Looking for LACs in New England

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Pleease chance me at these top LACs in New England:
Williams College<em>(MA)<br>
Amherst College</em>(MA)
Middlebury College(VT)<br>
Bowdoin College(ME)<br>
Wesleyan University(CT)<br>
Colby College(ME)<br>
Bates College(ME)<br>
College of the Holy Cross(MA) </p>

<p>Senior at Public HS in Northern VA in Fairfax County
Ethnicity: White
Male</p>

<p>GPA: 3.97 (UW) (about top 5% of class)
SAT: 2250
M: 780
CR: 740
W: 730</p>

<p>SAT IIs
Math L2 : 780
US History: 660</p>

<p>APs
US History - 4
Eng Lang. - 4
Statistics - 5</p>

<p>Senior Year Classes:
English 12
AP Calculus AB
French 4
AP Psychology
AP Environmental Science
AP Government
Weight Training</p>

<p>Ex Curriculars:
Varsity XC: (10,11,12) Captain, All District, MVP
Varsity Indoor Track: (11) All-District, Regional Team Runner-ups
Varsity Outdoor Track (10,11) All-District, All-Region
National Honor Society (11,12)
Mu Alpha Theta (11,12)
Science Honor Society (12)
French Honor Society (12)
Ski Club (10,11,12)</p>

<p>Work:
Soccer Ref: August 2003 - November 2005
Caterer: July 2005 - Present </p>

<p>Community Service
Sunday Religion Catechist (11,12), Occasional Community Service Through Church (9,10,11,12) </p>

<p>Awards/Honors
Academic Letter (10,11,12) GPA 3.8 or Higher
Science Fair (9-11)
French Department Award (10,11)
Russian Department Award (11)
World History Academic Award (10)
10-Time Scholar Athlete
National Merit Commended Scholar</p>

2

<p>I think you have excellent chances at all of these schools. Good luck!</p>

3

<p>Pretty strong…especially if you want to pursue collegiate track or XC.</p>

4

<p>Should be a great match for all of them. Your stats line up favorably for this set of the top well known LACs. Williams may be a reach however.</p>

5

<p>I laughed when I looked at the title of your thread. I wanted to say, "Well, they’re not hard to find. The LAC capital of the world (edging into NYS of course.)</p>

<p>Would add NY LACs: Vassar, Colgate, Hamilton, Bard and Skidmore.</p>

6

<p>If you would be happy at many of the schools you listed, my only advice is to apply to as many as you can. S1 got an early write from Amherst but rejected at Swat. Go figure. Nothing is guaranteed, so make sure you can see yourself enjoying all of the schools you apply to. Good luck!</p>

7

<p>Just curious, how does someone with your impressive stats get “commended” by NMSQT? Did you blow the PSAT? Take SAT courses after? To me, your stats look good enough for any of your choices. Good luck, but you won’t need it.</p>

8

<p>Holy Cross offers great combination of academics and athletics with strong school spirit. Also unlike most LAC’s that are in remote locations, HC is only 1 hour from Boston.</p>

9

<p>I do like the fact that HC is close to Boston and Providence and I read on these boards that the school provides free buis services to these cities. I am a little concerned about being out in the middle of nowhere.</p>

10

<p>I did take an SAT prep class and took them twice.</p>

11

<p>You should get into all these great schools or maybe all but one. So you’ll have to decide which to attend. Recommendation–visit as many as you can and see which one feels like the best fit. I’m biased as I’m a Holy Cross alum and the father of a junior who absolutely loves HC. The campus is beautiful and the facilities are great, but I’d guess that should hold true for the schools on your list. All have strong endowments.</p>

12

<p>Holy Cross and Patriot League have Division I sports. Williams, Middlebury and Amherst were #1, #2 & #4 in last year’s national Directors’ Cup Division III rankings and obviously prize student-athletes. The rest of the New England Small College Athletic Conference would like to improve, especially Bowdoin, Trinity, Tufts and Wesleyan in Men’s Cross Country. Two other NESCAC members are Connecticut College and Hamilton.</p>

13

<p>I wouldn’t add anything to your list.</p>

<p>You’re amazing, haha. I think you’ll get in everywhere.</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

14

<p>Thanks for the encouraging words. Much appreciated.</p>

15

<p>Amherst, Williams, Wesleyan, Middlebury, Bowdoin, and Bates are all gonna be reaches for you.</p>

<p>I say that Amherst, Williams, and Wesleyan will be reaches because they constitute the “Little Three” (LAC variant of the “Big Three” [HYP]). Middlebury, Bowdoin, and Bates are reaches because they’re kick-ass schools with excellent students. </p>

<p>Colby and College of the Holy Cross, however, will be low targets.</p>

16

<p>I don’t agree. You’ve got great stats and seem to be a well-rounded kid. Top 5% out of any school in Fairfax these days is impressive——to colleges, too! I think you’ll find a couple of those schools fit you a lot better than the others and if you concentrate on those and target why you really think you’re a fit for them in your app or interview or visit (too late for that??), you’ll get in where you want to. They’re all good schools, but quite different. You’ll find the right one. My D got into Wesleyan with stats not as good as yours on many levels. She had no interest in any others on your list. (You couldn’t have paid me to go to Williams thirty years ago!)</p>

17

<p>CPM, The only factor working against you is exactly what you can’t control: White, middle class, male demographic. </p>

<p>I would agree that Williams, Amherst and Wesleyan are hard to call. Williams and Amherst because they are very selective and Wesleyan because it is quirky. </p>

<p>Are you willing / able to participate in track at the varsity level? Are you being recruited? If yes and yes, then that alone should push you in the admit pile.</p>

<p>If not, then your essays and recommendations will be critical at these three schools. These LACs like multifaceted kids – academics + sports is a good start, but at least at Williams and Amherst, scholar athletes often offer something else like leadership, arts participation or some other hook.</p>

<p>I haven’t visited all of the schools on your list, but it does seem relatively cohesive to me. Wesleyan’s a bit more leftwing, but not outrageously so.</p>

18

<p>A note to Proud Dad: The fact that your daughter got into Wesleyan doesn’t necessarily imply that it’s easier to get into than Williams or Amherst is. Wesleyan’s very much about fit, and your daughter probably matched the personality of the school. In fact, being in the top 5% is fantastic, but it unfortunately doesn’t stand out in the midst of other ranks for the “Little Three,” Bates, Middlebury, and Bowdoin. I know several applicants who were waitlisted and/or rejected from both Wesleyan and Columbia, yet some of them had one of the top three seats in their respective graduating classes.</p>

19

<p>I reached out to the Cross Country coach at Holy Cross and have arranged a weekend visit. I like the fact they are division 1.</p>

20

<p>A friend of mine runs a Catholic Worker homeless shelter in Mass. and is a big peace activist. His son graduated last year from Wesleyan and is teaching now at a public school in the Bronx. He said that his impression is that every student at Wesleyan is an activist for some cause and that it was hard to really stand out as a result. Seems like Wesleyan looks for people who go against the tide.</p>