<p>I am a rising senior who be applying to colleges this coming school year, and I've drawn up a tentative list of where I'm going to apply. as the title of the thread suggests, I'm just wondering if I've got a good mix of reaches, matches, and safeties. I am very fortunate in that finances will not be an issue for me. my stats are:</p>
<p>EC:
-Debate Captain-won numerous tournaments
-Have my own volunteer radio show on local community radio station
-first student and then assistant teacher for Radio DJing class through a local youth multimedia instruction organization where I live
-multiple film production classes at the same organization
-9 years private piano lessons
-4 years private guitar lessons
-very involved in school drama dept. for four years
-planning to write a full length film this summer
-NHS
-Will be teaching Sex Ed to jr. high students through Planned Parenthood this coming year</p>
<p>Course Load:
Ib student, I've taken the most challenging courses available</p>
<p>My list so far, in order of selectivity, is:</p>
<ol>
<li>Yale </li>
<li>Brown (applying early decision)</li>
<li>Amherst</li>
<li>Pomona</li>
<li>Georgetown</li>
<li>Wesleyan</li>
<li>Vassar</li>
<li>Oberlin</li>
<li>Reed</li>
<li>Occidental</li>
<li>Clark University (applying early action)</li>
</ol>
<p>I think I want to be an English major, but i'm not sure.</p>
<p>Be careful about colleges that consider “level of interest” in admissions (see common data set, section C7). They may reject or waitlist high-stats applicants who appear to be using them as safeties.</p>
<p>Importance of “level of interest” to your presumed safety schools:</p>
<p>Vassar: “not considered”
Oberlin: “considered”
Reed: “important”
Occidental: common data set not available
Clark: “considered”</p>
<p>On the other hand, Vassar’s entering freshmen have very high grades and test scores, so it is probably not a good idea to consider it a safety, even though you may be above the 75th percentile (it considers a lot of subjective factors in admissions).</p>
<p>What is means is that you probably have no true safeties, other than the implicit safety (community college or any low selectivity school with a post-April application deadline).</p>
<p>@ucbalumnus, if I requested information from Clark, visit the campus over the summer, and apply there early, does that demonstrate a high level of interest? or do my high stats automatically qualify me as someone with “low interest”? I am also visiting and have requested information from Reed and Oberlin</p>
<p>@milkweed, Clark University is my true safety, and I consider Occidental a target/safety</p>
<p>What goes on in the minds of the admissions people in terms of “level of interest” and trying to keep the yield up can be rather opaque.</p>
<p>You may want to add an additional safety to your list that has some sort of assurance for admission (possibly a “by the numbers” in-state public or a school with an automatic scholarship for your stats that implies admission as well). You may not necessarily have to apply to it unless Clark does not produce an early action admission before its deadline (an EA or rolling admission school that gives a favorable response early enough becomes a safety, so you need not apply to any other school that you would not choose over it).</p>
<p>Listen to ucbalumnus and be very, very careful. Apply to all those schools. BUT, you need to expand the list. For example, 1-5 (and even include 1-8) are reaches for everyone. It does not matter how accomplished you are. The competition at these schools is much more fierce than you may think. Keep in mind you are competing with the best students from around the world as these schools draw from a global pool of highly qualified applicants. Yale, Georgetown, Brown, Amherst, etc. receive applications from the most accomplished students on the planet. Pomona College is harder to get into than most Ivies. Go to the search box above and type in “rejected” and read the posts thoroughly. There are so many well qualified kids just like you that had a list like yours and ended up in community college because they were rejected by every school they applied for. Not that this will happen to you, but you must use a diversified method that will include (1) Reaches like those above; (2) true Matches and (3) real Safeties.</p>
<p>If you want to go to Yale, Brown or Amherst also apply to other quality schools in the Northeast that will be exciting and give you a similar experience. Schools like Tufts (match) for example. Although a very different experience, you may want to consider NYU (a clear match).</p>
<p>If you want to be in Washington DC like Georgetown, also apply to George Washington (match) and possibly George Mason (safety).</p>
<p>If you want to go to Pomona College, also apply to Pitzer (safety), Claremont McKenna (low reach/match) or the University of Redlands (match/safety) or La Vern (match/safety).</p>
<p>Go down your list and look for other schools that will give you a very similar experience but easier to get into.</p>
<p>9-11 you should be OK. But 3 matches are not enough.</p>
<p>I agree with other posters – I would add another school or two around the level of Occidental to be safe. Your top choices are longshots for anyone.</p>
<p>thanks for the advice everyone! do you guys think that Sarah Lawrence College or Skidmore College could be some good matches? In terms of additional safeties, if Clark doesn’t admit me early than I could always attend my state school (University of Utah, where I know I will get in) and try to transfer after a year or two. Or perhaps Hofstra University could be another safety? I am having trouble finding schools where I am guaranteed admission based on stats that I feel passionate about</p>
<p>Another super selective, but I would add Williams. Williams greatly values participation in music and drama, even if you don’t intend to major in the arts, and even moreso than Amherst and Pomona. Be sure to submit supplemental performance materials in music and theater.</p>
<p>I think Skidmore would be a good match/safety and I’d also look at Conn College. I’d see what happens with your ED & EA applications. If you’re not admitted you can recalibrate your RD list.</p>