Ok, so these are my major stats
3.8 UW GPA
4.5 W GPA
33 ACT
9 AP Classes Scores: 4 5’s and 5 4’s.
(5) on AP Macroecon exam and 4 on AP Calc ab. Both of these are the most important ones since I’m going for an Econ major.
EC’s:
NHS (2 years)
Spanish Club (2 years)
Ski and snowboard club (active participant)
Student Senate (senator- 1 year pres-1 year)
Model UN (2 years)
Astronomy Club (2 years)
Provided tutoring for students every week (2 years)
Internship at a local manufacturing business. Our school has a program where the students essentially run the business and try to come up with efficient ideas for the business for the summer. (1 summer)
Probably something that I’m forgetting, but I know that I have mediocre ECs
150 hours of volunteering at various places in the community
100 hours of volunteering inside school
Letters of recommendation will be decent, however I don’t know what to expect. I’m a pretty good writer so my essays should be pretty good.
Question: Create a balanced College list for an ECON major (i.e. Reach, Target, Safety) preferably 3 in each category, although, any response is appreciated!
Preferences: Sub-Urban-Urban, Medium to large size
I’m from Michigan
Looking for Colleges in either the East Coast. West Coast or Mid-west.
Family income is around 50k, so i will be needing a substantial amount of FA from schools.
Thanks!
A few to look at that would probably be in the match category.
UMich obviously. 
Emory
Tulane
Wash U St Louis would be a reach
Miami of Ohio. University of Richmond. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
You are looking primarily at in-state schools in Michigan. Those are the ones most likely to be affordable. To get significant financial/merit aid would require that you apply to schools where your stats are in the top 25% for the admitted class. For this reason, and because of your lack of other distinctive achievements, Wash U and Emory are both serious reaches, and they aren’t going to give you the financial/merit aid you want. (Check the Common Data Set for these and any other schools you are applying to so you can compare your stats to those of the admitted students. Section C.)
You best bet would be to save your money, and do really well in Econ while getting a solid quant background under your belt - comp sci, math, physics or statistics. Use the money you save to study abroad, pay for the living expenses while you do the best internships you can land, and go to the best MBA or Economics grad program you can get admitted to. The work and life experiences you accumulate, and your MBA/Econ grad school will more than make up for any lack of brand name in your undergrad school.
N’s Mom, I just looked up the 25th and 75th percentile for act scores and a 27 on the act was the average. Can you further explain to me how this would be a reach considering my 33 on the act?
Also can anyone expand on what Ivy’s have the best Econ programs, as I will be applying to a couple due to their respectable financial aid.
muhlenberg college
drake university
butler university
bradley university
Yale meets most(if not all) of their students finical aid. And all the city universities of new york have great financial aid. Any of them would be a nice reach school.
@lessonwitch2 Are you familiar with yale’s Econ program though?
Sure I’ll explain why I don’t think you’ll get merit aid at a reach like Wash U. According to the common data set, the 25th percentile (the top students) at Wash U have SATs of 2340 or higher. That’s comparable to an ACT of 36. Your 33 isn’t even close to the top 25%. That means that scholarships for merit will be going to those kids - not to you, unless you have some other desirable characteristic - recruited athlete, URM, first gen to college, etc…I didn’t bother to check GPA or class rank, but 4.0s/top 10% of the class are a dime a dozen at the highly selective schools so a 3.8 isn’t going to make you stand out.
N’s Mom. Thank you for explaining that to me, but I wasn’t talking about Wash U, I was talking about Emory.
The OP is a URM and with a family income of $50K should probably focus on colleges that meet full need although merit aid is always nice.
@Dylan197 - You might look into Questbridge and see if you qualify. http://www.questbridge.org/
“The OP is a URM and with a family income of $50K should probably focus on colleges that meet full need although merit aid is always nice”
Pretty much. OP should have some backups in case he/she doesn’t get into those schools, but they’re not out of reach for this student. A 33 ACT is fine w/URM status. The EC’s aren’t the strongest, but it depends on how much the OP cared about them & how that interest is portrayed on the application.
OP, did you have to work to help with family financials? Colleges understand when low/modest income students can’t be involved in depth w/ EC’s for that reason.
“and they aren’t going to give you the financial/merit aid you want.”
Not WashU. Emory, however, meets 100% of financial need and is a Questbridge partner. If accepted, the OP should receive a very generous package.
Ivy Leagues and such will be a stretch due to the EC’s, but elite schools lower on the ladder (like Emory) could be possible. Also, have you considered LAC’s?
Hey,
What is your rank? Or is it not relased? I’d say you’d be somewhere between top 5% and 10% if you were at my school, so I’ll assume that. Also, how’d you get your AP Scores already? Or did you take macro as a sophomore? Or is that projected?
One thing that I would do if I were you would be to actually remove one or two of those ECs (as they look scattered) and use this summer and the start of next year to really focus on one or two of them. Also, write solid essays – perhaps ones that point to how you are passionate about one of those ECs and how it ties into your academic interest. If you can successfully do this, here is what I’d be looking at if I were you. I’ve ordered them from biggest reach to most probable (in my humble opinion).
Reach:
WashU
Cornell (since you asked for an Ivy)
Northwestern
Notre Dame (not a crazy reach)
Match:
Oberlin (high match?)
Wake Forest (high match?)
Lehigh (high match?)
Michigan
Safety:
University of Miami (I’d say more of a low match than a safety, and they don’t meet 100% need, but with 50K I think you’ll be covered PLUS you probably qualify for some merit)
Michigan State
Wayne State or Western Michigan, etc… (Honors program)
Anyway, just an exercise in putting myself in your shoes. All schools (unless otherwise noted and/or an in-state public) meet all financial need and have decent to very good econ programs. I think that the list is a little top heavy and even some matches might be borderline reaches. If you really focus your application, though, write killer essays, and get solid letters of rec I think you have a shot at any of the above schools and a decent chance at all but the top 3 listed. You are a URM, too, right?
Good luck!
So at Emory, the students in the top 25% got 2250 or higher on their SAT (equal to a 34). Your test score is still below the top 25% of the class. However, I did mention that if you had a hook, they would probably consider merit even if you weren’t in the top 25%. Someone else on here mentioned that you are a URM - not noted in your post. If you are indeed a URM, then my response would be different.
^ “they would probably consider merit even if you weren’t in the top 25%”
The OP would not need merit at Emory, since they meet need. The OP, if admitted, would get a package which would cover tuition and more based alone on his/her family income, which was mentioned to be $50k.
@N’s Mom don’t know where you’re getting your information…I found that the top quartile ACT was 32+, with the SAT ~2100. OP should definitely do his own research before deciding which schools would be “out”.
I think I’m the one who brought up the URM status and misstated confusing the OP with another thread I was posting on around the same time. Regardless, meeting full need, Emory is known for being generous with aid. I have a family member who got generous aid from Emory without a hook, and with lower stats and higher family income.
To the OP - Take folks suggestions but do your own research because not all info given here is accurate although it might be well intended. Look for schools that meet full need. Definitely look into the Questbridge program. Continue to source ideas here on CC because there is plenty of good info and ideas, just double check it.