<p>I'm a country girl from a high school with only 1200 enrollment and about 255 in my graduating class. I don't want to go to a large school. I'm not poor but even with my parents' middle class income we scrape by so I've learned to be cheap. I refuse to pay for a $50,000 a year education at a school with a name when I can go to a school I'll enjoy more for $20,000 a year. </p>
<p>I feel like people are going to act like I'm an idiot for not trying to go to a college that has a name on it. People keep asking me why I'm not applying to Harvard/Princeton/Yale. They don't seem to understand that I don't want to go to a name brand college.</p>
<p>I'm applying to Virginia Tech and UVA just to appease my school personnel. I don't want to go to these schools. But when I say my first choice is Longwood University, it's hard to see the looks I get. Longwood is the school I want to go to. It's where I belong. But for most it's a safety school so they don't see it as quality. It's average which most people would say is below me. But it's where I want to go.</p>
<p>I feel like I'm just rambling. But right now I'm confused as to whether I should be applying to Tech and UVA. I don't want to. I'm afraid I won't get into UVA though a lot of people would say I'll have no problems getting into any school I want. It's not like I even want to go there. But I feel like I have to...</p>
<p>As an instate student,if you really don’t like UVa, William and Mary, or Virginia Tech, there are other options. JMU is very nice but may be bigger than you want. There are honors programs at Mary Washington and Longwood and you may be able to get good merit aid at those schools. Mary Washington seems to attract stronger students than Longwood, at least that was my perception based on the high school my kids attended. As you know, the strongest students in Virginia tend to gravitate to UVa, Wm & Mary and Virginia Tech (especially for engineering). That is why some people are puzzled by your wanting to go to Longwood(but I think you already know that). There may be some privates that are more similar to a school like Longwood that may have merit aid for you. Hopefully, your guidance counselor is helping you identify some options. Good luck with your applications! Longwood may be the school for you but make sure you visit and take a look at other options as well.</p>
<p>I live 20 minutes from Mary Washington…I would like to be a bit further away from home than that although I am applying there…</p>
<p>And because I’m a Governor’s School student, my friends are applying to Florida Tech, Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, UVA, Columbia, William & Mary, CNU, Georgetown, etc. So I understand why they are confused but I’m not going into engineering like most of them. It’s just a bit frustrating to be in love with a school that they all have as a safety. </p>
<p>I like Longwood and it does have a lot of business degrees though I’m going for economics and math in a dual degree not business. Farmville is the exact environment I want and it’s 2.5 hours from home which is just perfect.</p>
<p>I know the schools I’m applying to (Longwood, UVA, VT, Randolph College, Sweet Briar, UMW). It’s just odd to have people almost seem disappointed in the school that I want so much to go to.</p>
<p>You may want to check the course offerings in your probable majors. Particularly with smaller schools, you want to make sure that the offerings are sufficient for what you want to study (you can compare the offerings with those of other smaller schools, and larger schools as a reference).</p>
<p>I’ve looked at the courses however I have a bit of a difficult time making sense of it. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to dual major the way I want but I’ll see about that later. My major isn’t set in stone.</p>
<p>Be true to yourself. Some think it’s trite, but it’s the path to fulfillment and success.</p>
<p>It’s nobody else’s business where you are applying and where you want to go. </p>
<p>That said, don’t make a decision this big without carefully and fully exploring and considering your options. It could be that you have a superficial impression of UVa or some other school that is not representative of how you will feel if you understand the school better or more completely.</p>
<p>I’ve been to Charlottesville and I can say that the city is not to my liking. Virginia Tech seems too big for me and a lot of their math classes are online in recent years according to the students there that I know. UMW would be fine if it wasn’t so close to home. I need a change so that would not be a good choice for me socially or emotionally. My problem with Sweet Briar other than cost is simply that I do not get on well with girls and I’m sure I’d be desperate for male companionship quickly. The only issue with Randolph is the cost.</p>
<p>Longwood’s common data set indicates that only 0.61% of bachelor’s degrees conferred were in math and statistics, or about 3 math and statistics majors per year. Probably great for faculty attention, but the course offerings appear limited, and you may not have many fellow students.</p>
<p>This may be related to only 8.5% of entering freshmen coming in with SAT math scores of 600 or higher, with only 0.4% with 700 or higher. (A University of Oregon study found that students with SAT math scores under 600 had very little chance of success in math and physics majors.)</p>
<p>Note that Longwood has about twice as many female students as male students.</p>
<p>As others have said, don’t worry about prestige or where others are going. But do take a careful look at the academics to make sure that they are suitable.</p>
<p>I am confused as to why you are asking about UVA and VaTech as your state school option rather than William and Mary. W&M is much smaller than the other two, its a great school, and it graduates a respectable number of both math and econ majors.</p>
<p>If you actually have a shot at getting into HYP, and if your objection to them is really the money, then you are being extremely shortsighted in not applying. Have you even looked at the FA policies of those schools? For students whose family income is under $150,000, it is OFTEN cheaper for them to attend HYP than their state flagship.</p>
<p>If your objection is some kind of reverse snobbery, then you are also being very short sighted. Schools usually have a name and a reputation for a reason.</p>
<p>Of course, it is quite possible that you don’t have anything like the stats and resume to be a realistic candidate at those schools anyway, in which case you are wise not to give in to pressure to apply. There have been numerous posts on CC about kids who are big fish in very small ponds whose families and friends mistakenly assume they will walk into the super-selective schools and who encourage them to believe the same thing, alas.</p>
<p>I would urge you to look beyond your own doorstep, though. Luckily for you, as a VA resident you have numerous solid in-state options. It doesn’t sound like the place you have picked out is one of them. Frankly it sounds to me as if you are operating from a basis of fear: fear that you won’t get in and everyone will know, for example. Fear of moving away from home. Fear of being challenged. I hope you will at least apply to a range of schools within VA, including W&M. Things may look different in April. Give yourself a chance to have some choices.</p>
<p>I agree with Consolation. You are still evolving as a young adult and learning about colleges and careers. So don’t have your opinions set in stone now! Keep your options open by applying to a good range of schools. Continue to research schools and visit ones that you can. Once April rolls around and you know where you got in and what the financial aid picture is, then you can decide.
