Help my kid pick a college, please

In My Humble Opinion
21

Check out Simon’s Rock College. I went there, and it was an incredible education. I later transferred to one of the Claremont Colleges and went on to a PhD program.

To this day, I still do not have my high school diploma, and I don’t regret a second of it. Leaving high school 2 years early gave me a significant edge in later college, grad school, and career interviews and afforded me the ability to take time off to pursue other interests without being “behind” age-wise.

To answer the top questions right off the bat:

  • Yes, it’s nationally recognized and accredited.
  • Yes, it’s a “real college”
  • Yes, it is taken very seriously by other schools, including the Ivys
  • Yes, he will be around his age peers
  • No, a high school diploma or lack thereof doesn’t matter at all once you have a college degree
  • No, they aren’t all freaks, geeks, or misfits
  • Yes, there is more adult supervision than at traditional colleges
  • No, I didn’t turn out “weird” because of it, and no one else I knew did either
  • Yes, you can talk to alums, but you will need to contact me off-board for that info.

Check it out. It’s an amazing opportunity for intelligent and high-acheiving kids.

Alternately, I recommend the Claremont Colleges in CA (Harvey Mudd or Pomona for sciences).

If you insist on midwest- Kalamazoo. It has the K plan, yes?

22

I’ll put in a good word for one of the schools you’ve visited. Michigan State is a great choice. James Madison, in particular, has a long-standing, very solid reputation, especially for all things international.

What I’ve come to appreciate most about MSU is its ability to create a small college feel within an enormous university. Especially with something like James Madison, he’ll have a small group of professors and students to feel at home with, but still all the resources of a major university with hundreds of majors. Getting to know professors becomes really important when it comes to getting recommendations for grad school; MSU does a good job of making this pretty easy.

MSU has more international study programs than your son will ever be able to think about participating in, so he can have multiple international experiences before graduation if he plays his cards right. Another advantage is being so close to the state capital. If he really wants to go into politics, there should be some opportunities to start making connections while still in college.

And, if he changes his mind and wants to do something other than poly sci there are lots of good programs that he could switch to without transferring to another college.

GT

23

Well, if you can stand to have the boy in Virginia, University of Mary Washington has a really flexible international relations degree. That’s what I intend to do.

24

US News ranked UM- Ann Arbor as having the best American Government Graduate School program in the country this year. Of course your son is looking for a good undergraduate program, but good Grad Programs usually indicate good undergrad programs. And of course, going to UM could pave the way to getting a graduate degree there.

25

I don’t know if St. Louis is outside your drive-time boundaries, but may I recommend Webster University? I’m a journalism major there, but my girlfriend is an international relations major. (She changed her major after the election, she was so pissed. That’s dedication.) Anyway, Webster has an excellent history, politics and international relations program. We’re a fairly small school - about 500 students living on-campus with 2,500 more commuters - in a quiet suburb of St. Louis. Tuition is about $15,000 a year, but I got a $5,000 per year scholarship for getting good grades in high school (and by good, I mean about a 3.3 GPA). Here’s what Webster offers.

Travel from Detroit may not be as bad as you think. Cheap tickets on Southwest are available and there are a few flights a day.

If you or your son are at all interested, just shoot me an e-mail and I’d be happy to answer your questions or put you in touch with someone in that department.

26

I’m a Poli-Sci minor at WMU, with a Secondary Education certification and a major in English. My best profs were in the PSCI department. I learned more about Political Science then I did about English during my time here.

About WMU, though: The president sucks. The campus is ugly. There are a lot of assholes who attend this school. The president probably won’t make it through your son’s time in college, though (she’s on year 3 of a 5 year contract right now, and the alumni hate her). Plus, the campus is becoming much better looking. New buildings are being built, and a new entrance was completed on the west side of campus last fall.

The nightlife is great here, and we have the best pizza place in Michigan (Bilbo’s on West Michigan) as voted by Free Press readers.

