Could you Offer a Youngester Some Advice?

Parent Cafe
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<p>I wanted to post this thread here because all of you have MUCH more experience with this college admissions process and I doubt the credibility of the advice of the other college age applicants. So am I reaching too high with my college list? Right now I am planning to apply to: Princeton, Harvard, Yale, Duke, Columbia, UPenn, Cornell, Johns Hopkins, and Ohio State.</p>

<p>Is my list good and more importantly am I even competive for the schools I am applying to? Also if you can, would you suggest some other schools that I may have a shot at. Thanks in advance.</p>

<p>Here are my stats:</p>

<p>So I am considering schools to apply to and right now my list includes: Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Duke, Columbia, UPenn and Johns Hopkins.</p>

<p>I am wondering if I am aiming to high and if so can you suggest some schools as matches for me?</p>

<p>Here are my stats:</p>

<p>ACT: 34
SAT 2: 720 Lit, 740 Bio, and the next one coming up
Rank:13/485
GPA: 3.88 UW 5.55 W
Ethnicity: White</p>

<p>Took 11 APs: English Lang,English Lit, Art History, Comp Sci A, Chemistry, US History, Physics B, Calculus AB, European History, Biology, Comp Sci AB
Work Experience: I worked at Wal mart for two summers</p>

<p>My Ecs: Soccer (9th-10th)
Debate (10-12th)
Tuba Player (9th-12th)
Research (9th-11th)-I worked independently on various things but my most recent one (and most successful involved studying how ionizing radiation affects the length of telomeres of Arabidopsis during DNA replication.</p>

<p>Soccer:
3rd Place in district
1st Place in district</p>

<p>Science Awards</p>

<p>Outstanding Science student in School District x 3
My research was published in Dynamic Patterns of Research-an amateur science journal
5th Place in American Institute of Biosciences Competition -Regional
Genzyme Corporation Research Award
3rd Place Cleveland Science Fair</p>

<p>Tuba</p>

<p>Cleveland Musical Showcase Outstanding in Division Award
Outstanding Tuba Performance x 2
Orlando Musical Showcase Participant</p>

<p>CX and Congress</p>

<p>Qualified for state in CX debate x 2
My team got 4th at the state competition
1st place Ohio State University Forensic Tournament
National Forensic League Distinction Honor
State Quarterfinalist in Congress
4rd Place in District for Congress
5th Place District in congress
National Forensic League Special Distinction Honor</p>

2

<p>The reason why you have not gotten many replies yet is that we, CC parents don’t really like this “chance me” stuff.</p>

<p>Are you going to be happy at Ohio State? If not, you have rethink your list and add more sure-fire safeties.</p>

3

<p>You have excellent stats, and your list is a reasonable one.</p>

4

<p>good grief, you list is ALL REACHES, with the exception of Ohio State [if you are instate]. I hope you are prepared to happily go there based on the strong statistical possibility that you won’t be accepted at any other college on your current list.</p>

5

<p>Your list looks like one that a top kid at our local high school might come up with…super selective schools with the flagship state school thrown in as a safety. If you would be happy to attend Ohio State, no problem. But if you would think, “I worked so hard in high school and what a waste–all I got into is Ohio State, a school where people from my high school got into without working half as hard as I did,” then you need to find a better safety.</p>

<p>Need more info to suggest more safeties for you.</p>

<p>As to whether you are even competitive–stat-wise, my D had similar testing results and a better GPA and class rank than you do. She took comparable number of AP classes. She did not get into Harvard, Yale or Columbia. Didn’t apply to the other schools you applied to. </p>

<p>But applications to the schools listed are not just a numbers driven thing. You aren’t a compelling admit to some of the schools listed, but then you aren’t someone that would have your application put immediately into the reject pile either. </p>

<p>Tell us more and perhaps some more safeties can be suggested.</p>

6

<p>I’ll chime in with the same message, though I think we are being unfair you know you need matches. Sure you have a shot at all those “top” schools, but there’s no guarantee you’ll get into any of them. So the question is do you like Iowa State? Or can you find a list of schools that share some of the qualities of the schools you listed but is a little easier to get into? I’m guessing a good science program is important to you. Do you want to be near or in a city? Do you want to continue with biological research? My younger son wasn’t looking for science, but he also looked at Brandeis, Rochester University, and Tufts (still pretty reachy). I know someone who did biology/ecology stuff at RPI. She didn’t love it, but she got research opportunities, graduated early and got into grad school at Cornell her first choice for undergrad (but she didn’t get in.)</p>

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<p>You seem to have avoided LACs, so I assume you want a university. I think that your list is quite reasonable, but I hope that you also applied to Ohio State before the scholarship deadline of Dec 1. You are also a shoo-in for the honors program which seems pretty decent to me. </p>

<p>Most of your schools are reaches, meaning that you’re more likely than not to get denied. Based on the Naviance charts I’ve seen at our school, I think Johns Hopkins is a match (better than 50-50, but with a significant chance of denial), Northwestern and Cornell would be matches and I’d add Rochester as a safety so that you have a choice in the spring, but hurry up and get that transcript and those teacher recs in because the deadline is Jan 1. If you miss the Rochester deadline, I’d consider Pittsburgh, McGill (all numbers based, I think you’re in), and Toronto which all have later deadlines and should all be safeties.</p>

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<p>I think you have a very good shot at getting into some of the schools on your list. In our family, we apply to fewer than this, but applying to this many or more is now common.</p>

<p>If you haven’t really thought about whether Ohio State is a good fallback for you, then I agree that you might want to come up with another school or two. But financially, your list makes a lot of sense because the top schools have great financial aid, and Ohio State might be more affordable than privates. Are finances an issue?</p>

