Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University

brand new student center

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University- This school’s preoccupation is with flight.  Almost every major points back in some way to the flight industry and flight science.  Whether it is pilot training, aircraft maintenance, or business, everything relates and ultimately prepares a student for employment in this industry.  Of course, a student could come to Embry-Riddle and qualify for work outside of the aviation industry, but make no mistake, this is their forte.  A major that I have never heard of before, Human Factors, incorporates the study of ergonomics and designing systems that reduce human error.  This degree has applicability to industries like computer operating systems design in addition to aeronautics.

Students in the pilot program have a wonderful set up. 

pre-flight prep room 

Student pilots can roll out of bed, walk to the flight center to prepare for their flight, and go for a training flight right there on campus.  Most colleges that offer pilot programs require students to leave campus to go to an airport for this training.  It is all included in the campus at Embry-Riddle.

AMT lab with jet engines

No matter the major, Embry-Riddle takes a very hands-on approach to instruction.  A great example of this is in the Aviation Maintenance Technician program.  Students in this program will disassemble a jet engine completely, reassemble it and as the final test, fire that bad boy up!  In many other similar programs, students may have one engine to share with a larger class.  As you can see from the picture, students in an AMT lab at Embry Riddle have enough engines to enable them to tear down an engine with a fellow peer.  This type of experience makes Embry-Riddle students a hot commodity in the job force; 97% of graduates either find employment in their field of study or went on to graduate school.  Pilots and aviation mechanics are in high demand as there is a huge shortage, which is driving up the salaries.  There is a high rate of return on one of these degrees.

Aviation engineering class

Cost of attendance is in line with many of the schools I have visited this week.  The total cost of attendance is $47,000 per year, with added expenses related to the pilot program (extra $15,000 per year.  These are four year programs, which is longer than other programs that will train students to fly or fix planes/helicopters, but the great thing is that this type of degree can open up opportunities for later on in a student’s career.  The good news is that 90% of students receive some sort of financial aid, females automatically qualify for a $5000 scholarship that is renewable for up to four years!  This is meant to be an enticement to raise the enrollment of female students (25% to 75%).

Embry-Riddle is a Division 2 NCAA school that offers 22 different sports.  This and being located in Daytona Beach, FL give students hundreds of fun options to studying, but make no mistake, this is a demanding school.  There is a sister campus in Prescott, Arizona, which offers the same programs.  Both campuses are well equipped for a meaningful education both in and out of class.  

For a student who is interested in aviation, a visit to Embry-Riddle in Dayton Beach would be a great idea.

Embry Riddle Aeronautical University Profile

5700 students

Average GPA of incoming freshman- over a 3.0 if you want any merit-based scholarships

SAT- (test optional) 1150

ACT- (test optional) 26

Florida Institute of Technology

Day two of the college tour grind: Florida Institute of Technology (FIT) started the morning off right!  This innovator is located in Melbourne, Florida, a Mecca for high tech industry.  This ease of access makes FIT a wonderful place to connect to technological and aeronautical cutting edge developments.  There is a reciprocal relationship as students are able to design applications that these industries need.  The relationship of industry with FIT allows this school to have incredible access to research implements.  FIT engineering students have launched projects into space to test the tensile strength of a wire repair kit.  Students have engineered a model plane that is capable of speeds of 350 miles per hour!  The FFA restricts its speed to 150, though.  The relationship of industry ushers in numerous internship opportunities.  70% of students will work in a paid internship at some point in their college career.  This is all to say that a student who has a mechanical interest can go crazy at FIT. 

entrance to botanical garden

FIT was started by three astronauts (as it is very close to Cape Canaveral Space Center) in the aftermath of Sputnik (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sputnik_1).  A humorous fun fact- the area code for the Melbourne area is 321. (think about it…) This puts this institution at 60 years old.  2900 students enjoy the multitude of outdoor opportunities and plenty of summertime temps.  Located on campus is a botanical garden that boasts over 200 types of palm trees, one being so rare that Walt Disney Corp. offered 3 million dollars for the tree for their Animal Kingdom park.  The answer was No. 

At FIT, there are 83 majors, and over 95% of students receive scholarship or financial aid money to offset the cost of this excellent education-approximately $58k per year.  FIT offers a four year degree in being an airplane pilot that leads to a commercial license. With financial aid

350 Mile per hours

opportunities and the understanding that certain majors at FIT will be incredibly lucrative later on, makes this price tag seem to be a smart choice option.  I know that Georgia Tech is a huge magnet in the state of Georgia for engineers, but that are other options that students can explore.  FIT offers a lot real-world, hands-on learning for engineering students!

Florida Institute of Technology Profile:

GPA 3.75

SAT 1060-1260

ACT 24-29

Stetson University

You may have heard the name of my next stop- Stetson University.  For the baseball fans, and even more specifically, college baseball, you will no doubt recognize this college from the Super Regional   The baseball team helped this school take a step towards the goal of becoming a college that has wide reaching name recognition.  Not only do they want you to know them for athletics, but also for outstanding academic opportunities.

Playoffs where they came up just short of a trip to the College World Series.

