Chance Me - PoliSci Major

Chance Me / Match Me!
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Demographics

  • US domestic
  • Southern California
  • Top 2% nationally public high school
  • Female, Lower Middle Class (for our area)
  • Not sure if it constitutes as legacy but cousins attended Georgetown, GWU, and UNC

Intended Major(s)
Political Science/Government

GPA, Rank, and Test Scores

  • Unweighted HS GPA: 3.9
  • Weighted HS GPA (incl. weighting system): 4.2
  • Class Rank: Top 25%
  • ACT/SAT Scores: 1250 SAT one sitting (please don’t tell me that it’s too low for Georgetown or that I should try to retake it, I know this and I am just going to try anyways. I will be applying test optional to every other school).

Coursework
AP European 4
APUSH 5
AP HG 5
AP Lang 5

Currently taking:
AP Gov
AP Stats
AP Lit
AP French

Awards
A few departmental awards and a school leadership award

Extracurriculars
3 years of highly competitive LA County Mock Trial (Gone to Championships before, not divulging any more so my high school isn’t revealed)
2 years in a high profile political nonprofit, 2 years in an international political nonprofit
President of High School Politics Club
NHS

Essays/LORs/Other
Pretty strong essays, I’m assuming. French teacher that I’ve had for 3 years said that based on what he’s planning on writing, the colleges will be begging to admit me (his words, not mine, but I’m assuming that’s a good sign).

Cost Constraints / Budget
Family is incredibly concerned with me graduating debt-free, but I am personally willing to take out up to $50k for all four years for certain schools. Family could likely not pay more than $10,0000 per year and I will be working through school.

Schools
Reach:
Georgetown (EA)
Possibly UNC Chapel Hill (EA or RD, depending on how fast I can do the application)

Target:
George Washington (Likely + RD)
American (Likely + RD)
UCI (Likely + RD)

Safety:
UC Riverside (RD)
Community College → Transfer

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So - are you not going to test again? Maybe consider the ACT.

I’m concerned with your rank and weighted GPA. What’s the weighting system? In other words, some schools give .5 for Honors and + 1 for AP. What’s your system?

Fortunately for you, you cannot take $50K in loans. The Feds don’t want you overstrained. You can only get $5500 the first year and $27K over four years.

So the first thing you need to do is have your family run the net price calculator for Georgetown. Georgetown doesn’t offer merit aid, only need aid. You need to see if you have need and if you do, the level you have.

Georgetown is over $80K - so if your family can pay $10K and you have $5500 in loans, then you need to ensure their cost to you is only $15K. They, not your family, determines if they have need.

As for your list - no matter the “level”, if you can’t afford it - it’s a high reach. So let’s see your need but it’s highly likely that GW and AU are financial reaches because unlike Georgetown, they don’t guarantee to meet need.

You really need to determine need before going on - but I’m afraid your list will have to change for cost purposes. Let us know what you find out.

Thanks

PS - I added UNC too - because they are one of two publics (only with UVA) that meets need for all.

Net Price Calculator - Office of Scholarships and Student Aid (unc.edu)

Welcome | Net Price Calculator (collegeboard.org)

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Not testing again because the SAT gave me more anxiety than I ever thought possible & ACT dates in my area were full by the time I looked.

3.9 out of a 4.0, we don’t really have a weighted system but counselor told me 4.2 or so.

I think my parents make approx. $75,000 per year, NPC said about 20-25k for Georgetown, GWU. I do know my grandparents have a sum of money for me to use for college, not sure of the exact amount but it is over $10k, so I could get through the first year.

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GWU won’t be as “inexpensive” as Gtown and neither will AU.

If they make $75K, I think Gtown would be less. There are schools out there with income tables although assets are included.

So you get through year one - then what?

Again, you only have $5500. So why Gtown?

So let’s look at your odds:

Gtown - very very very high reach. I won’t say no chance - but it’s not happening.

UNC - equal to Gtown - not happening.

GW - going to be a very hard admit. You need to demonstrate interest.

Same with AU.

I can’t evaluate UCI and UCR.

So here’s another thought - U of Arizona, very good in poli sci, will run you $25K or so a year. A bit out of budget - but low cost.

I wish you luck.

Here’s a list of all schools that meet full need. Perhaps, applying TO, a school like Denison or St. Olaf or Lafayette or Franklin & Marshall will accept you - but many schools will turn you down just on money (need aware). But there are schools - like Rice - if your folks make less than $75K, it’s a full ride and $75-140K a half ride.

On another note, if the SAT gave you anxiety, I worry about your ability to get through college. That was nothing - so if you have some challenges, I hope you will seek help and support for it.

Good luck.

