<p>After spending the last three years reading the CC boards (D applied to college three years ago), I feel I should be less confused! But now, as S contemplates upcoming college choices (he's just completed junior year of hs), we're having trouble coming up with a good list of choices. He has excellent grades and SATs, a couple of activities he's pursued with great intensity over several years (with regional awards--not state or national), and passion for math and science. However, beyond that, he has no idea, yet, which area(s) of math or science he's most interested in. He probably prefers physical science, and he may be interested in some form of engineering, but he feels he is in no postion, yet, to focus on anything more specifically in these areas.</p>
<p>So far, he's planning to apply to Stanford, MIT, Caltech, Harvey Mudd, and some UC's. Obviously, this list is "top-heavy" with reaches. Some of the UC's are safeties/matches, but he's not really keen on attending such a large school. Plus, in the case of UCLA, for example, one has to apply as a freshman to the School of Engineering, and he's not certain if that's really what he wants to do. Also, he prefers a smaller and more personalized atmosphere. He doesn't mind attending a school outside of California, but he doesn't want to go somewhere that's terribly cold and remote--i.e. if he does go elsewhere in the country from California, it needs to be fairly accessible to a major airport.</p>
<p>Any help/suggestions as to other schools he might add to his list would be most appreciated.</p>
<p>Barrett Honor's at Arizona State. Lots of great science and research work going on there,especially physical science guys.School of Engineering if that winds up being a choice.Great internship opportunities on and off campus (only engineering students in town).Honor's college setup makes the campus smaller. Phoenix airport is no more than 10 minutes away from the campus.Great weather and facilities. Good scholarship opprtunities. Would make a good safety choice for your S.</p>
<p>Rice is a great school school and should be on most lists, however, considering its student numbers and admit rate, Rice falls more into the reach category. Rice is also getting to be a popular choice as well, local (NW) kids this year turned down Ivies for Rice. Rice sounds like a school that fits what your S is looking for, it would be worth a visit.</p>
<p>Whoa! How are y'all picking Rice as a match and Tulane as a safety when the OP hasn't given us anything but the vaguest stats? "Excellent grades and SAT's" is what we know, I believe we can interepret that many different ways some of which make Rice a match , and some a reach. Rice has been so quirky lately I'm not willing to say it is a safety for anyone.</p>
<p>A little more info on S: class rank in large public high school: 2/700; 2280 SAT (plus a couple of 800's on SAT II's). Yes, we thought of Rice. Thanks so far! Any other suggestions are greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>Also, uh, no one's asked my favorite question - how's your financial situation?</p>
<p>CC has been spewing out college lists for years (mostly consists of everyone's "favorite" schools -- usually the one they sent their own kids to -- I'm guilty of that too!) but I see very few of these lists that are really very well targeted. Just a warning.</p>
<p>We're not eligible for any need-based aid and are in the position of being able to pay for private college, though merit aid would certainly be welcomed.</p>
<p>So I guess when anyone on cc talks about "excellent" grades and SATs I assume they mean >700 and a 4.0:). Sorry for my presumption, luckily in this case I was right...Hmm. I wonder what words would be the clue to me that they meant >750 and over 4.0....Maybe when kids are in that stratosphere parents are too embarassed to say anything or maybe they just don't feel the college search is as complex? Just musing on the culture and language of a longterm internet community guys, no serious replies required.:)</p>
<p>Alumother, I know you're not looking for a serious reply, but the reason in many cases for being vague about statistics and activities is the desire to remain anonymous. It's not likely anyone is going to care enough to try to figure out who someone is from a list of specific statistics (unless the person mentions that he/she is an olympic athlete or something on that order), but there's still a certain comfort in feeling that one's postings on CC aren't too revealing.</p>
<p>I know you mentioned "not too cold" but the presence of both MIT and CalTech on the list implies a desire for engineering schools. Consider RPI as a safety (allthough it's cold than h***, it's a great school, and they give some merit aid, too) and CMU as another reach.</p>
<p>In the small-schools area: if he's serious about physics specifically, Reed has an excellent physics department (and an undergrad-accessible nuclear reactor) and is small and intimate--but no engineering. Swarthmore has a 3-2 program in engineering and excellent sciences, as does Haverford. Carleton has excellent math and sciences, but again, it's cold!</p>
<p>If he thinks it might be BioMed E or ChemE, Tulane retains those; the kids and faculty are excited (believe me I'll update you if that changes), they are ranked <em>very</em> highly in those and Tulane could be great merit $$ for this kid.</p>
<p>Emory does not have Engineering. I would rule it out if he wants to keep the Engineering option open.</p>
<p>robc, the conventional wisdom for a kid who <em>might</em> go Engineering or <em>might</em> go other sciences/field is to apply as Engineering and start there. Much easier to transfer within the U from E to Arts/Sci/Bus than the reverse. I agree with this wisdom. The first year of Engineering student's curriculum is almost all math/science anyway - maybe one overview E course and Computer Science. He'll be well suited to go either direction after that first year.</p>
<p>At some of the UC's, Engineering may be an impacted major. I'm no expert on UC admissions (others here are and will chime in). Impacted may mean it's harder to get into, but it almost certainly means that if you don't start there, you'll have a h*** of a time transferring in from another dept.</p>
<p>Safer, non-huge schools near airports: Vanderbilt, Tufts, Villanova, Lehigh (one of my favorite programs and ca. 1 hr. from Phila), Santa Clara U.</p>
<p>If he's acdemically inclined, Reed students earn PhDs at a high rate, 4th in engineering (behind CalTech, Harvey Mudd and MIT) and 5th in physics (behind CalTech, Harvey Mudd, MIT and N.M. Institute of Mining).</p>
<p>Portland can be quite cold in Dec. & Jan. but gets little snow, and lots of rain; spring and fall are pleasant.</p>
<p>There is no merit aid at Reed; it's all need-based.</p>
<p>Barrett Honors College at Arizona State is a highly-rated program. My daughter just completed freshman year and LOVES it there. Many National Merit scholars and other top students, many perqs, self-contained housing for the honors kids in best campus location, very generous scholarships for highly qualified students. It would make an excellent safety. </p>
<p>It seems many excellent students "end up" at Barrett on late applications, after disappointments or financial realities set in. We had quite a few of her classmates for holiday meals throughout the year (we're local in Phoenix and she would invite kids who couldn't afford to go home). Several had been accepted at other prestigious schools, but came to Barrett/ASU because of the fantastic scholarships and stipends. They were all very happy at Barrett, with no complaints or remorse. </p>
<p>Large state universities normally mean huge classes, but Barrett honors classes are capped at 19 students and my daughter only had one class all year with a large number of attendees (about 80 students). Barrett scholars get first choice on all classes during registration, a huge plus. </p>
<p>When we attended Parents Weekend we met with one of the professors who stated, "This is the finest honors college in the country. Your kids are getting the equivalent of an Ivy League education through their participation in the Barrett program." Based on my daughter's experiences and feelings, I highly recommend Barrett.</p>
<p>I guess "not too cold" rules out Cornell and Northwestern, but he could look at Washington University in St. Louis, which has an big engineering school and it's about 15 minutes from a major airport. Suburban medium-sized campus with striking architecture and a we're-here-for-you attitude toward its students. Definitely worth a visit.</p>
<p>Case Western Reserve University in Ohio sounds like a great match, and it is urban. Look into it, although it isnt too warm there. I wouldn't rule it out just because of weather, because it might be the perfect place for him.</p>