I’m fairly certain that you do, based on your description of available courses, AP policy, location, etc.
As I understand, your counselor does send a school profile to the colleges that you apply to. I am not sure if that is mentioned anywhere on it, though.
This…
For the average to be 3.7, either everyone is really really super duper smart - like a magnet or private - or they hand out As like they’re Santa Claus hanging out on a street corner passing out candy.
I’m not saying you’re not awesome - because you are - but it could lessen the “strength” of a higher #, etc.
You can only control what you can control - and that’s you - taking hard classes and doing well.
But this is why I was pushing the safety - and not just academic but financial (because you said your family income is $200K+ and typically that’s not going to fly getting you money (or much). At some you can but not typically.
And you are very determined so whereas I would say most who say grad school don’t really know - because they’re 18 - I could totally see you going as you state - and now you need 3 years at full-pay money too…so i’m just urging you to be prepared for all scenarios!!
A “semi”-competitive public school where the AVERAGE GPA is 3.7 (so on average there are nothing BUT “A” students in your school) could give the impression that grades are given too generously (“grade inflation”), which then could “devalue” your own excellent grades.
@weightedblanket As a somewhat “less-rejective” (fixed typo) LAC to research, look at Wash & Lee (since you have Hollins, another VA school). Excellent resources in global politics, study in DC (if interested), middle eastern/Arabic studies, and the option to register for classes in the law school. In addition, it is a member of the Shepherd Consortium on Poverty which may align with your other interests. W&L places great value on students invested in service and provides significant resources to support service endeavors.
While it does not sound like finances are the biggest consideration for your family, I do think you have a competitive profile for the Johnson Scholarship (full ride).
W&L is a “fit” school that may or may not work for you. My D is a student if you have any questions… and one of her close friends just completed a language-intensive study abroad on a Critical Language Scholarship (Arabic).
yep! I’ve worked with the counseling department on the brochure I made, and was able to view the school’s most recent academic profile, which is where I found the information on GPA.
Interesting…But unfortunately not in a good way 
Let me get this straight: you have a very strong area of interest, and the reason you are not going to apply to one of the strongest programs in your field is that doing the application sounds like too much hassle?
Actually, you made a great point. I just realized that Williams and Colby don’t require written supplemental essays, and one of my main priorities is ensuring I can devote the proper time and detail to each school’s supplements. With Georgetown I’d be writing supplements for 16 colleges but applying to 18 instead of writing supplements for 15 but applying to 17.
Definitely! I would be super happy to receive merit aid or in-state tuition at a smaller school or UC, so I will look into the safeties you recommended for sure. But my dad and grandparents have told me with financial aid at a top school they could also cover some/most of law school tuition as well, so I also want to know how strong my chances are at my reaches, where I would get aid even with my family’s income.
Oh, that makes sense. Hopefully my DE and AP courseload (significantly heavier than most in my grade) will be helpful, but I guess it’s out of my control otherwise.
Princeton cares about alumni engagement. Ppl talk a lot about “big donors” but alums who give small but yearly amounts are important to every institution.
Regardless, I think you are selling yourself short. Despite popular belief there are plenty of excellent and passionate yet “regular” students, with “regular” HS ECs at every school, including Princeton. Don’t try to game/analyze the system. If Princeton truly is your top choice go for it - you don’t want to spend the rest of your life wondering what if. Go ahead, make a solid list, if there is an ED2 school you love keep that in your back pocket, and you will have at least a few great options in the end.
Yale counts grad and professional schools as legacy.
Penn is tops of the list for what you want to do, involving the region of the world you’re interested in. Ignore the “it’s just a pre-professional school” canard. It’s not. Take a look at their Modern Middle Eastern Studies BA. Modern Middle Eastern Studies, BA < University of Pennsylvania. And their minimal distribution requirements allow you a lot of leeway to take the other classes you want.
