU and Pitt. My son has ok grades and we have toured a few privates and we don't think we can get it below 40,000. So, we are left with the question of whether a private a little north of 40,000 is worth it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We toured Towson and Loyola with DS the same day, and he loved Towson (it's now his first choice) and hated Loyola. It is a pretty campus, but the surrounding area is pretty run-down. The Loyola admissions person was great, and it was interesting to see how many other students said hi to our tour guide as we went around campus. It definitely had a smaller, more intimate vibe than big school Towson. It seemed like a place that would be great for the right student, it's just that my child is not that student.

Curious if your kid goes to a large HS? Ours are at large public HS with 1,500 students. I think the idea of a college that isn't much bigger is a turnoff. I wish this wasn't the case because I really think they could thrive at a smaller school.

Not PP your question was addressing but our HS is a hair under 3000 students and my kid wants a mid-size school for sure. Anything under 5-6k feels too much like high school for her.

She'll still apply though. We lived it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We toured Towson and Loyola with DS the same day, and he loved Towson (it's now his first choice) and hated Loyola. It is a pretty campus, but the surrounding area is pretty run-down. The Loyola admissions person was great, and it was interesting to see how many other students said hi to our tour guide as we went around campus. It definitely had a smaller, more intimate vibe than big school Towson. It seemed like a place that would be great for the right student, it's just that my child is not that student.

Curious if your kid goes to a large HS? Ours are at large public HS with 1,500 students. I think the idea of a college that isn't much bigger is a turnoff. I wish this wasn't the case because I really think they could thrive at a smaller school.

Loyola MD is definitely larger than 1,500. They have 4,000 undergraduates. While it’s not huge it’s definitely bigger than your kids’ high school (ours is gigantic with over 4,000 so about the same size as Loyola!).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We toured Towson and Loyola with DS the same day, and he loved Towson (it's now his first choice) and hated Loyola. It is a pretty campus, but the surrounding area is pretty run-down. The Loyola admissions person was great, and it was interesting to see how many other students said hi to our tour guide as we went around campus. It definitely had a smaller, more intimate vibe than big school Towson. It seemed like a place that would be great for the right student, it's just that my child is not that student.

Curious if your kid goes to a large HS? Ours are at large public HS with 1,500 students. I think the idea of a college that isn't much bigger is a turnoff. I wish this wasn't the case because I really think they could thrive at a smaller school.

My kid actually goes to a small private high school (small in the number of kids, but large campus), and about halfway through the tour, he said that he couldn't see himself at Loyola because it felt too much like his high school. I actually think small colleges are great, but both of my kids are/were drawn to larger universities.

[Anonymous]

This is OP. Thank you all so much for the helpful information. Sounds like it is worth a visit for my DS. Although sounds like he might not get enough merit aid with the 3.2.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My son applied with a 3.1 gpa and got $25k. Beautiful campus, smaller classes. He is going to study abroad this spring.

Wow. With a 3.1? They must accept anybody! Not a dis, just sayin'.

Why is the COA so high if they give so much merit to a 3.1? Just bring the COA down to $50K, and give smaller merit to students with a higher GPA/SAT.

LM is on my DC's list, and they have a 3.7 (weighted 4.5) with a 1440 SAT. Would they get more merit?

Last year my son with these stats got merit aid of $40k/yr which brought it pretty close to UMD in-state. He wanted a big school environment and is happy at UMD. Also, we were surprised that he received about 30 credits for APs at UMD which I don't think would have happened at Loyola. Technically, he could save a year in tuition but he is adding a second degree instead. For my second kid who is more of a B+ student, we plan to visit several Jesuit schools as we think the smaller environment will be better for him and he also likes an urban setting which is where most Jesuit schools are.

When I looked Loyola was 78. So, you really need the 40K to make it doable. This is the issue facing many privates. Privates (with merit) really aren't that close in cost to many state schools for average donut hole kids. We are in PA, so Loyola with 40K in merit is close to PSU and Pitt. My son has ok grades and we have toured a few privates and we don't think we can get it below 40,000. So, we are left with the question of whether a private a little north of 40,000 is worth it.

we are in the same boat