good college for me?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hello. I am just wondering if anyone could give me a suggestion of what colleges I might be interested in looking at? I am a junior at an all-girl's Catholic school in the Chicago suburbs. I am an IB diploma candidate taking the following IB classes: HL Biology, HL English, HL History of the Americas, SL Math (Standard Level, not studies), SL ITGS (Information Technology in a Global Society), and SL Spanish. On a 5.0 scale, my weighted GPA is 4.74, and on a 4.0 scale it would be a 4.0 (darn those required classes!) My ACT score (I have only taken it once) was: composite 34, English 35, reading 35, science 35, math 29 (math is not my strongest subject). SAT: English 760, critical reading 720, math 690. </p>

<p>I am involved in the following ECs: National Honor Society (I am running for president or vice president next week), Newspaper (either editor or assistant editor), yearbook (assistant editor), International Thespian Society (will be running for position), acting (two plays every year), chamber choir, liturgical choir, tutoring, math mentors (executive board member), possibly science mentors, scholastic bowl team (captain). Because of IB, I do many CAS projects, which have included cleaning up a local school and doing outdoor work for a Buddhist center. Outside of school: church--parish choir, handbell choir, cantor; also, I volunteer for an animal shelter a few times a month. Also, I have received many awards. Just a few of them: Archdiocese of Chicago youth leadership award, Bausch and Lomb Honorary Science Award, and many in-school awards and scholarships.</p>

<p>In my very little free time, my favorite thing to do is read. I started making myself a list of all the books I wanted to read this summer, and currently it has reached nearly 300. I think that I want to be an English major, with a possible double major or minor in music and maybe in communications (i.e. major in English and music and minor in comm. or vice versa music and comm.)
I have not decided what I would like to do as a career, but possibilities are: journalist, music director, communications team for NASA (I know, that's kind of random, but my class did a simulation mission and I thought it was the coolest thing), or some other profession that involves writing (and reading, of course).</p>

<p>So far, I have mainly been considering schools close to home, such as University of Chicago and Loyola University. One of my major concerns is scholarships/financial aid that would be available to me. Are these two schools places I should be strongly thinking about? Based on my qualifications and interests, what other schools should I be considering? Where am I most likely to get scholarships? What kinds of schools would fit me?</p>

<p>Sorry about how long this is. I just want to find somewhere that would be a good fit for me. Thanks, gigidaisy.</p>

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<p>Oh, and just another thing...does anyone have any suggestions for any books I should have on my list? I have everything from Faulkner to Kafka to Machiavelli to Tolstoy, but I am open to any suggestions...I would never hesitate to make my list a little longer. Thanks.</p>

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<p>If you're willing to consider a smaller school, there are many excellent liberal arts schools in the Midwest and farther afield if you want to look into that as well. If you go down a small notch in selectivity to schools where you would be fairly strong in the applicant pool, there will be merit scholarships available to you. Some LACs in the midwest include Macalester, Carleton, Oberlin, Ohio Wesleyan, Grinnell, Beloit, Kenyon...I'm sure others could give you a more exhaustive list.</p>

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<p>You would love Chicago. Apply here, apply elsewhere, see what happens :-)</p>

<p>My summer reading lists includes Anna Karenina and Portnoy's Complaint.</p>

<p>Here's a list that a bunch of incoming 2011-ers developed:</p>

<p>The List:</p>

<p>Ulysses by James Joyce
Gravity's Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garc</p>

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<p>U Chicago sounds like your ideal school. I really hope that they can make it affordable enough for you. I graduated from there long ago, and really think that you would fit in. But, when you need aid, you need to look at the places that give a lot of it. It sounds as if you might need merit as well as need-based aid. These days, liberal arts colleges tend to give more merit aid than the large universities. Tulane, USC, George Washington U, Rhodes College, Ohio Wesleyan are often mentioned as being good for merit aid. Academically, many people who apply to Chicago also like Cornell, Johns Hopkins, Barnard, U Rochester, Rice, and Carnegie Mellon. Good luck!</p>

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<p>Another vote for midwest LACs. Many offer good merit aid. To add to the ones mentioned above (Kenyon, Grinnel, Beloit, Ohio Wesleyan), try Denison, Earlham and Wooster.</p>