Help me make a list of potential colleges?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I'm a junior in high school and getting excited about starting to look at colleges; however, it's all feeling a bit overwhelming. I've tried some of the college match searches (College Board, Princeton Review, etc.) but kind of feel like I'll come across some better options by searching someplace else, so I thought I'd try here. </p>

<p>Here are a few things about me:
- 3.87 GPA
- A few spots away from being in the top 10% of my class
- Have taken a couple of honors courses and a course at the community college. Would be academically suited for AP courses, but due to extenuating circumstances I can't take them at the moment.
- Haven't taken SAT or ACT yet, but am expecting a pretty high score. (Took them through a Gifted & Talented program during 8th grade and did pretty well then, so I assume that with 3 more years under my belt I can expect to do even better.)</p>

<p>Things I'm looking for in a school/other info:
- I'm pretty sure I want to major in psychology, but if that doesn't work out, I'll probably explore something else in the liberal arts category. So a school with a good psychology and/or liberal arts program in general would probably be best. Not sure what my thoughts are on liberal arts colleges at the time, so I'm hoping to get a mix of both LAC and traditional colleges to visit and then go from there.
- Less than 4 or 5 hours (maybe a couple more, if there's one that would be perfect) away from Reno, NV. I have horrible anxiety/medical issues and would prefer not to totally throw myself outside of my comfort zone.
- For that same reason, I'd like to not be in a huge city. I've spent my whole life living in rural towns, but I've always liked the city better, so I'd like to live in a small city for college. Something about the size of Reno or a bit bigger/smaller would be nice.
- I'd like to be surrounded by at least semi-intelligent people. I don't necessarily want everyone to be super-smart and competitive, but it would be nice to not have to re-live high school all over again where people are just there because it's convenient and don't care as much as I do about their studies.
- As little partying/drug use/drinking as possible. Just not my scene. It's kind of what I've grown up around and I'm a bit disgusted by it. This kind of goes with the focusing on studies thing.
- Relatively small-medium student body/student to teacher ratio. I prefer smaller, more discussion-oriented kinds of things where you can interact with the teacher, instead of being one of hundreds of people in a lecture hall. I don't really want it to be so small that everyone knows everyone else's business, but I don't want to be a tiny fish in a huge sea, either. </p>

<p>I guess basically, somewhere with a good sense of community, not a ton of excessive partying/drinking/drugs, and where most students are there because they want to learn but it's still somewhat of a relaxed environment. Somewhere that I won't get lost or feel totally overwhelmed, but still has a good variety of diversity and things going on.</p>

<p>I'm mostly just trying to compile a list of places I'd like to visit so that I can get a better feel for them.. I've been to UNR and liked it somewhat from what I remember (this was 3 years ago), but I don't want to feel like I'm settling for a college because it's the most convenient. I've also thought about UNLV; I really like the area of Vegas that it's in and that it's in-state, but I think the school/city as a whole would be too big and the college itself doesn't seem like it fits my needs well. I'm trying to expand my options because those are the only two I'm really familiar with, and while I do like certain aspects of each of them, I think there might be something better out there for me. The more I look at it, the more I think I would just be settling if I picked either of those and would potentially be happier elsewhere, even if it's a bit uncomfortable for me to get used to at first. I love the idea of in-state tuition, but I'm definitely willing to go elsewhere if I'll be happier overall. </p>

<p>Wow, I'm sorry, this has turned into a huge, rambling post. Hopefully I can get some good thoughts or suggestions based on the info I've given.</p>

2

<p>Once you have your SAT and/or ACT scores, we’ll have a better idea of what to recommend for you.</p>

<p>Do you know how much your parents can contribute each year towards your education? That often determines some of your choices.</p>

<p>Less than 4 or 5 hours (maybe a couple more, if there’s one that would be perfect) away from Reno, NV</p>

<p>A small private school might work, but that will depend on how much your parents can afford to pay. I’m thinking like U San Francisco or St. Mary’s in Moraga Calif</p>

