hey please suggest some schools

College Search & Selection
1

Hey guys! I’m a junior right now but I was wondering what schools I should start considering based on my stats. If you could just give a few names and maybe suggest what I could do in these next few months to improve…

Asian Male, Middle Class, New York (no hooks for me)
Intended Major - something STEM (doctors and aerospace are really cool)

Grades:

99.0 UW, 101.3 Weighted rn (our weighting system is kinda weird)
Presumably top 10 class rank

(all tests taken only once, if that matters)
SAT: 1590 (800 Math + 790 R&W)
SAT Subject: Math II - 800, Bio(E) - 800

AP Courses (all junior year):

  • AP Calculus BC
  • AP Physics C: Mechanics
  • AP Biology
  • AP US History

Predicted senior classes: AP Stat, AP Macro, something chem, AP French, anatomy, maybe programming?

ECs:
-Manhattan School of Music Precollege Division with piano (almost 8 years now, started way before too, many awards + scholarships)
-Varsity Swim 3 Years (vigorous recruiting to reform disbanded team)
-first year Columbia University Science Honors Program
-Science Olympiad Team (no medals oof)
-3 years Math Team, regular regional champs
-Robotics Team, should do pretty good this year
-3 years class secretary
-3 years student newspaper, definitely will be chief editor next
-2 years tutored writing in school

Volunteering/Job Experience:
-summer internship researching 3D print FR plastics
-nursing at local hospital for a few years, called to help newbies out and stuff
-ambulance corps but this is relatively new so
-3 years summer swim team coach
-various piano performances at nursing homes and stuff
-service projects with homebuilding and stuff but seems like a generic EC nowadays

Letters of Recommendation: I have a few teachers in mind, know them pretty well but idk their writing abilities?

Other:
-most likely National Merit something (PSAT 1500)

In general, I’m worried that I hadn’t really planned ahead with my activities and stuff. I’m really into all of them, but there isn’t a clear focus. I also don’t have prestigious awards and stuff, but I’m hoping my essays can make up for some of that.

I also posted this to Reddit, but in general this crowd seems much more harsh and bluntly honest in its chancing and so I want to see through the CC perspective.

I have no concerns about location and stuff, but maybe nothing too expensive.

2

Congratulations on your achievements!

As you begin to explore colleges, think through such issues as:

  1. What type of STEM major? -You mentioned aerospace. Would you want to enjoy studying a general liberal arts major like physics, or would you like something as specific as aeronautical engineering (not every school has that, but U of Michigan Ann Arbor does)?
  2. Large? Small? -Would you like the intimate environment and small classes of a small college like Swarthmore or Amherst, or the big faculty names and cutting-edge research of a research university like Johns Hopkins or Harvard or Brandeis?
  3. Rural? Suburban? Urban? -Do you enjoy the scenic beauty of a rural area like Dartmouth or Williams, the comfort and safety of a suburban area like Princeton or Haverford, or the lively atmosphere of an urban area like Columbia or Boston University?
  4. Frats? Frat free?
    • Do you want to try to join an exclusive club for your parties, like at Bucknell or many state universities, or go somewhere where frats are banned and the social life is open to all, like at any Jesuit college like Boston College or Loyola Maryland or several of the small liberal arts colleges like Bowdoin or Skidmore?
  5. Religious or nonaffiliated? -If religiously affiliated, are you looking for Notre Dame, Yeshiva, Pepperdine, Messiah, Brigham Young, or Liberty? -if nonreligious, avoid affiliated colleges and go for a more secular college like Brown or Wesleyan.
  6. Weather and region? -Close to home? Far from home? -Warm year-round like Pomona or New College of Florida or four seasons like Cornell or Middlebury? -northeastern, northwestern, southern, midwestern, Californian?
  7. Meets full financial need like Yale or Vassar, offers merit-based aid like University of Alabama or Denison, or does not matter because you can pay full price if needed?

Get yourself a fun guide to colleges like Fiske or Princeton Review or Ultimate Guide. Pick a letter of the alphabet, or the name of some schools you know, and start reading. Use the spot where they name “similar colleges” or “applicants also apply to” to find similar options. Then come back here with some of the answers to questions 1-7, and folks will make suggestions closer to your interests!

The college search can be really fun. Enjoy it!

3

For aerospace: Purdue & Georgia Tech.

4

“maybe nothing too expensive.”

Now is the time to talk to your parents and get a handle on the budget. Ask if they will pay for absolutely anything, or if there is a cap on what they will pay. Suggesting colleges is worthless if your parents are unwilling to pay.

5

With your stats you could try for some decent merit aid at places like U Rochester, esp if you want to continue with your music and like the idea of research.