Here’s Every College That Offers 100% Financial Aid (prepscholar.com)

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I get that the Georgetown is the dream, and that you’d be willing to come out with 50K in debt. But as Tsbna said, only a little over half of that 50K could be in your name - the rest would have to be parent loans. And your parents are opposed to your taking on debt. (And tbh, I agree with them, especially for a major like poli sci, that isn’t likely to be instantly lucrative with an undergrad degree.) And when it comes to spending the college money that your grandparents have saved for you, it makes zero sense to plan on spending it all in the first year. Then what? Plan on adding 25% of that money to your yearly budget, no more.

I also agree that Denison (one n, not two) is a good example of a school with excellent poli sci (and its own particularly good semester-in-DC program) where you’d be a competitive applicant - running their NPC would give you a good idea where you might stand financially with schools of this sort. If it seems as if Denison would be affordable, we can suggest more schools in this category.

For UC’s, can you compute your UC weighted, and weighted-capped GPA’s?
https://rogerhub.com/gpa-calculator-uc/
UC Davis is excellent for poli sci, with lots of opportunities in nearby Sacramento.

Consider Willamette U. in Salem, OR (the state capital - lots of state government opportunities for poli sci majors, and it’s a strong program) - it could end up being affordable with a combination of need-based aid and merit.

Are you not planning to apply to any CSU’s?

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If you might want to expand your application list, this site may offer you further ideas:

Willamette, which was recommended above, appears among the colleges listed, for example.

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Here are the loan limits you can take by yourself annually. Anything above these amounts would need to be cosigned by your parents…or taken out by them. Will they do that?

Freshman $5500
Sophomore $6500
Junior $7500
Senior $7500

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Jobs in poli sci are also typically on the lower end of the salary scale, and underpaid/ unpaid internships are often needed to land those jobs. Many also need post graduate studies after a few years of working.

All to say - graduate debt free / take on the lowest amount of debt you can

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Please post your UC GPA’s using the Rogerhub calculator that was linked above since this is what will be used for your application review. The campuses consider all 3 UC GPA’s and some emphasize the Unweighted and Fully weighted over the Capped weighted. The Capped weighted UC Capped is the most common UC GPA quoted in the UCOP statistical data.

Check out the updated 2023 admit rates for the UC’s and their GPA admit range: Freshman admit data | UC Admissions

Below are Political Science admit rates (if available) for the UC’s and popular Cal States

Campus Political Science
UC Berkeley 12%
UC Davis 38% College L&S
UC Irvine 28%
UCLA 10% College of L&S
UC Merced 90%
UC Riverside 90%
UC San Diego 27% extrapolated
UC Santa Barbara 27% College of L&S
UC Santa Cruz 53%
San Diego State 50%
Cal Poly SLO 17%
Cal State Long Beach 51%
San Jose State 64%

Based on the admit data and your overall profile, I would put UCI n the High Target/Low Reach category and agree the UCR is a safety.

What the admit data does not show is how competitive the applicant pool is for the specific College and/or major.

As a California resident with affordability issues, it really makes sense to add a few more UC”s and Cal States to your list. UC Davis which is mentioned is an excellent option along with a few of the Cal States. UC’s and CSU’s give good need based aid which you would qualify as a CA resident.

Wishing you the best of luck and your SAT will do you no favors if the schools require submission unless you consider retaking or trying the ACT.

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In addition to Willamette, you might consider running Net Price Calculators on the websites of University of the Pacific and Lewis & Clark College.

As noted above, Willamette is situated next to the Oregon State Capitol building and the internship opportunities it provides. Both Willamette and Lewis & Clark offer graduate schools for law and University of the Pacific offers multiple dual degree programs, including political science and public policy. University of the Pacific, in particular, may offer a good aid package.

Both Willamette and Lewis & Clark offer separate scholarships for speech and debate that you may want to apply for if you are eligible.

In your shoes, looking at programs and potential affordability alone, I would consider applying to the following schools and pick your favorite of the three most affordable options:

Reach - Georgetown, UC Berkeley

High Reach/Target - UC Irvine, UC Davis

Likely - University of the Pacific, Willamette, Lewis & Clark, UC Riverside, UC Merced, San Jose State

And then be ready to toss aside any private colleges that offer an acceptance without a significant financial aid package. Maybe the Net Price Calculators will make it obvious that a few won’t work before you bother applying, because they won’t provide sufficient need-based aid.

Of course, that list doesn’t take into account size, location, or “vibe” which are also legitimate considerations. If you have specific preferences, people can provide more tailored advice.

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I agree that finding the right school that will meet your budget is going to be the toughest part.

As others have mentioned, I’d consider adding UC-Davis to your list of UC applications and think about applications to Cal States, particularly Sacramento & Chico.

Trinity College (CT): This school with about 2200 undergrads is in the state capital of Connecticut, meets 100% of need, and by its net price calculators, I think has a shot at being affordable. Locations in state capitals offer many of the benefits traditionally associated with being D.C., except there’s one in every state.

I’d also take a look at Gettysburg (PA ) which has about 2200 undergrads and a strong poli sci department. Its net prices by income look more favorable than a number of other schools’, too.

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