Finalize a college list/Any suggestions?

College Search & Selection
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<p>I've done SuperMatch, talked to my college coach, my parents, and done some research on my own. And while I kind of have a list, I still feel lost, unsure, and not totally happy about it. So, this is really a 2 parter - how is this list in general, and are there any additional suggestions for colleges I might like. (I ran a similar thread before, but that was more of a "let's-get-started" list, and I'm hoping this will be a "let's wrap this up" list). This is going to be long but thorough. Thank you in advance. </p>

<p>White Jewish, female, Boston suburbs
GPA: 3.8 UW, 4.65 W (out of 5) - freshman year doesn't count in GPA, so recalculations would have an impact
Rank: N/A
SAT: 2190 (720m/730w/740r).
APs: Chem (5), Bio (5) this year. BC Calc, Psych, self-study Macro next year. School does not offer APs until junior year.
Other classes are honors except for english and a couple of senior year electives.
I can post my transcript if that would help, but those take up a lot of space so I thought I'd leave it out for now.</p>

<p>ECs (grades in which I participated):
mock trial (9-12, co-captain this year)
badminton club (11-12)
anime club (11-12)
Hebrew school (8-11, ends in 11th grade)
Teen Voices (11-12) - work with town government to plan informative events for high schoolers and parents
Supermarket cashier/bagger (11-12) - 9 hours/week during the year, 20 hours/week during the summer</p>

<p>Not sure if mildly impressive or if no one cares:
weekend classes on various topics at a local program since freshman year
runner-up for a writing award at my school
National Spanish Exam - Gold medal last year and silver medal this year
intern at my religious school last summer - helped arrange a college fair for the local Jewish community
Mock trial team won at a local 8-school tournament</p>

<p>First I'll state my criteria and then post my list. Some of the more important stuff:
1. Academics: I'm VERY undecided as to what I want to do in the future. Business, marketing, economics, psychology, and biology/science stuff all appeal to me on some level. But in general, I'd like a school that is strong in the sciences. A business school is preferable, though a decent economics program would suffice. And along those lines: it must be easy to change your major, and I'd really like a place where double-majoring is doable.
2. Size: 4,000-8,000 is optimal, 2,000-12,000 is ok. Would be willing to go bigger if the school was really good, not really willing to go smaller (with the exception of consortium schools).
3. Career services: I'm hoping to get a job after graduation, so I want a school with strong career services and a good job placement rate, especially for business/science majors.
4. Location: Geography doesn't matter, but I don't want to go anywhere that gets much colder than the Boston area in winter. In terms of locale, I'd rather someplace suburban or rural, though near-ish to a city if possible. Too rural is better than too urban.
5. Can't be too religious. I'm ok with church-affiliated schools, but very Christian schools are a no-no. Boston College is too religious for me, if that's any sort of indicator.</p>

<p>"Bonus" factors (these would be nice to have and could be tie-breakers, but are not necessary):
A geeky/nerdy atmosphere, students aren't preppy or judgmental
Not a huge party school and not super Greek-dominated
An even male:female ratio (though I am willing to consider women's colleges)
Liberal-leaning, people are generally open and tolerant, intelligent discussion is encouraged
Cooperative atmosphere rather than competitive
Good study-abroad options, especially in east Asia</p>

<p>Most importantly, I will make exceptions to any rule if there's something else about a college that is attractive.</p>

<p>Finances: My parents will contribute 25k a year, maybe 30k if I go to a really good school. The majority of NPCs come out in our favor, and they're cool with me applying to a couple of "financial reaches". I can reply within a day as to whether any suggestions would be affordable.</p>

<p>And now my list, in rough order of reach-iness. I'd like to cut it down to around 10-12.
UNC-CH, Harvey Mudd, Rice, Emory, Bucknell (I know it's quite Greek), Lehigh, Northeastern (because of their co-op program), Wellesley, Wake Forest, Skidmore, U of Rochester, (would get lots of financial aid), Rhodes, Bucknell, Elon, UMass Amherst, Miami University in Ohio.</p>

<p>To reiterate, so you don't have to scroll up to the top of this long post: How is this list in general and what should I cut? And are there any suggestions for additional colleges to check out or use to replace schools on the list? </p>

<p>Again, thank you so much for reading/hopefully replying to this! I greatly appreciate it! And of course, please tell me if I left out any useful information.</p>

<p>P.S. Some schools I have crossed off the list previously:
Haverford, Juniata, Dickinson, JHU, Davidson, Eckerd, U of Richmond, Smith, Scripps, Tufts, Wesleyan, UMaryland College Park, Duke</p>

