Chances at Oberlin??

Colleges and Universities A-Z Oberlin College
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<p>Hey! I'm developing my final list of colleges to which I'm applying this fall. What do you think my chances are at Oberlin? Any other college recommendations? Thanks! </p>

<p>Senior at a top 10 public high school in California
GPA: 3.45 UW/ 3.65 W (upward trend with the most challenging curriculum- maybe a little too low, though)
SATII Writing: 800
SATII Literature: 690
SATII US History: 650 (bad day)
I took the SAT in October and will take again in November- will probably be around 1400, but I'm not sure
By the end of senior year, I will have taken 8 APs and 1 honors class (AP Music Theory, AP Psych, AP Euro, AP US History, Hon. English, AP English, AP Gov/Econ, AP Stats, AP Calc AB)
I'm probably going to major in Classics and either English, History, or Poli Sci
I got 4's on the AP US and AP Psych tests </p>

<p>-Member of Junior Statesmen of America- 4 yrs
-Mock Trial- 2 years
-Vice President of Philosophy Club
-Member of Amnesty International- 3 yrs
-Member of History Club
-Member of the school district's Diversity Committee, which works to combat such issues as homophobia in the school environment
-I'm starting a book club with a friend of mine, so I'll be a co-president of that
-I work closely with the local Democratic club and do outreach work with my school through the organization
-Member/Volunteer at Feminist Majority Foundation
-Leading Volunteer/Organizer for John Kerry for President/ Kerry Campaign Writers Bureau/ Students for Kerry (about 15 hours a week)
-Participated in National Youth Leadership Forum for Law in Washington DC this spring
-Nominated to be my high school's representative for the US Senate Youth Program
-Won the underclassman award at my school 2 years in a row, once for English, once for Precalculus (each teacher picks one student from years frosh-junior to give an award to for academic excellence)
- Won the California Governor's Scholars Award for high STAR test scores
- National Merit Commended Scholar
- I'm in the Gifted and Talented Education Program (GATE) at my school
-Took classes at UC Berkeley every summer I've been in high school (got straight A's in them)
-Taking classes at local community college as well
-I'm taking an evening dance class
-During budget cuts, I led a letter-writing campaign among the students to protect the teachers and programs that had been put in jeopardy
-Wrote a novel (unpublished) and 2 plays, one of which was performed at UC Berkeley
-I don't know if this will factor in at all in assessing my grades, but my mom has been unemployed for a year, on top of which there was a death in the family, the combination of which made for a stressful junior year to say the least. :-( However, my grades have definitely rebounded significantly.
-I'm a very strong writer and will be able to get great recommendations </p>

<p>200+ hours of community service</p>

<p>If someone could let me know what you think my chances are, that would be great!! Also, does anyone know what Oberlin's financial aid is like? Thanks!!</p>

2

<p>Oberlin gives some of the best financial aid packages I've seen, so you should be fine with that.</p>

<p>All your stats look great, you should be able to get in pretty easily, but I suggest that you do an interview and visit the campus. Oberlin has the tendency to...shock people who don't know about it's quirkier side. ;)</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

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<p>Thanks for the support! That's so comforting to hear that you don't think it'll be too much of a reach for me. By the way, I wound up getting a 1410 on the SAT, so that should help me out a bit. I love schools with a quirky side! It fits in nicely with my Berkeley roots. I really wish I could visit the campus, but my mom's still unemployed, so we don't have the money to fly out to Ohio (although it would be a great place to campaign). Good thing you said they give good financial aid packages- what a relief that is!!!</p>

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<p>It's too bad you can't come out to the campus, I was there last week and it's gorgeous right now! </p>

<p>I can tell you about it, if you want.</p>

<p>Oberlin is a small town in Northern Ohio, a liberal oasis surrounded by very conservative rural areas. It's really...well, rural, but you're close to Cleveland so I guess it's okay. </p>

<p>Oberlin consists of the conservatory and the college, both are very excellent schools. The campus is small: there is a north campus and a south campus, with a science center, several dorms, churches and other buildings. The prettiest place is the center of campus which is a green space with walkways, a gazebo and benches. They have lots of pretty trees, a herb garden, a great art museum (which lets you rent stuff to hang in your drom for only $5!) and their new science center has chairs you can eat (no joke!) because they're organic or something. But I wouldn't try it, they would probably taste really nasty. The science center is the newest building, I think and it smells kinda funky, but is (obviously) very environmentally friendly.</p>

<p>They have a great commons area (I can't remember what it's called, sorry!) but their dorms are awful, and I heard the food is wretched. Some dorms have themes, there's international dorm, a substance-free dorm, a woman's dorm etc. All but the women's dorm are coed, and boys and girls can even share a room. One thing to watch out for is all the marijuana, but you might be into that sorta thing, I don't know. That for me was an issue though. </p>

<p>If you have any other questions, let me know and I'll try to answer. I also know about the conservatory, but figured you weren't that interested in music.</p>

<p>I think the average aid package is about $23,000 but that might be for the conservatory.</p>

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<p>wolfstarslasher, how does everybody get alone at oberlin, any racial tension</p>

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<p>No, not really. Everyone is very nice and respectful to each other, it's the hippie mentality, I think. There's a significant number of African American students and groups, and Asians as well. Pretty much everyone gets along, at least as far as I've observed.</p>

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<p>I'd have to agree strongly with wolfstarslasher about all the marijuana. I was appalled when visiting Oberlin this spring by my dorm hosts wanting to smoke pot in their room while hosting a prospective student!</p>

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<p>My D graduated Oberlin 2 years ago. An awesome essay can be your ticket in. Lots of marajuana there. The town offers little or nothing to do - it's advisable to befriend someone with a car.</p>