<p>I know that I should definitely be applying by now. However, I suppose I don't feel really passionate about any particular colleges- I basically just eliminated colleges in my score range until I was left with around 12 colleges. I will have difficulty explaining why I would like to attend each in particular, especially the LACs- the most salient difference between them seems to be the student body, but I am fairly neutral- I certainly don't fall into a "preppy/sporty/granola/quirky/" category. My town and high school consists of an extremely homogenous student body, so that actually makes it even harder to understand what I want.</p>
<p>Rural, urban, large, small...I visited two opposites (small, middle-of-nowhere LAC vs huge, city college.) How would I know which I prefer until I have experienced it long-term, though? </p>
<p>Also, I have looked at course catalogs, but I have no idea what I will major in, so I cannot use that factor to narrow them down.</p>
<p>Stats:
SAT: 2210
GPA: 4.0 UW
rank: top 20% (bad, I know.)
extracurriculars: decent, long-term, but not outstanding.</p>
<p>The only other real factor I have used so far is financial aid. Our EFC is ~4000-5000, so colleges that do not offer great financial aid are out.</p>
<p>The only other real factor I have used so far is financial aid. Our EFC is ~4000-5000, so colleges that do not offer great financial aid are out.</p>
<p>Is that your FAFSA EFC? </p>
<p>Do you have a non-custodial parent? If so, then the schools that require NCP info could be an issue.</p>
<p>What state are you in?</p>
<p>Since you’re unsure of a major, then a larger school may be best. However, some don’t offer great FA.</p>
<p>Might try:</p>
<p>USC
Grinnell</p>
<p>If you’re a girl, then try Smith, Mt Holyoke, etc.</p>
<p>You have a 4.0 UW and are only top 20%??? Do you attend a private school? I don’t know if your rank will hurt you, but it could.</p>
<p>I think so. It’s not exact- I estimated based on an EFC calculator we filled out and college net price calculators.</p>
<p>No, I don’t.</p>
<p>I live in Pennsylvania.</p>
<p>Okay, thank you.</p>
<p>I don’t go to a private school, but I believe our student body might be unusual. I live in a small town, 98% white, mostly wealthy, republican. Our school segregates into two groups only: one large group of children, generally at least upper-middle class, who are extremely competitive- think, taking all honors/AP regardless of their level of interest or intelligence. The second group that is not the predominant body takes lower classes.</p>
<p>Not belonging to the first, I only took a few honors classes between 9th and 10th grade, whereas most of these people have never taken a regular-level class, so I am far behind them. Now I am in 4 APs and 2 college courses, and enjoying it. I wish I had thought of taking them earlier!</p>
<p>konayuki, I would not worry about pigeonholing yourself, or about developing a passion for a single school. Both of those things turn out to be mistakes more often than not. You sound like a person who will be happy in many places: that’s a GOOD thing.</p>
<p>Regarding the money, the best way to estimate FA is to use the individual school’s online estimator.</p>
<p>We could probably be more helpful if you would post the list of places you are currently considering. Your SAT breakdown by section would also help. And have you taken any SATIIs?</p>
<p>Consolation: Alright, that is reassuring. I was worried, because most of my classmates seem to have specific colleges they really, really want to go to, and specific ideas about what their ideal college is…whereas I do feel I would be content at many colleges.</p>
<p>My SAT breakdown is 800 Critical Reading, 680 Math, 730 Writing.
I have not taken any subject tests yet, but I plan to sign up for 2-3 for the December 1st test date.</p>
<p>My list of colleges currently:</p>
<p>University of Pittsburgh (Kdmom: I do like Pitt, but am unsure whether I can afford it.) I actually filled out an application when I visited Pitt, but still need to send my transcript/SAT score.</p>
<p>Matches:
Colby College
Grinnell College
University of Rochester
Macalester College
Brandeis University
Oberlin College</p>
<p>Reaches:
Georgetown
Johns Hopkins
Brown
U of Chicago
Williams or Amherst</p>
<p>As a parent, responding to the “how do I know what I prefer until I spend more time there” – consider what your gut response was to the schools you have visited. I spent the first 6 months of the college search with my now freshman-in-college son, arguing about types of schools. We were convinced that he was a small LAC kind of guy, and he dutifully visited several. He acknowledged they were fine, but he didn’t love them. We visited several big state schools, including our instate option, and he liked them much more, even though we didn’t understand it. He now loves his school (big out of state), and I appreciate how much that intangible, gut response can mean. It is not the arbitrary “my tour guide was a jerk therefore I won’t consider this school” response, but a deeper connection.</p>
<p>Long way of saying, take some time to think about what you responded to favorably at the schools you visited – can you find a common factor across the schools that you can use to help focus your search?</p>
<p>If you are in PA, have you thought about Haverford? Small LAC, very accepting (Quaker tradition of tolerance heavily influences the student community), academics are supplemented by being able to take classes (and major) at Bryn Mawr, a mile away, as well as U Penn in Philly and Swarthmore, though more logistics involved in taking class at Penn and Swat.</p>
<p>Ah, that really helps. I, and the people I have asked who know me, think I am a small-LAC person. Logically, they seem more fitting…but I was drawn to the large colleges. Perhaps I am like your son, knowing that I should prefer small LACs, yet don’t.
I have considered Haverford, though. Maybe I will go and visit.</p>
<p>What are you safety schools?
I think you may have too many reaches. The fact that you took mostly regular courses in 9th and 10 grades and have relatively few APs compared to what your school offers will put you at a disadvantage for the most selective reaches. Those schools are statistically a reach for all students.
