<p>I attend a pretty lousy school where 90% of each graduating class attends the community college next door, and I am completely lost in the application process. I have no clue where to apply.
I am a Hispanic (Costa Rican) female who lives on the west coast of Florida.
My GPA is 3.8 uw/4.3 w, and I am in the top tenth percent of my class. ACT score is 28 composite, and SAT is 1240/1600 (700 R 540 M 620 W).
I've been planning to major in international affairs/political science (I want to be a diplomat), possibly with a minor in music (if at all possible, I'd love to double major in music performance and something else, but I know few schools allow that).
I was planning on staying in Florida (Bright Futures ftw) but I haven't really liked any of the schools I've seen here. Here's what I want in a school:
-small to medium size
-urban campus
-if the school offers Middle Eastern studies, that's a huge plus.
The only schools I've really been looking at are Florida schools, as I have no idea what to reach for anywhere else. Help!</p>
<p>I would say look at American University and maybe even George Washington. thats a great place to be for international affairs. and your GPA and SATs put you into a place where you would have a chance.
if money is an issue those places wouldn’t be a good place because they are soooo dang expensive. Umiami is a good school…im not sure if they have international affairs but the probably do considering it is a fairly sizable university.</p>
<p>American University, U of Miami, Villanova, Fordham, Southern Methodist University, Texas Christian U., Trinity College (Connecticut), Clark University (Massachusetts), Catholic University.</p>
<p>Also, Syracuse, Maryland and Boston University.</p>
<p>How will you pay for your education? You need to run some financial aid calculators (start at <a href=“http://www.finaid.org)%5B/url%5D”>www.finaid.org)</a>, and to talk with your family about just how much money is available.</p>
<p>UM is expensive unless you get a scholarship (it’s a private school). Tuition at UF, New College in Sarasota (public, tiny honors school), FSU, UCF, USF, UNF, and a few others will be free for you as long as you get bright futures. i’m not exactly sure, but i think you need at least a 1270 SAT for 100%, so you should try to re-take it if you can. Being hispanic won’t give you a very big URM boost in FL, so try to get your scores up.</p>
<p>And even though you want to go to a small/medium sized school, UF is probably your best option academically. It is possible at UF to major in music performance and political science with a certificate (within the poli sci program) in international relations. (btw, that was my original plan! but now im majoring in poli sci and minoring in spanish and in vocal performance). Right now Dr. Woods and a few other professors who teach classes on the Middle East are working on developing a formal Middle Eastern Studies program. It should be completely developed in the next year or two. It’s possible now, but you need to do a lot of work on your own (it’s a create-your-own-major type thing). I’ve taken a few classes on the Middle East here (Politics of the Middle East, Women and Politics in Israel, and i’m currently in Arab-Israeli Conflict) and they’ve all been very interesting 
</p>
<p>to sum it all up…Go Gators! :)</p>
<p>op, what did you think of Stetson? i have a few friends doing music there, and it’s much smaller than other in-state schools. of course, it’s quite expensive, but maybe you want to give it a look. good luck!</p>
<p>Really - for political science and music Florida State has no peer in Florida.</p>
<p>Political science: [fsu.edu</a> | The Department of Political Science](<a href=“http://polisci.fsu.edu/]fsu.edu”>http://polisci.fsu.edu/)</p>
<p>Music: [url=<a href=“http://music.fsu.edu/]Welcome”>http://music.fsu.edu/]Welcome</a> to the College of Music at Florida State University<a href=“caution%20-%20VERY%20demanding%20program”>/url</a></p>
<p>Good luck!</p>