<p>Hi, right now my top four choices are as follows:
1. Middlebury
2. Amherst
3. Williams
4. Dartmouth</p>
<p>I know Dartmouth is slightly incongruous on that list, but anyway, I was hoping for some recommendations for similar schools that could be considered "safety," that are in the New England / upstate New York region.</p>
<p>Are you actually competitive for those four schools? What are your stats/ECs/interests? Especially that last one. It's hard to recommend safeties when you've told us absolutely nothing about your preferences.</p>
<p>Actually, Dartmouth fits in perfectly with those other schools. </p>
<p>Some similar but slightly less selective colleges in New England and NY:</p>
<p>Hamilton College
Colgate University
Bates College
Colby College
Vassar College</p>
<p>Take a look at Bowdoin, Union, Trinity, Bucknell too.</p>
<p>I would say that you'll find that Bowdoin, Hamilton, Colgate, Bates, Colby, and Vassar will all be semi-reaches (if not reaches) and good fits rather than likelies and safeties. If you're looking for some true "likelies" and "safeties" it would help if you could post your stats (GPA, SATs, rank, how many honors/APs you take, important ECs) so people can get a better sense of where you do actually fall.</p>
<p>I can refer you to my chances thread:
<a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/528589-chances-amherst-middlebury-similar-schools.html%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/528589-chances-amherst-middlebury-similar-schools.html</a></p>
<p>Marist. St. Michael's. Wells.</p>
<p>Seriously check out Hampshire College. It's ~10 minutes from Amherst and it was actually founded by a former Amherst president. The academics there are spectacular, and you can also take classes at UMass, Smith, Mount Holyoke, and Amherst.</p>
<p>Holy Cross-SAT optional, great campus only 1 hour from Boston. HC is a small version of Georgetown both run by the Jesuits. Also Holy Cross is the biggest non-Ivy rival of Dartmouth-football series is over 100 years old.</p>
<p>Holy Cross, Bowdoin, Colgate, Hamilton, Bates, Colby, and Vassar would be nowhere close to being safeties. He is likely to get into some of them, but as safeties, that's stretching it.</p>
<p>Usually the best safety-schools are public because their admissions are less holistic. You may have to settle with a smaller state school as a safety, because while your stats are good they're nothing incredible, and you want to have at least one guarantee. Try finding a public that allows you to apply EA (if you apply ED somewhere else) or rolling decision so that you find out ASAP and feel secure continuing in the application process for more competitive schools.</p>
<p>I disagree to an extent with glassesarechic. Your stats are competitive for the top schools, so you have lots of choices in lower-tier LACs. Try Skidmore (often succumbs to Tufts Syndrome though, beware), Goucher, Muhlenberg, Dickinson, Juniata, Connecticut College. <--Not tailored in the least to you, except for location and size.</p>
<p>Thank you all for the suggestions! I like the idea of rolling admissions to a state u. as part of a general strategy a lot. My visit to the region next week should shed some more light as well. :)</p>
<p>Perhaps Bennington (VT), Allegheny (PA), Wheaton (the one in MA, not IL)?</p>