I think we're being too hasty on the athletic front. All OP says he expects to do under 17, but all he has on record is an 18:36. It's nice to have a goal, but he can him running 17:30 just as easily as 16:50, which will be a huge difference when trying to walk on to a team like John Hopkins'. I don't want to be a downer, but some of these teams have a freshman squad full of guys who ran 16:30 or better in hs.
If you are looking at those schools, have a look at Davidson which has long had a strong pre-med program. It is Division 1 but they used to have a very liberal walk-on policy. I don't know if that is still the case. The school year starts with the Freshman Cake Race which has been run for nearly a century. It has long been used to recruit runners for the team:
article here:
https://www.davidson.edu/news/2020/08/27/pandemic-shelves-cake-race-now
Here is there current roster with bios:
https://davidsonwildcats.com/sports/mens-cross-country/roster
Just go the one that costs you the least, like most kids these days
Scholar Expert wrote:
Like I said, lower middle class. 41% of MIT students pay full price.
That percentage does not matter (and actually only 37% pay full price according to US World and News Report). What matters is how much this kid's family makes. If his family makes ~125,000 or less per year and they don't have significant savings outside of retirement accounts, then he would get about the equivalent of full tuition, still having to pay room and board. $125,000 is the magic number for most of these elite colleges that pay full need.
talented and lazy wrote:
Why put yourself in all of that debt? Studies have shown that kids who are Ivy material, earn just as much as Ivy grads even if they attend their state school. So your counselor gave you the correct advice.
Depending on how much money the family brings in each year, it can be a great idea to go to an Ivy League school if you get in. They all typically give among the best financial aid for those who need it.
You are also not right about the money an IVY grad can make.
I lifted this for you from a 2015 report:
"According to a 2015 report released by the U.S. Department of Education, the median annual earnings for an Ivy League graduate 10 years after starting come in at $70,000 a year. In contrast, graduates of non-Ivy league schools had a comparative median salary of around $34,000."
Just holler if you need more facts.
Whitman College in Walla Walla
D3
Good academics
All walk on team
Michigan tech
one of the only good d2 academic schools
recent success in xc and track
2 xc all Americans 2019 13th place team finish
4 track all americans 2019 mens steeple, mens 10k, womens 1500, womens 800
a lot of scholarship money gets thrown out for academics as well