<p>I have finished my list of colleges I have applied to, and I would like yalls opinions as to where I have a decent shot/no chance at all. </p>
<p>Female from Rural Kentucky
GPA: 4.25w, 3.95uw
7 APs by graduation: [AP English Lit, AP English Lang, AP US His, AP Enviro Sci, AP Human Geo, AP Psychology, AP Latin Literature] School has block scheduling which has made it hard to take copious amounts of APs, plus we are not allowed to take any APs independent study.
Rank: 2/350
ACT: 31 [32 - writing]
SAT IIs: Lit: 730, Math IIC: 750, Latin: 780, US History: 780</p>
<p>ECs:
Mock Trial (9,10,11,12): Capt., Best Witness in State, Best Witness in Tournament, State Runner-Up (2 years), Regional Champs (2 years)
School Newspaper Editor-in-Chief
Teen Columnist for local paper
County Young Democrats (10,11,12): Founding Member, Secretary, Vice-President
School Young Democrats (12): Founder, President
NHS (10,11,12): President
National Latin Honor Society
Y-Club (11, 12): Founding Member, Vice-President, School Service Chair, Organized many service projects
250+ service hours with various organizations
Various summer enrichment programs
other various award and ECs.</p>
<p>=My School List=
Cornell [ILR]
Bryn Mawr
St. John's College
Elon
Davidson
Vanderbilt [Peabody - HOD]
Denison
Centre
UK [accepted]
William and Mary</p>
<p>I am a Virginia parent with some recent experience at Vandy and Wm and Mary--my son did overnights at both schools and also interviewd and visited each a couple other times. I think you have a very good chance at Wm and Mary even in their OOS stringent Stat pool of applicants and I think you would like it there. The faculty is excellent and the students are interesting. It is a little boring as a town but the kids are really more diverse than you would expect since a third of them are offspring of parents working on the Beltway or in populous Norfolk and a third are outstanding OOS kids.
I think you will be admitted to Peabody at Vanderbilt which is an excellent branch of VU with a strong program and that you would also really like it there. There are many schools and institutions in Nashville that offer great internships and places to do field placements from Peabody. If you want what Peabody is delivering, the setting is quite good for real world experience. I often worked with Peabody students in Nashville agencies.
Davidson is very hard to predict as many applicants look just like you. Cornell..likely, but not sure.
Your colleges are quite different from each other. Can you visualize living at all of them?
Centre College has a very fine core experience to offer.
When you get to your RD applications...don't emphasize memberships in inactive honor clubs. Bring out something specific in terms of a service project for an adcom to grasp.<br>
I think your writing in the newspaper should be showcased expecially if you are able to take a position politically and defend it well. Every good school wants discourse. Vandy (undergrad) is just now hitting the fifty fifty stride re Republicans and Democrats..the Presidential Mock Election took place during one of our three visits last year...used to be quite Republican undergrad. I read two rags..one for Bush and one for Kerry and was pleased at the level of debate which used to be pretty dull there.<br>
Good luck. Focus on your essays and don't dwell anymore on your very solid stats or tests. Get your personality across. Then get out there in April and visit where you have been admitted to find your fit. happy outcomes.</p>
<p>thank you so, so much! I really appreciate your insight. I just got back from a visit to Vandy this weekend and now am finishing up my applications.
I totally agree that these are really diverse institutions, but each has something really amazing that I am interested in, so I am applying to each:)
If I may ask, where did your son end up?</p>
<p>My S is at Duke, but he was totally happy with every college where he was accepted and he had attached to his Match colleges more than his Reach colleges. The students at Vanderbilt were exceptionally gracious to him and introduced him to many teachers and advisors and took him to places where he had some interests. I did a grad degree in Nashville and also worked in many government and medical settings there while training and working...this is a plus factor in Nashville--ample field placements for undergrad and grad work. My son reveres Wm and Mary and did a semester there one summer, and still stays in touch with faculty and friends there now plus many graduates live and work in our town..doctors lawyers teachers. PM if you have any more questions. Davidson grads also tend to live and work near here and I know a couple current students.</p>
<p>I think that you will do well at all of these schools, and may win merit aid from some of them. Compared to other people who post, you are aiming a little low for your qualifications. Not that it's a bad thing, especially if you are asking for financial aid. The main thing is to apply to schools where you will thrive. I predict that you will be accepted to all of the above.</p>
<p>I think you should try some out of Duke, Wake Forest, Emory, Georgetown, Berkeley, Stanford, UCLA. Being from Kentucky could help you when applying to those west coast schools. Just my 2 cents.....</p>
<p>Poster has an excellent point re geographic reach for you...for instance Nashville has a lot of connections with Kentucky, but Colby doesn't.
I don't think Elon is a fit for you, nor do you need it as a safety since you are in UK and also in Centre and Denison. Your match colleges should have a large segment of students with strong stats but just more predictable admissions, and also be places you would be proud to work and study for four years.
I would rather see you using a school like Furman (my undergrad) as a Match..a place that has a lot of resources and excellent grad school preparation. Wake Forest would be a good match with strong peers and small LAC meets larger spirited school atmosphere. The only reaches are simply unpredictable, not places where you are unqualified to fit in: Cornell, Davidson and Wm and Mary. I think you are a Likely Admit to Vandy but should give that application your full attention since it combines Big school and LAC atmosphere in a decent city. Cornell is the only real Large School atmosphere which I question for you (my personal prejudice preferences are for superior LACs and midsize colleges with few TAs). I would like to see you working on your essays now and becoming very familiar with the cultures of each school and even dropping schools that wouldn't make you happy to attend. Philly is nothing like Nashville for instance and Annapolis has a wonderful waterfront historic feeling, but St. Johns and Cornell are extremely different. Bryn Mawr...why not Haverford...are you interested in same sex education? You will get a great education at either place there. St. John's (in Annapolis?) is unlike any other college, and Annapolis is a fun town to live in. Most of your colleges offer quite personal educations--you matches need some strengthening and your Reaches could include a geographic surprise. I personally think life at Colgate, Colby, Bowdoin or the Claremont colleges could be great for you and play your geographic card.<br>
Good luck. Your current list has some great options if you feel too overwhelmed to consider a change of course. best of luck and keep us posted. Essays count and conveying a vision of yourself contributing and thriving at each location counts, so don't get too tired in the end to personalize each application, although I don't think you need to apply to all the schools on your list.</p>