Dream College Search...Match Me Up!

College Search & Selection
1

<p>So, I've done a lot of college searching already and I have a tentative list. Just wanted to see if you guys could come up with any others to match my [somewhat] specific criteria.</p>

<p>** LACs between 2500-9000 students (I'm also considering larger state schools though, just because they are so much cheaper)</p>

<p>** Don't care about location at all, though preferably not COMPLETELY in the middle of nowhere. (I think Colgate is really in the middle of nowhere, for example...which may be totally illogical because I really like Dartmouth, which is probably just as remote. Oh well.)</p>

<p>** VERY IMPORTANT: "work hard, play hard" philosophy...I want a good school academically but don't want academically obsessed peers/to be sitting in my dorm studying on Friday nights!</p>

<p>** School spirit (not necessarily for sports, just in general)</p>

<p>** Good academics in general, bonus points for having distinguished French, Creative Writing, Political Science, or Sociology departments, or high law school acceptance rates.</p>

<p>** VERY IMPORTANT: residential campus. I prefer the campuses where practically everyone (>85%) live on campus all four years. (However, I know those numbers can be kind of skewed for some schools where, for example, juniors move off campus and all live in the same apartment building across the street...)</p>

<p>** Good food! (Don't tell me it's not important. It is!)</p>

<p>** Friendly, accessible professors; small class size</p>

<p>** Preferably, extremely limited or no General Education requirements</p>

<p>** Bonus points for schools with extensive study abroad opportunities</p>

<p>In case you're curious, my current list is: Wesleyan, Dartmouth, Brown, William & Mary, Pitzer, Pomona, UCLA, UC Berkeley (I see people on here calling it UCB...you know no one calls it that, right? It's Cal, usually), UCSD, Vassar, American University, Oberlin</p>

<p>Stats, in case it helps:
SAT (though I'm retaking in 3 weeks): 670 CR, 650 M, 670 W
GPA: 3.89 UW
Rank: school doesn't rank
I'm studying abroad this entire year (my junior year) in France, living with a host family and attending a very academically rigorous school; I plan to use as my international experience as my "hook." </p>

<p>So...can anyone think of any other schools that match my preferences? Or have any input about my current list?</p>

2

<p>If you want an LAC most do have the General Educaton requirements because, well, they want you to have a general well-rounded liberal arts education. When I saw the size you wanted, the first school that popped into my head was Richmond, maybe Wake Forest as well....good luck!</p>

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<p>My first thought is Miami U (the original one in Ohio). BFF of DD1 is majoring in French and Creative Writing there.</p>

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<p>Dartmouth would be excellent (get those scores up if you can)</p>

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<p>Yeah, I was actually planning on retaking the SAT for that very reason. Dartmouth is one of my favorites!</p>

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<p>Haha wow, your credentials for a college are almost identical to mine, down to the strong departments and interest in French! I got a number of great suggestions, here's my thread if you're interested: <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/629765-i-challenge-you-find-me-my-dream-college.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/629765-i-challenge-you-find-me-my-dream-college.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>And yes, everyone calls it Cal, not UCB haha. Silly non-Californians.</p>

<p>If you like Dartmouth, you might like Middlebury (it comes to mind because of its renowned strength in languages, including French)... however it is kind of in the middle of nowhere. Also consider Georgetown, one of my top schools because of its huge school spirit (in sports and otherwise I think), great academics and reputation, etc. I'm unsure about French at Gtown but I know their polysci program is top in the country; saw American on your list and figured you'd like Georgetown too?
Good luck in your search!</p>

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<p>look into Northwestern. I don't know about the specific programs you are interested, but they are strong in most areas. they have the spirit and residential community feel. i dont know about the food, but i havent heard anything explicitly negative about it from friends who attend.
dartmouth seems like a good fit also (but you have to bring those scores up. you have time, though)</p>

<p>also, i would look around CC for what an actual "hook" is, because i dont think the study abroad is "hook" exactly.</p>

<p>good luck!</p>

8

<p>I think study abroad for a year is a 'hook,' and it's certainly a much more credible hook than one's race or ethnicity.</p>

<p>I also recommend Sarah Lawrence -- it's an LAC in Yonkers, NY, which is only 15 miles (a short train ride) away from New York City. They are a writing-intensive school and have little general education requirements, and they have tutorial-style courses. I have a few friends who went to SLC and one told me they had to interview their professors before they could appoint them as the dons for their tutorials. I'm fairly certain it's a residential campus. One of the cons is that it's listed as one of the most expensive colleges in the country.</p>

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<p>It always bothers me when non-Californians refer to it as UCB...I just imagine then writing ridiculous things like that in their admissions essays, in interviews, etc... cringe!</p>

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<p>I heard that Sarah Lawrence is a major drug school, though. Do you know if this is true? College ******* ranks them D-, the worst grade they've given any college in terms of drug use.</p>