Need help narrowing my list, please (LAC, Top Us)

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hi,</p>

<p>I have almost all my application materials for the common App finished, but need some help narrowing my list from 7 to 5. </p>

<p>My core list, I definitely want to apply there, or already submitted my application:
- Macalester College
- Middlebury College
- Williams College</p>

<p>But I am not sure which two of the following four I should apply to as well:
- Harvard
- Haverford College
- Cornell University
- UPenn</p>

<hr>

<p>A bit about myself:
Low GPA: about 3.5-3.6
SAT Subject scores: 800, 660, 590
estimated SAT Result from december (what I got on the practice tests, and the practice results matched my subject tests pretty well): about 2000-2100</p>

<p>ECs: Exchange year to the US (I'm international student), entrepreneurship club, National Honor Society, Academic Decathlon, active member in a political party</p>

<p>Awards: some bronze and sliver medals at a local acadec competition in math and science, german youth research award (3rd rank)</p>

<p>Community service: co-organized a non-profit concert for student bands, mentor at a "political student fair", tutoring a debate club</p>

<hr>

<p>Now, I need to narrow my list and pick 2 out of these 4. The schools should have great financial aid for int'l students. But these colleges are all great,and I don't really have a favorite. It should increase my chance to get in one of them... </p>

<p>Harvard: great name, best financial aid and I guess they have the most flexible and 'holistic' admission process. That might help me, since I believe I can write some great essays, I will get some great recommendations and I have some other things in my background which might be interesting (I don't want to mention that here...). But my grades and SAT is very, very low, unfortunately </p>

<p>Haverford: higher acceptance rate, smaller, pretty bad financial aid. But its close to Philly.</p>

<p>Cornell: great University, Ivy-league name but lower avg test scores. But they require SAT 670 on CR for internationals, and I might fail to reach that. Not so good fin aid</p>

<p>UPenn: great University, in Philly, bad financial aid, probably the least liberal, what I don't really like</p>

<p>Could you help me eliminate 2 of these, based on that what I wrote? My main focus is to increase my chances through a wise college selection, and I want to get in a most liberal school. Financial aid also matters. </p>

<p>Btw: my 'save-school' would be a german college-prep, but I fulfill all requirements (probably except the CR 670 at cornell), so I just want to try to get in a better schools.</p>

2

<p>Sorry, unless I’ve missed something, I think all 7 schools you’ve listed will be reaches for you. You definitely need to find more matches and safeties. Your stats aren’t where they need to be for your list.</p>

3

<p>Well, the SAT average for Macalester, Middlebury and Haverford is in about that range. All schools with average GPAs of 3.5-3.6 have SAT scores of 1600-1800…</p>

4

<p>Don’t see all your schools as reaches, but none are guarantees either.</p>

<p>If you’re intent on shrinking your list, Harvard and Penn of your 4 “not sures” will certainly be the greatest reaches and probably should be knocked off.</p>

<p>But I will also strongly suggest you ADD 1-2 schools that are less competitve, more “safe.”</p>

5

<p>I agree with cbug. Unless you come from a country that never sends applicants, it’s likely you will get into none of these schools. I think you misunderstand holistic admissions, it doesn’t mean you don’t need the stats.</p>

<p>Your GPA, unless your schools is unusually tough, your SAT I and 2 of your SAT Iis are sub par for all of these schools, especially as an international.</p>

<p>If you have a safety in your country and these are just super reaches, apply to whichever you like best. If you’re hoping to attend a US college, rethink the whole list except perhaps Macalester.</p>

6

<p>You need more safeties - but from that list, Haverford is the only one that could be a slight possibility.</p>

7

<p>Macalester and Haverford are perhaps matches, but the rest are big reaches, to which you are unlikely to be accepted. You need to add some safeties and more matches to your list.</p>