I’ve been working hard these past few weeks and have managed to narrow down my list from 26 to 13. I know 13 schools is a lot, and I’m still going to see if I can knock off one or two, but if I can’t, is it all right to apply to this number? Most of them don’t have application fees (or, in the case of Harvey Mudd and Hamilton, I have a fee waiver), and I’ve calculated the total cost including CSS profiles and sending SAT scores to be just under $650 which isn’t the best number but could definitely be worse.
Aside from the worry of applying to too many schools, there’s also the worry about not having a good balance of safeties/matches/reaches. I am a hispanic female interested in computer science and my stats are 3.9 UW/4.4 W; 1510 New SAT; will be taking Math 2, Bio, and Chem subject tests in October; 1 out of 2 APs offered, couldn’t take other AP because I am a dual enrollment student this year; diverse ECs (including president of the chorus, but a bit lacking in leadership).
My list:
University of Alabama (full tuition) (safety)
Allegheny College (probably safety)
Whitman
Smith
Scripps
Mount Holyoke
Bryn Mawr
Hamilton
Reed
Vassar
Harvey Mudd
MIT
Swarthmore
I would add Rutgers as a safety, but I’m a dual enrollment student at the county college, so it would make a lot more sense financially for me to just go to the county college for another year and get my Associate’s then transfer to Rutgers. So I guess county college is another safety but that doesn’t have an application or anything lol
You should reasonably expect to earn acceptances to 8 or more of your 13 schools. The question to ask yourself, then, would relate to whether you would see a potential benefit to this many acceptances.
To pare it down, I would pick one between MIT and Harvey Mudd, and pick 2 of the 4 women’s colleges. Maybe pick 2 among Reed, Hamilton, Vasser. That would get you down to 9.
I’d keep both Mudd and MIT since they’re outstanding for CS.
There’s nothing wrong with 13 apps if you have the cash and the time to put the necessary work and passion into them.
I see reaches, matches and safeties on your list; I think it’s a decent list as long as you feel you “fit” with these schools and can likely afford them according to the NPC. The only bad app is an app that goes to a school you don’t like, or which obviously is a very bad fit, or which you can’t afford.
You’re probably going to be a very attractive applicant as a female interested in CS (except at the women’s colleges of course…). URM status is another hook. And you have the stats to be a competitive applicant anyway.
What @merc81 says is probably right: you’re likely to get several acceptances out of this list. Once those are in hand, you should visit your favorites (if you are undecided) to gather that gut feeling. One will feel the most like home.
@WISdad23 : In my opinion, the OP would likely be admitted to all, or nearly all, of her choices at which the acceptance rate is 30% or higher. (This relates to the excellent qualifications of the OP, and would not be a comment on the general admissions standards of the colleges listed.)
I think you are fine on safeties, but you are doing yourself a disservice by not applying to Rutgers where I believe you’d get scholarship money which would save over the CC transfer route.
As a parent, I have a different perspective.
I am from SE PA. I visited the Claremonts with my oldest son. The feel of the Claremonts vs Swarthmore /Bryn Mawr was stark to me. What type of atmosphere do you want?
I also have a student at Bama. We have been extremely impressed with the opportunities he has gotten there. His application list included Pomona and Haverford. 4 years later, I can honestly say he got more out of Bama than he would have out of Haverford. So, spend some time self reflecting on what motivates you. My kid needed out of the rat race of the NE.
You would likely get into the honors program at Rutgers and get a substantial scholarship if you apply NOW as an incoming freshman.
With a year at community college after HS graduation, you would be a transfer student and the chances of getting merit scholarships will be GREATLY reduced if not eliminated entirely.
Doing a year of CC and then transferring to Rutgers would not make economic or intellectual sense.
As for reducing your list, I would also try to trim your women’s colleges from 4 to 2 or 3. They are very different with respect to student vibe, urban/rural, etc. Eliminating Smith or Mt. Holyoke would be a good place to start. Either gets you into the 5 colleges consortium. Do you prefer a slightly edgier dynamic or one that is more mellow? Mt Holyoke has a more isolated, rural feel; Smith is near a town of a decent size. Etc.
If it turns out that you’d really prefer a more urban setting, then Bryn Mawr/Barnard might be better than Smith/Mt. Holyoke.
Are finances a consideration? Will you be eligible for need-based aid or focusing on merit-based scholarships? Those considerations should shape your list as many on your list are need-based aid only, while others offer merit.
Your credentials look excellent and I’m sure you will have many great choices.
Okay that stuff about Rutgers might have just been an excuse to get it off my list… I do not want to go to Rutgers.
Okay so last February I visited the Claremont colleges, last weekend I visited Hamilton, and yesterday I visited Swat, Bryn Mawr and UPenn.
