I’m headed into my senior year of high school, and as college decisions arise, so does my panic. There’s too many options, too many factors to consider. what I really want is to study art and/or history at a liberal arts school in or near a big city, but everywhere is either crazy expensive or crazy competitive. My GPA is pretty average, my ACT alright but not great-- 3.1 and 31, respectively. I don’t know what to do, only that I’d rather die than go somewhere at home or in the middle of nowhere like my mom keeps bringing up. And suggestions? Advice? Words of wisdom?
Find colleges you’re interested in that have everything you’re asking for. Use college search websites and input everything that you’re looking for and see what filters through if you really have no idea.
If you’re specifically looking into liberal arts colleges, that definitely narrows down the pool (at least some).
What’s your home state? Any geographic preferences or restrictions?
You might look at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in Richmond. VCU Arts is a top art school. Urban campus, and bigger than an LAC, great city, with lots to do for young professionals. Also, UNC-Asheville, a public LAC, with a strong arts program in a real folk art center. Asheville is a great, funky, artsy town right in the Great Smoky Mountains. These might be too expensive. I don’t know about VCU but UNC-A is in the $30ks full cost for an OOS student. I don’t know about financial aid. You could run the Net Price Calculators (NPC) for each school.
You might also check out Trinity University in San Antonio, TX. I don’t know about the art program there. If it looks good, run the NPC.
https://new.trinity.edu/academics/departments/art-art-history/majors-minors
Good luck!
If you’re a girl, Agnes Scott in Atlanta and Simmons in Boston may be of interest. Gettysburg college is excellent for US history (location!) Although it’s definitely rural. Pretty good too, mostly international history (even the language classes focus on history and civilization) and in a small town there’s Dickinson. Both Gettysburg and Dickinson would be reaches.
What AP classes have you taken (or in or dual enrollment running start, PSEO…?)
Most colleges accept most of their applicants. You’re going to have plenty of options, unless you define success as admission to a school in the top 20 rankings somewhere.
My advice? Don’t pay any attention to names at this point. You’re not going to recognize what you’re looking for until you’ve figured out more carefully what that is. So far what you’ve decided is you want “to study art and/or history at a liberal arts school in or near a big city”. Next is to dig a bit deeper. Visit 1 or 2 example schools in your area, even if they’re not ones you want to apply to. Preferably early in the autumn when school is back in session so you can talk to some current students, sit in on a class, etc. Visit some other school sizes, too. By “liberal arts school” you may mean a smallish traditional LAC, or maybe you have in mind just the study area(s). So visit a medium sized school, and a large one. A “big” school can feel personal in a smaller major like art or if you take part in an Honors College, to name but a few things to shrink the “just-a-number-here” feeling. Start to think about other things that may interest you. Greek system? Big intramural sports programs? Opportunity to study abroad? Internship opportunities? And as you’ve realized, college is expensive. You need to have your parents fill out a sample FAFSA to see what they’ll be expected to contribute, then ask them if they can do that amount. No sense spending a lot of time looking at colleges you can’t afford.
I reccomend you get a book on college admissions to get the whole picture – how to apply, what to look for on a college visit, how to determine fit. One book I recommend is “Admission Matters” (http://www.admissionmatters.com/) no doubt there are plenty of other good ones.
Your budget is the first factor to consider. You can borrow up to $5500 your first year. The rest has to come from you and your family. Figure out how much your parents can realistically contribute each year, how much you have saved/realistically can earn, and work from that.
“Words of wisdom?”
First, relax. There are a LOT of universities in the US. If you are considering small schools, the biggest issue may be deciding between the huge number that are available.
Secondly, you should find out what your budget is.
Third, think about how far you would want to go to attend university. People here on CC will be able to suggest LACs and small universities and colleges throughout the US and pretty much anywhere in North America. However, you should think about how far and where you would prefer to go. If you tell us which state you live in, this can also give us some idea regarding what would be a reasonable drive from where you live and what would be far away, as well as letting people know what would be in-state for you (which could impact the budget).
I agree with @mikemac that visiting a few schools near where you live will be helpful. This will give you a better sense regarding what a small versus medium versus large school looks like and some questions to ask. You might also try to get an official tour. At some of the small schools that we visited my daughter was able to sit in on classes and to speak one-on-one with a professor from that school.
Many hgh school seniors think they know exacty what sort of school they want, but really, how could they know for sure?
One of my kids was certain that only a college in the Northeast would do; ended up in the Midwest & loved it. Many many students who hated the thought of a big school have wound. up at one for various reasons, & have ended up completely satisfied.
So, my suggestion is to be a little more flexible on some of your criteria. Start with what you can afford and get into, and narrow it down from there.
Simmons: I echo Simmons as a possibility. Not only is it a very nice school in Boston, but it has a consortium that includes an art school. http://www.colleges-fenway.org/about-cof/colleges-in-the-consortium/ With your 31 ACT you might even get a nice merit package here!
Mills. Similarly,Mills in the Bay Area (with rapid transit to San Francisco and Berkeley) has a relationship with an art school. I know a young woman who just graduated from there in visual arts. She was very happy.
Hampshire. You may also want to consider Hampshire College – also part of a consortium, has access to several schools in the area with free transportation to several, including UMass Amherst, Smith, Mt. Holyoke, Amherst. https://www.fivecolleges.edu/academics/courses/cross_registration
U of Maine at Orono – has tuition-matching program and it’s a small university almost the size of a large LAC. It has surprisingly good arts and is near Orono/Bangor – smallish cities. It’s a pretty campus. https://umaine.edu/
University of the Pacific
Santa Clara University
Sarah Lawrence
Wagner
Drew University – it’s on the commuter line to NYC; in New Jersey; prettycampus; very arty.
You haven’t specified region or budget, so it’s hard to know what will work for you, but…
You might want to look at College of Charleston. Your ACT is above their median, GPA below… but they accept 77% so you’d be in very good shape to be accepted. Charleston is the largest city in SC and an amazing historic place. CofC has not only a history major http://cofc.edu/academics/majorsandminors/history.php and a studio art major http://cofc.edu/academics/majorsandminors/studio-art.php , but also a Historic Preservation major that might be a great way to combine your two areas of interest http://cofc.edu/academics/majorsandminors/historicpreservation.php