Just for fun--help me put together a list (long)

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I'm a rising junior, and will be starting my college search next year. Just for future reference, I'd appreciate any suggestions.</p>

<p>Stats
GPA: 6.3 on a scale of 1 to 7
SAT: 740CR, 720W, 660M = 2120</p>

<p>My GPA dropped this year due to death in the family and other personal reasons, but I expect to raise it to at least a 6.5. I took the new SAT in March (sophomore year) with no previous prepping; I'm taking a course in the fall and am aiming for a 2300+.</p>

<p>Extracurriculars
Horseback riding (10+ years, noncompetitive)
Photography (3 years of classes; work displayed in local exhibitions)
School newspaper (4 years; aiming for editor senior year)
Community service (at least 80 hours, probably much more)</p>

<p>The number of years is what I will have completed by the time I graduate. This is my weakest area--most of my ECs to date have been pretty informal, like writing, painting, webdesign, and so on. I'm planning to join the debate team next year, I'm looking for a job (difficult because I'm not 16 yet), and I'm working on a novel/memoir.</p>

<p>Hooks/miscellaneous</p>

<p>I've lived in four countries and gone to six different schools. I came to the US in 2001 as the daughter of two Swedish diplomats, knowing only a few words of English. I'm now fluent in three languages (English, French, and Swedish) and manageably incompetent in a fourth (Spanish). </p>

<p>I go to a prestigious private school in DC, and will graduate with a bilingual IB Diploma in French and English. I've consistently taken the most challenging classes that my school offers. My schedule for the next two years will include the following:</p>

<p>IB Math HL
IB Chemistry HL
IB English HL
IB History SL
IB French A2 SL
IB Art SL
Theory of Knowledge
Journalism</p>

<p>I hope to emphasize, maybe in my essays, the fact that I'm not a "humanities person" or a "math/science person"--I have interests all over the place, and I'm able to do well in all of them.</p>

<p>I'd also say I'm a decently nice and personable individual :D</p>

<p>Possible majors</p>

<p>I used to be absolutely positive that I was going to be an English major (not bad for a recent immigrant, right?) and work in the publishing industry. I'm still somewhat attracted to that idea, but I'm also interested in mathematics, chemistry, psychology, and more. I'd appreciate a school with strengths in many different disciplines and a fair amount of flexibility.</p>

<p>Finances</p>

<p>"You won't have to turn down a school because we can't afford to send you," according to my dad. I'm lucky to have parents who prioritize my education, even though we are by no means wealthy. It goes without saying that I'll take every opportunity to minimize the cost, but it won't be a deciding factor.</p>

<p>What I'm looking for</p>

<p>I'm ambitious, and like most people I have Ivy aspirations, but I need to find a list of schools that I'm reasonably likely to get into. Some factors that are important to me:</p>

<p>*Location: City or medium-sized town. Rural areas and small towns make me claustrophobic.</p>

<p>*Size: Large enough to meet new people; small enough to be more than a number.</p>

<p>*Coed/single-sex: Definitely coed.</p>

<p>*Sports: Shouldn't be a huge part of campus life.</p>

<p>*Fraternities/sororities: Same as sports.</p>

<p>*Housing: Guaranteed on campus for all four years.</p>

<p>*Religious affiliation: None; I'm atheist.</p>

<p>*Politics: Mixed but leaning left. I'm pretty liberal, but unlike many I'm not rabid about it.</p>

<p>*Intellectual atmosphere: Very important. I love deep discussions late at night and taking random classes just because it's interesting and reading everything from Richard Dawkins to Terry Pratchett. Intellectual curiosity matters a lot.</p>

<p>*Misc. requirements: Good coffee shop, library, and bookstore on or near campus. Chains like Starbucks and Borders are perfectly acceptable.</p>

<p>I think that's it...sorry about the horrendously long post. Any suggestions?</p>

2

<p>You have great stats. Keep it up and you should have no problem getting into some really awesome schools.</p>

<p>Your paragraph about the intellectual atmosphere got me thinking that U Chicago would be a good fit for you. It's in a great city and seems to be about the size you want. Sports and frats/sororities aren't a big part of campus life. There is an enormous emphasis on intellectual discussion and love of learning, which you definitely seem to have!</p>

<p>Hope that helps!</p>

<p>P.S. In terms of cities, etc. I would advise you to stay open-minded. I'm from New York but I'm a junior currently living in Seoul (pop: just under 10 million). When I began my college search I was sure that I would never be able to survive without a city nearby! But I found some great advantages to colleges in more rural areas, such as outdoor activities, (generally) more close-knit campus life, etc. Remember that you'll change over these next two years :)</p>

3

<p>most top 25 private colleges will work out fine for u</p>

<p>it really depends on what kind of ppl u hang out, u have A LOT OF choices once u r in college, every school's got a lot of intellectuals</p>

4

<p>m_c: Thanks, I'll definitely look at UChicago. I've heard that it's pretty preprofessional and intense--is that true? I'm pretty laid back personality-wise, so I don't know if that would be an issue.</p>

<p>ThomYorke: That's a good point. :)</p>

5

<p>Emory
Wash U
Georgetown</p>

6

<p>Lots of schools will come close to meeting your description. But I can think of one that meets every single one of them well.</p>

