<p>Hey!
First time using College Confidential. Just struggling with university decisions.
Well, I'm a Junior in high school this year and already need to start thinking about university options, but I'm not exactly sure where to start. Two of the interests I currently have are political science and economics. I live in South Carolina and would like to study relatively close to the state, but am open to any suggestions. I saw (in only one statistic though) that Duke University in NC ranked top 10 in political science grads and top 20 in economics. I have heard that political science and economics also leaves you with a pretty large job range, and I could see myself anywhere from a United Nations representative to a small-town South Carolina businessman in the future.
Information that might help is that I'm a Caucasian/white male on my Dad's side, but my Mom's side is Hispanic. (Didn't find a way to put multiple ethnicity on the sign-in thing). I take Honors classes and make good grades... my report card ranging between a 96-100.<br>
I appreciate any help and suggestions! Thanks so much :)</p>
<p>How much will your parents spend each year on your education? If you don’t know, ask.</p>
<p>That may largely determine where you should apply.</p>
<p>Once you take some ACT and SAT exams, we can also better advise. </p>
<p>Hopefully you will be taking the PSAT in October. If you do well, you could become a National Merit Finalist and maybe get some scholarship money. If you indicate that you’re Hispanic on the exam, then you might also be named a National Hispanic Scholar.</p>
<p>Hey! Well, my parents are open to all options… and if it’s the most expensive university ever, they’re willing to make that sacrifice if that’s what is best for me.<br>
I did take the PSAT sophmore year and scored in the 97% overall comparing myself to Juniors. In 7th grade, I was invited to the State Recognition Ceremony in SC from Duke TIP for scoring over a 520 on the math section of the SAT. And in 8th grade I was recognized by the South Carolina Junior Scholars Program. Those are the more significant achievements I have accomplished. On my resume I’ll probably also include my Scouting experience, since my goal is to be Eagle before I graduate high school.
About the Hispanic part, do I still qualify for National Merit Finalist even if I put I’m Hispanic?
And I don’t remember–on standardized tests like the PSAT and SAT, is there a way to put you’re both white and Hispanic?
Thanks!!</p>
<p>You need to answer some questions about what kind of college environment you are looking for. How big or small a school-a liberal arts college, medium sized private, large state? Urban/rural or suburban? Culture: frats, preppy, granola, artsy, intellectual, jock, quirky, religious, single-sex, etc…There are no right or wrong answers here-its a matter of personal taste. Just remember, the smaller and more rural the school, the more important a good ‘fit’ becomes.</p>
<p>If you really don’t know what you want, start your search by visiting your local state school (check out the honors programs), then check out a nearby LAC (Davidson?) and a mid-sized private (Elon, Vanderbuilt or Emory?) just to get a feel for how they compare. Do some reading about these options too-you can do a search on CC to compare. And get a Fiske and a couple of other guides. This is good reading to do over the summer, so you can plan some visits over winter and spring break next year.</p>
<p>To be honest, I’m not sure if I have a size preference or a location preference because I can adapt quickly to different environments (I’ve lived in medium-sized cities, rural suburbs in South Carolina, and also in Caracas, Venezuela.) My goal to find is quality academics (preferably close to SC) in a university with some degree of “renown” which is strong in political science/economics related majors. I personally am pretty conservative and a Christian but I’m very open to secular universities (hesitant where it comes to colleges who have a bad reputation for schooling people with drug- and alcohol-addictions… but i know you can find those in most schools). I would probably prefer co-ed, unless there is a really good single-sex school.
Thanks for the advice!!</p>
<p>You might want to look in Wake Forest.</p>
<p>Maybe Rhodes (TN). Best of luck!</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice! When is the best time to “visit” universities during the school year and can you just ‘go’ or do you have to sign up for visiting it?</p>
<p>Wake Forest, Rhodes and Hendrix are all good options. Visit during the school year (spring break is a very popular time) when the colleges are in session so you can sit in on classes and meet students. And you, you need to sign up in advance-in fact, get on the schools’ mailing lists now, and sign up for both the tours and the information sessions.</p>
<p>do I still qualify for National Merit Finalist even if I put I’m Hispanic?
And I don’t remember–on standardized tests like the PSAT and SAT, is there a way to put you’re both white and Hispanic?</p>
<p>Yes…so just put Hispanic. If you qualify for both NMF and NH you’ll be recognized for both. </p>
<p>*Well, my parents are open to all options… and if it’s the most expensive university ever, they’re willing to make that sacrifice if that’s what is best for me. *</p>
<p>Great. Do your parents know that top colleges are costing about $55k per year? (some parents don’t know that - some just look at tuition and forget to add in room, board, books, fees, etc). By the time you go to college, costs could easily be $60k+ per year. If they’re fine with that, then great! </p>
<p>BTW…no one has to attend an expensive university. There’s no such thing as the “most expensive u is the best for me.” That’s just silly.</p>