Help Choosing Match/Reach Schools? C:

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hola mis amigos! I'm kind of a borderline-ish student from Missouri, and by borderline I mean that I have preeeetty good stats, but they're FAR from being super competitive. Here we go!</p>

<p>ACT: 32 (Just took it on Saturday, hoping it'll go up!)
SAT: 2250 (Taking it again soon)
SAT Math: 760
SAT Physics: 730
PSAT: 221, NMS Semi-Finalist (Will this help a lot?)
4.0 UW
4.7-8 Weighted
Ranked 1/500ish
But half of my school ends up at a community college and the other at Mizzou.</p>

<p>EC... these are kind of weak.
-Art lessons 4 hours a week+random drawings and paintings at home. I'm preparing a portfolio consisting of works using several media (acrylics, markers, graphite, colored pencil, watercolor, sculpey clay, digital) 9-12th
-I give art lessons for community service, 11-12th
-National Honor Society... but who ISN'T in that? :P
-Vice President of International Club, 9-10th
-A+ tutoring program (50 hrs in one semester)
-Won a semi-competitive violin competition, 10th
-Concertmistress of community youth orchestra, 9-10th
I do not have a strings program at my school.
-First violin of a quartet. We compose and arrange pop/alternative songs and play them at random cafes in addition to the usual wedding/dinner party ordeals.
-Chamber Choir at school (this is my first year in choir but I made it into the top choir at school! Hoping to make districts/state)</p>

<p>Gifted program at school.
Attended Missouri Scholars Academy (330 students)
Leadership in Practice summer seminar</p>

<p>My mom is making me apply to uber-elite schools because she's Asian and thinks I have a good chance of getting in. My current "list" consists of:
Brown, Dartmouth, UChicago, WUStL, Northwestern, John's Hopkins, U Rochester</p>

<p>As you can see, all reaches! She has no concept of safety schools, and apparently neither do I, haha. With the following description, maybe one of you can help me!
I'm moderately liberal, but semi-conservative also works for me. I'm not very outdoorsy at all. I like suburban life, but I'm open to trying new things. I'm pretty laid-back. I'm VERY indecisive with regards to my major. I'm thinking neurosci/psych, but that could change. Considering med school in the future.</p>

<p>Any suggestions? Especially safety schools in Missouri, and Match schools... anywhere? C:</p>

2

<p>St. Louis University looks like it would be a safety school.</p>

3

<p>WUSTL looks like a great option for you, especially considering their excellent pre-med programs. Could you apply ED?</p>

4

<p>Brown and Dartmouth would be reaches. UChicago, WUStL, Northwestern, John’s Hopkins would be matches. U Rochester would be a safety. Good luck.</p>

5

<p>If you make NMF (which you have a great chance to do) then there are many schools that will give you good $. Check here:
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/649276-nmf-scholarships-updated-compilation.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/649276-nmf-scholarships-updated-compilation.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

6

<p>If you’re female, Smith, Mount Holyoke, and Bryn Mawr would be worth looking into.</p>

7

<p>thank you all!</p>

<p>teenage_cliche,
are these all female schools?</p>

<p>IPBear
i’m hoping that will be the case! but i doubt myself a lot and one of the aspects i doubt is my attractiveness to schools. i don’t want to bet too much get rejected from every college i apply to, yet at the same time i don’t want to sell myself too short. :C. i heard a lot of them are really whimsical about who they choose, so hopefully they’ll be looking for artsy girls like me!</p>

<p>also, does anyone know whether not visiting elite schools such as these will hurt chances of getting accepted?</p>

8

<p>You don’t say if cost is a factor. Whether you need schools that meet need or may be looking for merit aid.</p>

<p>Being from Missouri will help you at many schools, being Asian will limit by how much.</p>

<p>I would agree that applying ED to a school in the range of WashU could be a good strategy.</p>

9

<p>Being from Missouri gives you a tremendous advantage. Schools all want Geographic Diversity!</p>

10

<p>They are all-women’s. Smith is the one I’m most familiar with, but it’s got great art and neuroscience programs so it’s the one I’d suggest you really look into. And all three I mentioned are in consortiums with coed schools (Smith and Mount Holyoke are with Hampshire, Amherst, and UMass-Amherst, and Bryn Mawr has Swarthmore and Haverford), so you’ll definitely see guys around and be able to have a social and romantic life as well.</p>

11

<p>Have you had the money talk with your parents? Most of your schools do not have merit scholarships available, and you would need to investigate need-based aid. This is your number one priority if you are not a full-pay student.</p>

<p>You definitely should visit WashU - they like the attention, and you will be impressed. Not visiting when you are a Missouri resident would be a sign of no real interest. The Ivies don’t care whether you visit, but you should try. The eastern part of the country has a different vibe than the midwest.</p>

<p>U Rochester is a very good school that would be a solid match or even a safety. You could add UW-Madison or Case Western as a similar near-safeties. Also look at Vanderbilt, a low reach where NSM’s get an automatic $5000 scholarship.</p>

12

<p>I think your current list looks good, although I would like to see one more school in the safety/low match area just in case. Generally, I agree with IPBear’s assessment.</p>

<p>I don’t think your ECs are weak: it sounds like you have pursued two things that you love, and done so in a creative way outside of the offerings at your school. That’s good.</p>

<p>Rochester really likes an interview, especially if you are hoping for significant $$ from them. Chicago is reputed to care about the interview, too. These schools both have traveling admissions officers with whom you can meet if you cannot travel there. They will probably be somewhere in your region in early fall, so it would be very wise of you to visit their web sites, where such things are often listed, and find out who the officer is for you region and email him or her NOW. The schedules may not have been set yet and you need to stay on top of this. Don’t be lackadaisical and just check once now and look again in November. You may find that the officer has already come and gone. If in any doubt CALL THE ADMISSIONS OFFICE and ask how you can set up an interview.</p>

<p>If you are going to consider women’s colleges you should definitely look at Wellesley. I also think you should consider Williams, Amherst, Pomona, and Carleton. And Rice. (Not all, obviously, but take a look.) None of those are in the safety range, but I think they would interest you. Carleton is need-aware. Williams, Amherst, and Pomona in particular have excellent financial aid.</p>

13

<p>Consolidation,
Thank you very much for the list and for the information about the interviews! I’ll look into those schools and contact them about interviews as soon as possible. Do you have a suggestion for another safety/low match since the schools you have listed don’t count as safeties?</p>

<p>Midwesterner,
I didn’t know that about Vanderbilt, that’s great! Do they award that $5000 even if you receive other National Merit Scholarships? I have visited WashU twice! I kinda botched the interview by not being specific enough when they asked me what I like about their school though… haha. Drats.</p>

<p>Yeah, some financial aid would be fabulous, but I wouldn’t completely reject a school just because they don’t offer me aid. I’m looking into a lot of other scholarships from private companies and such.</p>

14

<p>There are a lot of potential safeties: what do YOU want in a school?</p>

15

<p>Might look at Holy Cross-strong LAC- located 1 hour from Boston. HC has great pre-med program with new science facility. Holy Cross is SAT optional.</p>

16

<p>Agree with Holy Cross and also suggest Colgate and Bucknell.</p>