@QuirkyClarkie What does “affordable” mean to you? How much can you pay out-of-pocket per year? That’s going to make a big difference in creating your list. Also, what kind of vibe/campus/location are you looking for?
You’re a solid applicant, but you’re in that grey area (stats/ECs) for many of these schools on your list, where you won’t be given extra attention if you’re not giving them enough cash. Your current list of reaches might be too reachy. Even MHC and BMC could be high matches for you.
And you have taken the opposite (overly conservative) strategy for your safeties. Temple is fine, but if you’re counting on the full tuition award at Temple (President’s Scholars), it requires a ≥ 3.8 GPA, so check with your HS and Temple to straighten out your equivalent GPA because you have an estimated 3.8. If Temple is a go for the automatic award, then Rider and Drew are wasted apps. I think they’re poor choices in either case, really. Rutgers or TCNJ would be better picks: in-state / less expensive / more selective is considered a good thing! I can understand if you or pops are not overly keen on you attending, but it’s highly questionable to pass up the option to attend.
I will tell you that I am happy TCNJ is such an enigma for even NJ residents because my younger son wants to go there.
I know it’s been a while, but I just wanted to post some updates concerning my stats and college list to see if it’s appropriate/balanced enough as I start my college apps.
To quickly recap, I currently have 37/42 points for the IB Diploma (found out that my school average is 33/45) which is ~3.8 UW GPA, and a 34 ACT (34 English/ 35 Math/ 36 Reading/ 30 Science/ 7 essay).
My current list is as follows:
Reaches - Georgetown, Tufts, Wellesley, Barnard
Matches - American, Lehigh, Bryn Mawr, Mount Holyoke, Muhlenberg
Safety - Temple
So, what do you guys think? Are there any outliers on my list? Once again, any comments/suggestions are appreciated!
Have you had any fun this summer? It looks like you’ve been studying! Your ACT is the equivalent of ~200+ point SAT gain. Nice improvement. You’re definitely on more solid ground with your list.
Lehigh might be an outlier.
If you want to add another reach, considering the 34, look at Duke for econ/poli sci. It’s not a bad idea applying to a reach that has a history with your HS (post #11).
Watch your 3.8 GPA for Temple merit aid.
What do you think of your ECs? I’m asking for your own estimation, taking into account the time/enthusiasm you’ve dedicated to them. ECs are often downplayed outside of the US, so I’m wondering if you’ve spent more time on them relative to your peers.
Also, what is the 7 Essay score out of? It is 7/12, no? Is that typical for your writing or do you think you can turn in some better essays/supplements with your applications?
Your list to me shows you are not really sure yet what you want:
women’s college or a co-Ed school?
City or Suburbs?
Large or small school
Liberal Arts College or University
And with your GPA (?) - Lehigh is a reach
And with your test scores Muhlenberg is a safety
@Dunboyne I did have fun this summer, actually. I visited my family in the US and ended up doing a lot less homework than I should have :"> .
I love love love all of the ECs I do, but I’ve had to cut back on them (i.e. I used to swim 8 hours a week, but now I swim 3) due to IB work. At the moment, I spend anywhere from 10-15 hours a week on my ECs. Is that considered a lot?
Yeah, I received a 7/12 on the essay. Not the greatest score, but not completely unexpected either. School-wise, I think I’m a pretty strong writer- I get 6s (A’s) for essays in most of my classes, so I should be able to write interesting supplements.
In what ways would you consider Lehigh an outlier? I’m a little on the fence about Lehigh, because they have their own International Relations department (not just PoliSci) and their Business & Economics school has really good placement rates. Also, do you have any suggestions for matches? I’ll look into Duke, but I don’t want my list to be too top heavy and I know that Georgetown is a big reach already.
@ClarinetDad16 It’s not that I don’t know what I want, it’s just that I’ve been moving around my whole life, so I’m pretty good at adapting to different environments. As a result, most of my criteria are pretty flexible.
Women’s or Co-Ed - Doesn’t matter, as long as it has a strong IR/Global Studies program.
City or Suburbs - Doesn’t matter as long as it has a physical campus (so NYC and GWU are out). Also, not too rural as I won’t have my driving license when I first move.
Large or Small school - Preferably under 15,000 undergrads, but again depends on how the schools are structured. If there’s a separate Honors Program etc. then it’s fine.
LAC or University - Doesn’t matter as long as it has a strong IR/Global Studies program.
I think that your list has an appropriate amount of matches; although if I were doing it, I might remove one reach (perhaps the one that you think you are least likely to get into) and add another match – some others have suggested Dickinson, which would be a good choice for you. I can’t say whether Lehigh would be a match or a reach for you, I defer to others with greater knowledge than me on that.
I may have missed this, but have you actually visited any of the schools on your list? A visit (while school is in session, preferably) may also help to confirm or eliminate schools from consideration.
I’d say your EC dedication is the norm, so you should be ok there. Admissions probably cuts some slack for int’l students in that regard. Good to hear that your essays should be strong.
Lehigh is known more for engineering and tends to be more Greek-oriented than your other schools. Solid business program, though, if you want to head in that direction. I wouldn’t necessarily put too much stock in a dedicated IR department. Political science won’t hurt your job/grad school prospects, and you can usually find enough IR-type courses to satisfy.
The 34 pushed you into the upper quartile for every school on your list. Your 3.8 is pretty solid and it sounds like your ECs and essays will be a positive. You haven’t shown much concern for finances, so I’m assuming your need isn’t very high, which helps. You don’t come across as someone who will have poor to mediocre recommendations. And if you look at the admit rates of your schools, you could do much worse. So all in all, I don’t think your list is top heavy. If you can pull off some really good essays, and highlight and show some passion for an EC, I think you can afford another reach, if anything.
With your 34 ACT I recommend that you put Penn back on your list. That you’re an american living abroad, and following an IB track, may make your application stand out
Also strongly review the top of your list for a possible ED school. If none is compelling then consider applying to Georgetown EA. If you’re accepted it’s non-binding
Id put Dickinson over Lehigh on your list for IR/poli sci unless you’re attracted to a very heavy Greek scene.
Your list is very fine. Congratulations on the 34,that’s impressive 
Out of my list I’ve visited Georgetown, American, and Temple. I’ve also visited Penn and GWU, but didn’t like GWU/ “the campus is the city” vibe that much, so I took it off the list. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to visit any other colleges because I won’t be in the country until June.
@fogcity Do you think I have a shot at Penn’s Huntsman Program ED? That’s one of the main reasons why I would love to attend Penn, but I know that it’s one of the most competitive programs they have. Otherwise I plan on applying to Georgetown, Temple, and Wellesley EA/EE.
@MYOS1634 Thank you! I found the ACT to be more straightforward than the SAT, and I think that helped my score.
I’m definitely not into the Greek scene, which is one of my doubts about Lehigh. I looked up Dickinson, and while their program is interesting, I noticed that it 1) has a Greek presence, and 2) places great importance on demonstrated interest. Do you know how prevalent Greek life there is? While I wouldn’t mind going to parties once in a while, the Tues-Sun night attitude Lehigh seems to portray is off-putting.
^ You might look at some of the threads on the Dickinson forum, and judge what those folks have to say about the Greek presence on that campus.