Expert: Bruce - 5/31/2007

Question
QUESTION: bruce,
your answers have been the most helpful of all the experts i've written to.
i'm pretty new to everthing college-related, but i've learned a lot since i started. as i go, new questions arise, most of which i can find out for myself.  .  .  . some, however, are a little beyond me.

after looking at the petersons guide to colleges, i've been wondering if colleges that are 'noncompetitive' or 'minimally difficult' to enter have lower quality academics than colleges that are 'moderately difficult' to 'very difficult'?

how can i check out a college's academic quality(or rating) before i apply?

how much time does an accelerated degree program cut off of the 4 years? or does it vary from college to college?

do you think bachelors in psychology are too common? i want to go to law school eventually and i've heard that there's no criterion for what to major in.  
i've almost decided on getting a b.a. in psychology and a minor in paralegal work, but then again, maybe i should switch it around. i mean, will a knowledge of and degree in psychology be of any help to me as a lawyer - or would paralegal work be a better choice?

i've narrowed down my list of colleges to six. i've done it on the basis that they have majors in pre-law, paralegal work, foreign languages and psychology.
are the majors listed also classes that i can take, or are they just majors?

before i'm done with college, i want to have taken
accounting    computer science       economics      history

international      spanish&          english      creative
  relations        other languages          writing

speech/          music          philosophy      government
 rhetorical
    studies

and of course paralegal work  and psychology.

my question is: which of these should i take in my first year? should i work on my minor in my first year, or should i wait? and is there anything i should add or subtract to this list?

also, another question that's really been bugging me: what is the point of winning scholarships if the amount won is simply subtracted from my financial aid package?

also. . . . no, i think that's it.
thank you for reading this extensive letter - i appreciate your time and all of the wise instuction you've given me in the past. i'm getting closer and closer to my goals, and i couldn't do it without your help.
jenna

ANSWER: Hi Jenna,

I'll reply at length after the weekend, but a couple things now. Your timing is good here, as I have just started a project rewriting the prelaw Web page for a college. So, I've been reading other colleges Web pages this week.

When you say that you'll minor in paralegal studies - what does that program include?

Also, what criteria have you used to narrow your college list to 6?

If you win outside scholarships, that should reduce the amount of your financial aid package that is in the form of loans - or it will be used to meet any gap in your aid package. They are worth pursuing for sure, and I can give you some tips on that, too.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: hi,
i would be very interested in seeing the college prelaw web page you're working on when it's finished.

as for minoring in paralegal studies, i'm not sure what that program includes. i'll probably have to send for information from one of the colleges on it, because all i've sent for so far is information on their psychology program. i do know that paralegal studies is training for gruntwork. from what i have read, paralegals investigate facts, prepare legal arguments, interview clients, and work a lot with contracts and other legal work. it s o u n d s like it'd be good preparation for law school anyway: to minor in. i'm still debating the b.a. in psychology - i'm afraid it's going to bore me to death.

the criteria i've used to narrow my college list is probably not the best, but so far its all i know to do. i've chosen 6 colleges on the basis that they have:(1)the list of classes i mentioned earlier (2), an accelerated degree program and (3), allowances for people who've stupidly only taken one year of foreign language.
the colleges on my plate now are:
concordia university (wisconsin)
marywood university (pennsylvania)
gannon university (pennsylvania)
morehead state university (kentucky)
lake erie college (ohio)
calvin college (michigan), which doesn't have some of the
         courses i was hoping for, but
         perhaps i could transfer to
         another college later.

yes, tips on scholarships would be great(now that i know
they might be counted)!

well, thank you again!
jenna
         
         

ANSWER: Jenna,

Allexperts is telling me that I never replied to your last question. I thought I did. Are you still waiting for a reply from me?

Bruce

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: I thought you died.
Yes, I'd love to hear what you have to say.
If I were you right now, I'd be hoping for a 'no', because that's a lot of questions!
I still have time to change stuff on my FAFSA, so your information, especially about colleges, is still on time.
Don't get mad, but I have an additional question: I've heard a little about reciprocal agreements between states that allow federal aid granted to a student of say, Ohio, to get that same aid in say, Pennsylvannia. How do I find out if my state and another state have a reciprocal agreement?
Okay, that's all. . . . . . .for now. Sorry.
Later,
Jenna


Answer
OK, I'm back. Sorry about all the delays. There have been three questions that I thought I answered, only to have allexperts tell me after some time that I had not. Yours was one of those, I'm sorry to say.

Regarding your last question, the easiest way to find out of your state aid crosses the border is to ask the intended school. My understanding, current as of a few years ago, is that PA and Ohio do share state aid. Generally, its the states that export far more students than they take in that refuse to send aid with them out of state. Two states that come to mind right away are NJ and NY.

BTW, its easy to add a school to your FAFSA once its filed. You should also make a photocopy before you send it in, that could help you if you identify another school late in the process.


Regarding your college major, take the subjects that interest you the most, so that you'll establish a strong GPA. If the major does not inherently build skills in writing, analyzing & discussion, suuplement your major with courses like speech, debate, logic, and anything writing intensive; writing, history, political science. Its also good to have a semester of accounting behind you and to pick up any courses your college offers in law areas, like constitutional law, international law, business law, etc., just as a basic intro to the general field. If you can grab a paralegal course or two, fine, but I would not bypass a good academic course to do so.

Of the colleges you list, I'm really only familiar with two, Gannon and Calvin and more so with the latter. Gannon is a reasonably large Catholic school and will certainly have a good variety of classes to offer. Seems like it would be a good choice. Calvin is a Christian school affiliated with a reformed denomination and is quite good academically. You could check out pre-law material for each one via Web sites and phone calls. Find out, too, if they have any kind of a pre-law society on campus.

As for local scholarships, if you are entering college this fall, its probably too late to apply. If next year, you have time. Do a search for any community foundation in your area, civic groups (e.g. Grange & 4H) and companies your parents/grandparents work (ed) for to see what might be available.

Outside scholarships should not reduce your gift aid, just the amount of aid you borrow or earn via work. In many cases, it makes no change at all in aid already allotted.

Don't worry about the one year of a language thing. You still have good college options, and the college you attend will make sure you take your college lang requirement anyway. Its no big deal.

I hope this info helps. Feel free to send more questions.

Bruce