<p>@dadof1 care to elaborate? I’d be interested to know more 
</p>
<p>I strongly agree that talking about money with your parents is not something you should export to the future. For a family in the $200K income range four years at any of the need-only schools on your list (which is all of them except Grinnell) means upward to $250,000. Make sure your parents understand the financial magnitude and are prepared to deal with it. </p>
<p>If shelling out this kind of money isn’t doable (or if you just like the idea of saving money), then you should begin researching schools that offer merit aid. In addition to Grinnell, look at Emory, Davidson, WUSTL. If you are female, Smith and Holyoke.</p>
<p>I also agree that LACs have distinctive personalities that are difficult to grasp from afar. Visit as many as you can. Since your academic needs are specialized, try to set up appointments with the math/physics department.</p>
<p>Money aside your list is a good starting place. I’d consider adding Hamilton and Wesleyan. All in all it’s a bit reach-y though. Do you have a safety?</p>
<p>
Curious, what does this mean?</p>
<p>They’re writing contests. Sorry for the lack of elaboration. </p>
<p>My safety right now is just my state school, but ugh god would I hate to go there. Lawrence is a possibility, as some have mentioned. If anyone has any safety ideas I’d love to hear them!</p>
<p>I’d add in Wesleyan and Vassar to the list of schools you consider. If you are female you may consider some of the women’s colleges also. For safeties perhaps look into how the academics stack up for you at some schools like Skidmore, Bard, Goucher, Sarah Lawrence.</p>
<p>It probably helps if you demonstrate interest at Reed, and you might want to interview. both are listed as “important” to their admissions decision. It’s a lot to ask of east coasters for a tiny college that’s not surrounded by other elite colleges you could visit. Exceptional education is possible, however.</p>
<p>A school that you would hate to go to is NOT a safety. You need to work harder to find at least one (preferably two) safeties that don’t make you break out in hives. They’re out there, but they sometimes require a disproportionate amount of time and effort to identify.</p>
<p>In addition to the schools mentioned as safeties I’d add St. Olaf, Rhodes. Start at USNWR’s Best LACs around #50 and research the math/physics departments. Look at the courses offered and where the professors got their PhDs.
Does your State U have an honors school?</p>
<p>Might check out some Patriot League schools like Holy Cross and Bucknell. HC ALSO MEETS 100% DEMONSTRATED financial need.</p>
<p>^ Every college the OP listed in post #13 claims to meet 100% of demonstrated need. However, this may not be important to the OP, since his family income (~$200K) probably is too high to qualify for need-based aid.</p>
<p>Below are the top 20+ LACs ranked by PhD production in mathematics/statistics. The ones in bold offer merit awards to at least 5% of students. The first column shows the number of math/stats PhDs earned by alumni from 2008-12. The last column shows the average merit award.</p>
<p>21 **St Olaf College<a href=“$11,438”>/b</a>
20 Williams College<br>
19 Swarthmore College<br>
17 Reed College<br>
16 Carleton College<br>
13 **Oberlin College<a href=“$14,100”>/b</a>
13 **Wheaton College (Wheaton, IL)<a href=“$5,068”>/b</a>
12 **Whitman College<a href=“$8,745”>/b</a>
10 Pomona College<br>
9 **Bryn Mawr College<a href=“$15,794”>/b</a>
9 **Lawrence University<a href=“$13,829”>/b</a>
9 Spelman College
8 **Grinnell College<a href=“$13,626”>/b</a><br>
8 Haverford College<br>
8 **Kenyon College<a href=“$12,094”>/b</a>
8 **Lafayette College<a href=“$20,842”>/b</a>
8 Wesleyan University
7 Bucknell University
6 College of the Holy Cross<br>
6 **Davidson College<a href=“$21,747”>/b</a>
6 **Franklin and Marshall College<a href=“$14,372”>/b</a>
6 **Kalamazoo College<a href=“$13,467”>/b</a>
6 University of Minnesota - Morris ( merit averages not listed in Kiplinger’s) </p>
<p>Sources:
<a href=“NCSES”>NCSES;
<a href=“http://www.kiplinger.com/tool/college/T014-S001-kiplinger-s-best-values-in-private-colleges/index.php?table=lib_arts&state_code[]=ALL&id[]=none”>http://www.kiplinger.com/tool/college/T014-S001-kiplinger-s-best-values-in-private-colleges/index.php?table=lib_arts&state_code[]=ALL&id[]=none</a></p>
<p>Below are the top 20+ LACs ranked by PhD production in physics.
The first column shows the number of physics PhDs earned by alumni from 2008-12.</p>
<p>20 Swarthmore College
18 Reed College
16 Williams College
13 Carleton College
13 Vassar College
12 Gustavus Adolphus College
11 Amherst College
11 Bryn Mawr College
11 Grinnell College
11 Lawrence University
11 Oberlin College
10 Haverford College
10 University of Puget Sound
9 College of Wooster
8 College of the Holy Cross
8 Luther College
7 Colorado College
7 Denison University
7 Drew University
7 Middlebury College
7 Morehouse College
7 St John’s University (Collegeville, MN)
7 Wesleyan University</p>
<p>Not sure what year the numbers in post #27 are from, but Franklin & Marshall does not give merit aid. They gave it up 3 or 4 years ago.</p>
<p>If you look at percentage of students who earn PhDs in Physics (not numbers), the rankings look like this (NSF data, a little older than the absolute list above):</p>
<p>1, Cal Tech
2. Harvey Mudd
3. MIT
4. Reed
5. U of Chicago
6. Rice
7. Carleton
8. Princeton
9. Harvard
10. Lawrence</p>
<p>Math & Stats PhD student in the same time period:</p>
<ol>
<li>Cal Tech</li>
<li>Harvey Mudd</li>
<li>Reed</li>
<li>U of Chicago</li>
<li>MIT</li>
<li>Harvard</li>
<li>Pomona</li>
<li>Rice</li>
<li>Princeton</li>
<li>Swarthmore</li>
</ol>
<p>
</p>
<p>$14,372 is the number cited in F&M’s 2012-13 Common Data Set, line H2A(o). However, that is the average for all full-time undergraduates (not just first year students). By that year, only one merit award was awarded to a first time full time freshman (for only $2500). </p>