<p>I am I junior wanting to major in political science or philosophy and I don't have many preferences for a school besides not being in the middle of a major city. My GPA is around 3.7 with the hardest course load and my SAT score is 2280. What reach schools should I look at that aren't impossible to get in to?</p>
<p>My two current reach schools are Cornell and Tufts. I would like to have 3-4 reach schools instead of just 2 so I will have a better chance at getting in to one.</p>
<p>I’m in a similar position to you. Have you looked at Georgetown? Amherst? Swarthmore?</p>
<p>Also out of curiosity, what do you have as your targets/safeties? I have similar numbers to you and currently think Tufts is my top choice.</p>
<p>Grape1,
What are your EC’s? Colleges will turn you down even with your numbers if they don’t think you will contribute to the campus. Also, have you taken any AP’s?</p>
<p>I don’t know where in the country you are looking, but Washington and Lee has a stellar politics department. G’Town and UVA would be good to look at as well in addition to the Tufts/Amherst/Cornell route.</p>
<p>I have taken AP World, AP US, and AP Bio. Next year I am taking AP English, AP Calc AB, AP Physics B, AP Chem, and possibly one of the Economics if I can schedule it. All of my other courses have been honors.</p>
<p>My EC’s mostly include sports, which takes up a lot of time (2 hours a day or so). I have also been to states for Science Olympiad and finished respectably and raised a good deal of money for a human rights group. I was asked to do Model UN next year, which is good because I didn’t even know we had a Model UN program. Over the summer I am taking some classes at a community college that are more related to my academic interests than what is offered at school.</p>
<p>I have won essay contests and a college professor said that my writing was better than most of the students in her honors class, but those awards are not directly related to EC’s. Really, I feel like that skills I have don’t transfer on to paper very well.</p>
<p>Tufts is not a reach for you, its a target.</p>
<p>I agree that Tufts is a target. Also, all of the Ivies have really good political science departments. I would also recommend GW, Georgetown, and American since they are in DC and would have awesome intern opportunities.</p>
<p>Class rank at my school is not weighed so I am barely on the top 10% (non-honors courses hand out A’s like candy on Halloween). Last year’s valedictorian got waitlisted at Tufts and she had a similar course load to mine but a 4.0 (obviously). My test scores are probably quite a bit better but I have great concern about my grades being mediocre. I get the feeling that may be enough to singularly crucify me at some of these top schools.</p>
<p>If I “unofficially” weigh grades then I’m like top 5% but that doesn’t show up on my transcript (I’m around 3.7/4.3 and only like 15 people have enough honors courses to break a 4.0).</p>