Chance/Match Virginia HS Junior for Chemistry Programs [3.9, parents vague about finances]

[froghome]

Demographics

• US domestic * US citizen
• State/Location of residency: Virginia
• Type of high school *: Large, non competitive public HS (average SAT 1000, 80% of GPAs under 3.7)
• Gender/Race/Ethnicity (optional): white, FtM
• Other special factors (first generation to college, legacy, athlete, etc.): legacy at Virginia Tech

Intended Major(s)

GPA, Rank, and Test Scores

• Unweighted HS GPA: 3.9
• Weighted HS GPA (incl. weighting system): 4.5 or 4.6 (can’t remember exactly). Normal classes out of 4.0, honors classes out of 4.17, ap classes out of 5.
• Class Rank: End of Sophomore year was 12 out of somewhere around 430, don’t know updated rank
• ACT/SAT Scores: 1290 PSAT, haven’t taken SAT yet (taking in June) but my recent practice test was 1490

Coursework
(AP/IB/Dual Enrollment classes, AP/IB scores for high school; also include level of math and foreign language reached and any unusual academic electives; for transfers, describe your college courses and preparation for your intended major(s))
6 AP classes so far, hoping to get 10 or 11 in total. 5 on APHUG and 4 on Psych.
Currently in Spanish 5 (AP).
Currently in AP Calc AB, hoping for Calc BC next year but there likely isn’t enough interest to get it as a class.
I am in a specialty program. I can’t say too much without going too close to doxxing myself for my own comfort lol.
Awards
award for getting above the 90th percentile PSAT score for my school
have been nominated for 4 school level awards but won’t know what they are until an awards ceremony later in the year.
Extracurriculars
(Include leadership, summer activities, competitions, volunteering, and work experience)
president of history honor society, president of math honor society, editor in chief of satire newspaper, member of national honor society and Spanish honor society, member of speech and debate (no significant placements or awards), around 60-70 volunteer hours including roughly 55 as an unpaid camp counselor, summer job, playing instruments for fun.
Essays/LORs/Other
Haven’t started writing essays yet but I know my LORs will be strong. I’m a pretty good writer so I’m assuming my essay will be alright.

Cost Constraints / Budget
(High school students: please get a budget from your parents and use the Net Price Calculators on the web sites of colleges of interest.)
middle class, parents haven’t given me a budget but we’ll definitely need loans. We’ve run the NPC for a few schools and get decent aid. Sorry it’s vague, my parents haven’t shared a lot with me.
Schools
(List of colleges by your initial chance estimate; designate if applying ED/EA/RD; if a scholarship is necessary for affordability, indicate that you are aiming for a scholarship and use the scholarship chance to estimate it into the appropriate group below)

• Safety (certain admission and affordability)
  VCU - almost guaranteed admission, probably with merit aid. Would apply early, but applications are rolling iirc so there’s no EA or ED.
  University of Pittsburgh - RD
• Match
  William and Mary - Top choice, ED
  UVA
• Reach
  Carnegie Mellon - probably too expensive even with aid + not expecting to get in but would be cool.

I would appreciate any suggestions for additions to my list or input on my current list! Thank you, and sorry if my post is a little unorganized :).

[tsbna44]

When you say you’ll definitely need loans, I’d ask - why??

With your #s, assume your test comes in, you can go lower cost. Well I don’t know your finances so you still may need loans - but the first thing you need is a budget - pure and simple.

Without that, it’s futile to develop a list.

W&M is $40K in-state - so we can go with that.

So yes, Carnegie Mellon will be too much. A school that may work, that is like a really large William & Mary, is Miami of Ohio.

Pitt won’t come in near $40K. College of Charleston might.

As for a reach - W&M might be a reach. There will be many others but again, you need to know the budget - no point in recommending a school that you can’t afford. If you didn’t get into W&M, I’d rather see you at a CNU (or you mention VCU) than tapping loans for a chem major.

No reason to take loans.

So tell us - your budget - you have to state one. Also, what do you want - are you open geographically or tied to a specific place? Is there a school size, etc. you want. Sports, Greek…and the rest.

UTK, UF, and UDel are all highly rated for chemistry - and all would come with decent pricing.

But again - need to know more.

Best of luck.

[merc81]

From your current list, William and Mary may offer the strongest chemistry program. Based on your profile, it seems that you would have a good chance of admission there. This could be one excellent option for you.

If you would like to diversity your approach to college selection, then you may want to consider purely undergraduate-focused schools with strong chemistry programs and generally well-funded financial aid programs. For a few geographically diverse ideas, look into Amherst, Bowdoin, Williams, Hamilton, Haverford, Reed, Pomona College, Carleton, Grinnell and Macalester. Note that most of these schools report much lower acceptance rates than W&M, however. Nonetheless, as potential reaches, they have a lot to offer. When your official SAT results become available, you will gain a sense of whether these suggestions might be suitable for you.

[chapodan55]

You should ask your parents for a strict budget amount.

[hark]

So far I haven’t read anything about what you’re actually looking for in a college or college experience. Let that help guide you as well. Sure, look for places with strength in your desired major, but know you may switch majors. Where do you think you can find your home and be successful? Visit a few campuses then rethink your college search with that information in mind.

It’s also worth considering a chance to be a big fish in a small pond. If you plan to go into grad school this can be especially useful.

[gandalf78]

Don’t put too much weight on being a legacy at Virginia Tech. According to Section C7 of its Common Data Set, “alumni/ae relation” is “considered” but is not an “important” or “very important” admission factor.