I’m a rising senior with around a 3.3 UW GPA (took 8 AP’s so far and taking another 6 senior year), 1570 SAT, and national merit scholar from Virginia. I want to go into something science related, celluar and molecular biology is on the top of my list but the problem is that I really don’t know what I want to do in college and beyond. I heard that LACs are good for exploring options and really finding what I want to do for the rest of my life. I also prefer the smaller science classes that LACs seem to have. What are some good liberal arts colleges in the Northeastern area (basically anywhere north of VA) that would fit my stats (aka not ivy league level or something extremely difficult such as Swarthmore). I’m looking from something near the 20-40% acceptance rate at the moment.
I think @circuitrider meant Amherst, MA for Amherst College. I agree that those are a good list of schools to start with. Amherst and Williams will be more competitive or about as competitive as Swarthmore (fair warning) for admission.
@Chembiodad - agreed, but when replies start with Williams and Amherst (among others), thought I’d put it out there.
Without knowing more about the current HS of the OP, the test scores and being a NMS when compared to GPA suggests (to me) that there may be more to the story. A hook and/or a story could make any of them possible, although the OP comment about Swat makes it seem like others listed above are reaches.
Muhlenberg, Ursinus, Lafayette, Franklin and Marshall, Dickinson, Bucknell, and Gettysburg (all in PA), Geneseo in NY, all have good science programs. Did you think about URichmond, in VA? I have a recent UR graduate and a current UR student, both Biochem/Molecular Bio majors. Science programs at UR are excellent.
@mamag2855 I didn’t even know that existed to be honest I knew of Washington & Lee but I didn’t know there was another school like that in Virginia, thank you for the suggestion. I also looked at the others but those campuses in particular feel like they’re in the middle of nowhere (I was at Dickinson for an entire summer a few years ago) and, I don’t want to sound to arrogant, but a lot of them are below my matches (not all of them, Lafayette looks good but Geneseo, I’m assuming is SUNY, not a very viable option). But thank you for the suggestions, I’ll keep them in mind.
@EyeVeee My only special hook is my current internship at a very well known lab, otherwise they’re pretty mediocre. I’m just a lot better at standardized tests than everything else (I forgot to mention National AP Scholar), so I was hoping my SAT would make up for my GPA in particular. I just wanted to be realistic so I was aiming at the 20-40% acceptance rates, making schools like Swarthmore and Amherst a difficult reach for me.
Thank you all for the suggestions, I took them all into consideration and I added a fair amount of these schools to my list. I am still open to more suggestions and advice as to where to look next.
Your SAT is excellent, but your gpa may raise a red flag to competitive universities, as it doesn’t align with your test scores - so you may need to cast a wide net. Thus, the comment that some of the suggestions listed are below your matches, may be the case for your SAT but not your GPA.
You could also look at Conn College and College of the Holy Cross, 2 LACs strong in the sciences, and Holy Cross has a terrific newish science center. Your SAT is above range for both, but GPA is below
@wisteria100 I heard that colleges care about class rigor as well, I have taken literally every difficult class (AP Chem, AP Bio, AP Calc, etc) that was available in my school (albeit a B, B+ average for all my classes ). Does that help the low GPA a little because I would have taken 14 AP’s by the end of highschool, all being moderately difficult (think not Psych or some other class like that). Thank you for the honesty regardless, College of the Holy Cross looks exceptionally good although it’s a Catholic college, but I think I could get used to that given I don’t care too much about religion.
@taichiya - A 3.3 with a lot of rigor is definitely viewed much more favorably than a 3.3 without rigor. Most of the schools suggested on this thread are going to be looking for rigor, so you are good there. Good luck
@taichiya - I would assume that once you add points for AP/honors classes, your GPA will be over 3.5. That’s not great, but I don’t think (given your testing scores) that it absolutely eliminates the possibility of going to one of the higher rated LAC’s.
My biggest bit of advice for any school listed above, consider ED options, get to the campus if at all possible, and profess your love for the school(s) as much as possible. Any supplemental essays will have to be very good, as well as the Common App one. Write your essays now…and refine them until you send in your apps.
If you pick a favorite and focus on getting in, I think it’s possible. Appreciate that all of these schools are very competitive, and manage your expectations…but don’t say no to yourself for any schools. Just make sure you have a reasonable backup plan.
Agree with @EyeVeee that applying ED can be very helpful in terms of LAC admissions BUT I’d caution the OP to only go that route if 1) he/she has a top choice college and 2) the college appears affordable (use net price calculators). If the OP is still unsure about where to apply and/or needs to compare financial offers then ED is probably not a great idea.
@taichiya I still think you should keep keep Franklin and Marshall on your list, which is very close to downtown Lancaster, a very nice small city with shops, restaurants, etc. Your test scores and course rigor are good, but you need to understand that the colleges suggested by me and others in this thread will all have other high stats students, too.
What is your family’s budget for college? That is really the most important piece of information you must have before pitting together a college list, so that you don’t waste time applying to unaffordable schools.
@mamag2855 My financial situation is a large factor when I ultimately choose my college at the end, but I was going to wait until I got the financial aid packets from the college then decide after. Although my parents would probably be fine with paying whatever amount, I’m looking for colleges that will give me good aid anyway to save money. So, to clear it up, there’s no real limitation but a good mix of a decent school and cheapness is golden in my eyes. I hadn’t really thought about the finances until now, is there any college that stands out in terms of financial aid?
I visited Franklin and Marshall when my sister stayed there for a summer camp and I thought that the town was kind of run down and the dorms weren’t very nice either. There was nothing really “special” about it, but I’m revisiting soon so I’ll get a second opinion for sure. Thanks for the help!
@taichiya Rather than assuming your parents can or will pay $60K+ per year for any college, find out what amount they are actually willing to pay. Every college handles financial matters differently. Some offer only need based aid, some offer merit aid and scholarships. Some meet 100% of demonstrated need and many do not.
All colleges have net price calculators, and you and/or your parents should use them to get an idea of what anount you will be expected to pay.
If your family income is too high to qualify for need based aid at colleges which award no merit aid, you will be full pay. If you cannot afford to be full pay, or your expected family contribution is not affordable, you need to apply to colleges which award merit aid.
If you need merit aid, your best chances for getting some will be at colleges where you are above the 75%ile of applicants stats wise. Most colleges have information about merit scholarships, and clearly state whether they offer any on their websites.
I knew of Washington & Lee but I didn’t know there was another school like that in Virginia, thank you for the suggestion. I also looked at the others but those campuses in particular feel like they’re in the middle of nowhere (I was at Dickinson for an entire summer a few years ago) and, I don’t want to sound to arrogant, but a lot of them are below my matches (not all of them, Lafayette looks good but Geneseo, I’m assuming is SUNY, not a very viable option). But thank you for the suggestions, I’ll keep them in mind.