<p>I'd rather study than party and I'm moderately conservative.</p>
<p>HOWEVER</p>
<p>I thrive in a more open-minded, liberal environment.</p>
<p>It seems that every school I find that looks good to me likes to party, and that when I find a school that doesn't have a party/frat scene, it's because the students are all Christians and are always at church.</p>
<p>Help me find a secular and diverse college (even if it is "officially" religiously affiliated) that is also subdued.</p>
<p>University of Chicago? I think Grinnell has a healthy party scene but kids are very serious about studying and my son hasn't felt pulled into wild partying there. Look at Carleton also--I think the partying there is mild-mannered and the students serious about their studies.</p>
<p>Thanks.</p>
<p>Chicago and Carleton are both on my lists. I'm looking to major in Economics, so Chicago is obviously attractive, though I heard it's in a crummy neighborhood. Carleton looks ideal as well, though tuition is listed at over $40,000(!?!?).</p>
<p>I heard Grinnell is artsy like NYU, which I'm not crazy about. But if your son goes there and likes it a lot, I'll definitely look into paying them a visit when I go out to Chicago, N'Western, Carleton, etc.</p>
<p>Grinnell has some artsy students, but it's not how I'd describe the student body over-all. More like creative and multi-talented--unconventional thinkers--nerdy and proud of it. There's a strong social justice ethic there, as would be true of the other LACs I've mentioned. Haverford in PA would be another good match. Grinnell is unusual, because it's a "top" school that offers decent merit $$. My son asked for sub-free housing and didn't get it, but they put the over-flow kids together on one floor and that's worked out very well. He's made more friends in 3 months there than in all his life up until now. His dorm mates spend a lot of time together socially, but a lot of that time is talking about ideas. And I believe him when he tells me this because it's what he really likes to do. This week he'll be seeing John Edwards and Jackson Browne so although the campus is isolated, it doesn't feel like it.</p>
<p>For safety schools he picked Goucher and Lewis & Clark--Macalester is also slightly "safer" than some of these others and all offer merit money for top students, though Mac only $5,000 per year for NM.</p>
<p>St. John's in MD and NM would be another possible match for you and an admissions safety, but I don't think they give merit money--not sure what your FA situation is like.</p>
<p>Have you looked at Duke? WashU?</p>
<p>Out west, Pomona? UCSD and UCLA?</p>
<p>I think you need to tell us a lot more about yourself -- particularly your stats, and maybe your financial situation, if you're looking for school suggestions.</p>
<p>Weenie:</p>
<p>NJ Public HS Jr.- as I'm a Jr., my stats are very incomplete</p>
<p>White Jewish Male</p>
<p>Gpa: 3.7 uw, 4.1 w
3 AP's junior year
Haven't taken SAT's but I'm expecting really good scores of at least 2200 (got 216 on PSAT's sophmore year w/o really trying...always been a good standardized test taker)
Will be taking three SAT II's next spring/summer</p>
<p>School is VERY competitive for a public school (we send over a dozen kids to Ivies each year)...class rank is not reported, but I'm likely somewhere between 5th and 10th percentile.</p>
<p>EC's are mediocre at best:
-3 years of golf team- our team is highly competitive
-held down same job for four years as a caddie at a prestigious club. Apparently I'm very good at what I do...I could likely get some good reccomendations from some people in high places
-Limited community service...I want/need to do more of it
-School newspaper
-Planning on interning this summer for either local paper or municipal gov't
-Planning on co-writing a children's book w/ a friend about the environment that ideally would get published and then the profits would go towards the environment</p>
<p>Financial need (nonexistent):
I could afford the tuition at any school without any sort of aid...someone very nice in my family set aside >$1 million to pay for my education (and probably my brother's)</p>
<p>ASAP:</p>
<p>Haven't looked at any of those schools. My focus has been primarily on the Northeast and Great Lakes regions, but I'm well aware of these schools' reputations and will look into them. </p>
<p>UCLA I'm not so sure about...I hate Los Angeles.</p>
<p>Any idea of your major? (I like your kids' book idea!)</p>
<p>Economics.</p>
<p>Depending on where I enroll, my minor/more specific focus of study would be different. (ex. Norhwestern minor: Journalism; George Washington minor: Public Policy)</p>
<p>Other possibilties for Econ for a moderately conservative male who likes the northeast might be Williams, Amherst and Bowdoin. It seems that you have/will have the stats to be competitive at these schools.</p>
<p>Also, don't be too put off by schools that seem to like to party. You can find all types at most colleges. The partiers are perhaps the most prominent at the beginning, but once you are there you'll meet all types of people.</p>
<p>Really?</p>
<p>I LOVE all of these schools, but I was afraid I didn't have the stats.</p>
<p>You haven't taken the SATs yet, so how do you know? With a 216 on the PSAT, you can do very well, if you study, on the SATs. Get the "10 Real SATs" book and work through a few of the tests.<br>
If you love these schools, by all means, plan to work to get the scores you're capable of, and apply. Williams and Amherst are tough to get into, but that's why they call them reaches. ;) Your golf may be attractive to them, as well. Bowdoin is also a very interesting place- has kind of an entrepreneurial feel about it. My son really loved it- It was the only school that interested him on your side of the country.
Work on making your essays shine, get the best recommendations you can (even add one from an employer, in your case) , and take on that writing project!</p>
<p>Also, I don't think you need more community service just for college admissions. If you were to complete your book and actually find a way to make some profit to donate, that would serve a similar purpose. It's always better to do the thing that truly interests you rather than something just for the apps.</p>
<p>Oh, I assumed you were worried about the $$ because of your comment about Carleton tuition. Sounds like you'll be a good candidate for most LAC's, but you still do need to build in a little safety. Remembering the Andison saga, his stats, ec's etc. were sky high, but his "safest" schools were Oberlin and Swarthmore and he didn't get accepted to either--or anywhere else. Find some safer-to-get-into schools, at least one or two, that you would love to attend, preferably ones you can apply to EA or rolling admissions and then you can reach around as much as you like.</p>
<p>I've got some safeties in mind. Most are larger schools, but that's okay with me.</p>
<p>Rochester
Syracuse
Wisconsin-Madison
American
Michigan (Might be more of a match)
If all else fails...Rutgers</p>
<p>2-iron, I agree with ASAP that the party-hearty reputation of many academically focused LACs is exaggerated. Don't worry, you'll be able to find a simpatico social group.</p>
<p>If you like the atmosphere at Williams and Amherst, I would definitely take a look at Bowdoin and the other NE schools with similar personalities: Bates, Colby, Hamilton, Conn College. In the midwest, Kenyon.</p>
<p>I note from your other post that golf is more of a pasttime than a hook. That isn't necessarily a disadvantage as any involvement in sports, physical activity is a plus at these schools. </p>
<p>You have another year before you actually apply and should really try to focus your ECs. If volunteering doesn't appeal, don't do it just to get it on your resume. Write that book. Make that summer internship meaningful.</p>
<p>Good luck and let us know how you do.</p>
<p>Consider Johns Hopkins, Rice, and Northwestern. All do lean left and, to varying degrees, offer up a pretty fair share of partying. But they also harbor plenty of kids who prioritize studies first and are all quite tolerant of moderately conservative political views.</p>
<p>If you're looking for a more niche school - a preponderance of conservatively oriented economics/political science majors with "leadership" goals - you may want to look cross-country to Claremont McKenna.</p>