Am I looking at the right schools?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I keep having mixed responses here. I want to know if I'm looking at places I can get accepted to. I don't have the money to spend on 10 applications, so I'm trying to apply to a few early instead of applying to many RD. But am I aiming in the wrong direction?</p>

<p>Sex Female
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Major Interests: English/Creative Writing, Studio Art, Performing Arts, Foreign Language
School: Um...never sends grads to top schools? O-o
GPA: 4.0/4.0 UW (4.06/4.06 W)
Rank: Top 5 Students (5/82)
ACT: 32
Courses: Rigorous
AP's: APUSH (5); AP Eng Lang (self-studied) (5)</p>

<p>Freshman<a href="MRO=%20most%20rigorous%20offered">/u</a>
- Academic English 9 (MRO)
- PE/Health (required)
- Academic Earth Science (MRO)
- Geometry (MRO)
- World History Part I (MRO)
- Fourth Year Band
- Japanese I</p>

<p>Sophomore
- Academic English 10 (MRO)
- Algebra II (MRO)
- World History Part II (MRO)
- Japanese II
- Chinese I
- Academic Biology (MRO)
- PE/Health (required)</p>

<p>Junior
- Academic English 11 (AP offered; self-studied AP exam)
- Pre-Calculus (MRO)
- APUSH
- Chemistry (MRO)
- Japanese III
- Chinese II</p>

<p>Senior
- DE Entrepreneurship
- Mass Media
- Environmental Science (AP Physics B offered, but no other AP sciences are offered, so...I don't want to go from non-AP sciences directly into AP Physics B online)
- AP Eng Literature (MRO)
- AP Psychology
- DE Government (MRO)</p>

<p>(AP Calc AB is offered as an online course. I refuse to take AP Calc online. It's not happening. >>)</p>

<p>EC's
- Asian Pacific Culture Club (President/Founder)
- Beta Club (Third Place Creative Writing at State Beta Convention)
- Creative Writing Club (Many local publications; Writing a book)
- Color Guard (Captain)
- Ecology Club
- Piano/Harmonica/Flute (on my own time)
- Art (on my own time)</p>

<hr>

<p>Schools I'm looking at:</p>

<p>1) College of William and Mary
2) James Madison U
3) George Mason U
4) Old Dominion U
5) Longwood U </p>

<p>...in that order</p>

<p>I'm am a VA student and I am only looking at in-state schools (OOS is not financially viable for my family).</p>

<p>UVA does not strike my fancy, BTW.</p>

<hr>

<p>So, am I looking in the right places or is my aim off? </p>

<p>Any suggestions? Comments? Concerns?</p>

2

<p>Aim way higher. Selling yourself way too short. Take off #3,4 and 5 because they are super safeties. Madison is a safety enough for you. And I would apply to some need-blind schools if you are worried about financial aid. Also, I would add… Georgetown as a reach and GWU as a match and American as a low match. Not all three, but whichever you like ;)</p>

3

<p>I suppose I need to look up some of these schools. xD</p>

4

<p>If you have visited these schools and you would be happy there then there is no reason to change your list. I agree that Madison should be a safety for you. You could also look at some privates that offer good merit aid. It wouldn’t matter if you were in state or out. Look at the financial aid forum for a sticky at the top on this topic.</p>

5

<p>Yeah, there’s sort of a a jump in VA schools…It goes from like 50-60% acceptance (JMU), down to 25-35% acceptance (W&M), so it’s hard to find anything in the middle of that gap.</p>

6

<p>Yes, and you are selling yourself too short with those schools. I was about to suggest UVA, but you have already expressed disdain towards it. What about Washington and Lee? I believe that is in Virginia. Oh and the University of Richmond is a good match for you. Washington and Lee would be a match too, I believe. Best of luck! Message me if you need any more help =]</p>

7

<p>Really cant beat W&M for a Virginian. Private quality and prestige @ public prices. best bargain in America.</p>

8

<p>William & Mary is your school. JMU is a perfectly adequate safety. Have you considered Mary Washington?</p>

9

<p>I see that you really like the CAA. Hofstra University is actually in there as well, which is why I know the colleges (I go to Hofstra’s basketball games). I suppose if you raise that ACT score a bit higher (34+), you could be a candidate for some top schools, such as Emory, UMich, Duke, etc.</p>

10

<p>@New Hope- My UMW visit was miserable. I just didn’t like the school at all. It was on my original list though.</p>

11

<p>I’d throw in a small Liberal Arts college or two out of your region that have a reputation for favorable [above average] financial aid; Macalester College [MN], Beloit College [WI]. In the south there’s Belmont Abbey College [NC] and Wesleyan College [GA], a fine women’s college that is committed to holding down student debt. Two larger universities that some folks feel have a small college/Liberal Arts atmosphere are U of Rochester [NY] and U of Tulsa [OK].</p>

<p>Also, if finances are a critical concern for you and your family, think about attending your first two years at a community college in Virginia, and with your Associates Degree you will get the benefit of guaranteed transfer admission to the Virginia universities (with a 3.0 GPA) with junior class standing and all of your GE requirements satisfied. One more thing, look into Princeton. Princeton has also made a commitment to enroll and graduate with minimal debt middle-class and other students with limited family resouces.</p>

12

<p>I would rather do 4-years at a Uni than 2 years of CC and transfer. With some finaid and/or small scholarships, I should be able to do most VA public Unis with little problem
(i.e. without making my parents pay too much. They want to pay for my college, but they can’t hack the entire cost). The problem comes from things like private college tuition and OOS tuition. </p>

<p>Those are things my family would not be able to pay for. 15-20k per year is one thing, 30-40k+ is another thing.</p>

13

<p>^^^ Well, that’s why you visit! I still think W&M is your school. And I agree that for creative writing four years at university is the better choice.</p>

14

<p>I hope W&M is my school. I really liked my visit and interview there, so…hopefully there won’t be too much of a struggle to get accepted.</p>

15

<p>You may want to look at some small liberal arts schools. You might be surprised about their financial aid. This is especially true for all women’s schools like Wellesley, Smith, Bryn Mawr (and they don not charge and app fee). If the app is free then it might not hurt to apply and if ur accepted to see what financial aid they offer you, you might be surprised. </p>

<p>Also you should look into honors programs at all of the school you applied to, you definitely have a chance at them.</p>

16

<p>Don’t be afraid to apply to certain private schools and OOS public schools like UNC. The most important thing is not the cost of attendance, but the average percent of need met by that college. Your family should be able to pay for the EFC generated from FAFSA. Of course, most colleges won’t give you enough grants that you can only pay EFC, even in-state, but there are some universities (usually top ones) that will guarantee that you don’t have to pay more than EFC out of pocket.</p>

17

<p>Out of those 5, W&M is perfect for you. I’m OOS and I got in, so I think you will be fine. Your academics look almost the same as mine, except for rank and GPA (I didn’t have a 4.0) You should also try reaching for some other schools outside of VA and apply for financial aid - you never know. I do love W&M though, I’ve met some of the most brilliant, passionate people there. And you’ve visited too, so that’s good. You will fit right in.</p>

<p>And oh, can I just say how awesome it is that you took Japanese AND Chinese? I’m glad to see Chinese slowly rising as a second language. I’ve spoken it since birth and still struggle with it day to day, so I can’t imagine how hard it must be to learn it from scratch. Not to mention how useful it will be in the future, especially with where the global economy is going. Kudos!</p>