Hello, I’m still unsure as to which colleges to apply to and would like have some parent advice as to where to send some applications.
My unweighted GPA is 3.58 (this is due to one class, which I got a D and a C in, but later retro for an A) weighted is 3.85. My UC GPA is 4.16 and my CSU GPA is 3.91. My parents make 200k< but merit scholarship would be be nice…doubt I qualify though. My SAT is 1320/1600 but I retook in October and am expecting 1400+. My ECs are strong and so are my recs. Interested in outdoor activities (hiking, biking, camping, backcountry, etc), music, Hillel, intramurals/club sports. Biology/neuroscience major, would prefer a smaller school but any suggestions are good. I like rural, but again, anything works. I’m applying to a lot of UCs and Cal Poly SLO, what are some privates that could be recommended to me that aren’t too hard to get in? Thank you!!
I’m not sure where your stats fit in, but have you looked at Reed College up in Portland? I believe their strongest major is biology and it is certainly a great area for your outdoor interests. I know they have a Hillel there. And it’s a small school. If you like the Portland area, there is also Lewis & Clark, where your stats might be more in line. Again, small, outdoorsy.
SLO sounds like a perfect fit for you. May want to also consider University of Utah for your outdoor interests - it’s a WUE school, plus there is OOS merit that is granted based on test scores (believe you either go WUE or Merit but not both) - easy to attain in state tuition after one year. Boulder would be another but expensive. Know these are publics but thought they may work for you. Good luck.
@b1ggreenca @my2caligirls thank you so much! Will definitely look into those colleges
Try the supermatch function to the left.
Also get your hands on some good college guide books (ex. Fiske, Princeton Review, Insiders Guide) and start reading – look for schools that match your academics and interests.
University of Redlands. It’s private; not rural but close to the great outdoors.
Another option might be UBC - public not private, and obviously in Canada. Incredible outdoor options at your door step. It’s a large school but I would argue that it could fit your interests extremely well. Cdn $ is low and may make it affordable - explore their website. Certainly comparable to a mid-tier UC in terms of academic quality.
Do what you can to improve that GPA. Bumping the SAT up to 1400 should bring some of the more selective schools into range.
These are all excellent LACs in Pacific/Mountain states that might admit you. They are either rural or very close to the Great Outdoors:
Reed
Whitman
Willamette
Colorado College
Pitzer
Scripps (women)
How competitive would pitzer be for me? And thank you for the suggestions! @prezbucky
@my2caligirls I’ll check it out! Thank you 
I’ve also been looking into SLO and I really like it!! How competitive would it be for my CSU GPA and SAT? It is currently my top choice
SLO could be a Match to a Reach depending upon intended major. There are majors at SLO that have a 10% acceptance rate up to 90+% acceptance rate. You have to select a major and they do not accept Undeclared. Switching majors has become easier the last few years, but students start taking major classes during your Freshman year as opposed to many other schools where you mainly focus on GE’s.
Here is 2016 Freshman profile to see how you compare:
Pitzer has become pretty competitive – maybe a low reach with a 1400 SAT. Worth an app, though, if you’re drawn to it.
@Gumbymom the GPA’s listed are CSU GPA’s correct? Also, how hard is it to transfer from lets say, the Agriculture school to the Science and Math school? To transfer majors, do you need to be within the specified “school” or can you switch to any major? (I don’t think this would apply to majors such as engineering, etc…)
Easier to switch within the College than between. They will consider your original HS stats to see if you were qualified for the new major and then come up with a plan of required pre-req’s you must finish with a specific GPA to transfer. This keeps applicants from using the “back door” by applying to an easy major to get in and then switching.
@gumbymom how hard would it be to get into the biological sciences/biology major? I think my gpa and sat are on the lower end, but I have a ton of extra points from having extra semesters of visual arts/physical sciences/math/foreign language
Biology has about a 13 % acceptance rate so pretty competitive. Since you are below the averages, I would say a High Match-Low Reach.
I would calculate your MCA score which SLO uses to rank applicants. There is no definitive MCA score threshold established for any majors, but 4700 seems to be a good score.
I will give you this link for major target projections at SLO: http://content-calpoly-edu.s3.amazonaws.com/ir/1/images/2016-17%20Enrollment%20Projections.pdf
You take the FTF target for each major and multiply by 3 and then divide by FTF apps to get an approximate acceptance rate.
@Gumbymom I calculated my MCA, mine is 4703. I also figured out a bunch of acceptance rates, so now I’m even more unsure as to which major I should apply as. Its going to be a tough two months figuring that out. Thanks for the help!!
You might look at University of Puget Sound where you should get good merit money, and although not a private school, U of Oregon could be a fit. More difficult to get in, but fits the other criteria, is Colorado College.
4700+ MCA score for SLO is a solid score so you should be fine for the majority of the majors. SLO admissions should be interesting this year since ED is not offered. Usually 1/3 of the Freshman class was accepted during the ED round, so I am not sure if RD will be more or less competitive. Select the major that you would prefer regardless of acceptance rate and select alternate major which is less selective. In the past few years, highly qualified applicants that were unable to get into their 1st choice were accepted to their alternate major so something to consider.
Reed offers almost no merit - only $2K for NMF. Look at Lewis and Clark across the river in Portland. Whitman and Willamette are good options mentioned above.