<p>No worries Lake</p>
<p>Wendy,
You have your sights on many fine arch programs. All of them are top flight and I am sure will offer you a wonderful opportunity for a great arch education. This sounds trite, but what you put into it will be what you get out of it, especially in the design fields. Rice, Syracuse, Cornell, Oregon, Pratt, VT, all are very comparable to each other in terms of the strength of their architecture schools. I wouldn’t say that VT is stronger than Rice at all; Rice is terrific and would be a great place to study. Be sure to factor in other variables as well, urban vs. rural, financial affordability, and most importantly where you think you will be happiest. You’ll be at your new “home” for 5 years for a B. Arch degree, so it helps if you like the whole package!</p>
<p>Your GPA looks fine to me and SAT’s are great. One thing that is going to help you in terms of applying to East coast schools is your CA residency. There was a mom on another thread who was speaking to the fact that VT took more OOS kids into the arch program this past year (OOS $). The fact that you female (I hope I am guessing right with your screen name :)) will help you, also. Architecture, like engineering, is a very male dominated field. Being in the minority can only help you when you apply. Anyway, again, best of luck to you. It is a fun and exciting time of your life- enjoy it!</p>
<p>Wendy, Your first decision is whether you are absolutely sure that you want to get a B.Arch. The B.Arch is an extremely focused and arduous program of study but it is also the fastest track to becoming a licensed architect. If you’re not sure or if you’d rather have a broader undergraduate experience then you can get a B.A. or B.S. in architectural studies or ANY OTHER discipline and then go on to a M.Arch program. This takes longer and costs more, but is a common track to becoming an architect.</p>
<p>If you definitely want to plunge into architecture as an undergraduate then you should get a list of schools that offer the B.Arch. Don’t get distracted by prestigious M.Arch programs (like Harvard or Columbia) as that won’t do you any good right now. Within the B.Arch options you can choose a “full service” university like Cornell or Rice or you can go with an art school (Pratt, RISD) of a technical school (VT). All are good choices but are quite different in teaching methodology.</p>
<p>The focus varies: theory, tech, arts, a little of each. Also, think about where you would like to live and work after graduation as firms tend to hire locally.</p>
<p>Don’t get too overwhelmed by the various ranking systems. Fit is important in architecture too. Do your research and find the program that is right for you and have a balanced list of reach/match/safety.</p>
<p>Many undergraduate programs offer merit and need based aid. These are two different things. Ask your parents to complete an on-line calculator to determine how much need based aid you might expect. If you are dependent on *merit *based aid, then your list will be considerably shorter.</p>
<p>to the OP, i’ve read many of momrath’s posts over the years and concluded he/she knows of what she? speaks. great advice.</p>
<p>Wow, Thanks everyone for such great advice!!!
KandKsmom,
Thanks for pointing out all the advantages I have! I have a bit of an insecurity problem when it comes to applying to colleges in the East coast because it seems as if everyone else is just so much smarter than me and I feel like I wouldn’t even stand a chance against the other people in my school. I go to Arcadia High School in LA county. Have you heard of my school? Everyone is nothing short of brilliant and taking 3-6 AP’s EACH year and in this honor society and founder of that club. Although I have a decent unweighted GPA, my GPA would be nothing compared to my classmates if it were weighted. Although it does get to me sometimes, I have to admit, the competitive-ness definitely pushed me to do my best and try to stand out.
Anyways, enough of the self-pity haha. Thanks for your advice! I’m actually strongly considering VT now… Rice sounds a little too much like my school now haha… They also don’t have good athletic programs and school spirit. I was looking for a school like that and VT sounds pretty good! Thanks again!</p>
<p>momrath,
Thanks for pointing out other options but I’m pretty confident in my decision to get a B.Arch. I’m really really interested in it so I’m pretty confident I’ll do well. I don’t think I could stand not doing well when there’s so much to do, so much to learn, so much to be inspired by! I’ve considered the options between “full service” universities and art schools. I kind of want the feeling of a university because I want to be able to go to games and maybe even join a sorrority or something. (although I’m not sure I’ll have the time but having the option sounds nice 
) But at the same time I’m thinking that maybe the art schools will give me better insight into design and will help me incorporate more artistic styles into my future work. Thanks for keeping my head on straight about rankings because I was getting a little to into the DesignIntelligence’s list… Also, thanks for the tip on the on the on-line calc. I didn’t know that even existed ! haha… Lil’ ol’ inexperienced me. Thanks again for your advice. I really appreciate it!</p>
<p>morandi,
haha, thanks for reassuring me that momrath knows what he/she’s talking about. Though, I could tell that he/she was giving some good advice very easily because I agreed with all that he/she said. </p>
<p>Oh and also, if any of you have the time could you please chance me @ this thread? I would really appreciate it but if you don’t have the time then thanks anyways!</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/985783-please-help-me-figure-out-my-chances.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/985783-please-help-me-figure-out-my-chances.html</a></p>
<p>wendy, Cornell sounds like it would be a good fit for you (though it IS very selective). You should also consider some of the bigger publics and privates like Michigan, Oregon, Texas, Notre Dame, WUSTL. There are lots of good choices. And. . .I certainly wouldn’t eliminate the California options, particularly USC .</p>
<p>Yes, I’m thinking about USC… High on my list. Cornell always sounded too hard for me… If you check out my stats at the thread above do you think I could get in? I messed up my junior year by taking just 1 AP & 1 honors course but I think I made up for it with 4 APs my senior year… I never really considered Cornell because it seemed so out of my league…</p>
<p>Wendy, I just don’t know that much about what criteria Cornell uses in undergrad admissions, except that they are looking for smart, talented and dedicated students. </p>
<p>Your GPA and SAT certainly wouldn’t be negatives, but you need to think about what you could do to make your application stand out, especially your portfolio, essays and recommendations. The interview is also critical. As KandKsmom says being female is a plus for architecture, but overall Cornell is very competitive.</p>
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<p>The program as I understand it is extremely demanding. I couldn’t say whether it would be “too hard” for you, but for sure, you’d have to work your tail off. My son is in the M.Arch program and he was prepared for 24/7 work load; however, this may be more than you want for your undergraduate experience.</p>
<p>Alright, thanks for the info! Cornell sounds like a little bit too much but I’ll definitely re-look it and study up. Thanks again!</p>