<p>Paul, Your daughter has excellent grades, a decent curriculum, and some interesting extracurriculars. </p>
<p>However, I tend to be cautious with African American female applicants as they are more common in college admissions than african american males and thus do not seem to get as much of a boost as their male counter parts from their under represented minority status. Females in general - whether black or white - tend to be in over supply in college admissions, and thus often have higher stats than the overall median stats of a particular college or university might suggest. To be on the safe side, I would say that black females need to be at least close to the bottom 25 percentile of test scores.</p>
<p>This is is just my opinion, but I would put Williams and Wesleyan in the same category as U of Penn for just this reason. Your daughter's test scores don't even come close for Williams (25% verbal is 660, 25% math is 630) or Wesleyan's (25% 660V, 650 M) 25th percentile. Now, this doesn't mean she won't have a chance, just that these schools, with their very low acceptance rates, should probably go in the "reach" category, not the match category.</p>
<p>NYU is, in my opinion, a reach as well. They get plenty of minority applicants and thus tend to be more numbers driven and less likely to give real preference for URMs who fall outside of their 25-75 percentiles. Plus, even if she were accepted into the liberal arts school, getting into film classes there for general students is difficult for those not actually enrolled in the film program.</p>
<p>The University of Rochester does seem to give some admissions boost to URMs. Even though her test scores there are still not in the 25 percentile, I'd say it would be safe to consider Rochester a possible match.</p>
<p>I think SUNY Stony Brook would also be a definite match, perhaps even a safety, even without consideration of her URM status. I don't have the numbers for out of state applicants to Penn State, so I can't make any predictions there.</p>
<p>So, looks like your daughter has a good list of reaches, but probably needs some additional matches and safeties. </p>
<p>Syracuse University would be a good solid match for her. They have a strong science program, a diverse student body, and a great communications school. However, as with NYU, taking classes in the communications school can be difficult if you are not actually enrolled in the school, so double check on the possibility of a double major. </p>
<p>Ithaca College might also be worth looking into as a match/safety. They have a strong film/communications program and decent science programs, with the opportunity to cross-register for some classes at Cornell.</p>
<p>SUNY Binghamton would be worth considering due to her great GPA. </p>
<p>The University of Delaware would be a match/safety for her, even as an out of state student, and, of course, has an incredibly strong chemistry program.</p>
<p>The University of Maryland-Baltimore County is worth a strong look. They have are very strong in the sciences and have a special minorities in the science program that mentors URM students. I would say it is most like a match/safety for her. Studnts there are also able to enroll for up to one course per semester at other schools in the Baltimore area, including Johns Hopkins, Goucher and Towson State (the last two have good communications/film programs).</p>
<p>Goucher and Towson STate might be worth a look on their own as well. Goucher is a beautiful LAC that is working hard to build its diversity. It has a very, very good chem/bio/pre med program for an LAC.</p>
<p>Bard College in NY has a fairly large percentage of URM students as LACs go and might be a match for her. They have a good film major and are trying to attract science students. Wheaton in Mass. would be another good possibility.</p>
<p>Finally, I'd suggest you check out some SAT optional schools that don't look at SAT scores in the admissions process. There are actually many great schools, including Bard, Wheaton Bowdoin, Colby, Dickinson and Muhlenberg, that don't require SATs in the admissions process, and instead focus on grades, EC's, character, and other factors like minority status. You can find a complete list of SAT optional schools at <a href="http://www.fairtest.org%5B/url%5D">www.fairtest.org</a>.</p>