I applied to a few colleges and I didn’t get accepted to any that I can see myself at.
I got accepted to a local state college and some liberal arts colleges, but for some reason I thought that I might end up at one of my dream colleges (selective colleges as you probably expected). I didn’t receive much help from my parents (I’ll cut them some slack because they are immigrants) or my guidance counselor. My parents pressured me to apply to ivy league schools that I didn’t want to go to, instead of exploring and applying to schools that I liked on a first expression. My guidance counselor recommended one school that I absolutely don’t care for and they didn’t give much input on the importance of visiting colleges and looking at a variety of colleges. I was a QuestBridge finalist but I think that it only misguided me overall. On top of this, my parents reacted to the rejections worse than I did. I don’t know if any of the colleges I was accepted to are the right place for me. I had it pretty bad in high school so I don’t want to repeat the last four years at home by going to the local college. I also don’t want to repeat high school again by going to a small liberal arts college. I really want change.
College will not be the same as high school, even if you choose a small college.
What colleges are you accepted to that you can afford (including books, room and board, travel, etc)? What do you want to study?
If you really want to add last minute applications, tell us your home state, your stats, and your budget.
A LAC won’t be a repeat of HS. What are your choices? Planned major? Are they affordable?
^ I agree with the above comments. If you can take the time to visit the schools to which you were accepted. You might find you like one.
It’s a tough situation and you have my sympathy, but now you need to move forward and decide what will best help your achieve your goals. College is not high school. LACs are not high school. The students who attend LACs are a self-selecting group. They are looking for smaller class sizes. They want to actually know their professors, and not be taught by TAs or grad students. They want to get to know other stduents and not be adrift in a sea of unknown people. An LAC is great for people who don’t want to be anonymous at a big university. Perhaps they want research opportunties which would be much more difficult to get as an undergrad at a research Uni.
It’s a shame you seem down on the places you got into. If possible, try to visit campus when students are there. Sit in on a big lecture at the university, and sit in on a “big” lecture at the LAC. I am pretty sure you’ll prefer the lecture at the LAC. Go to the food halls, check out the students. If you were offered good fianancial aid at the LAC which makes it as affordable as the Uni, I think you should go for it.
We don’t know which colleges accepted you. Maybe we can give you some feedback on the LAC. Or maybe your local state Uni is the better bet. You can also wait until May 1, when NACAC will publish its list of colleges that have spaces. Sometimes colleges don’t meet their yield for any number of reasons, and some of these colleges are excellent. The downside might be that no money will be available for aid, but you could call the FA office of a college and ask about it. You can also take a gap year. Or apply for spring admission somewhere, but spring admits face their own challenges. Good luck.
Fortunately, I received very good financial aid offers for all of my colleges. Maybe it’s the uncertainty that is making me nervous. One thing that my counselor did say was that I may fit in at a bigger school, but I’m not much of a talker and I’m not sure if he doesn’t know what’s right for me (clearly I don’t know that either). I will definitely try to visit at least one of the liberal arts colleges. I hope you guys are right that college is not like high school. Thanks
LACs are not like high school due to the self selective nature of students who choose to attend.
Can you list all the colleges and the net cost or each?*
This way we can tell you Thierry ‘personality’, if someone’s attended they can tell you about their experience…
*( Tuition, fees, room, board) -(grants, scholarships)=
We have a lot of knowledge of specific schools — if you give us some details, we may be able to give you some specific info that might help you with your decision. No one is looking for you out here, it is ok to share it.
OP, my daughter is a shy kid who felt she would be lost in a big uni. She felt she would never be able to speak out in class or get to know a professor at a big uni. Our high school has about 1200 students. The LAC she attends has about 1800 kids, and by no means does she know everyone. Her biggest class ever had 60 kids in it. Each of her profs knows her by name. She got a reference from a freshman year prof just the other day, for a job she hopes to get in junior year. You will be very lucky to get to know a prof personally during freshman year at a big uni. She finds she HAS to talk in class. It’s hard to escape at an LAC, and believe me, my kid wasn’t comfortable with it at first. She will probably never be comfortable with it, but at least she can do it now.
Many LACs have high retention rates. That means the kids stay, because they are happy. You can easily compare retention rates at the two schools and see if one is more successful at getting freshmen to return the following year. Just google name of school retention rate (also called freshman satisfaction rate.)
