<p>Hi Guys!
I am currently a freshman at Drexel University in Philadelphia. While it is a great school for some people, it just simply isn't the school for me. Firstly, I am majoring in public health and biology and the public health program at Drexel is in its first year and frankly is just not as mature as I would have liked it to be. The curriculum is not fully fleshed out and the advisers and even teachers seem to not know what is really going on. Additionally, I have discovered that I want that traditional college experience and Drexel just is not the school for that. Academically, Drexel is decent, but in terms of getting the whole gamut of opportunity it is lacking (in my regard). This is not meant to bash Drexel in any way; enough people do that anyway. Liking a school varies drastically from person to person. Rather, I am trying to explain why it was not a good fit for me personally. </p>
<p>I received a full ride to Drexel thanks to my status as a National Merit Finalist in high school. That is primarily why I picked the school along with the fact that I was not really sure about what I wanted out of college or life in general and was not pleased with my college admissions senior year. Financially, I can afford to go to whichever college I want. My parents have the ability to pay and so it is not a major factor in my decision. </p>
<p>My concerns deal with my realistic chances of getting into schools that I am looking at that seem like a good fit for me personally and a good fit for my academic aspirations.Currently I am looking at UVA, Tufts, Cornell, Yale, Brown, Hopkins, Boston College, Georgetown, Vanderbilt, and the University of Illinois.</p>
<p>I attended a public magnet school (admissions test for admission) for high school and had a GPA of 3.83. Each course at the school is weighted a little differently than a normal high school. My high school transcript is not outstanding, especially compared to other people at the school. I have a mix of mostly A's and B's and two C's. I took 11 AP courses in high school and had a SAT score of 2300. My ACT score was a 35. In terms of ECs I was not amazing, but I completed a year-long research project that dealt with gastric cancer proliferation my senior year. Additionally, I was a member of the national honor society, Model UN, quizbowl, senior editor of our schools acclaimed scientific journal, core team member of a local tutoring nonprofit, and volunteer Ambassador during the summers for camps that aimed to bring STEM to local kids. I also shadowed in a hospital and have trained seriously in a Indian classical dance for the past nine years. </p>
<p>In college, I am doing pretty well so far. Drexel is on a quarter system, so classes are organized a little differently but I have done well in my current classes. I just started research on campus in a health management and behavior project and I have joined a few science-related clubs. Additionally, I have started tutoring with an organization on campus that works with children. I hope to get involved in more things in the future. I know that a lot of people say this, but being in college has really changed me and I am more aware of exactly what I want out of life and college. I am more confident in my own abilities and that has helped me tremendously at Drexel. I am especially looking at schools that offer a 5 year MPH program, but that is not a concrete necessity-rather it is something that is helping to shape my list of schools.</p>
<p>I guess what I am trying to ask here is if the schools that I am looking at will be at all attainable and if so what I can do to take my application to the next level. I have a few months before applications are due (around March 2015) so I am really looking for advice that I can act on or incorporate into my essays. Additionally, if anyone has any other recommendations for schools I should look into that would be great as well. </p>
<p>Thanks so much! Sorry for the excessively long post.</p>