Here’s my ranking, in state:

  1. MSU. It was my first choice, but I screwed up at Macomb Community before transfering. I love East Lansing and the surrounding area. My best friend is a Spartan alum with a PSCI degree, and he loved his program.

  2. WMU. Cheap, with great PSCI profs. My criminal law prof is a federal judge, fwiw.

  3. K-College. Ultra expensive, with a year of mandatory study abroad. I don’t know any dummies who went there, though, which is more than I can say for any other school.

Unranked: UofM. I don’t know anyone who went there, so I can’t give you any ideas about how good their program is.

I hope this helps a bit.

27

I would like to suggest the University of Pittsburgh. It should be within the 5 hour radius since you do admit to driving pretty fast. There is a “Politics and Philosophy” major that is run through the University Honors College. If he majors in this, he’d be assured of honors advisors, the perks of being an honors kid, etc. The information on the actual major can be found Here. If you have any questions on Pitt feel free to contact me. I can probably set up a bit of a tour for you if you plan to make a visit during the academic year, since I am a student here.

Good luck!

28

Oh! PS: Even though he is from out of state, the tuition will be lower than at most private schools. Plus based on his grades and stuff he will be guaranteed a scholarship of at least $1000 a year, but more money is likely. The honors college is very generous with its funds, especially talented out-of-state students. Scholarships here

Since he’s interested in International Studies, Pitt also offers a number of certificates in International Studies.

29

Your son is me just about 2 years ago. I am now a very happy International Relations major at JMC at MSU. I too looked at K college and U of M, and am thrilled with my choice here.

In the end, I chose it because JMC was the best of both worlds. It has all of the large university resources with the liberal arts contacts combined. Nothing against K or U of M, they just didn’t have everything that I was looking for. JMC does.

Don’t let the idea that this is just MSU fool your son. JMC, especially in the first year, is very challenging. I graduated valedictorian in a class of over 400, and I had a very hard time my first semester. After you get into the swing of things, it becomes easier, as I am now discovering. If he’s weighing the prestige factor between U of M and JMC, let him know that JMC is very well respected by employers and by graduate schools.

If your son wants to be Josh Lyman, he’ll probably be drawn to the Political Theory and Constitutional Democracy major as well as the International Relations major. The faculty in these fields are very strong.

This summer, I went on a study abroad program to Argentina for a month to fufill some requirements for my Latin American and Caribbean Studies specialization. My boyfriend leaves for a zoology study abroad in May. You can go anywhere in the world here. One of JMC’s best programs is a summer program in Brussels, which may be a plus if your son speaks French.

If your son scores a 33 or above on his ACT or a 1500? (or something close to that, I can’t remember) on his SAT, or is a national merit scholar, he is eligible for to be a Professorial Assistant, which brings with it some money. I have the job and work 5-10 hours a week doing work for a faculty member. Right now I’m doing legislative research, and I really enjoy it.

I’m getting ready to do my Field Experience next spring. In order to graduate from JMC, there is a required full-time internship for a semester for 12 credits. I’m hoping to do mine at a Lansing lobbying firm (the interview is soon :slight_smile: ). There is an office exclusively for JMC that helps you find quality internships anywhere in the world. I know several people doing theirs in DC, Europe, and Latin America. When graduation comes, we have our own career guy (I don’t know if he has a title yet) who helps with resumes and find jobs for graduates.

I can’t sing the praises enough, as you have probably gathered. If you have any questions, feel free to email me.

30

Hi folks; weekend’s over, I’m back.

Many, many thanks for all the research, advice and cites you’ve given. It’s all good, and we’re following every lead. We’ve ordered the Fiske Guide from Amazon, and K-College and Michigan are scheduled firm for visits.

It’s nice to hear from you Spartans out there; JMC is definitely his heart’s choice, and Mrs. Genghis and I are thrilled to have such a great program within reach (yeah, he’ll live on campus, be independent yada yada yada but it’s still nice to be within 90 minutes of our baby).

