GPA, Rank, and Test Scores 4.02 UW, school doesn’t rank (but in top 10%), likely applying test-optional
Unweighted HS GPA: 4.02
Weighted HS GPA (incl. weighting system): n/a
Coursework
School offers limited number of APs, having switched to more advanced/honors classes. Maximum rigor in humanities, taking AP calculus AB and advanced physics senior year. Completed Spanish 5 in 9th grade, and due to schedule conflict was unable to take foreign language sophomore year. Started with French 1 junior year, and will take French 2 senior year. Has taken every available photography course as electives, and will be in advanced arts seminar senior year
Awards several academic awards through school, scholastic arts silver key and honorable mentions awards, snowboarding team individual award, Dartmouth College Book Award
Extracurriculars
Working actor and SAG-AFTRA member with series regular credits; nominated for major acting award; proctor; student body treasurer; national honor society leadership position; cum laude society; summer job working at amusement park climbing wall; rock-climbing team; snowboarding team; crew team; school theater productions;
Essays/LORs/Other
Very strong writer with unique life experiences
Cost Constraints / Budget
Likely full-pay; would welcome merit awards
Schools
Safety *(certain admission and affordability)
Wheaton College (MA)
UVM (state flagship; in the running for Green and Gold full tuition scholarship)
Likely *(would be possible, but very unlikely or surprising, for it not to admit or be affordable)
Clark University
Dickinson
Bard
Match
Oberlin
Whitman
Lewis and Clark
Reed
Connecticut College
Occidental
Kid likes smaller LAC s with lots of outdoor opportunities (loves to climb and snowboard), prefers open curriculum. Likes northeast and west coast–would consider midwest.
Looking to add to the list of likely and matches–we welcome your suggestions!
I like your list - this should offer a lot of options.
One consideration in ED may be whether he continues to work and the ease of doing that. The other is how outdoor interests are prioritized. Those two could be at odds.
My initial two cents is that is already plenty of applications! There might be good suggestions for additions, but at least I would consider trying to stay at no more than that, or ideally trim the list a bit.
Anyway–have you looked at Bennington? My understanding is they are very strong in visual arts including photography.
Hampshire is a pretty unique LAC, and I understand this is a strength of theirs too.
Vassar would seem to have it all! A two hour train ride to nyc and it’s acting opportunities, the Shawangunks (climbing destination) within, what, a 30 minute drive, and a slightlier easier admit for a boy. Plus a pretty renowned theater program. Plus the Catskill Mountains and Mohonk Mountain House an hour away, give or take.
Obviously, a big reach but your student has an intriguing background so I’ll throw Northwestern out there. For a safer LAC that is pretty artsy how about Skidmore?
IIRC, strength in Theater is not a deciding factor here. FWIW, Wesleyan does have an excellent varsity crew team within walking distance of the Connecticut River and is a 5 minute drive to the Portland rock quarries.
I agree that I think you already have a pretty good list. If you’re really looking to check out any other possibilities,these are some other possibilities:
Colorado College: About 2200 undergrads
Grinnell (IA): About 1700 undergrads…and this would be a reach
Pitzer (CA): About 1200 undergrads and part of the Claremont Consortium which has about 5k undergrads
Yes–it is my child. He will continue acting, but since most auditions are fully virtual for tv/film now geographic location within the US is not as important to that aim as it was pre-pandemic.
Northwestern is a good idea; he has not typically been interested in urban settings (with a few exceptions, like Oxy and Reed/Lewis&Clark) but we will look into it.
Skidmore hovers on the periphery of his list–we were underwhelmed when we visited with his older sister two years ago and have heard some not great things about housing there of late.
Thank you for these suggestions! Out of the ones you listed it seems like UPS and Sarah Lawrence are the ones that best fall into the “likely” and “match” categories…
Yeah, that’s one of the reasons why I usually categorize with probability terms with my definitions of those admissions percentages. But UPS and Sarah Lawrence would probably be likely (60-79%) or extremely likely (80-99+%) admits. Colorado College and Pitzer I’d probably say have 20-40% chances (lower probability…but what many posters seem to consider “match” schools…but I don’t like that term for many reasons, including the fact that people all seem to mean something different by it). Grinnell is probably a low probability (less than 20%) chance of admission.
All of the above, however, would be if your kid was an anonymous kid with this background. If your kid has name recognition, then that would be a definite hook and would increase his chances for admission.
Or face recognition since most of these schools have arts supplements that include drama. If OPs son submits an acting supplement with resume his odds should be significantly higher than a typical student.
My understanding is with Bennington, you definitely have to want a small school (smallish even by LAC standards) in rural VT–but I gather kids who DO want that sort of experience tend to love it.
As usual with such schools, they apparently also have a fanatically loyal alum network, and they specifically have lots of people working in visual arts in places like NYC.
I note they also have this cool “field work term” where everyone has to do something like 6 weeks of internships (or equivalent) every year, usually in winter although I think they have gotten more flexible on timing post-COVID. Anyway, some people seem to think that sounds like an extra burden, but I gather a lot of Bennington kids think it really helps them focus their studies and network, and of course the college gives them a lot of support in terms of finding suitable positions. Your kid might well be able to fulfill this with acting, but I think other experiences could be useful too.
Finally, they appear to have a really robust merit aid program, offering up to $40,000. See the FAQ Does Bennington award merit-based aid?
In summary: others here might know better, but I get the sense Bennington understands it would typically be a safety/likely for the sorts of people also applying to, say, Vassar, but it wants to take a run at wooing you there with a combination of its specific charms and some merit aid.
So obviously there are plenty of other great options on your list already, but off hand it did stand out to me a possible really good fit. I also personally think giving a generic “ranking” to an LAC like this is virtually meaningless–it is a very custom experience, but if it is a great fit, you might well see it as much more attractive than generic rankings would suggest.