<p>Anyway, I get a good vibe from your resume, which seems to reflect some genuine interests and talents rather than resume-filling. At least, that is the impression I got.</p>

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<p>While your stats certianly make you a good candidate, you don’t know how the admission office will view your info. There are so many other factors, I’ve read time and time again - “we have to turn down a lot of qualified applicants”. I think the higher you go up the rankings the harder it is to predict who will get accepted. You should choose a few “good fits”. What about Georgetown, Carnegie Mellon, NYU, Case Western, Pepperdine, Clemson, Tulane, Purdue, Texas A&M… It really depends what you are looking for.</p>

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<p>Your list looks like every other one, and probably has almost nothing to do with ‘fit’ and everything to do with silly rankings of what you’ve come to believe from your peers and a magazine ranking system.</p>

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<p>* But if you would think, “I worked so hard in high school and what a waste–all I got into is Ohio State, a school where people from my high school got into without working half as hard as I did,” then you need to find a better safety.
*</p>

<p>Very true! Altho you have very fine stats which make you an attractive candidate, your stats are like many who are applying to the same schools. :frowning: </p>

<p>So…if going to Ohio St would feel like going to a “consolation prize,” then you need some good matches and safeties.</p>

<p>Is money no object? If so, then great. but, if you’ll be needing aid or merit money, then that has to be a consideration.</p>

12

<p>Your list looks fine. More likely than not you will get into one of those reaches. I would just add one or two matches or safties. It seems you are a biology/biomed major, I would add something like Case, RPI, WashU or BU for a safety.</p>

<p>Make sure your essays are very good.</p>

13

<p>Your list looks fine. More likely than not you will get into one of those reaches. I would just add one or two matches or safties. It seems you are a biology/biomed major, I would add something like Case, RPI, WashU or BU for a safety.</p>

<p>WashU is not a safety for anyone. It also rejects many who are well-qualified.</p>

<p>The problem I see is this…</p>

<p>The OP is from Ohio. The whole NE section of the US heavily applies to those same schools, therefore many, many get rejected to make room for the rest of the country. If the OP were from N. Dakota, Idaho, or Nevada, he’d likely be a shoo-in for at least 1-3 of those schools.</p>

<p>I may have missed what his major will be, but I’m thinking that he needs to add schools like…</p>

<p>Emory
Stanford
Tulane
Santa Clara
Rice
UNC-Chapel Hill
Creighton
Georgia Tech</p>

<p>What is your likely major and future career? and, is money no object?</p>

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<p>What do you want to study? Are there any school characteristics that are important to you, e.g. size, location?</p>

<p>Your list is too reach-heavy. You’ve got a decent shot at the schools listed, so I’m not discouraging you to apply to them. But, there is a big gap between Ohio State and the other schools on your list, so you should consider adding some schools with in-between selectivity, such as GW, BU, Rochester, Pitt, etc. The parents on this forum could offer better suggestions if we knew what you are looking for in a college.</p>

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<p>I agree WashU would be more like a match, not exactly safety. OTH, if he mark no FA needed, then I think WashU is almost a safety for him with that stat. IMO.</p>

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<p>I suggest adding Case Western and Rochester to the list as match schools, especially if my assumption (based on your research and awards) that you’ll be majoring in a science is correct. I hope you’ll post again and let us know your prospective major and whether finances will be a factor in your decision.</p>

<p>You’re a qualified applicant at all the great reach schools on your list, so congrats on a terrific high school record. But these reaches are reaches for everyone. (Though your tuba expertise is not going to hurt you anywhere! :slight_smile: ) Please post with more information.</p>

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<p>So after going through the EA decisions at some of the top schools I doubt that I have a chance to get into any of them, especially HYP, so so I am think I should just not apply.</p>

<p>In terms of match schools does Case Western offer a significant number of scholarships?</p>

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<p>Oh what a change in your tone in just a few days! Here’s what I did: I first read the list of schools you were considering, then raced through your stats/scores. It’s a “given” that you’d have good stats to consider going to those top schools. </p>

<p>Next, I spent my time looking at your HS focus (science awards), and ECs (music) to get a sense of who you are. I was also hoping to find you’d tell us what’s important to you…science, music, something else? (FA, large/small school, city/rural, north/sout/eat/west,any particular programs?) All those factors help to fine tune your college choices. Right now, those “reach” schools are just well known names, is that why you like them, or did you really investigate them?</p>

<p>Fact is, there are quite a number of very competitive schools that would accept you, but would they fit? What I saw was a very strong student who has been successful in science research and plays the tuba. So, where to apply? it’s now the 11th hour. You still need to do the research to pinpoint where you should apply. Where have you looked? I realize we all told you those ivies aren’t reachable; it’s just that you need more than that. See, applying to three or four ivies doesn’t increase your chances of getting into one.</p>

<p>I suggest you look into a few terrific LAC schools that are also hidden treasures: Bowdoin, Connecticut College, Lafayette, Oberlin, and Swarthmore as well as some already suggested here URochester, Case Western, RPI, UPittsburgh, Emory, as well as Vanderbilt, and Carnegie Mellon.</p>

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<p>Mostly I was applying for names. I mean I think I want a bio or chem focus so i just wanted schools with strong research programs and decent financial aid. So the Ivies were a sure thing, aside from that the match schools like Vanderbilt would be a stretch financially that is why only OSU was listed as a safety.</p>

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<p>I would suggest that you look a little deeper than the “name” of the school. There are some wonderful schools out there with much less name recognition where you can get a wonderful education. I agree with adding Case Western to your list.</p>