<p>Alright, it's getting closer and closer to that time where we wrap our life accomplishments into applications and send them off to a group of people we'll never meet to be judged on whether or not we're good enough (okay, I'm not really THAT much of a pessimist). So I was wondering, with what I've done so far, what schools do you think would be good reaches? What about matches and safeties? (I really don't know where I want to go, this is such a big decision and I'm reluctant to make any decisions).</p>
<p>Here are the basics:
I am white and live in Massachusetts.
3.81 UW/4.27 W GPA (12/324 rank)
2140 SAT (800 M, 680 CR, 660 W), 800 Math II, 780 US History
Captain of 3 varsity sports, 600+ hours of community service in the church and at local camps, NHS (and a lot of other ECs and awards that aren't completely relevant at the time being)</p>
<p>I plan on retaking the SAT for a 2200 (700 CR and W). If I can get good recommendations (which I know I can) and write a strong essay, what schools do you think would be a good fit, from an admissions viewpoint? (I'll narrow by location/major/size etc. in due time.)
Thanks for any input.</p>
<p>Reaches:
Rice (Texas)
The Institute
CalTech
Princeton
Brown University
Stanford</p>
<p>Matches:
Cornell (a bit of a reach)
Duke</p>
<p>Safeties
UPenn (inbetween match and safety)
Boston University
Boston College</p>
<p>Of these it seems like a good fit for you would be Duke/Stanford as there are a lot scholar athletes like you. Also, there will be plenty math oriented kids there too. If you can get a 2200 you will probably get into Duke… maybe Stanford. </p>
<p>*I’d recommend taking Physics SAT 2 or AP Physics C Senior year if you want a decent shot at the tech schools.</p>
<p>I hope none of the following post discourages you SuperFanMike, I’d just like to be a little more realistic than GreedIsGood is being.</p>
<p>UPenn is NOT a safety. For ANYONE. It’s a reach. Duke and Rice are similarly difficult to get into, and if anything, Duke is harder. And unless the OP is being recruited by Duke/Stanford, I don’t think being a scholar athlete will boost his chances to those schools in particular. Captaining 3 teams and maintaining great academics is certainly impressive and will help a lot with applications in general; what I’m saying is I don’t think Duke/Stanford necessarily accept more scholar athletes (I mean ones who aren’t good enough to be recruited) because they’re sports schools.</p>
<p>Greed’s list needs to be rearranged.</p>
<p>None of the colleges he’s listed are safeties … BC and BU are probably between safety and match for the OP.</p>
<p>Haha, thanks for the reply. Just because I’m not exactly sure where I fit in grade wise doesn’t mean I don’t know how the top schools generally seem to stack up. Thanks for the input… it gives me a general idea of where I belong. Of course, I’d be more likely to classify Princeton and Stanford as faaaaar reaches.
Thanks again. :D</p>
<p>You’re asking us for advice, but you didn’t give us any info on your interests and intended majors. Tell us a lil bit more so its easier than listing top 25 schools from usnews.</p>
<p>And don’t apply to schools just because of prestige, imo.</p>
<p>Lol, I was just trying to get an idea of where I stand competitively. If you want to know, I am looking at business (or maybe engineering?). Also, I would like a school in the Northeast, preferably no farther south than Maryland or Pennsylvania. Also not too small, probably 5,000+ students at the least. And of course I’m not just gonna apply to schools based on prestige… I’d rather enjoy my four years than wow distant relatives with a big-name school.</p>
<p>Bentley looks like a good back-up choice. I was also thinking of applying to Babson or Northeastern as safeties too, just in case. But what schools do you think would be accurate matches for me, and where should I be reaching?</p>
<p>Are you good enough at any of those 3 sports to be recruited to an ivy? Or D3 schools like Carnegie Mellon, Case Western, or any of the UAA schools?</p>
<p>As far as those three sports go, I don’t think I’ll be recruited unless I get a 30 second PR in the mile (who knows, anything can happen). But thanks for the advice, I have a much better idea of where I fit in the admissions process now.</p>