<p>Hey guys! So I think I've finalized my college list! Tell me what you think! :)</p>
<p>Sex: Female
Race: Black
GPA: 3.8UW/4.22W
Rank: 46/430 (Super competitive public school.. meh)
SAT I: 2150 (710CR/640M/800W - 11 essay)
SAT II: Taking tomorrow!
ACT: Taking in a week! (Hoping for > 31)
Intended Majors: International Relations/History w/ minor in French or Arabic</p>
<p>ECs:
*NHS Historian
*Model UN (running for office!)
*Humanitarian Club (P.R.)
*Yearbook Editor (10th - present -- lots of awards)
*Varsity XC (10th to present)
*Club Soccer (4yrs to 11th grade - played on top 10 team in the state)
*HS Soccer (9th to 10th - had to stop due to injury :[ )
*TONS of community service!
More things that I don't really feel like listing - they all show demonstrate my interest in IR</p>
<p>Reaches:
Georgetown (EA)
Johns Hopkins
Tufts
Amherst (No IR, I know, but I fell in love with it!)</p>
<p>Matches:
Boston College (EA)
Tulane (EA)
University of Rochester (EN)
Northeastern (EA)</p>
<p>Safeties:
Syracuse
UGA (EA)
Georgia Southern</p>
<p>I honestly think you can get into all of these schools. Your are an amazing applicant. You have a high gpa, high SAT, and stellar ECs. Put alot of time on your essay and apps. GOOD LUCK!</p>
<p>I actually disagree with SeattleBulldog. While you are a great applicant, and should get into most if not all the matches and safeties and possibly one or two of the reaches, I would not say that you are likely to get into all of these schools. Your GPA is nice, but your class rank falls outside of the top 10% which is crucial for many of these top schools. You have a high SAT but it’s not one that would stick out at many of these institutions. Your ECs are nice too and the URM status definitely is an advantage. Overall, you are a great applicant, but I do not think you will get into all of those. Also, this is a great list of schools to answer your initial question. And one thing to note: you may want to retake the SAT and try for a better CR+M score as this combined score is what most colleges really care about. If you really want to go to Georgetown (which has a fantastic IR program) you’ll definitely want to retake the SAT as I am pretty certain that they do not even factor in the writing section.</p>
<p>URM bump should get you into most if not all of your choices; I would say, you could even aim higher - apply to a few ivies and see what happens.</p>
<p>Did you consider GWU? Would be a target perhaps even a safety, but has great IR program and is in the middle of all the political action in D.C. Might be generous with merit aid as well.</p>
<p>I looked at GWU… but I could never see myself going there. Especially if I get into Georgetown, and somehow end up at GWU. I couldn’t deal with the fact that they are right down the road from each other!</p>
<p>I think you have a great chance at any of those schools. I think It’d definitely help to get your math score to 700+ if you’re willing to take the SAT again. As dblazer said, apply to a few ivies if you have any interest. You are an extremely strong applicant, especially as a URM.</p>
<p>My family want me to apply to an Ivy (my mom, aunt, and uncle all went to Ivies), but I feel like I’m not “up to par” as far as my GPA and scores. I’m afraid that if I end up at one (which is unlikely because I’m not sure if I’m going to apply), that I will struggle to pass my classes!</p>
<p>You actually have chances being a URM; You have nothing to lose by applying - you would lose out by not applying. If you say, get into some, at least you can debate whether one is the best fit for you and you have that choice. But if you don’t apply, there’s a chance that you could regret not even knowing whether you would have had the choice because you might discover that you actually like one.</p>
<p>Also, schools like JHU, Georgetown, etc. that you have as your top choice are very similar academically to the ivies, so if you think you can succeed there, you can succeed in the ivies. It’s all about focus and your academics indicate that you’re quite academically competent - many individuals are accepted to such schools with worse stats than you so I would not worrying about struggling in classes.</p>
<p>If International Relations is your intended major, definitely look into Claremont McKenna! It is similar in many ways to Amherst (in terms of the liberal arts experience) but you truly get a consortium experience. At Amherst, you have to take a train to visit the other colleges whereas at CMC, you can literally step from one campus to the other. It is very comparable to Georgetown, Hopkins and Tufts (I actually know quite a bit of people who chose CMC over these schools) and would seem to be a perfect match for you academically (it appears that you show quite a bit of academic potential). </p>
<p>CMC is definitely a difficult school to get into (Amherst had the lowest LAC acceptance rate this year of 11.9% with CMC trailing shortly behind with 12.4%) but I think that you stand a good chance. Furthermore, CMC’s financial aid is top notch. They gave me ** much ** more money than other large, big name universities and they offer many amazing scholarships.</p>
<p>You seem to be an east coast student from your list of schools. I too reside on the east coast… but don’t let that stop you from applying! After all, if you do discover that CMC is a perfect match, why let a five hour plane ride impact your decision? PM me if you need any more convincing!</p>
<p>Initially, I was looking at CMC, but the distance is what makes it hard for me to commit to! I do live on the east coast and we have family located up and down the east coast, as well. Its sort of a safety thing with my parents, but I’ll check it out again!</p>
<p>I added Duke (mom is making me apply) and Princeton (ugh dad is making me apply… I have 0 interest in the Ivies as of right now). I’m pretty sure everything else is the same!</p>
<p>As a Harvard alum, can I convince you to apply to Harvard? </p>
<p>For a match, how about Macalaster College? It’s a bit north, in St. Paul, Minnesota, right by Minneapolis… It is a small liberal arts college that is very well known for international relations and languages.</p>
<p>Would you ever consider Mt Holyoke? Great department and strong alumnae support. It may also satisfy the prestige/connections that your parents want.</p>
<p>I researched Mt. Holyoke and Macalaster, but I couldn’t really see myself at either. I feel bad though… My parents want me to apply to Princeton and duke, but the interest isn’t there for me!</p>
<p>I like your list, it seems well balanced.
As for Duke and Princeton, do you really know enough about them to really eliminate them? If not put them on your list but not if it means removing schools you already like. Why not keep your options open? What about Brown, it seems to have a slightly different vibe yet is still Ivy League? My son was opposed to applying to Ivy league schools, but after visiting Cornell and Brown, he eagerly made exceptions for them!
Also, what my son did was put his schools in rank order so that if he got burnt out from all the supplemental applications (and he did!), he could just drop the one or two on the bottom of the list.</p>