<p>I just got rejected from Stanford REA, so now I have to come up with a list of colleges to apply to. I'm really confused about how to differentiate between a match school and a reach. I thought it would be pretty easy, but by looking at some RD results threads, I'm starting to realize how much of crap shoot it really is. </p>
<p>I've already applied to UCLA and Berkeley since the deadlines came up a month ago, and at the moment, I'm viewing them both as reaches since I'm OOS.</p>
<p>I guess it would be helpful if I posted my stats:
GPA: 3.98 UW; my school doesn't calculate weighted
SAT: 2180 Superscored (700R, 690M, 790W)
SAT SUBJECTS: 650 Literature (I've never been able to do very well on these tests)
AP Scores: Too low to bother reporting
APs taken: Freshman and sophomores not allowed to take any at my school. 3 during my junior year and 4 during my senior year.
Class Rank: 13/270 UW, 21/270 Weighted (My school gives me the choice of which to report out of the two. Which should I choose, or should I choose both)
Type of School: Very competitive suburban public school with very little diversity (90% white)
ECs: decent but not very focused because I'm an undecided applicant.
Race: African-American</p>
<p>I really like schools with good weather, but it's not at the top of my list. I like competition but not too much. I'd hate to attend an overly-competitive institution. Financial aid is a big thing for me (I applied to the UCs with the hope that one of them would take pity on my $<20,000 income and give me a regents scholarship though I really doubt it with all the good students applying these days), so an institution that's generous would be awesome. I also would prefer to stay on the either the west or east coast; I've tried both Midwestern and southern living, and it's not for me. I'd also like some diversity since the high school I went to had very little of it. </p>
<p>Thanks for any help!</p>
<p>Also,</p>
<p>I've looked at:</p>
<pre><code> UCLA
UC-Berkeley
Claremont Mckenna
Pomona College
Johns Hopkins
princeton University
duke University
Harvard University
MIT
Northwestern
Dartmouth College
Columbia University
Brown University
Caltech
swarthmore college
Yale University
University of chicago
USC
</code></pre>
<p>Which I know is a long list, and I'm surely not applying to all those schools. But if anyone could help me narrow the list, add to it, and then make it more realistic for my stats, I'd thoroughly appreciate it!</p>
<p>:) Thank you guys!</p>