You may find that if you go to the lower ranked school you won’t be happy with the student body that goes there.
What are the characteristics of Longwood that you like so much? How many of those features also exist in some more highly ranked schools?</p>
<p>With your parents middle class income, how much can they contribute towards college? If they can’t contribute anything, THEN you have to wisely choose schools where your costs will be covered.</p>
<p>William and Mary is one I’ve considered however it’s in an environment I do not like. I don’t like Williamsburg. Just like I don’t like Charlottesville.</p>
<p>And I want to stay in state because I cannot justify to myself going out of state when there are so many amazing schools in Virginia. I’m lucky to have grown up here and have the opportunities I’ve had. I’m lucky to live in the county I do even if it is a low ranking school system because I get the chance to be in my magnet school that is honestly the best thing I’ve ever experienced.</p>
<p>And as for HYP, I’ve only considered Princeton and I’m in the lower end of admittance. I don’t have many ECs because I live too far from my school and have no transportation because of my parents’ work schedules. My magnet school is always a plus and would likely be the thing that might get me in if I tried but I wouldn’t fit in there. I would feel so out of place. It’s not for me. </p>
<p>The reason I like Longwood is the environment. The town, the school, it’s everything I’ve wanted. I refuse to consider VCU or UofR because I’d rather not deal with Richmond (last time I was at VCU for my school’s annual science symposium and we weren’t allowed outside the building because of the stabbings on campus).</p>
<p>The only thing I’m really afraid of is not fitting in. I have one real friend here. And she’s a sophomore who keeps complaining that she doesn’t want me to graduate. Then I have my dysfunctional family that is my governor’s school class. If you ever get the chance, put 26 small-town, crazy, “gifted” students who want to be everything from actors to engineers in one room. It’s so much fun. Then make them individually try to conduct actual scientific studies. That’s even more fun to watch. And stress-inducing for the teenagers (we’re all ready to hit our heads against a wall).</p>
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<p>As someone decided to post,</p>
<p>4.367 Weighted GPA
About 3.8 unweighted GPA
3rd in my class of 255
590 Reading SAT
730 Math SAT
620 Writing SAT
1940 Composite SAT
Taking October 6 SAT</p>
<p>Currently taking AP Lit and Government. I’ll have about 46 credit hours worth of Dual Enrollment classes by the end of my senior year. Magnet School for Marine and Environmental Science (we call them Governor’s Schools). My high school is unfortunately not too good. My family barely scrapes by even though we are middle class due to a few family issues. I only have $1000 plus a few years of interest in my college fund. Other than that, I’m applying for any scholarships I can find and hoping like hell I don’t have to drown myself in loans.</p>
<p>Have you tried the net price calculator at each school’s web site to find out how much need-based financial aid you will get? Hoping that you do not have to drown yourself in loans is not as good a strategy as being informed about each school’s likely net cost before you make your application list. If need based aid is insufficient because your family is not able or willing to pay the expected family contribution, then you need to search for merit scholarships.</p>
<p>I look at the cost for each school however it’s hard to do the net price calculator without a parent there to put in the information. And with my parents, that is a mess. Do I want to try to find out the actual cost? Of course. But I’m stressed enough at this moment with my senior project for school to be dealing with so much worrying over what colleges to apply to because my dream school isn’t prestigious enough.</p>
<p>If you are unable to get enough information from your parents to do a financial aid estimate with a net price calculator, and/or your parents are unable or unwilling to tell you how much they will contribute (or they will contribute little or nothing), then it would be a very good idea to see if you like any of the automatic-full-ride-for-your-stats schools as a safety. Even the relatively low list price of Longwood and other inexpensive schools (e.g. Minnesota - Morris) may be too much debt if your parents’ income is too high to get you financial aid there but they will not contribute.</p>
<p>Don’t worry about the prestige, but take a good look at how suitable the academics are for what you intend to major in.</p>