To be clear, I believe some of your current LAC choices would be excellent for your interests (e.g., Middlebury, Colby, Occidental). With respect to suggestions of further LACs, consider Pomona/CMC/Scripps (for excellent programs in public policy and international studies), Wesleyan (offers a College of Social Studies, notably LGBTQ+ friendly) and Hamilton (excellent for public policy; offers term-length programs, with associated internships, in D.C. and NYC).
I think you have a chance at your reaches; they are not out-of-reach. The thing is, there’s no way to know if you’ll get them. If Princeton is your top choice and the NPC is affordable for your family, then REA there.
Run the NPC at all the schools on your list to make sure that the other very expensive universities will provide sufficient aid to be affordable for your family, including law school. Although there are some law school scholarships for alumni from the Peace Corps and such, my sense is that only a small percentage of eligible applicants actually get full tuition ones. Thus, your family should be estimating big bucks for law school when doing their analysis.
You may also be eligible for some very generous scholarships that have lots of additional perks; @DramaMama2021 mentioned the Johnson full-ride at Washington & Lee which is given to about 10% of the students, I believe. There is also a scholarship for Jewish students that @tsbna44 surely knows the name of.
But then there’s a school like McDaniel, that I mentioned earlier. Their regular merit packages are up to $30k, but they also have the Dorsey Scholars (linked to scholarship) that get a full ride plus some other monetary perks (books, $2k for tech, study abroad). Some of the non-monetary perks include the fact that, “They work closely with the President of the college, welcoming prestigious guests to campus and sharing their McDaniel experience.”
The honors program (linked to program), to which I suspect you’d be invited, has typical perks but also, “From the statehouse in Annapolis to embassy row, think tanks, and cultural centers in nearby Washington, D.C., students rub shoulders and exchange ideas with policy makers and performing artists through annual Honors Program trips thanks to the connections created by networked professors. In addition, the program hosts an annual honors lecture bringing renowned researchers to our campus.”
There’s an Arabic House on campus if you want to immerse yourself while in Maryland, plus a semester in D.C. option, too.
https://www.mcdaniel.edu/academics/world-languages-literatures-cultures/arabic-middle-eastern-studies
https://www.mcdaniel.edu/academics/political-science/political-science-international-studies
There’s no need to apply to McDaniel. I just wanted to go a bit more in-depth so you can see that there are some amazing options at schools that don’t necessarily have the Top X cachet. Frankly, I’d be stunned if you didn’t make it to the honors program here, and not surprised at all if you became a Dorsey Scholar. Would having that type of experience be worth an application?
Princeton does not admit by major. Majors are generally declared towards the end of sophomore year. Submit/gear your application based on your interests and demonstrated strengths.
I live in the area and I don’t know that McDaniel will give op the experience she is looking for. It’s a very small campus in the middle of bland suburbia, and doesn’t generally attract top students. For the right kid, it can be a great fit but I don’t think op is that student.
@BKSquared I looked this up info on Yale legacies before posting and there seems to be some misinformation online, or, at least, mixed opinions about offspirng of grad and professional schools. I have no doubt you are right but could you cite- just because I cannot find it!
Congratulations on a great record so far! As you will mostly be viewed in context of your school/what is offered/how your GPA compares, I have some questions based on the info you got from guidance :
To clarify, the average UW is 3.7, the highest Weighted last yr was 4.3, and you have a 3.97 UW? What is your Weighted GPA?
There are 250 kids in your grade and 20-30 of them, or about 10%, are in a higher math level. Have you taken the hardest courses offered in all the other core areas(science, English, foreign language, history?), most if not all 4 years?
Princeton, Williams and your other reaches will care that you have challenged yourself as much as possible. Since you are only a junior, it might help to know what courses are options for next year in the core areas so you can put your best foot forward so to speak. You have great grades so it seems you can handle a hard load.
It is in a communication I got from the AO. It was not for this cycle, so I cannot be 100% sure if this has changed, but this has been Yale’s policy for a long time. If you go through Yale’s Common App section, if you indicate a relationship with someone who has a Yale relationship, it drops down to specific degree earned, including graduate and professional degrees.