Am I being completely unrealistic???

Chance Me / Match Me!
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<p>Hi, I am trying to wade through my college choices and having a lot of difficulty distinguishing between "reaches", "matches", and "safeties." I already posted this question once, so please bear with me if you happened to be online at midnight a couple weeks ago :). </p>

<p>Chances at: Yale, Swarthmore, Dartmouth, Williams, Brown, Stanford, Wesleyan, Amherst, Harvard, Princeton, Middlebury, University of Chicago or any suggestion you may have</p>

<p>~Just to clarify: I have actually researched each of these schools. I am not merely applying to them because of their "prestige." I have specific reasons for why each school suits me.~ I really do need to narrow down my list though.</p>

<p>I am a female, white, public high school junior from California
GPA: Until last semester I had an unweighted GPA of 4.0 forever, but I got a B in Honors Chem last semester and I probably will this semester too. It will be weighted on my GPA though.
APs: 1 sophomore year, 2 junior year, 6 senior year, lots of "honors" classes every year
SATs: I haven't gotten my results yet, but I got a 222 on the PSATs so I'll hopefully be National Merit on that at least</p>

<p>Extras:
Environmental Club-President
-started ink cartridge recycling program
-started planting flowers at community center program
-started watershed awareness where we teach young kids and adults</p>

<p>Interact Club-Co-President
-Co-Chair of Special Ed Relations Committee (we throw parties for special ed kids so they can meet other students that aren't in special ed)
-Co-Chair of Feed the Hungry Committee (we package and distribute food to needy families)
-Volunteer at Renaissance Charity Tea
-Volunteer at Community Grand Openings (like bridges and parks, not stores :) )
-Volunteer at Rotary Business Galas to honor generous community members
-Campus clean-up days</p>

<p>California Scholarship Federation-Treasurer, I will be a lifetime member when I graduate
FBLA-Incentives Director, Chair of News Committee
Aeronautics Club-Vice President
Sierra Nevada Alliance Newsclipper (I send local environmental newspaper articles that are put in a weekly e-mail newsletter)
Volunteer 4 hours every 2 weeks at hospital
Tutor at my school 1-2 hours a week
Mock Trial- Individual Achievement Award for Best Witness and Best Defense Attorney, We are going to States, but I don't think we will be very competitive there
Peer Court
National Society of High School Scholars, Whos Who--I know, I know, I shouldn't even put these down :)
Shasta Academic Awards-one for every semester--yes, these are lame
Summers: Cambridge University College Programme, Rotary Camp Royal (it is a locally prestigious leadership camp), volunteered for just a few weeks at an elementary school</p>

<p>I know I was rather wordy, but I really appreciate your help. Please feel free to be brutally honest!</p>

<p>Thanks so much!</p>

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<p>Any input at all would be really helpful. I honestly have no idea what my chances are at these schools.</p>

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<p>jaimie17, i wish i could tell you what your chances are, but i don't think anyone really can. you look like you've done well for yourself, so just keep it up and hope for the best. the top schools are so selective these days that there's no telling who they're gonna reject. </p>

<p>don't forget to have fun</p>

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<p>Highlight your environmental involvement in an essay, interview or something and you stand a good shot.</p>

<p>A good class rank would help you too, if your school does that.</p>

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<p>goalie1258--thanks anyways, I realize that no one really has any real idea about who can get in and who can't. I'm just wondering whether or not I even stand a chance. Like you said, they reject like third world natives with 1600s. Oh, and don't worry about me forgetting to have fun :)</p>

<p>Thanks for the suggestion, wolfstarslasher. I think I'll do that because I know my involvements are a little scattered right now. </p>

<p>Any other input?</p>

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<p>You want to be an environmental scientist?</p>

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<p>lol, um...no. To be totally honest, I don't really even know what an environmental scientist does, so I guess there's a small possibility that I might enjoy it. I just like to raise awareness in my community about our local environmental issues.</p>

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<p>Here's my thoughts!</p>

<p>Solid Reach: Yale, Stanford, Harvard, Princeton
Slight Reach: Swarthmore, Dartmouth, Williams, Brown, Amherst
Match: University of Chicago
Safe Match: Wesleyan, Middlebury</p>

