Don't "Chance," Suggest!

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hey all!
I'm having some trouble refining my college list.
I was wondering if some of you could look at my stats, and instead of saying "In, Match, Reach," just give me suggested colleges instead where I would fit in academically.</p>

<p>GPA: 4.0 UW (Small private school does not weight classes (and see AP section), but I have taken all the hardest courses available.</p>

<p>Rank: Val, but only out of a class of 40 ^</p>

<p>SAT I: 1st Sitting: 2120
2nd Sitting: 2220
Superscore: 2220 b/c my 2nd sitting, I improved in every section lol</p>

<p>SAT IIs: finding out tomorrow/this morning! I'll edit later</p>

<p>APs: Here's the bad part: my school doesn't provide "AP" classes. My courseload is very rigorous and college-prep worthy, but they're not designated "AP." Anyway, I took the AP Lit test this spring independently (that score comes in sometime this month). Next Spring, I plan on taking AP Language Comp and AP Calc independently as well.</p>

<p>Academic Awards:
none like Intel/Siemens that are hooks, but:
National Merit (I'm on the border of CS and SF, we'll see.....)
Furman Scholar
Wofford Scholar
Sewanee Book Award for Promising Writers
various schoolwide class awards...summa cum laude...etc.</p>

<p>ECs:
-Speech and Debate (NFL) is my big one b/c I have awards on the regional, state, and national levels
-Varsity basketball for 2 years
-Theatre (lead roles in every production)
-Mock Trial for 2 years (Lead Attorney)</p>

<p>Comm. Service:
-volunteer counselor at summer camp for underprivileged minority kids for 3 summers
-volunteer tutor for above kids ^</p>

<p>basic work experience:
Chick-fil-A for my freshman summer LOL
Basic sit-down restaurant for 2 summers
(30 hrs-a-week at both)</p>

<p>also, I write a lot. I'm still deciding whether I should actually send in my work as supplemental material, or just mention it as a passion of mine.
I hope this leads to great essays (if Star* or any of the other CCers who read my EC short answer are around, they saw my work)</p>

<p>ANYway, do you guys have any suggestions on possible matches or "reaches" that could be...well....within reach? lol</p>

2

<p>Knowing what you would like to major in or are interested in would be nice. Knowing what kind of setting you prefer would too. You would probably receive more answers if you could furnish that information as well.</p>

3

<p>Yeah, I totally agree with amciw. </p>

<p>You give us your stats but they are useless unless you give us more information on your college preferences.</p>

4

<p>only 40 ppl in your class?? how so?</p>

5

<p>Are you a Carolinian? I hope so.</p>

<p>Anyway, you'd be a good fit at Vanderbilt.</p>

6

<p>hahahaha at 3365, have you never seen a small private school in your life? That's amazing to me. You must live inside a tiny bubble. </p>

<p>anyway, sry about my lack of information guys.</p>

<p>I plan on majoring in either English or political science, and I would prefer a smaller to medium sized school.</p>

7

<p>You've cut the universe from hundreds to dozens...so more info please: </p>

<p>urban/rural/suburban
what part of the country would you prefer: weather a factor? geography?
do you need financial aid?
do you care about religious affiliation, politcal leanings, gender mix (all male/all female), racial make-up at the school?</p>

<p>Sounds like a good writing program matters to you. What else matters to you?</p>

8

<p>either suburban or urban preferably. I want the surrounding town to be at least bearable lol</p>

<p>Not west coast. Anything east of California is fine.</p>

<p>yes, I probably will, but if I absolutely do not get any (I don't see how that's physically possible) I can make it work somehow.</p>

<p>no I don't care about any of those things.</p>

<p>I would appreciate a college that tries to make most classes seminar- or discussion-based as opposed to tons of huge lectures.....</p>

<p>I'm also sort of a sucker for the prestige factor :/</p>

9

<p>Tufts, Boston College, Haverford, Georgetown, Macalaster, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest.</p>

10

<p>no seriously i dont understand how thats possible. is the op located in somewhere in the deep countryside in the south? thats the only place where i can imagine such circumstances. sorry if i seem ignorant but i live in southern california and attend a public high school that has 2500 kids.</p>

11

<p>He has said he goes to a small private school.</p>

12

<p>You do seem rather ignorant 3365, haha, no offense.<br>
Schools like this are all over the country! You seriously don't have a single friend who attends one?! I live in Austin, the capital of Texas, a huge urban city (UT's location) with over a million people. There are at least 15 different schools in my immediate area with graduating classes of 50 or less....on purpose. It's not that there aren't that many intelligent students around who can cut it at our prep schools, it's just that you typically get a much better, more quality education when you can work closely with your teachers without thousands of other kids distracting them. There are also public schools with graduating classes of upwards of 800. Your lack of general awareness amazes me haha</p>

13

<p>Wow. Just.......wow.
I reread your post again, and I just can't imagine that level of ignorance.</p>

<p>Also, I didn't say my whole high school has 40 kids. The amount of students at your entire high school has absolutely nothing to do with your application hahaha. It's only the number of students in your GRADE that counts. So the biggest public schools in Austin have at least 2500 students total. I like to think that I'm getting a better education by purposefully choosing a smaller teacher-student ratio :)</p>

14

<p>bump. 10char</p>

15

<p>Rice, William & Mary, Davidson, Haverford would be of interest to you.</p>

16

<p>even though you asked to suggest, i am gonna chance you... ahahaha
well, as i said before, you have great chances of getting accepted. your activity statement is great and i hope you will also send me your essays. you're a gifted writer, and probably a great debater (i've never seen you debating so i can't say for sure). your UW GPA is stellar and your SATs are within the ranges. how can i say that you should try some low-competitive school instead of an IvyLeague?</p>

<p>YOU HAVE A GREAT SHOT! Good luck and keep me posted!</p>

17

<p>Sounds like LACs are the way to go for you if small, discussion-based classes are what you value, along with a lot of personal attention. If the other cut is urban or suburban but not California, consider:</p>

<p>Reach: Swarthmore, Haverford, Vassar
On Level: Macalester, Oberlin
Safety: LACs that meet some but not all of the criteria you set</p>

<p>Many LACs are in rural locations. If you are willing to drive an hour to civilization, you could add another dozen schools easily</p>

18

<p>My son also went to a small private school with about 50 kids graduating. It was in DC. Since he went to school with many of his classmates for 13 years he felt like he had 30 or 40 siblings; people who knew entirely too much about him. For college he felt a strong need to go to a large, but not gigantic, university. He craved the anonymity that he was lacking in his school. When he went off to college he began using his first name. We had used his middle name when he was growing up. You might want to consider any need you have to re-invent yourself in making your college choice.</p>

19

<p>Haverford, Macalester, Swarthmore should definitely be on your list...</p>

20

<p>I can think of SO MANY schools that fit your criteria. Have you visited any schools yet? Do you have any idea what you want to "do" with that degree? Do you have friends who are in college already? Where do they go to school?</p>