Our only concern is that admission to JMC is first-come, first served, and it’s a small program. If his application is a day later than the last kid taken, he’s out of luck. So we know we need to have a couple of fall-back choices. (Sorry, Michigan; you’re number 3!). We’re still open to finding that hidden gem, the program we haven’t heard about, and we’ll keep scanning right up until he leaves in fall 2006.

Thanks again!

31

I would be remiss if I didn’t at least mention my Poli-Sci degree from the University of Illinois.

Great campus, I believe that the program is top-25 ranked in a number of disciplines, and U of I has a great Law program that (I believe) gives preferential treatment to U of I grads (of that’s his thing).

One thing that’s good to know is that U of I has an extensive network of alumni in Chicago. If your son is the high-drive, ambitious type, Chicago is a good place to be.

Having said all of this (and being a donating U of I alum), get him to at least LOOK at Northwestern. Is it expensive? Sure, but I think the state of IL offers substantial grant $$ (read: 100% tuition) if a student is in the top 5% of their incoming class and takes both SAT and ACT (this may have changed, though).

32

Seeing as this is the Straight Dope and all, University of Chicago should get a plug.

33

I just wanted to let you know that this is not entirely true. Although they may waitlist you for the college if you apply after they’ve “met capacity,” this usually doesn’t happen until November, and you’re still admitted to the university. As long as he applies In August or September, he’ll be in the clear. I do know several people who simply joined up during Freshman orientation (in June or July), after the college got a better feel for how many accepted students would actually be attending.

Your son has plenty of time (although as a parent I’m sure that you don’t feel that way). Enjoy this time of open house planning, last-first moments, and take lots of pictures. :slight_smile:

34

Amen. I’m going there next year. It’s a very intellectual campus, the College consistently ranks in the top 10 or 15 best colleges in the country (check US News for example), and the University is world-renowned (they brag that they’ve had the most Nobel Prize winners over the years affiliated with them over all schools in the U.S. Two alumni won this year, and there might be about 8 or 10 working there right now).

Social Sciences seems to be the most popular field among undergraduates there, and PoliSci ranks up there. Their programs top the charts in things like Political Theory, but the school in general is really beyond words. Not to mention that a slew of really important politicians went there (Ashcroft and Wolfowitz to name two. Ashcroft for his JD, Wolfowitz for his PhD).

Of course, U of C is pricey. It can’t hurt to see what kind of aid they’d give you, though.

35

I didn’t read this whole thread, so this may have been mentioned, but don’t forget that he wants to be in political science now, but when he’s 19, he might be a theater major. I’d definitely recommend a liberal arts school so that when/if he decides that poly sci isn’t for him, he can switch to history or criminal justice or basketweaving if he so chooses.

36

I second Mary Wash for IA or poli sci. It has a really great program and you can do a lot of things. I had many friends interning for the state department or on capitol hill. One of my friends got really into Russian studies and got a lot of grant money to study Russian politics. Plus Fredericksburg is about an hour, hour and a half from DC with easy access by train.

It’s a small school still, even with the dreadful name change and conversion to university. The classes are small and you really get to interact with the professors. Plus it’s not that expensive. Even as an out of state student it was affordable. (Less than UVA or William and Mary.)

PS- Monica, if you have any questions about Mary Wash, I can try to answer them. I’m an alum with a BA in French and IA.

37

I am not sure what their political science departments are like, but for a nice selection of well-regarded small liberal arts colleges not too far from home, start with the Great Lakes Colleges Association (www.glca.org). Kalamazoo is a member, as is Ohio Welseyan which has already been mentioned here. Also Oberlin, Kenyon, and others worth a good close look.

I am here at U-M and Poli Sci is indeed top-notch.

I don’t know if you’ve checked out the forums at College Confidential, but there is someone asking almost the exact same question there! The parent forum tends to have some good frank discussions of colleges, at least from the perspective of parents who have visited schools or have children there.