<p>You have some good schools in there! I would personally dump Chicago unless you really don't like a social life, and not because of the work, but because there is none there. I would add Vassar, its an awesome LAC with many of the attributes of the other schools you have listed. I personally liked it much more than Wesleyan (I am liberal, but Wesleyan seemed militantly so). </p>

<p>I wouldn't really cut any of the slight reaches, I think you have more than a good shot at getting into a couple. I might dump the one of HYPS you like the least.</p>

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<p>i don't know how you define "safe match" but I wouldn't want to tell many people with any certainty that they're shoo ins for schools like midd and wesleyan. </p>

<p>Jaimie: What DO you want to major in?</p>

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<p>Thanks again slipper1234! Yeah, I added Chicago as a bit of an afterthought (although it is a great school), but I don't think I would fit well there either. I've heard really good things about Vassar, but I'm more on the "preppy" side and I am a little worried that I wouldn't fit in. I have no problem at all with people who aren't like me, but I don't want to feel completely out of place either. What do you think about their social atmosphere?</p>

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<p>I think you would fit in very well at Middlebury.</p>

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<p>FishS, well, I actually don't know. I plan to apply as an undeclared major. I was really interested in medicine until I discovered how much I loathe chemistry. I still haven't ruled it out though. I'm also considering being a lawyer or the president of a well-known college (I do realize that its quite hard to get a job as a president of a well-known college). I don't want to limit myself yet though, because there are so many jobs that I haven't even heard of.</p>

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<p>I don't want to bug you, but would you mind telling me a bit about what you know of Middlebury?</p>

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<p>lol slipper1234, I am pretty liberal as well, but the "militant liberalism" you described at Wesleyan was what I was worried about at Vassar. Yeah, I will probably only apply to Stanford and Yale, not all of HYPS.</p>

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<p>I think environmental law would be a good career to consider.</p>

<p>Middlebury has an excellent environmental science program and is a very outdoorsy place. A wonderful campus too. It's also quite preppy which I can relate to. The student population is somewhat homogeneous, generally upper class and white. The academics are top notch, very comparable to any of the other schools on your list. It has very good graduate school placement. It's a liberal arts college and therefore has smaller classes and more professor interaction. Overall I just see it as being the school on the list that seems to most fit my impression of you. Good luck with whatever you decide.</p>

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<p>Thanks FishS, I am looking at the Middlebury website right now and its really nice. Have a good night</p>

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<p>Haha, nice. I think most schools are "chill liberal" but some get crazy! Seriously take another look at Wesleyan, it sort of was too much for me. I actually think Vassar is less militant than Weslyan, but it might just have been the scene I was hanging out with.</p>

<p>I liked Middlebury a lot, I think you should keep it. Of course Dartmouth and Brown are my favorite though. So after dumping Chicago and maybe Harvard/ Princeton, I think you have a pretty good list!</p>

<p>The last school that I might also look twice at is Swarthmore. Its an AMAZING school, but it isnt going to have the same type of friendly "happy" playful student you will find at many of the other schools on your list. The social life isn't bad, but it also isnt the bonding place that other schools are.</p>

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<p>lol slipper1234, we really do have the same taste in schools. My top choices (if I rule out Yale because I probably won't get in) were Swarthmore, Brown, Dartmouth, and Williams. And now that I've heard all of this, I think Middlebury is going to get added to my favorites list too.</p>

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<p>I hate to add a personal bias but I did not enjoy my visit to Brown. So much so that it went from being my top pick to me not even applying. I'm a little surprised that it's on your short list with those other schools as it is very different since it's in the city. A little too much ivy snobbery in the air also.</p>

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<p>I actually really appreciate your personal bias, FishS. I mean, all of my information about colleges comes from their websites and glossy brochures, so it's great to hear about their negatives as well. I had actually liked Brown because I like Providence and I had heard that it was the most undergrad oriented Ivy. Ironically, I had also heard that it was the most laid back, but that doesn't fit with your perception of its "ivy snobbery." What else didn't you like about it?</p>