Hello! I am currently a psychology major in a California community college. My ideal school is one that is on the west coast in a nice city or near a nice city, but i am also open to New York (near New York City) because I have family there. I would love to go to a Liberal Arts colleges, something like Barnard or Pepperdine. I like close-knit communities, beautiful campuses, good psych programs, some prestige, and money is not a huge issue but I would still like lower-budget options in case too. I love places with Asian food as well, but all of these are just a few descriptions I like (not necessary). It does not have to be LAC (i’d love some other options too) but that is my ideal school. I currently have a 4.0 GPA in community college but not outstanding extracurriculars (only psych club, youtube (relatively successful), and a part-time job at a cafe). I’m not sure how that will affect my chances, so I’d love it if you could include safety schools as well. Do I have a shot at Barnard and Pepperdine? I believe in my ability to write a solid essay and have great letters of recommendation.
Have you run the Net Price Calculator for Barnard? Would you be eligible for any need-based aid there?
Do you want a religious school like Pepperdine? If so, Westmont could be a good safety.
You have lots of good options in the CA public system.
Some top LAC’s take more transfer students than others. This is a good resource: Transfer Admission Rates - College Transitions For example, Occidental is quite a bit harder to get into as a transfer than as a first-year
West Coast LAC’s with nice campuses in or near fun student cities: Lewis and Clark, Willamette, U of Puget Sound, Occidental. Smaller universities: Seattle U, U of Portland, U of SF, U of SD, Santa Clara U, Chapman U, LMU. In NYC, consider Fordham.
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