Stetson sums up its desire to help students in one word- significance.  At Stetson, students find their own significance in the world by mastering the discipline of being a life-long learner and then applying that knowledge to accomplish goals.  Stetson University is ranked in the top 5 universities in the South by US News and World Reports.  This high ranking is due in some part to the number of instructors who possess the highest level of excellence in their own specific areas of discipline- 95% have PhDs.

science lab

Stetson has an extensive Honors Program.  The Honors Program waives all of a student’s general education core courses.  This will allow students to take more electives toward the design of an individualized degree.  This type of freedom is not limited to students in the Honors program; any student coming in having a firm grasp of what it is they are interested in will find a faculty interested in helping build an education that will accomplish this goal.  Honors students receive on average of $25k to $38k in institutional scholarships.  On campus, a program known as the Bonner program seeks to enhance community service ideals in students.  This program brings students who share this common interest together to live in a common dormitory and participation in this program will cover all a student’s financial need.

 ROTC is offered at Stetson.  It is open to every freshman with no obligation until you accept a scholarship or enter into your junior year.  Full tuition, stipend ($25 per month), full room and board, and all fees are covered.  Ultimately, it will cost a scholarshipped cadet $1000 per year to attend Stetson.  Eight year military service requirement follows graduation.  The Stetson Army ROTC is looking for the following basic requirements: 24 on the ACT or 1150 on the SAT, 3.0 GPA, athletic ability and demonstrated leadership potential.

One of the oldest Financial Investment programs in the nation can be found at Stetson.  A large endowment has funded a 3.5 million dollar (real money) sum that each group of seniors in the program will manage for the year.  This real money (good or bad) will go back into the endowment to be used again.  As a point of pride, each class wants to do better than the last, and this creates a real-world, skin-in-the-game experience for the seniors.  Their "war-room" is pictured.

One interesting fact about Stetson’s admissions practices is that they are a “test optional” school.  What this means is that they will make a decision about a student without that student submitting an SAT or ACT score.  This means that Stetson depends heavily on high school grades, the high school resume of activities and the student’s ability to articulate clearly how Stetson is the school of choice.

Stetson's profile:

3089 undergraduate

3.8 GPA

SAT/ACT optional-

33% pell grant students

56% white/44% students of color

$59,202 total cost (financial Aid opportunities can be found at Stetson.edu/financial-planning)

Rollins College

My first stop today is Rollins College, just outside of Orlando.  Situated on the shores of Lake Virginia, a relaxing feel awaits students, but Orlando offers incredible opportunities for internships with Fortune 500 companies, for fun in the amusement park world, and for professional sports and artistic entertainment.  This small liberal arts college boasts a student population right at 1950.  The small class size, at just 17 students, makes it very easy to get to know your professors, where they handle 100% of the teaching duties (no Graduate Teachers Assistants).  Professors take a special intention in helping students to learn and focus on the development of “who the student wants to be in the world.”  For 23 consecutive years, Rollins has been named by US News and World Reports as being in the top two regional universities in the South.  The quality of this college is undeniable.

 Rollins College is the oldest residential private liberal arts college in the State of Florida, opening its doors in 1885.  Among famous alumni, no other carries the same notoriety as Fred Rogers- Mr. Rogers to all the moms and dads.  His ideals are reflective of what Rollins College’s mission is- to create students who are idealistically entrepreneurial.  Students who long to change their part of the world and have the personal willingness to step beyond their personal bounds will find a great home at Rollins.  As a Division II NCAA school, a wide variety of sports are available to student athletes.  As with many other colleges, travel abroad programs are encouraged, and 75% of students participate in the fantastic variety opportunities. 

typical classroom

A college like Rollins, with its rich opportunities that students have there, often times can be rather expensive.  Rollins is no different at $67,000 per year for the cost of attendance.  It is important to note that 85% of Rollins students find financial aid options that can greatly reduce the expense of attendance.  To find out what needs-based financial aid your student could qualify for, take a few minutes to use their financial aid calculator- rollins.edu/net-price-calculator 

shore of Lake Virginia

Rollins Profile for Admissions (25^th to 75^th percentile) is as follows-

GPA- 3.36 average core GPA

SAT 1220-1360

ACT- 25-30

To learn more about Rollins College and the admissions process, visit rollins.edu/admission

College Knowledge

It is June 9th, and I will be embarking on a six day professional development experience that is going to make me better at serving the students and parents of Social Circle.  Thankfully, I was the recipient of a grant to be able to have this experience and gain this knowledge.  I will be touring 14 different campuses in central and northern Florida including:

Florida Polytechnic University
Florida Southern College
Stetson University
University of Florida
Florida State University
Ringling College of Art and Design
Florida Institute of Technology
Florida A & M
University of Tampa
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Eckerd College
New College of Florida
Rollins College
University of South Florida

I will be posting pictures and things that I learn about some of these schools throughout the week that will allow you to experience and learn more about these schools.  Be patient with me as this Bulldawg tries to find positive things to say about UF, but I am going into it with an open mind!  Stay tuned to expand your knowledge of opportunities that your student can find south of the border.

Summer Reading

There is a summer reading assignment that you will want to go ahead and get started on, students.  Here is the link to the information:

http://schssummerreading.weebly.com/

Counseling Office Hours for this Summer

Mr. Kulp will be in and out of the office this summer.  Here are the days and times that he will be available in June if you need him.  Drop ins are always welcome, but folks with appointments will get priority.  If you want to set an appointment for a junior meeting, Dual Enrollment issues, help with transcripts (for example), you can schedule an appointment by emailing mike.kulp@socialcircleschools.org.  If you have a change to your schedule that you want to request, please send that to hs.schedules@socialcircleschools.org.  Thanks and have a great summer!