Help finding more schools to look at? (Solids/Safeties)

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I'm a junior, and would like a wider range of schools to look into.</p>

<p>First, my profile:</p>

<p>GPA: 3.75 uw, 5.26 w (on a 6.0 scale)
Courses: Most rigorous schedule possible at my HS
High School: Challenging public HS, sends a bunch of kids to top schools each year</p>

<p>SAT: 2310 (800 CR, 780 M, 730 W), single sitting
PSAT: 231</p>

<p>ECs: JV Cross Country (9,10,11)
Varsity Bowling (10,11)
Varsity Track (10,11)
Academic Challenge (quiz bowl club, on A team every year) (9,10,11)
Amnesty International (9,10,11)
Math Team (9,10,11)
Columbia Science Honors Program (10)
Temple Youth Group (9,10,11)
Worked as counselor at local day camp during the summer (9,10, most likely 11)</p>

<p>Schools/Interests:
I want to major in Poli Sci or IR, but I also want to be able to take science classes that will challenge me and allow me to explore my interest in science. The schools I've visited and loved so far are Georgetown, Johns Hopkins, and UNC. I also am intrigued by Tufts and Columbia. The problem with these schools, however, is that they are all very selective, although to different degrees of difficulty. If you could suggest some matches/safeties, that would be much appreciated.</p>

<p>Besides being strong in Poli Sci/IR, I'd like a medium-sized school (2,000-15,000), preferably near a big city, and within a day's drive of New York City; however, none of these are absolute. Warm weather is a plus. My parents say cost doesn't matter, but I do have two siblings after me, and I'd like not to screw them over.</p>

2

<p>University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Macalester College
UW Madison
UChicago
Northwestern
UC schools (varies in selectivity)</p>

3

<p>thsfan345: I don’t know if this fits the bill for you, but I did notice when we visited Wake Forest this past weekend, that MANY of the students that gave the tours were Political Science majors. I don’t know WFU’s stats, but would assume this would be a safety for you. Don’t quote me on that though. ;-)</p>

4

<p>@slimone7: Thanks! I like the look of Northwestern and UChicago, and will check out the others as well.</p>

<p>@gluckie: I actually considered visiting Wake Forest when seeing UNC, but it was a bit out of the way (we were on a tight schedule). Stats-wise it would be a safety for me, but I don’t know how well I’d fit in there, being from the NYC suburbs.</p>

5

<p>Northwestern and the U of C are not less selective than others already on your list, if that is what you are looking for. </p>

<p>Try looking at William and Mary and UVA. Again, UVA for an OOS student is not an easier admit than others on your list, but William and Mary might be a bit easier. Some of the other schools in DC would fit the bill: George Washington U and American.</p>

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<p>@Consolation: With William and Mary and UVA I’m concerned about how I’d fit in. My impression of the schools is that they’re much more “Southern” than I’d like. Also, I don’t love a pre-professional attitude about a school, which is what UVA seems to have to me.</p>

<p>GW and American seem like very good fits however. I’m a bit concerned about the price at GW, but hopefully that could be negated with aid. I know someone at American majoring in PoliSci who loves it, so I’ll consider that more strongly.</p>

7

<p>thsfan345 -</p>

<p>If you have not yet done so, sit down with your parents and ask them how they expect you to pay for your education. Find out what their financial limits are, find out how they feel about you taking on college loans, and find out how much money they expect you to earn during your summer vacations and during the school year. Until you know what your budget looks like, the rest of the research you are doing is pointless.</p>

<p>In addition to finding out what your parents are able and willing to pay, you need to get an idea of what the colleges and universities will expect them to pay. Run the FAFSA EFC calculators at [FinAid</a>! Financial Aid, College Scholarships and Student Loans](<a href=“http://www.finaid.org%5DFinAid”>http://www.finaid.org) and at [EFC</a> Calculator: How Much Money for College Will You Be Expected to Contribute?](<a href=“http://apps.collegeboard.com/fincalc/efc_welcome.jsp]EFC”>http://apps.collegeboard.com/fincalc/efc_welcome.jsp) If any of the institutions that are on your list use the CSS Profile, run whatever financial aid calculators or estimators they have at their own websites. If your family won’t be able to meet your EFC, then you need to track down some financial safeties that either guarantee you merit aid based on your grades and test scores, or are inexpensive enough that your family can pay for them without any aid other than federally determined (FAFSA) aid. You have good stats, so there may be some good aid out there for you. Start by reading through this thread for ideas: <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/848226-important-links-automatic-guaranteed-merit-scholarships.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/848226-important-links-automatic-guaranteed-merit-scholarships.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>thsfan345 - Visit William and Mary if you get a chance, between OOS and kids from Northern Virginia I think you will find it much less “Southern” then you think. My soph. roomate was from NY and went to Bronx Science and thought she would feel very out of place. She felt at home and ended up marrying a Virginian and has lived in Richmond for 20 plus years. She is still a New Yorker at heart.</p>

9

<p>Skidmore College (NY)
Colgate University (NY)
Hamilton College (NY)
Syracuse University (NY)
Hobart & William Smith (NY)
St. Lawrence University (NY)
Alfred University (NY) </p>

<p>Varying locations such as rural, suburban, admissions criteria, Merit & need-based aid etc. All are over 50k/year with exception of Alfred University (40k)… All NY privates…</p>

10

<p>thsfan, about 1/3 of the students at both William and Mary and UVA are OOS and both schools have a significant number of international students. Many of the Virginians, as Mom24 points out, come from the high-achieving suburbs of Washington DC and are pretty indistinguishable intellectually and culturally from the kids from the high-achieving suburbs of NYC that I knew as an undergraduate at Cornell or a grad student at Johns Hopkins. UVA especially is a large place and pretty heterogeneous, with many niches for different kinds of people.</p>

<p>Same thing is true of UNC Chapel Hill.</p>

11

<p>Are you female? If so Mt. Holyoke or Smith are worth a look.</p>

12

<p>I have to agree that William & Mary is no more “southern” than UNC. It is also very strong in Poli Sci. UVA on the other hand is definitely more southern and preppy</p>

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<p>Nah, I’m male.</p>

<p>My mom grew up in the DC suburbs and had a very negative impression of the kids who were going to UVA, which contributes to why I hadn’t considered it. I guess William and Mary kind of got lumped in there as well. W&M does seem worth a visit this summer.</p>

14

<p>OP, GWU and American both offer significant merit money to high-stat applicants. They do not offer guaranteed money for National merit (and it looks like you will be a semi-finalist–congrats!), but they seem to be generous to them. At the same time, look at University of Maryland-College Park, which offers stronger science offerings than GWU and AU. </p>

<p>I’ll add University of Rochester to the suggestions. A very strong Political Science program, excellent science programs, a flexible curriculum and merit money to boot. No warm weather, unfortunately. </p>

<p>The UCs offer warm weather but they’re very expensive for an out of state student.</p>

15

<p>Similar colleges to Jesuit-run Georgetown would be BC, Holy Cross, Fordham. All well regarded top Jesuit colleges.</p>

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<p>@required_details: I’m not Jesuit, or even Christian. Georgetown is appealing to me because it’s not overtly religious.</p>

<p>@SlitheyTove: Thanks! American and GW seem like good schools, and are attuned to my interests. I’m a little concerned about Rochester being cold and out of the way, but I’ve heard good things about it from students there.</p>