Can/Should I apply to Reed?

<p>I am a Junior in high school and am considering my options. I currently live in Arizona, but I am probably going to move back to Oregon for senior year.</p>

<p>My current high school is sponsored by ASU and follows the Cambridge curriculum; I am taking several AS level classes and am a non-degree seeking student at ASU, having completed several classes. During sophomore year, I scored a 1900 on the PSAT, and I'm hoping to see a number in the 2000's for my SAT. Under my own admission, I do not have the greatest GPA currently - around a 3.0 - mainly because of my English class (I am a good writer; I just don't like the class, which is mainly literature); I am working to get it up, as I had a 3.65 earlier.</p>

<p>My greatest passion is physics, as well as other physical sciences. Self research into physics is one of my hobbies, and I am seriously considering getting my degree in physics. Reed apparently has a really good physics program, and it caught my interest . I also enjoy the humanities.</p>

<p>I understand that Reed is rather expensive, at around $44,000. This is not really a concern for me, with financial aid and a student load. Physicists earn a good amount of money, so paying it back wouldn't be that big of an issue.</p>

<p>I would otherwise go to ASU, but I am (probably) moving and want to go to a more prestigious university if I can in state. I know that the admission rates are really low, but do I meet the admission requirements? If so, am I a low pick or likely to get in?</p>

<p>I apologize for the rather brief explanation; I am more than willing to explain more if needed.</p>

<p>Your post is confusing. One English class would not bring your GPA from a 3.65 down to a 3.0. But I would say that a 3.0 unweighted GPA and 2000-ish SAT is low for Reed. And it is rare for someone to “enjoy the humanities”, but not like literature. </p>

<p>Have you run the net price calculator on the Reed financial aid website page? That would give you an idea of what kind of financial aid you might get (although if your parents are divorced, or own a small business or rental property, it will likely overestimate the amount of aid you would get). Remember that you can only borrow $5,500 for freshman year, and slightly more in later years (total of $27K over 4 years) on your own for your undergraduate education. </p>

<p>I should reiterate; while I do not enjoy high school literature like the Great Gatsby or To Kill a Mockingbird, I do enjoy those that are part of Reeds curriculum (e.g. Plato and Aristotle).</p>

<p>1) You CAN apply. Whether or not you would get in is another story.
2) You SHOULD apply if you feel you can survive Reed and can demonstrate on your application that, despite your so-so GPA, you can handle Reed.
3) The cost of attendance is 61k, not including travel expenses or health insurance. Financial aid covers your need through grants and loans and work-study if you get in.
4) Are you sure physicists without PhDs earn a lot? Those who go into finance with a physics degree probably do, but the others?
5) AS Level? Are A Levels not offered?</p>

<p>There are no admission cutoffs. If you don’t apply, your chances are 0. But to maximize your ability to get in, I would highly recommend that you</p>

<p>1) Write really good essays
2) Get better grades (especially in your CIE AS Level final exams), and take physics classes at ASU over the summer. While self-study is respected at Reed, you will need to demonstrate some more concrete evidence of your interest in the subject.
3) Get better test scores. 700 in each section, if possible.</p>

<p>I agree with I95, but Reed will decide (let them) if you can handle the curriculum (based on your GPA, rank and test scores). It’s the first question they ask themselves. Physics research jobs require a PhD, and there aren’t enough positions available today to take all the PhD earners; non-research jobs are another matter.</p>

<p>My son and I recently visited a friend at Reed; I can understand your interest. It’s totally tudor. More importantly students are engaged in scholarly pursuits instead of chasing grades. So the fact that you have genuine interest in physics would probably be important to them. Taking classes in a local college is good but you may want to go beyond that. And by the way, this advice will help for most schools except larger ones that cull their pool on scores and GPAs only. Consider what you have done to extend your interests beyond the classroom. If you have done research, how can you formalize or otherwise show that you have done research. If you have helped with research in a local lab you can obviously get a letter of rec from a supervisor or the PI. But can you go beyond that and submit a paper to a student friendly conference (look up Physic Societies). If you can’t submit, you might be able to get junior memberships and go to a local or regional convention for the experience. Maybe you can write about one topic of interest and submit it to a student friendly journal or magazine. Maybe you can write an article about what you have been doing and get it submitted to the local newspaper. Find out what is happening physic-wise in your community. Get involved (and I don’t mean go volunteer to build meaningless hours I mean find a way to get involved in things that are physics related. it may take creativity and it might seem a little odd to start calling around or knocking on physics labs but colleges like Reed are not looking for students who do the same ol thing anyway. Good luck!</p>

<p>You dont like To Kill a Mockingbird?
( my kids read that in grade school incidentally, but it is a fantastic novel)
Reed does have 100% need met, but no merit.
Physicists don’t make much until you have a whole herd (swarm?) of baby- post docs of your own.
And then you probably should pay them something out of your grants.</p>