<p>I'll need financial aid. My parents make less than $60,000 but apparently the net price calculators don't work because my dad has a small business. If I can't afford the colleges I get into, then I'll go to Ohio State. I'm just looking for places to apply to at this point. </p>
<p>I think I want to major in math. During my senior year, I'll be a full-time dual-enrollment student taking several math classes at a local university. </p>
<p>I like the idea of a liberal arts college, but I'm concerned that there wouldn't be enough classes for me to take. People say you should take graduate-level classes in your major, and LACs don't have those. I want to go to grad school, if I turn out to be smart enough. </p>
<p>I'm pathologically shy (essentially I don't speak to people unless they speak to me) and probably rather sheltered, so I'm not sure how I'd do at a large university. I've never really had a social life, but I'm concerned that there would be too many opportunities/competition and it would be overwhelming. </p>
<p>So I basically want schools with the following characteristics: suburban/rural, small classes, good math program, research opportunities that aren't too competitive, somewhat prestigious, no religious affiliation, minimal drinking/drug culture. Gloomy weather is preferable. I'd also like schools that give credit for 3s on AP exams. Women's colleges are okay.</p>
<p>(I realize the obvious suggestion is Harvey Mudd, but I highly doubt I'd get in. I also don't really like STEM subjects other than math.)</p>
<p>Hi! I checked out your other post and I don’t think that you’re giving yourself enough credit! You seem like a very smart, accomplished student and I imagine that many colleges would be happy to have you. Based on your stats alone I might suggest that you apply to the Ivies and other top tier schools. I’m not convinced though that they would provide the best experience for you personally. You seem suited to a smaller LAC. Williams, Amherst, Swarthmore and Middlebury are all greats LACs, academically–although they may be more competitive/intense than you’re looking for. I have heard that Bowdoin is known for student happiness–and if you don’t mind the weather then I would definitely apply there. As someone who describes herself as shy–do you think you’d feel more comfortable at a women’s college? Wellesley and Smith are both highly regarded women’s schools. Honestly though, I’m no expert on LACs–maybe someone else can provide more detailed descriptions. If possible, I would try to pick up the Fiske book from your library or book store. It is really helpful in detailing the culture and experience of a school beyond the numbers.</p>
<p>With your strong stats, apply to
-Brown
-Harvard
-Duke
-Dartmouth
-Columbia</p>
<p>You have a large number of achievements, you have a job, and your SAT score is high (based on your other link) so you should be able to get into all of those colleges.</p>
<p>Your extracurriculars are not awful! You had summer programs, which is always a plus. I think financial aid could be a hook because you can describe how it affected you growing up. Your resume is great! Aim for the Ivies/any selective school you want. :)</p>
<p>Your PSAT is high enough that you will likely make NMF. Take a look at the schools that offer NM scholarships (full tuition).</p>
<p>I love LACs, but you are correct in your assessment that you should be considering schools in which you can take graduate level courses due to the math advancement you will have.</p>
<p>U of Oklahoma and Bama both permit taking some graduate level courses as an undergrad. Kentucky is amping up NM scholarships and may also permit it - you would need to look into that.</p>
<p>I truly think you can make a large school feel smaller.</p>
<p>My son was between a small well regarded LAC and Bama. He chose Bama due to the generous AP credits which will permit him to major in Engineering and at least minor in a humanities area. For him, the breadth of study and strong merit were worth the trade off of a small LAC.</p>
<p>University of Oklahoma has a pretty good selection of math courses, and most students in the honors program love it. If you can qualify for NMF, I’d highly recommend checking out the school.</p>
<p>One of the problems with Harvey Mudd is that they require that you’ve taken physics, and my physics credit is pass/fail because I tested out of it and didn’t do especially well. I don’t know how that would look.</p>
<p>I think these posts are overoptimistic, but I want to apply to a couple of these schools just because I can…do you know which ones would be most likely to consider admitting someone like me? I’ve heard that some schools emphasize certain things more than others.
My strengths will be in my essays, recommendation letters, GPA, test scores, and the fact that I’m taking pretty much all math classes senior year. I’m first-generation and I have a sort of unique life story that might differentiate me a little from other similar applicants. So I guess I’m looking for colleges that focus a lot on this kind of stuff in admissions.
My weaknesses are that I don’t have leadership or significant research experience (I did a chemical engineering mentorship junior year, but it was in a quality control lab and I was mostly just doing routine stuff). </p>
<p>Also, do you think Case Western would be a good school for me to apply to? Is their financial aid good, and is their math program better or worse than Ohio State’s?</p>
<p>I believe Ohio State is a very good school for math (top 50). I haven’t heard of Case Western’s math. For other schools: Berkeley, U. of Chicago, Harvard, MIT, Stanford and Princeton. For safeties, try Rutgers, UNC-Chapel Hill as well as Ohio State. All these schools have well respected math departments.</p>
<p>Do you know any math professors at Ohio State? Talk to professors in the math department at your local university (especially if you’re taking classes there) about possibilities. They won’t know anything about the admissions process or financial aid (unless they’re parents of college students), but they may know what would be a good fit for you.</p>
<p>BTW, I think you underestimate yourself. You have gone very far and done a lot and well. Good luck.</p>
<p>Top 3% rank, 3.99 GPA, 2340 on the SAT. If you don’t get into UNC, I don’t see who does. Your ec’s look great. You are the kind of person that UC-Berkeley, UNC-CH, UMich, MIT want.</p>
<p>You might also like Holy Cross in Worcester, and U Richmond. Richmond has a huge endowment, and fabulous financial aid. It is fairly small, but still has lots of research opportunities for undergraduates. Don’t be turned off by private schools because of price, because there’s a good chance that you’ll receive strong financial aid, especially with your credentials.</p>
<p>The issue is whether a school could offer her an adequate number of math classes to meet her academic needs/goals. Frankly, I’m not sure that more than maybe one or two LACs offer sufficient courses in pure math. Even Williams seems to have relatively sparse offerings relative to the number of math majors it graduates. I don’t see any indication that a student in her situation, as advanced as she is, would be academically satisfied by the offerings, assuming she chooses to continue on with a pure math major.</p>
<p>might look at Holy Cross-don’t have to be religious, very good LAC with beautiful campus 1 hour from Boston. HC IS NEED-BASED for financial aid and has one of the best alumni networks.</p>