<p>Macalester</p>

7

<p>Here's your list, though don't forget to find a safety. . .</p>

<p>Medium-sized (2500-6000)urban/suburban: Brown, U of Chicago, Washington University, Johns Hopkins</p>

<p>Small (1500-2500) urban/suburban: Swarthmore, Pomona, Macalester, Barnard (single-sex but check it out anyway), Reed</p>

<p>Safety options: Lewis & Clark, Occidental, Pitzer</p>

8

<p>You are only about two hours down the road from Swarthmore. You could drive up or take the train, door to door to the center of campus, from downtown Washington.</p>

<p>I'd recommend swinging by for a visit sometime next year when school is back in session. It solidly meets most of your requirements. A bit on the small side, but it's the epitome of the "intellectual", "athletic", and "non-frat" campus culture you describe. The immediate surrounding neighborhood ritzy secluded "inside the beltway" suburban neighborhood with most of the houses built between 1850 and the 1930s. Half mile away is a busy commerical thoroughfare/shopping mall. </p>

<p>There's a coffee bar (in one academic building) and a sushi bar (in another, the Science building) in addition to the normal college snack bar in the student center. Both the coffee bar and the sushi bar are gorgeous spaces, high wood ceilings and glass walls overlooking gardens and lawns -- the school makes comfortable student/faculty gathering spots the centerpiece of new academic buildings for some reason. There's a funky bookstore on campus in the basement of the student center. </p>

<p>Or, a Starbucks and a Barnes and Noble, a half-mile from center of campus (on a direct city bus route if you don't feel like walking). Or, downtown Phila is 28 minutes away by train (the campus has its own station).</p>

9

<p>I'd add Cornell and Columbia to the "reach" category. I'm not sure how the IB system works - and if others know, please correct me - but in the 4.0 GPA system, your GPA doesn't match your SAT scores, at 3.6; that's the only weak point I can see. Otherwise, you're an excellent candidate. Good luck! :)</p>

10

<p>audioslave: Just to clarify -- My GPA is the result of severe grade deflation at a competitive school, and is not comparable to a 3.6 at a public school. No one ever gets a 7.0 here.</p>

<p>others: Thanks for your suggestions!</p>

11

<p>Hey, thisyearsgirl, UChicago is definitely NOT preprofessional! In fact they're POINTEDLY not preprofessional. They refuse to offer preprofessional programs, you have to just make sure you get the courses (Although your advisor will make sure you do so-- there's just no official track). They're very intense, yes, but it's ALL about the academics-- they have their "Life of the Mind" thing all over the place.</p>

12

<p>anisky: Thanks for clarifying!</p>

13

<p>I can understand what you mean, because there's also grade deflation at my own school. Raising your GPA to roughly 6.5 (as you hope to do) will be very impressive. I'd also add Georgetown to your list (if you don't mind spending a few more years in DC! :))</p>

14

<p>Actually, I'm hoping to get out of DC as soon as possible ... I've had a great time here, but I don't think I'd ever stop feeling like I was still in high school. Thanks for the suggestion, though. :)</p>

15

<p>thisyearsgirl, if you don't want to go to a place that's too preprofessional (which UChicago isn't, as anisky said ;)) I would avoid Georgetown (especially also because you want to get out of DC!) I have a few friends who are at Georgetown and I've heard that Georgetown students go to college in order to further their careers versus furthering their education. I'm SURE that's not true for all students, but that's the trend I've heard of.</p>

<p>I can't help thinking that maybe you would like Yale. It's got a BEAUTIFUL library -- at least from the pictures, one of the most impressive I've seen. And the gothic architecture is just gorgeous. It's like Hogwarts! Also, quite a few of my friends visited over spring break and they were impressed by the student body. They said that they actually seem like real people which they found lacking in some other schools, lol. Plus they said that some Yale guys are cute, too -- that kind of stuff is important! ;) The downside is that it is in New Haven and not near a big city at all.. but maybe you'd be interested anyways.</p>

<p>Good luck with your IB diploma. I'm a rising senior and in the middle of a few IBS exams (plus SATs and all that!). Junior year's tough but don't let it get to you :) Keep a social life, do sports or art or something like that to relieve stress, and always tell yourself that it could be worse. It'll be over before you know it...</p>

16

<p>m_c: But there are things to do in New Haven, right? It doesn't have to be a huge city; as long as it's not in the middle of nowhere that should be fine.</p>

<p>And cute guys are a definite plus, of course :D</p>

17

<p>Possible majors</p>

<p>I used to be absolutely positive that I was going to be an English major (not bad for a recent immigrant, right?) and work in the publishing industry. I'm still somewhat attracted to that idea, but I'm also interested in mathematics, chemistry, psychology, and more. I'd appreciate a school with strengths in many different disciplines and a fair amount of flexibility.</p>

<p>Check out Johns Hopkins University in nearby Baltimore,MD.They have all the majors your interested in plus a beautiful campus.Right now they guarantee housing on campus for frosh and sophs but are building more housing (which will be finished in 2006) to house jrs & srs).I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.Good luck with you search!</p>

18

<p>I talked to my school's college counselor today to ask about GPA conversions. Apparently a 7 is equivalent to an A+ and a 6 to an A-. Logically, then, an A (or 4.0) would be a 6.5 ... which would bring my average up to an unweighted 3.8. She says colleges don't convert, though.</p>

<p>I heard that one of the current seniors got into Brown with a 5.8, but I don't know if that's true.</p>