Bryn Mawr did not feel urban to me at all… sure it’s right next to Philly but I felt like it was far enough removed from it. Maybe I’m just comparing it to UPenn, which is very much in the city. UPenn was way too urban for me (the school itself felt too much like a city). Plus Philadelphia smells weird. The friend I was with loved it though (she did not love Swat or Bryn Mawr the way I did, but I think we just have much different preferences). We had a really awesome chat with some freshmen at Bryn Mawr and I liked that it was so close to restaurants and an indie movie theater and lots of other stuff to do, but I did not mind the location of Hamilton either which was more or less in the middle of nowhere (I felt like there would be enough to do on campus anyways).
Bryn Mawr was absolutely stunning and I really enjoyed the conversations I had. I’m planning on going back for an overnight, and it’s probably at the top of my list now. My only worry is financial aid because the NPC wasn’t that great (not bad enough to cross it off the list, but definitely not as good as some of the other numbers). I didn’t like Swat as much as I liked the idea of it but it was also early and cloudy and the weather was gross and I felt like it has enough redeeming qualities to stay on the list (plus it has pretty good financial aid). I really liked that Swat doesn’t have GPA or class rank.
The Claremont colleges vs. Bryn Mawr vs. Swat (I definitely wouldn’t group BMC and Swat together) are definitely different but I feel like I could be happy at any.
Also on FA, I will mostly be going for need-based aid (although merit aid is also fine). I ran the NPCs but I’m not sure how accurate they are since the NPCs didn’t account for everything (it’s complicated).
There is no problem with applying to all of them. As noted, you will likely have to choose in the spring. There’s nothing wrong with that! But if there are any that don’t excite you, there is no need with your stats to keep it on the list. If one is a clear favorite, you could ED there, but only if you are certain it’s affordable. It sounds like BMC really resonated with you. It’s important to note when that happens!
@MurphyBrown I’m visiting MIT next weekend for their fly-in. Maybe if I don’t like it, I’ll look more into Tufts. It would be pretty easy to take a bus I guess and stay with my friend who goes to Northeastern… Maybe if I can find a friend to go with me. I didn’t like that at Barnard you’re basically at Columbia after your freshman year (or at least that’s what I heard). Honestly, I feel like MIT and Caltech are both out of reach for me because of my class rank. MIT is only on my list because of the fly-in and I don’t want to cross it off before I visit.
Idk, I’m not really looking to add any schools to my list.
Good list. It may be hard to choose between the ones you get admitted to, but it gives you more options and since your NPC is unclear, you can’t really know what you’ll get offered until you apply. So a list this long will allow you to compare financial offers. Providing cost of application is not onerous, I’d say go ahead and apply to all of them. You most likely won’t get into MIT but there’s no hurt in applying as a reach.
It’s pretty clear from your choices that you prefer a small school/ LAC, which is why Bama on there is surprising (though not bad–it could likely end up being be your cheapest option, so you can balance cost with other factors after your acceptances).
Maybe drop Swarthmore since you’re not too keen on it and you want to trim the list - it doesn’t really have anything over your other choices.
I know you’re not looking to add to your list, but you would almost certainly get FA + merit aid from RPI as a girl doing CS (my D was in similar situation 2 years ago) - if you like nerdy it’s a great school, and it’s strong in CS–particularly as related to engineering, compsec, “hacker culture”, etc.
You’re sure to get into a good school, so congrats!
Boy, I know you are looking to pare down your list, but your info is a perfect fit for Rice, too. They are generous with aid, and terrific in CS. My neighbors D is also Hispanic and is a sophomore Chem Eng student at Rice and loves it.
@insanedreamer Bama is a financial safety because of the full tuition merit scholarship and my friend said that the school feels a lot smaller than it actually is so I think I have less reservations about it than, say, Rutgers where you have to take a bus to get around.
Oh yes, +1 for Rice! Small feel, great student body, excellent undergrad CS, and free tuition if your family income is under $80K. A reach, but if you get in would be a much better option than Bama or Rutgers and possibly cost the same.
I’d cut Swarthmore and perhaps Reed if you didn’t like the vibe at Swarthmore - like Swarthmore, Reed is hardcore geek+ weed culture (sorry, I don’t know how to describe it… it’s super intellectual, intense, and … cloudy in the evenings). It’s tolerant of those who do not partake though.
I’d keep all others, and add Rice.
OP I don’t think 13 or even 20 schools are too much if you feel like you have the time to fill out supplemental essays/questions on the CommonApp. 20 is probably not necessary, but you don’t seem like the kind of applicant that would get overwhelmed with this number.
Tufts has a women in engineering open house on Oct 7:
@MYOS1634 As a student at Reed, I have to respectfully disagree with that characterization. Yes, there are students here that smoke pot, but I don’t think the prevalence of drugs here is much higher than it is at peer LACs. The students here are very smart and work very hard, and some of them choose to use substances, but not much more so than at other colleges. Also, there is little (to no) pressure to use substances in order to be included in the community here.