Where do the "B" students go?

[Anonymous]

apply out of state

eg

asu

iowa state

oregon state

way better than CNU and Marymount etc

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Jesuit colleges and universities that aren’t Georgetown or BC. Excellent and practical educations that lead to great careers after a fun four years.

Agreed…Marquette, Xavier, fordham, Gonzaga, the Loyolas, depending on what they want out of it.

Im not OP but am in a similar situation and am struggling a little. Like Marquette has an average admitted student gpa of 3.6 — that’s more as than bs so not really a B average student. (And that 3.6 includes the hooked students, athletes etc.). I know everyone says there are lots of options but …. It’s not quite that easy.

I have a DC that was a B student in HS.
Attended Loyola Maryland.

The original poster advocating Jesuit schools perspective closely mirrors my DC experience.

Graduated Magna cum laude. Found their footing. Enjoyed watching their confidence grow.

To the PP if you are open to school in the DMV/Baltimore I would recommend you take a look at Loyola Maryland.

Good luck to you and your child.

My DS is at Loyola MD now. Ditto the PP. Beautiful campus and small classes where you get to know your professors and they are there to teach. Worth a visit!

[Anonymous]

My child graduated from CNU in business. Loved it. Greek life, beautiful campus, study abroad, great apartment, paid internship, early job offer. No complaints at all.

[Anonymous]

Some schools on my DD's list :3.72W public /1240 SAT

Univ Dayton
UNC-W
Elon
Michigan State
VCU
JMU
Colorado State

(yes she's all over the place)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:to schools where they are going to have the best years of their life, meet the best people and go on to be very successful.

Nobody is going to give a crap where they went to school after their first job. Only the parents will tell everyone until they die that johnny went to harvard.

lol. You don't know any Harvard grads, do you?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:this board really skews your thinking - and you can see the infighting now of what a B average really means, etc etc ad naseum. It can be very discouraging.

There are so many options, and so many of those options offer merit aid to B students!

This guy wrote a book called Who gets in and Why that's very eye opening. His website focuses on buyer and seller schools.

https://jeffselingo.com/which-colleges-are-really-buyers-and-which-are-sellers/

Highly recommend.

There are schools out there that actively WANT your kid to choose them. Don't approach the college process from a negative "you'll never get in" - focus on the schools where your kid will get in and will get offered money.

My 3.3 kid from DC got merit money at WVU, Towson, Hood College, to name just a few. Other friends are very happy at Salisbury State. One friend got a TON of money from Hofstra.

There are lots of options. Don't let this board fool you otherwise.

Selingo's book is great. The problem with "buyer" schools who are trying to buy families (bribe with merit) to come is that these are the first schools that will fold as the enrollment cliff comes. Many are already having a hard time with this economy. They struggle to fill seats and won't survive. They cannot recruit good faculty. WVU has had dramatic cuts that made the news in 2024. Even top schools are having to make cuts in 2025, but top schools have the resources and demand to handle it. Buyer schools are significantly at risk.
Among the schools you mentioned, Hofstra and Salisbury state have 68% six-year grad rates and 80% retention rates(first to second year). One in five students do not return after freshman year. That does not make for an academically focused vibe on campus.
A well established public school that is easier to get into would be much better options for a B student, such as Auburn, Michigan State, U of SC: all have 90% freshman return rate and they are not in danger of closing.

[Anonymous]

My engineering kid with a B+ average but high ACT score goes to RPI. He got into some state flagships and some engineering schools similar to RPI like WPI and Stevens.

Kid 2 has a solid 3.0 mostly dragged down by a bad freshman year. 1380 SAT—not bothering to take again bc of his GPA and intended major. Will take 1 AP (total, our school does not make it easy to take them). HS is well-regarded public with higher than average admission rates for some colleges.

He is targeting schools that have high admission rates (especially if high from our school) and good music programs:

Michigan State
CU-Boulder
Indiana (a reach for music)
Miami of Ohio
JMU
UVM
possibly U Oregon
* Syracuse (a big reach but possible for music)

and some smaller schools:
Ithaca College
U Denver

a few more TBD.

I agree with a PP that OOS publics that have high admission rates (especially if they are NOT harder to get into OOS) are a good choice for B students from the NE.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is this a B student taking the most rigorous classes or a B student in non-AP classes? I have questions about the former.

I can tell that at our public school a B student isn't taking AP classes. They aren't allowed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is this a B student taking the most rigorous classes or a B student in non-AP classes? I have questions about the former.

I can tell that at our public school a B student isn't taking AP classes. They aren't allowed.

Yes same at our public school. Unless you get an A you are not allowed to take AP the next year. Which is frustrating for my B+/A- kid. Has a number of honors classes but I know that’s not looked at the same way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Is this a B student taking the most rigorous classes or a B student in non-AP classes? I have questions about the former.

I can tell that at our public school a B student isn't taking AP classes. They aren't allowed.

Yes same at our public school. Unless you get an A you are not allowed to take AP the next year. Which is frustrating for my B+/A- kid. Has a number of honors classes but I know that’s not looked at the same way.

Which public school is this? Ours doesn’t have any restrictions on who can take AP classes. If you fail you fail.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:to schools where they are going to have the best years of their life, meet the best people and go on to be very successful.

Nobody is going to give a crap where they went to school after their first job. Only the parents will tell everyone until they die that johnny went to harvard.

lol. You don't know any Harvard grads, do you?

DP. Just saw a mom parading around Whole Foods with her brand new Harvard sweatshirt. 🤮