<p>So… making a list with ONE safety and 17 reaches (even moderate reaches) isn’t the best plan. And you need to really WANT to attend your safety if you end up in that situation. But I think the real issue for the OP is having (as far as I can tell) nothing but prestige and possibly campus architecture as criteria for selection. And the three you knocked off your list… I think they are the 3 that are closer to matches than the rest.</p>
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<p>I can’t image my kids at 9 getting any impression from a campus except that they liked the architecture, and maybe the ice cream if we found some on campus! You need to make a list of things you are looking for in a college per some of the other comments out here, and then go try to match to these schools AND some schools a bit further down in the rankings. You don’t even have SAT or PSAT scores yet, so you can’t know for sure if you have a shot at the top schools. And a “shot” is all it is for most of them, with quite a few of these having acceptance rates in the single digits, and tons of candidates that are as good as you are in their pool.</p>
<p>If you have a year to think about it, so spend the year learning more about each college. And a few more too. You don’t need a list this early, now is just the time to learn and try to get attuned to each college’s culture and strengths. Try to personalize your list. Right now it looks like you plan to throw it against the wall and see what sticks.</p>
<p>Do some reading here on the individual boards, it can be illuminating when current and recent students answer questions.</p>
<p>OP, it’s a tough crowd! I think I know where you are coming from, though, because my S has been in a similar situation. He is a strong high school student in Texas (rising senior) and UT is his safety and he has had a hard time coming up with schools he would prefer to UT. Rice is one, and it is a little surprising that Rice is not high on your list, but nevermind that. When he just looked at schools somewhat randomly, e.g., based on reading or hearing something about them from any source, he found that the chances that he would prefer any random school to UT were remote, and so he had to go to some source with a high likelihood of providing such schools, such as the USNWR lists. However, on closer examination he found that those schools did not appeal to him all that much either (except Rice, which was already on the list). </p>
<p>After giving up on the USNWR lists, he approached the problem from a different angle, focusing on what he really wanted from a school, and doing searches based on that. With that approach, he has found a couple of non-reach schools that appear to be good fits and that he might prefer to UT, or at least to UT if he doesn’t get into Plan II, and so now he has some options.</p>
<p>Another option is to take a copy of the Fiske Guide to Colleges and a pack of post-its. Go through and mark colleges that sound interesting, then do some more research on those. Make a point to find some that are NOT on your original list that look like matches (not reaches). Austinareadad hit the nail on the head when he said, “now he has some options.” What you want are options to choose from in spring of your senior year. My D2 applied to a range of schools - 3 reaches, 2 matches and 2 safeties. She was lucky enough to get into all of them, and was really happy to have a range of types of schools, locations, costs, etc. for her final decision. </p>
<p>One thing that was really annoying was a group of kids at accepted student days at one school who were clearly there because it was the highest ranked school they had gotten into. They didn’t seem to care about the campus culture or much about the school’s academic offerings. They were all about the prestige. It was such a turnoff that it was a factor for D2 in picking another school. This was at one of the schools on your list. Just don’t be one of “those” kids if you can help it. Pick schools because of specific academic programs, internship programs, location & campus vibe, social culture on campus, extra curriculars that are important to you, etc.</p>
<p>OP, I was a little rough on you. You’re a great student, no question. I just wanted you to realize that exceptional students are the norm among Ivy applicants, so it’s not wise to get your heart set on them. </p>
<p>Your list just needs to be more balanced is all. Right now it’s very reach-heavy. IMO you should drop all but a couple of the reaches, and start finding the schools that would be a good fit for you. </p>
<p>I second intparent’s suggestion – get a copy of the Fiske Guide and just start reading.</p>
<p>OP, I think it really is important, as others have said, to think about the type of culture you like and what you are looking for in a school. You haven’t even told us your major.</p>
<p>Do you want a Greek culture? Sports culture? Is a very strong study abroad program important to you? Competitive environment vs cooperative? A school where students primarily live on campus vs. off? </p>
<p>An inner tube water polo team? (random, just to show you that schools can be quirky and you can fall in love with various aspects of them)</p>
<p>Clearly, you will want a strong department in the area of your major. </p>
<p>Your accomplishments are strong. Show us more of your personality. ;)</p>
<p>I would consider that Duke is in/near medium-large town since in Durham and near Raleigh. If money is no object you have a better chance there than some of Ivies you listed IMO.</p>
<p>I would think the papers would trump everything else but if you’re interested in scientific research why on Earth is MIT not on your list as well as top LACs known for science? I’m sure you can imagine that a freshman does not rank high on the priorities for research assistantship at a research university.</p>
<p>I agree with the majority here - that’s a very nice list of schools but they are all so different. I think you need to do some more introspection. I would start small - pick the ONE school you really really want to attend. Your dream school. Then, look for colleges that are similar in feel, location and of course, your field of study.</p>
<p>I read through all of the comments and these are my recommendations for now.
UT Austin
Columbia
UPenn
Brown
Harvard
Yale
Stanford
UChicago
Vanderbilt
WUSTL
Duke
Rice</p>
<p>If you have to go down to 10.
Drop Yale, it’s in a city but based off of my experiences in New Haven it’s not the city you’re looking for.
Drop Duke or Rice.</p>
<p>I’d also recommend Georgetown and BC, they’re both in or by great cities. If I knew your major or interests, I could give you something more concrete.</p>