Help narrowing down college list, please?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>So I'm stuck at 12 colleges on my list, and I'm not sure how to narrow it down more. Visiting them is not really an option at this point - too expensive and there's no time I could do it.</p>

<p>My GPA is 3.879, ACT score is 34, SAT score 2080 (probably won't submit?). I've had a difficult schedule and this year I'm taking courses at a local college.</p>

<p>I want to major in either neuroscience, biopsychology, or cognitive science - at least that's what I think now, but I want to keep my options open in case I end up disliking those. I'm also sort of interested in international relations.</p>

<p>The colleges that are currently on my list are:
Tufts University
Amherst College
Bowdoin College
Brandeis University
Carnegie Mellon University
Macalester College
St. Olaf College
Swarthmore College
Vassar College
Northwestern University
Oberlin College
Princeton University (huge reach, I know.)</p>

<p>I want a college that has a good study abroad program (I already studied abroad for part of my junior year of HS) and I like students that I suppose could be described as quirky or nerdy.
I'm not too picky about the location, as long as the weather isn't really hot and it's not in the middle of nowhere.</p>

<p>If it helps, I'm a white female who lives in MN.</p>

2

<p>Also, which schools would you consider matches for me, and which ones would be reaches?</p>

3

<p>Eliminate the Following:</p>

<p>St.Olaf
Carnegie Mellon
Bowdoin
Swarthmore
Northwestern</p>

<p>Have you considered Middlebury? You might really like it</p>

4

<p>Why those ones?</p>

<p>I’ll look into Middlebury some more, thanks!</p>

5

<p>I would cross off Tufts.</p>

<p>Do you have a couple of financial safety schools? Those are schools that you LIKE…and that you know you will get accepted to…AND…you know FOR SURE that you have all costs covered?</p>

<p>Do you know how much your family will pay? </p>

<p>What about some west coast schools? like Santa Clara or USC?</p>

6

<p>St.Olaf-rural area
Carnegie Mellon- Its a good school, if your CONFIDENT you want to do something science related
Bowdoin-middle of nowhere
Swarthmore- actually, you should keep it on the lsit
Northwestern- I dont think it has a very strong science program</p>

7

<p>Ah, mkay.</p>

<p>I’m not using costs to narrow down yet, because I don’t know what kind of financial aid I’ll get. But I do have the University of Minnesota as sort of a financial backup plan.</p>

8

<p>* because I don’t know what kind of financial aid I’ll get.*</p>

<p>???</p>

<p>It’s not a big mystery. You need to figure out what your “family contribution” will be…and then find out what kind of aid each school gives.</p>

9

<p>I love St. Olaf, one of my favorite colleges, but Carleton has more of the “quirky or nerdy” student base that you may be looking for. They also have a great reputation for their sciences. (although it is tough to match the new Science facility at St. Olaf)</p>