Chance me for top LACS and more (Bowdoin ED)

Chance Me / Match Me!
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GPA: my school only reports my unweighted NGA which is 95.8, I calculated my weighted GPA to be around 4.1

Rank: 29/382

SAT: haven’t taken yet, hoping for a 1500+ but will definitely be at or above 1400

APs: apush, ap music theory, ap chem (4), ap physics 1, ap physics 2 (3), ap lit (will do test), ap psych (will do test), ap calc

ECs: band, jazz band, tri m (music honor society), climbing team (would have been captain but corona happened), german exchange program, theater/pit orchestra, voice lessons, philosophy club (only senior year)

Essays: probably solidly above average but not incredible. I’m pretty proud of my common app essay but more nervous about supplemental essays

LORs: hoping for a good one from my band director, probably fairly average ones from german and ap physics teachers

Demographics: straight white female, middle class, legacy at bates (my mom went)

Intended major: hoping to double major in either physics or chemistry and some social science

Schools: Bowdoin (ED), Williams, Amherst, Tufts, Bates, Vassar, Boston College, Brandeis, Clark, Fordham (EA), UVM (EA)

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Are you seeking/in need of substantial financial aid ?

Are you a full pay applicant ?

Based on your posted profile, Bowdoin College is unlikely to admit you ED.

In at Bates. In at Vassar, Clark, Fordham based on top 8% class rank & solid variety of ECs (music, athletics, theatre, and study abroad).

If you are from the Northeast US, I suspect that Williams & Amherst will be unlikely.

Tufts, BC, and Brandeis are not LACs.

Whether or not you are full pay, offer geographical diversity, and your teacher recs may be important factors.

As you should know, chance threads are just “best guesses” based on incomplete information. So, if you have your heart set on Bowdoin College, then go for it, but be aware that you are using a valuable ED option.

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I think that your chances are very good at UVM. It is also a very good university in a very attractive location.

I think that Bowdoin is worth an application. If you visit, do not forget to pick up a Gelato at the place down the street (it is obvious where).

Do you have any financial limits? Have you run the NPCs or are you fine with being full pay?

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If you didn’t get into Bowdoin, would you consider applying to Bates ED2? They fill up so much of their class with ED in typical years, and your legacy advantage may not be a guarantee in RD. FWIW my D20 and her BFF were both accepted to Williams RD and WL’d at Bates RD.

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Note that the OP requested responses regarding top LACs “and more.”

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Thanks so much for the responses so far! I realized I should include info about money/aid since there were a few questions about that. I will be applying for financial aid, but according to the fafsa predicting things I’m unlikely to receive any need based aid. Obviously if I could get merit aid at a safety I’d consider that over an expensive reach, but luckily money isn’t enough of an issue that I wouldn’t be able to a attend a more expensive school at full price.

I know that would give me a more realistic chance but bates isn’t super high up on my list, I’m not a fan of the location. If I were to ED2 anywhere it would most likely be Tufts.

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You might like seeing that colleges from your current group compose 4 of the 10 schools in this Forbes article: https://www.forbes.com/sites/nataliesportelli/2017/04/26/10-expensive-colleges-worth-every-penny-2017/.

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For a double major in physics/chemistry and a social science like economics, Williams has strong departments in all three, take a look at the faculty listings and course offerings. The combination of science and social sciences will put you in a good position for top grad schools, consulting or a science career. It’s a well worn path.

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