You might find that once you are engaged in your classes, and having discussions with kids with interesting opinions who chose to be at that school, and professors who are interested in what you have to say, that you enjoy contributing.
It would be very helpful for you to tell us what your choices are. You are anonymous here and no one has anyway at all of identifying you. Let us help you at least get an idea of what to expect at your choices, so that you can make a decision.
The local college is Stony Brook and if I understand the financial aid offer correctly, I don’t think I will pay anything. The liberal arts colleges are Williams, $1000, and Amherst, some $2000. I was also accepted to Colby but I find it weird that they accepted people who showed very little interest and gave them the designation of Presidential Scholar, including me. Finally, I was accepted to Quinnipiac and my counselor recommended me to apply there on a whim. Their application process was simple, so I thought why not. I think Colby had similar aid to the other liberal arts colleges and Quinnipiac gave me the Deans Scholarship. Though, I think that I won’t be considering Colby and Quinnipiac. I am definitely very lucky to be writing these numbers, but I still have to choose between the three.
I plan on becoming a doctor and majoring/ concentrating in neuroscience, but I still may change my mind or want to do more. I would appreciate if someone could tell me about student satisfaction with the pre-med programs at these colleges. I also would like to research during my time in college and having the opportunity to find a position easily would be good.
Also… I can’t believe how well you understood my apprehension.
OMG…you got into Williams and Amherst? And nearly free? Holy cow…jackpot! Go see them. Not HS at all. You got into two schools that compare with HYP…
Totally ageee… If you turn down Williams and Amherst to go to Stony Brook you are missing out on an amazeballs opportunity.
Williams and Amherst are considered two of the top LACs in the nation, and Colby is right up their with them. You have GREAT options.
Williams and amherst are great schools, but being LACs I don’t know how they compare to the strong and big science program at Stony Brook which is the go-to SUNY for pre-med. Look into the opportunities you’ll have outside the classroom and med-school placement for all of these schools.
I stress the I don’t know about the LACs, but I do know Stony Brook is great for pre-med.
If you’re planning to go to medical school/graduate school, I would advise going to small, liberal arts colleges like the ones you’v been accepted to for research opportunities, internships, and letters of rec. You got in because you fit the mold of what they want as a student, as did everyone else who got in. Thus, you’ll probably find the college environment to be very different from high school and actually quite relatable. I wish you good luck and congrats on your acceptances! 
https://neuroscience.williams.edu
https://www.amherst.edu/academiclife/departments/neuroscience
Amherst is a consortium school so your ability to research at larger Uni is there.
@a20171 WHAT??? Both Amherst and Williams would be great for premed. But, OP has not stated their major.
Amherst is top 10 as a medical school feeder, Williams is top 20.
“I plan on becoming a doctor and majoring/ concentrating in neuroscience, but I still may change my mind or want to do more. I would appreciate if someone could tell me about student satisfaction with the pre-med programs at these colleges. I also would like to research during my time in college and having the opportunity to find a position easily would be good.”
WHAT!!! Serious question, are you just having fun with us? I am super skeptical, my friend…BUT, let’s put it this way: if you are genuine, I am dragging you into one of those colleges myself! 
On the off-chance that you are not just having fun with us, I will tell you, bluntly, that you would be 100% out of your mind not to take a spot at either Williams or Amherst. They are basically in the top five LACs in the country. You can study almost anything there. You will get a world class education. My opinion is that Amherst is the best of the two, and a little more diverse. The town is cute, and the consortium has already been mentioned. Please do not pass up this incredible opportunity, or we will all cry.
ETA: @snowleopard2022 , a good friend’s dsughter goes to Amherst. Loves it. Did research her first summer after freshman year, and has been a paid TA all sophomore year. Great school!
Wow, I really didn’t think that these LACs were all that you guys are saying. My question is genuine, but I’m still not sure about my financial aid offers. I am going to ask my counselor to read them when I see him soon. I can now see that the LACs are a (very) good option, but someone above also wrote that Stony Brook is not short of opportunities.
I am definitely shy and it’s gotten to a bad point. If I choose Stony Brook, I will have the comfort of my room each day. The problem is that I will most likely not have that comfort in medical school. I also don’t want to stay the same. I want to be an outgoing person and eventually a charismatic doctor. I feel that the LACs are the only option for that change, but that it would be very hard for me (again, similar to what someone said above).
My parents also want me to stay at or near home. They always push me to think about Stony Brook, though I understand that it may not be easy to send off their oldest child.