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<p>Have you run the net price calculators on your list?</p>

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<p>Yes, I have.</p>

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<p>You should take Mudd off your list. It is very much a STEM school, and the first 3 semesters are very, very math and science orientation. You would have little opportunity to take classes in the first four items on your list, let alone decide whether to major in them (tough to major in non-STEM subjects anyway). And honestly, Bio is not their strongest science area from what I can tell. Maybe because the grading is so tough and so many bio majors want to go to med school? Not sure, but a pretty low percentage of the students major in bio there. If you are not sure about a STEM major ,I would say don’t apply. One down. :)</p>

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<p>yes, so you have. </p>

<p>–UNC-CH, Harvey Mudd, Rice, Emory, Bucknell (I know it’s quite Greek), Lehigh, Northeastern (because of their co-op program), Wellesley, Wake Forest, Skidmore, U of Rochester, (would get lots of financial aid), Rhodes, Bucknell, Elon, UMass Amherst, Miami University in Ohio–</p>

<p>first question: the list: Mudd is kind of an oddity is looking for more focus on science. I could see you easier at social science focused Claremont McK taking science courses with other Consortium students in the Keck program. Or even at Scripps before Mudd.
UNC-CH you’d better love the academics; there will be a lot of local (and not very good) students there who come with friends and go home on weekends. You can find your cohort if you’re an outgoing personality who likes the outdoors, but it’ll be a big change from Brookline. Strong in business and sciences.
Rice has a lot going for it in the sciences, but their social sciences are okay. Again, it ain’t a Boston suburb.
Emory is similar to Rice in the biological sciences, but they recently axed their PhD program in Economics and I don’t know what effect this will have on the best faculty; however, the business school is one of the best and perhaps the best faculty ended up teaching grad students over there. Otherwise, a well-rounded and good school.
Bucknell is a tiny school in the middle of nowhere that is strong in the sciences but not known for the others. Open and tolerant? Did I mention jocks and groupies?
Lehigh is a nice, mid-sized biz/engg uni that goes out of its way to entertain the humanities. I’m not sure how strong it is in the social sciences. More tolerant but… On a hillside adjacent town. Something of the jock remains here.
Northeastern might be the most rounded school on your list but not the best. Always something to do.
Wellesley is strong in the sciences, but they might be stronger in the social sciences. A great undergraduate education, to be sure, and a good fit. Maybe the best school on the list. It remains a reach.
Wake Forest is not Boston. Good business. Good academic fit. Self-selected, homogeneous.
Skidmore is one of two schools on the list not well known for their sciences. Strong in the social sciences. It like Bucknell is a bit remote.
URochester is another well-rounded uni with strengths in biological sciences and social sciences but no u/g business. A pretty campus, adjacent the town, cold winters but you’re from Boston, frats are being crushed and I don’t know what other social activities are replacing them.
Rhodes a nice southern liberal arts school that has some strength in all your interests. Frats and southern-ness important.
Bucknell isn’t worth listing twice.
Elon is beloved of a lot of students around here, but I don’t know. Least rounded of the schools on this list. Strong in Business but meh everything else of importance to you.
UMass is probably the weakest school on the list, as you know. I’m told it’s returning to strength, but once a legislature gets a flagship down it’s hard to bring it back up. Yes, you can get a degree in anything you want here.
Miami OH I’d put ahead of UMass except that I’d rather freeze in Amherst than Miami. Mediocre to good at a lot of things.</p>

<p>Few schools are good in all these fields, but that doesn’t really matter because an undergraduate education is going to be what you make of it, not where you go. I’d trim Bucknell, Elon, Skidmore, and Rhodes, but that’s me. I’m very fond of Lehigh, Wellesley, and Rochester and hope you get into all three of them.</p>

<p>Second question: what would I add? Brandeis, Tufts, UPenn, Colgate (show them some interest, not a lot of money to freshmen), Tulane (ditto; you’re good for perhaps 30K), UPitt (you’re good for 10K perhaps). I think these schools are more appropriate than Bucknell, Elon, and Skidmore.</p>

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<p>Wow, thank you for the detailed input :slight_smile: I might apply to Brandeis; it’ll probably depend on if I’m willing to fill out the app and supplements. I don’t like Tufts (not a fan of campus or atmosphere) or UPenn (hate hate hate the campus), but I’m gonna check out the other suggestions.</p>