Help this overwhelmed junior.

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I'm just lost. There is so much information out there I do not know where to start. I desperately need to start looking for colleges and scholarships. I would ask the college counselor at our school, but she's only going to get annoyed by my lack of research..</p>

<p>As for colleges, I need help discovering more options as I am only aware of colleges in my immediate state (Tennessee). I know somewhat regarding the reputation and standards of these colleges. Anyways, how do I start searching for more colleges that might be suitable for me? As of now I'm looking at University of Knoxville, Vanderbilt, Swanee, University of Mississippi, and Rhodes.</p>

<p>As for scholarships, I'm still working on my ACT and soon my SAT score. I have a 29 on the ACT currently, but I don't plan on stopping until a 33. Standardized tests aren't my thing.
The reason I ask about scholarships is because I will be applying for financial aid because income in the household is mediocre. Definitely going to be a problem if I want to go somewhere selective like Vanderbilt. Where can I find a list of scholarships that I am eligible or what I need to do to be eligible for?</p>

<h2>One last thing: I don't know my major. I was raised by parents with the predetermined notion that I was going to become a doctor/surgeon but now I do not know which career path I want to take. I've already been taking classes, however, leaning towards the medical field. I haven't seen anything that is strikingly appealing. I don't want to major in music as I know it isn't going to be a viable career (financially). I also don't know if I want to go to work at 6 in the morning and come back at 10 at night. I need help exploring options because I'm very conflicted.</h2>

<p>BACKGROUND:</p>

<p>I'm in the class of 2013. I maintain a 3.77 unweighted GPA and a 4.2 weighted. </p>

<p>The AP classes I have completed so far include,
AP English 11
AP Biology
AP Human Geography
AP US History</p>

<p>My senior year I plan to take,
AP Chemistry
AP Calculus
AP Statistics</p>

<p>Member of Key Club all 4 years and I am to be the Vice-President during my senior year.
Member of Hosa Club for 1 year, hopefully 2 for next year as well.
Inducted into Beta Club for senior year.
Inducted into National Honor Society for senior year. (the officer positions for beta and nhs were both popularity contests, unfortunately)</p>

<h2>I play the trumpet in band. I made 1st chair orchestra all-west and 6th chair all-state band as a sophomore. This year I made 2nd all-state. I've already gotten little ($1000) scholarship offers from UT Martin to join their music program. I'll be section leader next year. Point being, I enjoy playing as a hobby and would wish to continue playing in college, but I am dubious as to whether I want this to be my career. I'm considering a double major between medicine and music, but it's doubtful.</h2>

<p>I'm sorry for not looking around more for answers to these questions. I really appreciate any replies.</p>

2

<p>A good first step would be to decide what area you want to major in. Basically, start with whether you want to go with STEM or liberal arts. If you can, narrow it down to one or two professions you might like, or one or two of your favorite subjects. This should help you include those schools that focus sciences (MIT, cooper union) or liberal arts (small LACs). College board is a great resource for looking for both colleges and scholarships. If you still have no idea for your major, there are plenty of schools that offer a wide variety of majors. I looked at Boston University, and they seem to pride themselves on options–they said they’ve had students who could switch majors 6 times. Penn State also has a huge number of majors. If you really like music, you can also easily rule out all schools that don’t have an extracurricular music group that appeals to you. An easy way to start a college list is process of elimination. Ax off any colleges with deal-breakers. Then visit or virtual visit any that are left to see if you like the feel of the campus. Some things that you might want to consider in a college:
-cost
-size
-political leanings
-partying/frats/sororities
-sports
-extra-curriculars
-location
-setting
-co-op
-research (if you like science)
-job placement
-reputation
-gender ratio
-and, of course, major, if/when you finally decide
Hope this helps, good luck with your search!</p>

3

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<p>STEM overlaps with liberal arts in the math and science areas. Some small LACs emphasize math and science, while others are weak in those areas.</p>

<p>Note that you can do any major while being pre-med (and taking the pre-med courses).</p>

<p>Don’t forget to include a safety or few that you will certainly be admitted to, certainly be able to afford, and will like to attend. UA Birmingham may be worth a look, as it will give you a $15,000 per year scholarship for your stats (leaving about a $10,000 per year remaining out of state cost of attendance).</p>

4

<p>Thanks for the reply. Definitely helped a bit.</p>

<p>I’m not going to be majoring in liberal arts. Sorry I didn’t clarify, but I know this for sure. The closest I’ll come to it is social sciences.</p>

<p>Any other input would be greatly appreciated.</p>

5

<p>What is STEM?</p>

6

<p>STEM = science, technology, engineering, math</p>

<p>Science and math are considered liberal arts fields, along with social studies and humanities.</p>

<p>Actually, the term “STEM” is probably overused, sometimes in misleading ways. E.g. “STEM majors have better job prospects” – not true for the most popular STEM major, which is biology.</p>

7

<p>STEM = Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math.</p>

8

<p>Hm, alright thanks for the clarification. I thought liberal arts was restricted to english. >></p>

9

<p>Your stats and your undecided major make you a good candidate for a liberal arts college. You’re also more likely to finish a biology/music double major in four years if that’s the route you choose. Biology is one of the most popular majors at almost every LAC because of the pre-med cohort.</p>

<p>Rhodes is already on your list, and is one of the Colleges That Change Lives (Google it if you’re not already familiar with them). Almost any of those schools, or dozens more like them across the country, would be a good academic match and would include some merit money.</p>

10

<p>I kind of disagree with the above posters… I’d go to a university, not a LAC, if you’re not sure what you want to do. There, you’ll be exposed to more possibilities with the sheer number of majors. That way you can explore everything and when you decide, you’ll really know for sure. Of course, it depends on what type of setting you’re comfortable in.</p>

11

<p>You might want to drop the music/double major option completely. Music in college is a lot more time consuming than you could ever imagine and most double majors take at least five years to complete. Add to this the inevitable time conflict between labs and rehearsal requirements. Besides most large universities have opportunities for avocational musicians.</p>

12

<p>Well the first step I would say is just visiting your local schools, visit a huge one, a medium one and a small one you’ll get a good feel for what type of atmosphere you have. As far as the university vs LAC debate, once you decide the size of the school that’s a good start, because LAC’s tend to be smaller than Most (not ALL) universities.</p>

<p>Take a look at college board, I don’t really like them, but its a good starting point if you have no clue or direction. make your searches general and then research the results. As for scholarships sign up for</p>

<p>~FASTWEB
~CAPPEX
~*****
~SCHOLARSHIP.com</p>

<p>Questions to ask yourself when doing the search (in no specific order)</p>

<p>~Location (In state/ Out of state; near home/ far away; urban/suburban/rural)
~Cost and whether you’ll need fin aid or not/ whether the school will give need-based aid.
~Size
~Majors (look for a school with all of the majors you may be interested in that way you can stay in the school if you decide to change your mind)
~Activities if you are interested
~Transportation (can you afford going home? Can you have a car? Is there a bus to take you into town?)
~Boy/girl ratio</p>

<p>Remember, once you make a list, go visit! You may fall in love with a school’s website and hate it when you go, or vise versa. </p>

<p>when you find a school you do like, take a virtual tour- I like Youniversity TV I think it gives a good overview, also you can look them up on youtube and see what the school really is about. Best of luck!</p>

<p>I’m a junior to, going through the process I can try to help and give you the advice I’ve been given, feel free to PM</p>