Although I’m a sophmore in high school, my parents have really been pushing worrying more about choosing colleges lately, so I wanted maybe some advice on schools that I might not really know much about. I’m really kinda clueless about good schools out of my state.
Currently I have:
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4.0 gpa unweighted
currently taking 3 ap classes (on the waitlist for a fourth in the second semester) and took 2 last year
I am in the IB middle years program and will be in the diploma program next year
Haven’t taken the SAT yet, but my PSAT scores from last year said I will get somewhere over 2000
top 10% of my class, possibly will be top 5%
ec’s include: theatre (drama club and almost all shows going on), Model UN, Forensics, Latin Club, Latin Honor Society, 4-h overnight summer camp counselor, reffing youth soccer on the weekends, and a couple others
i’m really interested in international affairs but also a little in econ
I’m really looking for some schools that might be reach or just a little challenging for me. I live in VA, so places like UVA and W&M I already know a LOT about so I’m looking for out of state. Also I’m not as concerned about the financial piece yet (because if I go private or out of state its going to cost a lot either way without including financial aid). Thanks for any help!
He said… VA. You might consider Tufts, Dickinson, Georgetown as a reach. Get your parents to take you on a few visits.
However, you cannot ignore the financial piece. You will waste a lot of time (yours, your parents, and people out here giving advice) if you do that. The good news is that colleges now have something called the Net Price Calculator in their websites. With a little help from your parents, you can get a feeling for your potential costs at a variety of schools. Maybe run it for UVA, William & Mary, Tufts, Dickinson, and Georgetown to get a flavor for the costs. Then your parents can have an idea of what kind of financial aid you might get. Lots of parents have no idea what college costs these days, so this is super important.
You may want to step back a little. Visit some colleges and universities, not for specifics but just to see if you prefer large (Penn State, UMd at College Park) versus small (Mary Washington, Swarthmore); urban (Penn, Georgetown) versus suburban(Swarthmore again) versus middle of nowhere (Juniata).
While searching for reaches is fun, dreaming how high can you go, I suggest coming up with a true safety. This would be a school you are happy to attend where you know you will be accepted and your parents can afford. This is the hardest part of the search because people tend to see this as the default or what happens if you “fail”. Don’t look at it that way! You’re searching for a school you truly like.
I agree about the financial aspect. Parents are often shocked by the cost of college and what they are expected to pay. Luckily you live in a state with several excellent in state public universities.