3

<p>It’s pretty much just my mom who will be helping to pay, and I’m not really sure how much. I’m not terribly concerned with the tuition factor right now, as I’m sure if I found a perfect college, we’d be able to make it work some way or another. Right now I’m more just looking to get an idea of what colleges out there might fit my needs/interests, and then go from there. :slight_smile: Thanks for your reply.</p>

4

<p>Having a little trouble figuring how far one can get in 4-5 hours from Reno. Top notch liberal arts schools will have good psychology departments. Is Grinnell Iowa too far? Whitman in eastern washington? If you scores come out pretty high, Carlton.</p>

5

<p>^ I second Whitman.</p>

6

<p>aaaahhhh hate nevada</p>

7

<p>Most of these schools would be closer to 6-8 hours away, but take a look at the following:</p>

<ol>
<li> Willamette–located in Salem, Oregon, nice smaller school, lots of rain</li>
<li> Pitzer–one of the Claremonts</li>
<li> Scripps–another Claremont, but only if you’re female</li>
<li> University of the Pacific–nice private school about 3 hours away from you</li>
<li> Occidental–located in a nice area of LA, but it might be too urban for your tastes</li>
<li> Humboldt State–more like a potential financial safety–nice school, pretty out-of-the way, on the Northern California coast </li>
<li> University of Oregon–nice laid-back school, might be too big for you at about 21,500 students</li>
<li> University of Utah–once again, might be too big at 29,000 students</li>
<li> University of San Francisco</li>
</ol>

<p>If you could go a little further out, I would recommend University of Puget Sound (about 11 1/2 hours by car)</p>

<p>Humboldt State, University of Oregon and University of Utah are part of the Western Undergraduate Exchange, so you would get reduced tuition rates for them</p>

8

<p>

Please, please, please get over this now. It is unfair to yourself and to your mother to target schools where you won’t get aid and which you can’t afford. Please keep a financial safety in the pool THAT YOU ARE WILLING TO ATTEND. If you won’t attend it, why bother applying.</p>

9

<p>*Getanzt’s Quote:
It’s pretty much just my mom who will be helping to pay, and I’m not really sure how much. I’m not terribly concerned with the tuition factor right now, as I’m sure if I found a perfect college, we’d be able to make it work some way or another *</p>

<p>*Erin’s Dad’s quote: Please, please, please get over this now. It is unfair to yourself and to your mother to target schools where you won’t get aid and which you can’t afford. Please keep a financial safety in the pool THAT YOU ARE WILLING TO ATTEND. If you won’t attend it, why bother applying. *</p>

<p>Erin’s Dad is soooooo right. Frequently we have kids say that they’re “just looking for schools” and don’t want to consider finances because they’ll “find a way to pay for it somehow.” That is just naive. Many schools cost $35-55k per year, and most schools cannot give significant financial aid. Student loans are for small amounts. </p>

<p>Most out-of-state publics do NOT give financial aid to out-of-state students (only UVa and UNC do) in excess of small federal aid. Some give good merit scholarships based on high stats.</p>

<p>Most of the privates in the western part of the US don’t meet 100% of need, either. Stanford is an exception; there may be a couple of others.</p>

<p>So, if your mom can only contribute - say $5k-15k per year - then looking at schools that cost a lot more than that is just setting yourself up for a lot of frustration - if they don’t give aid or give big scholarships. </p>

<p>First…find out how much your mom can contribute. Find out what your EFC is. [FinAid</a> | Calculators | Expected Family Contribution (EFC) and Financial Aid](<a href=“http://www.finaid.org/calculators/finaidestimate.phtml]FinAid”>http://www.finaid.org/calculators/finaidestimate.phtml)
If it’s low enough, you may get a SMALL amount of federal free money. Not enough to pay for your eduction, but a small amount to go towards your education.</p>

<p>Once you get your SAT and ACT scores, if they’re high enough, then you could target the few schools that give HUGE merit scholarships. </p>

<p>You need a strategy based on facts. First, knowing your EFC and your mom’s contribution. Once you know that, we can help you come up with a list that fits your personal needs as well as your financial needs. :)</p>