First post but have found this forum incredibly helpful. Interested in some feedback on college list for my very high stats DD24. Thanks in advance for the help.
From NC, attends large public HS well known for academic rigor
Unweighted GPA 4.0/Weighted 4.7
10 APs + some dual enrollment math at local university
ACT 36 on single sitting as 10th grader
2 sport varsity athlete (although probably not quite recruitable and just wants to do club sports in college)
4 years of orchestra with state honors
Over 100 hours of volunteering mostly around environmental causes
Started own business (a bakery with delivery raising money for local animal shelter) during COVID that amazingly is still a going concern 3 years later
Worked in research lab at local university in summer
Wants to study environmental science/ecology/evolutionary biology
Generally likes the idea of a middle sized research university more than a big state school or a small LAC but is flexible. Likes warmer weather but has loved her visits to the Ivies so would tolerate some cold. Places very cold and pretty remote (e.g, Dartmouth, Cornell) were crossed off list. Doesnât want to go all the way to the west coast. We are fortunate that finances are not an issue so wonât need to chase merit
Current list (recognize that these categories are arbitrary) has a lot of reaches which we realize is a crapshoot for anyone. For what itâs worth, she is a legacy at 2 of the high reach schools
Reaches
Harvard
Yale
Princeton
Brown
Duke
Swarthmore
Rice
Wash U
Targets
Emory
Vassar
William and Mary
Likely
UNC (in state-about 55% of applicants from her high school get accepted)
Richmond
Dickinson
Very strong applicant. In my opinion, I would add an additional sure thing College to your safety list. Iâm not sure Richmond and Dickinson would be absolute sure things. But thatâs my opinion.
Your D will be competitive at all these schools, congrats to her on her achievements. I agree she needs at least one safetyâŠmaybe NC State (confirm with Naviance/Scoir)? If thatâs too big, maybe Goucher or Allegheny?
I would call Richmond a target with a Class of 2027 acceptance rate of 22%, and Emory and Vassar reaches, because their admit rates are under 20%. Female admit rate for Vassar was 15.7% for Class of 2026.
If you arenât applying for fin aid, I would encourage an ED/REA/SCEA app, and also an ED2 app, if she has clear favorites. Make sure she applies EA to all the schools that offer EA (where allowable if she chooses to REA/SCEA anywhere).
Try to visit as many of these schools as possible. Itâs not common that Swat and Brown are on the same list(Swat in general seems like an outlier on this list). Good luck to her.
If she wishes to maximize her likelihood of acceptance, she should apply ED/REA to one of the 2 legacy schools. That gives her the best chance of attending a reach
We are in NC, too. UNC should be an admit for her, but make sure you are looking at safeties where there is a generous admission percentage just to make sure you have a sure thing that she would enjoy attending. We are a William and Mary family, and the OOS admit rate has dropped below 28%. I would think she would get an admit to there, but OOS can be disappointing. As mentioned, if she has a strong preference for one of the highly selective schools, go ED. And the smaller the school, the trickier it will be.
Congrats. The list seems balanced to me. Iâm guessing multiples will happen including W&M.
If she likes Emory, how about Vandy ? Warner than WUSTL and rated higher than both the others in your field - at least based on the attached. And U of Miami as a mid-size warm school that will be a tad easier admit than most on your list - as a just in case.
I agree Swat stands out as not belonging although I loved the small campus (son didnât)
Basics include Brown has 4x the number of undergrads and an open curriculum. Swat has quite a few distribution requirements, including PE and a swimming test.
Swat is academically rigorous and intense, and many of the students will fit those characteristics. First semester grades are pass/fail.
Brown is not a pressure cooker environment and student tend to be relatively more social, laid back, extroverted. Brown grads have high GPAs on average.
I am not saying one school is better than the other, nor am I saying the schools are only made up of one type of student. Swat is what I call a fit school, and most students know if itâs a fit or not by visiting, reading the school newspaper, and other typical research activities.
Swat is very very much a âfitâ school. It has itâs own intensely intellectual vibe, and ime students know really fast if it âfeelsâ right to them or not. On the other hand, ime a broader range of students feel that Brown is a good âfitâ for them, and imo Brownâs affect is almost the opposite of âintenseâ. Both schools have very smart students who are willing and able to work hard, but the campus cultures are really, really different.
Iâd consider adding back Cornell and Dartmouth, even if they are âvery cold and pretty remote,â because they are superb schools with strong programs in environmental science/ecology/evolutionary biology and being able to make the case for why that schoolâs academic programs/strengths are right for her is a real advantage.