Do you have any in-state schools as an admission and financial safety?</p>
<p>Looks like a good list to me. Make sure you have the safety lined up. Otherwise, you don’t have to LOVE your school going in - you just have to be comfortable with it. Chances are good that you’ll find friends everywhere. Once you hear back from admission one of two things will happen: You’ll have a clear winner among those that offered you admission. Or not but the tie will be only 2 way or 3 way - and you’ll weigh the pros and cons and make what will probably be a fine choice. Much easier than trying to force yourself to fall in love right now.</p>
<p>I agree that this is your weakness, but I disagree on the number of reaches. What concerns me more about your reaches AND your matches is that they are not necessarily the schools with the best FA in their classes. If you are interested in Colby, for example, the average student indebtedness at graduation is about 25% lower at Bates. Bowdoin has more generous FA, I think, although it is a little reachier. The average loans at graduation at Georgetown are about $28K, while at Bates they are about $16K. That’s a big difference. Brown has a small endowment for an Ivy, and their students graduate with more debt as a result.</p>
<p>Pitt is a perfectly good safety for you, whether you are instate or not. You should be able to get into their honors college, and you may be in the running for one of their large tuition awards. Whether that makes it affordable is another matter. You should probably send your scores early to maximize your chances.</p>
<p>Rochester likes demonstrated interest. Try to meet with one of their traveling adcoms or visit.</p>
<p>An 800 CR is going to help you. Schools like that. Your slightly late discovery of the joys of being challenged by more rigorous courses is something that can be explained and possibly turned into a positive by an essay about the joys of learning, by a teacher rec, or by a GC rec. My advice is to get recs from teachers in AP courses if at all possible, and make sure you TALK TO them and your GC about your aspirations. Make sure that you tell them that you weren’t raised to think of yourself as one of the “AP” kids, but that upon venturing into those classes you realized that not only could you do the work, but you enjoy the challenge, and that you want a high level of intellectual stimulation from your college.</p>
<p>Yes, I agree- I want to narrow down my reaches, I am just having trouble choosing 1 or 2 that I feel strongly about.</p>
<p>That’s surprising… oddly, I ran the net price calculator, and Colby College was the lowest (in match range)- about $5000, while Bowdoin’s was about $11000 (not including the extra federal aid Bowdoin estimated.) Also, I thought Grinnell gave excellent financial aid. What colleges would you recommend, for financial aid?
Brown might offer slightly less than the other ivies, but I probably don’t have any chance at being accepted to the more generous ones, such as HPY.
I’ll have to search for some more financial statistics and compare.</p>
<p>Do you have any idea of general types of subjects (e.g. humanities, social studies, science)?</p>
<p>You may want to check the catalogs to see what the offerings are in subjects you might major in.</p>
<p>If you are completely undecided, then a school with good offerings in many subjects would be best, but that tends to bias the choice to larger schools.</p>
<p>For some reason I have the impression that you are female. If this is so, you should definitely be looking at Mount Holyoke, Smith, Bryn Mawr, and possibly Wellesley (reachier). The only reason I don’t include Barnard–also reachier–is that it is very expensive to live in NYC.</p>
<p>Pomona is another great LAC with wonderful FA. Dartmouth has excellent FA, better than Brown. Definitely a big reach for you, but when you need a lot of FA you have to go for the brass ring. Carleton is a great LAC that I think would suit you, judging by your other choices, but unfortunately it is need-aware. Swarthmore is another big reach with excellent FA.</p>
<p>ucbalum’s advice re throwing a guaranteed merit school into the safety mix is excellent.</p>
<p>When you need substantial FA, casting a wide net is essential.</p>
<p>“Also, I thought Grinnell gave excellent financial aid.”</p>
<p>It does - and it also gives merit aid which very few peer schools do. Your grades and test scores put you in range for the Trustee Scholarships so definitely apply if it’s a fit.</p>
<p>Troy University would be a full-ride. I’m slightly unsure about going to an Alabama college that I don’t know much about, but it’s a possibility.</p>
<p>It’s true that a wide range of courses would be better.</p>
<p>The NPC results of top colleges for me, from lowest price to highest:</p>
<p>Williams
Swarthmore
Pomona
Haverford
U of Chicago
Dartmouth
Brown
Johns Hopkins
Georgetown</p>
<p>So it seems that LACs and smaller school offer more generous aid. Now I wonder how many of these reaches I should apply to, as I have a very low shot at admittance. My High School recommends one to two, but I think three or four would be reasonable.</p>
<p>Unfortunately, the toughest to get into offer the best aid…I have a much better chance at G-town/JHU than the others, but they offer less aid, so it is difficult to decide which would be more worth applying to.</p>
<p>Also, I like Grinnell- I think it will be the first match college I apply to.</p>
<p>I recently visited Grinnell and they seem generous (I applied to a weekend visit program and they paid for my airplane ticket!). If you have the chance to visit schools, that gut feeling will probably help you narrow down schools. All of your reach schools are very different from each other- Dartmouth is in the middle of no where, Brown has an open curriculum, UChicago’s students tend to work very hard (or so I’ve heard), etc. I thought the environment at Grinnell was very comfortable and friendly and I think you have a pretty good shot at getting in. Good luck!</p>
If this is so, you should definitely be looking at Mount Holyoke, Smith, Bryn Mawr, and possibly Wellesley (reachier). The only reason I don’t include Barnard–also reachier–is that it is very expensive to live in NYC.</p>