<p>I was just listing good matches, I never said Wesleyan as a safety, where is safety in that post?</p>
<p>Might want to look at Holy Cross-much better academic reputation than either BC or GW. Grad. placement is stong at HC.</p>
<p>new here...</p>
<p>have you considered a public school as a safety?</p>
<p>Not sure about public schools. Can't think of any at the BC or GW level. All of the ones I can come up with are either better or worse</p>
<p>UMASS Amherst</p>
<p>"Holy Cross-much better academic reputation than BC ..."</p>
<p>huh ???</p>
<p>Are you a Holy Cross alum or something?</p>
<p>Public schools are usually much harder to get in OOS. Unless you are in the top 25% or higher for Public's OOS, it's not a shoo-in, especially in schools like UNC that have quotas. Much better to have Privates as safeties.</p>
<p>There are plenty of Publics at the BC/GW level. Michigan, UNC, UIUC, Berkeley, UCLA, Wisconsin, to name a few. But it's easier to get into BC OOS than to UNC, Berkeley, and UCLA, who all favor in-state students dramatically. Michigan, UIUC, and Wisconsin don't discriminate that much that I know, although UIUC has a very low OOS student percentage.</p>
<p>Haha WesternMass...I don't doubt your ability to succeed @ a top college...but I know how the prep school college officers work and I have a hunch as to where you gooooooooooooo...but let me warn you that their idea of "safety schools" (though they don't like to call them that) can be warped. I had the same situation as you, where they'd try to assign a percentage chance of admittance to certain colleges...be forewarned that they're not always right...you might even get into your tier 1 schools and denied at a tier 3...I've seen it happen. Anyway, some suggestions (though these are NOT in anyway considered safeties in the real world and they shouldn't be considered safeties by anyone but that's just how private school counselors areeeeeeee)....</p>
<p>Union
Colgate (probably too rural for you)
BU
BC
Trinity
Holy Cross
Fordham
Hamilton (same issue with rural)
Lehigh
Gettysburg
Lafayette (dont know much about it just throwing something out there)</p>
<p>Just wondering, how about CMU?</p>
<p>I draw the line at Carnegie Mellon, nope, never a safety, never will be</p>
<p>yep ditto that Crea8tive1</p>
<p>SAFETY (def) - A school that you have above a 75% chance of getting in. You are likely in-state for this school. Your SAT/ACT scores are in the top 25% of all applicants. Your GPA is in the top 25% of all applicants. A school that isn't selective when it comes to admissions (above 50%, higher the better). A school where you could concievably receive academic merit, or scholarships, from. </p>
<p>Does that sound like any of the schools you have listed? No. Find a safety. Not something in the top 50 of the US News ranks.</p>
<p>Again, I'm not bragging, but I probably have a 99% chance of admittance to GW. Seriously. Looking at my schools grid of students who have been accepted, everyone in my range of SAT scores and GPA has been accepted in the last 5 years (same with BC... and Carnegie Mellon). Also, there are even lower ranges where everyone has been accepted. Seriously, learn a little bit about how colleges view certain prep schools (and the types of students who go there) before you try to attack me on something which the thread was not even intended to address.</p>
<p>WesternMass - We are giving advice to you. You asked for it. You wanted our opinions on where you should apply. We were being helpful. We give suggestions, and you continuously shoot them down and tell how you are easily going to get in the schools you have on your list.</p>
<p>If you believe they are safeties, then fine, apply there. But from the criteria given, your scores, your grades, your curriculum, your ECs, if someone doesn't think you are "100% there is no way you can't possibly not get in there", that doesn't mean they are wrong.</p>
<p>I'm giving you advice. My older brother applied to colleges and was rejected, even though his scores were EASILY in the top 25% for SAT, had 5-6 AP classes, had good recs, good ECs. People get rejected that are qualified. That's the admissions process for you. A student may get in because of race over you, much less qualified. A student in-state may get in over you. A student who's family went there may get in over you.</p>
<p>Just because your scores are "in-range", doesn't make it a safety. You need to understand a safety. That's a school that if you don't get in to all your top choices, you can always fall back on. Read my definition. What schools listed can you say "NO DOUBT, 100%, there is no way i'm getting rejected, my scores are better than all the applicants, I should get scholarships from here" to when you apply? Carnegie Mellon and Boston College aren't those type of schools for students of your scores.</p>
<p>Finally, i'll reiterate. We're giving you advice. If you feel you will get in, fine. But don't ask, if your just going to take all our opinions with a grain of salt. Because that's exactly what you're doing.</p>
<p>Here's a safety school for you:</p>
<p>Community College.</p>
<p>A2...well said. I was thinking the same thing. If WesternMass is 99.9% sure that he'll be accepted, then he already HAS his safeties. Clearly, it doesn't matter to him that others might not agree. I still say, look at Holy Cross. Others have given that suggestion too...no response at all to that one.</p>
<p>NO A2, frankly, you are wrong</p>
<p>I asked for schools comparable to BC and GW. I'm still undergoing my college serach, and I would like to look at more schools similar to those.</p>
<p>On another note, I thought that people on this board understood college and the college process. They clearly have no idea about the way that top prep schools (and I'm talking about the very top few) function in regards to sending their students to college. Oh well</p>
<p>I'll also reiterate- people at my school DON'T even apply to conventional safeties all of the time. We are asked to apply (by the college office) to three schools that they classify for us in this third tier. I don't think the school has EVER had a problem with a student not getting into a college. They have classified GW and CMU as two of the schools in that third tier, for me, by the way. Seriously, I trust them, and with good reason. So instead of ripping on me for the way that my successful school functions, address my inquiry.</p>
<p>WesternMass - perhaps you would have been happier with the responses you are getting had you originally stated your question as - what schools are like BC and GW?</p>
<p>If you have spent any time ready postings here on CC, you should have known what people here mean when they are discussing safeties. You came here, posted saying you want more "safeties" a term that is often used on this forum. Then when people respond to that question, you end up having to explain that because you go to such an elite school your definition of safety is different than the one usually used here. If you trust your guidance counselors so much and they are never wrong about your school's definition of safeties, why not ask them to suggest more schools - perhaps if you went and explained what you want that BC and GW don't have (size, geo location) -- whatever it is that makes you want to find more "like them" but not settle for them.</p>
<p>But right now, on this forum you keep using a term that has a meaning different to those you are talking to, than for you -- and then you wonder why you keep getting into arguments about that. Stop using the term safety - obviously us average posters, just don't know enough about your super prep school. Instead of expressing distain for our lack of appreciation for your situation, why not ask the question you REALLY want answered - why not even start a new thread on it so you stop being caught on the whole term of "safety".</p>
<p>How about just asking about what you are really looking for in schools (programs, location. size, etc.) and then let your guidance counselor help you figure out which of those suggested should be considered "third tier." for you.</p>
<p>People on this forum have read about many situations in which confident kids were devastated when decision time came around. OK, maybe those poor kids didn't go to your great prep school - but many were told by the guidance counselors they didn't have to worry. If you feel the situation with your school allows you to ignore these cautions fine - but don't come here and debate what the term "safety" means - ask the question you want answered.</p>
<p>Western Mass - Go away. You are obviously way too good for any of our advice. You have your colleges down. People don't want to give advice to jerks like you.</p>
<p>Personally I think Holy Cross is similar to BC and GW. It is a Catholic college located in a somewhat suburban area of a city. It has strong programs, is similar in size and demographics, but is perhaps just a tiny (and I mean tiny) bit less competitive than BC. I would say it is about the same as GW. Providence College is similar...again...similar location, similar competitiveness to GW at least, similar demographics etc.</p>