Iâd also consider some top small liberal arts colleges with excellent environmental studies programs, such as Middlebury, Amherst, Pomona, and Colby (all better than Vassarâs, I believe).
Judging by the results for the latest round of applicants, your daughterâs exceptional stats are no longer exceptional â crazy as it sounds, sheâll be up against innumerable others with similar stats and itâs not impossible that she could be rejected or waitlisted by every name on your reach and target list. All of which is a long way of saying she may want to expand her list of target schools without worrying too much about climate at this stage.
Your daughter should consider submitting a music supplement to all that will take one, including Harvard, Princeton, Duke, and WashU.
She has roughly six months to perfect just 7-15 minutes of repertoire, and a supplement (as long as itâs strong) shows that youâre willing to go the extra mile and thatâll youâll bring something to campus that not all the other 4.0/36s will.
Your schools scoir / naviance / GC- or just your own read as to who got into where from this years class- will give you the best read on the fanciest names. Note that her list is pretty much the standard high-achieving mid-atlantic kid list, and to me is like the kid who says they want to be a doctor / lawyer- they are just names of things they have been told is what smart / successful people do.
Have her research just the environmental science end of colleges, so that she knows which schools have the strongest programs- that are interesting to her! Some of those will be high-end names, others will not, but she should be able to group them by how much each specific program appeals to her- and why. She should be able to tell you why the program at X is better than the program at Y (as a bonus, this will help with the âwhy usâ essays). She should be getting to know who the big academic names are in her field, and who is doing research that is interesting to her. She will discover that some of the biggest names are not in the most famous name colleges.
If at all possible, encourage her to make a policy (starting now!) to keep her thinking on colleges private. At the very least never indicate to anybody (other than maybe you!) what her first choice/favorite or (much worse!) âdreamâ school is. Instead, share what she is learning about env sci programs, and keep people guessing as to what direction she might go.
For example, the BSc in Environmental Science at Wageningen University (Netherlands) is ranked in the top 5 Env Sci programs in the world- but if she has good results from APs in Calc, Physics & Chemistry she is almost certain to get an offer. Itâs a 3 year program, with an option 4th year for a Masters. Itâs a wild card- but interesting to think about. A whole lot of the college is this processing of pushing through the simplistic âthatâs a good nameâ to âwhat is that I am looking for beyond the bumper stickerâ.
tl;dr- Focusing on programs that she really likes will broaden her list beyond the typical mid-atlantic shortlist and improve her apps- and thus increase the chances of a happy outcome
What about âLittle Iviesâ like Amherst, Williams, Tufts, Middlebury, Wesleyan et al âŠAmherst and Hamilton are similar to Brown in the freer curriculum. Little Ivies - Wikipedia
I also like the Colleges that Change Lives schools- see the website.
Only do a music supplement if talent and commitment warrant it, otherwise it can be a negative. Generally music supplements include a recording/video, a music resume, and a letter or two of recommendation related to music.
I agree. None of those schools are safeties. UNC seems safe-ish, as an instate student. No true safety on the list though.
Most of the targets are reaches. Emory is a reach. Vassar is a reach, especially for a female.
If your child is considering Vassar and Swarthmore, Dickinson and Richmond, others can be considered. What about Haverford, or some of the NESCACs? This list is reach heavy.
Please donât think I am being harsh. Your D is a great student and will certainly have good choices, but Iâm not seeing anything that makes her a standout. Iâd say she is an âaverageâ excellent student. But there are many factors that can make her stand out, including great teacher recommendations and essays.
I suggest getting a Fiske guide and using Niche to figure out what she likes about all these schools. She will need solid reasons for her âwhy this college?â essays. She needs more match schools and at least one true safety.
Edit: to clarify, a lot of these colleges have under 20% acceptance rates and high yield rates. IMO, any college with an acceptance rate in the 20% range or below is a reach. Dickinson an Richmond are matches.
@gmf001 please read this linked thread. Itâs oldâŠfrom 2007âŠbut is on pointâŠand admissions have become more competitive since 2006 when this story started. As a forwardâŠ.the student was a NMF, top student at his high school, award winner, top SAT scores, etc. He got no acceptances (and yes, @ucbalumnus will remind me that he really had no sure things on his list the first time). No one expected this outcome for such a very strong student.
He did land on his feet quite well after taking a gap yearâŠbut letâs just sayâŠthe last part of his senior year of high school wasnât a happy time.
Please readâŠand think about those safety sure thing schoolsâŠ
