<p>As has been mentioned, UChicago has a very intellectual vibe. Not a huge party school, no football team, etc. They do have Greek life, but it’s not at all dominant. Go onto UChicago’s site, go onto sites which give student reviews on different aspects of the college, watch some videos, and definitely get at least one college guide book for more specific info. UChicago has a beautiful campus and is close enough to everything Chicago has to offer including other colleges. It’s also a smaller university with under 6000 grads.</p>
<p>Note that if the 6 application limitation at your high school is only for those requiring support from the high school, you can apply to Berkeley (USNWR #20) to partially satisfy your parents without your high school even knowing (so it won’t count against the 6), since the application to Berkeley uses self-reported courses and grades (no transcripts unless you are admitted and decide to attend) and does not require recommendations. (If you really don’t want to go there, you don’t have to put much effort into the essays.)</p>
<p>We were at Berkeley last month and our admissions talk was by the international admissions officer. She emphasized that not only do they not require references, they don’t want them either. They don’t read them. They send any paper that is mailed/couriered to them straight to the shredder. </p>
<p>Interesting. On the one hand, that does make it more “fair”. On the other, it means that there are few controls on someone just making things up (though maybe that’s why entrance in to the most popular majors are by a competitive process after you start at Cal).</p>
<p>Editing post #40</p>
<p>The last part is supposed to read undergrads, not grads. I think this forum has been eating some words lately, because I know what I type, but that’s not what shows up in the post. I notice words often missing in other posts as well.</p>
<p>Picking up on what Ucbalumnus wrote, if you really don’t want to have to go to a particular college, it’s fairly easy to make sure you’re not chosen. Just don’t rule out something which may later interest you.</p>
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<p>I would not be surprised if the UC (and CSU) policy of not needing recommendations or transcripts for the application has to do with things like:</p>
<ul>
<li>Minimizing the need for support from the student’s high school. Teachers and counselors may not have much time to write useful individual recommendations (that convey significantly more information than course grades or overall academic record) when they have lots of students to write them for.</li>
<li>Reducing the number of things that first generation, low income, etc. applicants have to worry about when applying to the state schools.</li>
<li>Avoiding the situation where the quality of the recommendation is based more on the recommender than the student.</li>
<li>Offloading the transcript summarization to the applicants, rather than having to deal with it centrally. (Verification is done with final transcripts for those who matriculate, a much smaller number than those who apply.)</li>
</ul>
<p>OP, if IR is your thing, why not consider Tufts? Not quite top 20 on USNWR (#27; Forbes #25), but its Fletcher School is tops in the fields of IR and Diplomacy.</p>
<p>“The International Relations Program at Tufts University is a multidisciplinary program that encompasses history, economics, global health, war and international conflict, the environment and a host of other influences that transform and inform global affairs”</p>
<p><a href=“http://internationalrelationsonline.com/education/international-relations-program-rankings/”>http://internationalrelationsonline.com/education/international-relations-program-rankings/</a></p>
<p><a href=“Guide to top diplomacy programs - CSMonitor.com”>http://www.csmonitor.com/World/2012/0926/Guide-to-top-diplomacy-programs</a></p>
<p><a href=“The Best Universities for International Relations - Synonym”>http://classroom.synonym.com/universities-international-relations-2490.html</a></p>
<p><a href=“Blog - Campus Explorer”>Blog - Campus Explorer;
<p><a href=“Homepage | International Relations Program”>Homepage | International Relations Program;
<p>I’d say Brown or Yale, and UChicago. UChicago is definitely the most “intellectual” one, although all are. To refine, UChicago is seriously intellectual, Brown is freewheeling intellectual, and Yale is RenaissanceMan intellectual.
Northwestern is like the big public schools with frat parties and big sports, but private and with consistently super smart kids.
I second Tufts if you don’t get into Wellesley ED. Top-notch IR program.</p>
<p>Little secret: if your school uploads your transcripts, you can apply to as many schools as you want. Just wait till your guidance counselor and teachers have uploaded your transcripts and recommendations, then add whatever school you want - the colleges will receive the transcripts and recommendations automatically. And the guidance counselors have to sign an affidavit that they’ll send your final transcript (if they don’t, or send it by mail instead of electronically, the school will be blacklisted or something, the details are clearly spelled out.) So, essentially, once the counselor’s uploaded things for your ED app, you can apply anywhere you want.
The exception would be if your counselor actually mails the transcripts one by one, but that’s not too common for international schools. </p>
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<p>Ha! Think that is strange? Princeton doesn’t even have professional schools!! </p>
<p>I am late to this thread, but wanted to reiterate the point about the UC application. It is all self-reported, with scores to be sent by the testing services. Upon admission, if you choose to attend, they will require a transcript, and any disparity can be grounds for rescinding their acceptance. I visited five UCs with my son, and we were repeatedly admonished to re-read, and proofread everything, because an honest error or typo could result in a withdrawn offer. Saying that, it might make a great deal of sense for this student to apply to Berkeley or UCLA. I don’t know whether Michigan has a similar application format. Some state schools do; some do not. I know from our family’s experience that NJ’s public colleges, the UCs, and University of Washington operate on the self-reporting system using their own dedicated applications. UNC-Chapel Hill uses the Common App, I believe. This could be a workable solution for the OP.</p>
<p>Your school cannot stop you from applying to more schools. Any attempt to do so would be unethical. Put your foot down. A policy that harms your future should be crushed and thrown out of the window. In the reality of today’s admissions landscape, applying to just 6 universities is very unwise. I would apply to no less than 9 or 10 colleges and universities. </p>
<p>As for top 20 universities that fit your interests (small student body, instruction-focused faculty and lack of fraternities), I think Brown is the only good fit. Washington University is also a solid fit. And maybe Notre Dame.</p>
<p>Wow - Swarthmore is a HYPSM equivalent? Wow.</p>
<p>But I agree with @MrMom62 - you apply ED at some non-Ivy and get in, you are done.</p>
<p>You apply ED somewhere and don’t get it, what would your chances at an Ivy be?</p>
<p>As for Princeton professional schools, I’m pretty sure they have a divinity school 
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<p>OP, have you pointed out to your parents that US News has TWO top 20 lists - National Universities and National Liberal Arts colleges. They separate them for lots of reason but not because the quality of the education is superior at the Universities. Many would claim the opposite for undergrad education- particularly for the features you have described as being important to you.
If you look at The Forbes list which compares Universities and LACs in the same ranking, there is a mixture in the top 20 with #1, 3, 8, 10, 11, 14, 15, 16 being LACs --> top 20: Williams, Stanford, Swarthmore, Princeton, MIT, Yale, Harvard, Pomona, West Point, Amherst, Haverford, Penn, Brown, Bowdoin, Wesleyan, Carleton, ND, Dartmouth, NU, Columbia. Surely your parents don’t believe US News has any more validity than Forbes. </p>
<p>You might respectfully help your parents understand that (like many many top students in the US) your educational preference is to attend a top LAC for UG ( where you will benefit from all the unique features of an institution that is dedicated to UG education) and you will undoubtedly be well prepared to attend grad/med/law school at one of the research universities they prefer/have heard of. If you plan to attend grad school, you can explain to them the UG/LAC followed by grad/University sequence. Then you both get what you want. </p>