Over 15 College Apps....help me narrow it down?

College Search & Selection
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<p>Actually, Stanford itself knows that worthy students attend community colleges. About half of the small number of transfers Stanford admits every year are from community colleges. Of course, a community college student whose goal is Stanford does need to have safety plans.</p>

<p>To the OP: On the affordability front, have you looked at the lists linked to from <a href=“Links to Popular Threads on Scholarships and Lower-Cost Colleges - Financial Aid and Scholarships - College Confidential Forums”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1678964-links-to-popular-threads-on-scholarships-and-lower-cost-colleges.html&lt;/a&gt; , particularly the full ride scholarship lists?</p>

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Good choices for in state. Riverside is clearly a safety, and you only need one.</p>

<p>Sure, people do transfer from CC to Stanford, but planning on it is taking the hard way. Better to go to some LAC which meets 100% of need and is known to be solid. This is not like trading up on a car, where driving an old Chevy lets you save money until you can afford a Mercedes. Attending CC can also be dispiriting. Being obviously the smartest person in every class is not as good for a person’s ego as it might sound. Plus, it can be terrible for your study habits. See this thread from somebody who transferred from CC to Georgia Tech.
<a href=“Transferring Out of Georgia Tech - #4 by NROTCgrad - Georgia Institute of Technology - College Confidential Forums”>Transferring Out of Georgia Tech - #4 by NROTCgrad - Georgia Institute of Technology - College Confidential Forums;

<p>Also, if you are capable of Stanford, you could probably get a full ride scholarship somewhere. University of Alabama is the prime example. Guaranteed full tuition scholarship for your stats. You could still transfer to Stanford (or any other reach school) from UA.
<a href=“http://scholarships.ua.edu/types/out-of-state.html”>http://scholarships.ua.edu/types/out-of-state.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>In short, before I saw your UC choices, yours looked like an “all or nothing” strategy. UC-Riverside is a true safety and far better than community college. Now you have decent list. Make it as short as you want and reach as high as you can.</p>

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<p>Toss out USC, some mom on CC whose husband is a math professor there and said it’s not good. It has excellent music department though.</p>

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<p>@intparent‌ That’s a shame, I was hoping those Reed stereotypes were false. Of course I don’t want to stay in the dorms all the time, maybe I’ll remove that from the list.</p>

<p>@ucbalumnus‌ Thank you for that, I actually have looked into it but I would have to actually get admitted first, which may be a problem at state schools with my transcript.</p>

<p>@NROTCgrad‌ UCR only has about a 60% acceptance rate, I’m not sure I’d consider it a safety. The reason I may prefer the CC route over a ‘‘safety’’ school is the low cost, small class sizes, and high transfer rates to UCs like Irvine and Davis. I’m afraid that if I go to a school like UCR and don’t like there, I’ll be stuck there for 4 years, whereas I can go to CC for one year and transfer.</p>

<p>@DrGoogle‌ I always thought USC was strong in every field, but I already took it off my list.</p>

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60% tells you nothing about your personal chances. A more important number is SAT scores. Only 25% of UCR students have an SAT over 1800. You are way above that, so you will get in. It is definitely a safety for you (not everybody). You can transfer out of UCR just as easily as CC. </p>

<p>Your SAT is also well above to the top 25% (1890) at Irvine, so it really is a safety too. Plus, equal to the top 25% at Davis. Very close to a safety. You probably will get in.</p>

<p>If you don’t like UCR, then it really does not count as a safety. In addition to getting accepted, a safety has to be affordable and you have to relatively pleased with it.</p>

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<p>@NROTCgrad‌ My UC gpa isn’t very good, though, since the grade disaster happened in 10th grade and they don’t consider freshman grades, which puts me at a disadvantage. I’m not sure that a high SAT can offset such a severe dip in grades. I can’t say whether or not I like UCR, I may end up loving it and not even wanting to transfer. </p>

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Okay. Got it. So, things are less predictable in your situation. Take a look at Ohio Wesleyan University, College of Wooster and Hiram College, all in Ohio. Some sources say Wooster meets 100% of need (I have not been able to confirm this). Hiram specializes in “B” students. Ohio Wesleyan gives great financial aid, and has a reputation for being “easy to get in, but hard to stay.” Looks like you would get a minimum of $22,000 in merit aid. <a href=“http://choose.owu.edu/financialAidAndScholarships/academicScholarships.php”>http://choose.owu.edu/financialAidAndScholarships/academicScholarships.php&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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Consider replacing a couple of those (Conn College and Whitman?) with St. Olaf, which is very strong in math and music for a LAC. </p>

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<p>Wooster does not meet need. <a href=“http://www.wooster.edu/_media/files/about/know/commondatasets/common-dataset-13-14.pdf”>http://www.wooster.edu/_media/files/about/know/commondatasets/common-dataset-13-14.pdf&lt;/a&gt; The CDS shows almost 95% having their need met.</p>

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<p>@NROTCgrad‌ Thank you so much, those are all great suggestions. The thing that I don’t like about Ohio Wesleyan is that it is about 50% greek, but I suppose I could avoid that if I wanted to.</p>

<p>@warblersrule‌ Well, I had considered St. Olaf, but I’ve read on these forums that it seriously lacks diversity. Also, I’m not sure how I’d feel going to a religious institution.</p>

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<p>I know that many of the schools on your list are not very diverse either. Many of your LACs LAC diversity.</p>

<p>I doubt you will even remember if St. Olaf has a religious affiliation if you attend there. It really does not mean much. Nobody is pressured or forced to participate in religious activities. St. Olaf has an excellent music department and very strong in math & sciences. It’s also in the same town as Carleton so if you get a chance to visit you can compare/contrast.</p>

<p>Religion doesn’t really play a big part in religiously affiliated schools. Just do the research on how “serious” religious affairs are taken at the school. This goes for almost every school with a religious affiliation. Key word: almost. It’s not Pepperdine or BYU.</p>

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<p>This looks good so far. A little reach heavy though - maybe drop one of the following: WashU, Rice, Carleton, Middlebury.</p>

<p>I think another good way to eliminate schools would be by visiting them. LACs are known for having distinct and varying atmospheres even if they appear similar on paper. </p>

<p>Also, why did you eliminate URochester? Eastman School of Music is very good and URochester is naturally strong in STEM fields. It would also be a fair match for you. Not sure exactly how much need they meet though; when I ran their NPC for myself it wasn’t quite as generous as I was hoping.</p>

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<p>@Ctesiphon‌ Unfortunately, I can’t afford to visit schools. Maybe I should take another look at St Olaf. Is religion a factor considered in admission? I’m definitely not removing Rice or WashU, maybe I’ll decide between Middlebury and Carleton. URochester is not nearly affordable. When I ran their NPC I had a net price of over $15k.</p>

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<p>That’s understandable. I don’t know much about Middlebury, so I can’t help you there. I am applying to Carleton this fall and based on what the alumnus told me in an interview, I think it has that intellectual culture you are looking for. Very strong in science & math. Not really preppy. Sends a lot of students to PhD programs esp. in STEM.</p>

<p>Keep in mind at small colleges in small towns there may be a bit more drinking. However at these self-selecting LACs, the kids do not really pressure others into taking part.</p>

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<p>I don’t think it’s really a factor. Religion can’t be used as URM criteria in admissions. To be honest, someone with your stats would have no problem getting into St. Olaf. Of course, with many LACs that aren’t “difficult” to get into, it may be harder to stay! </p>

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<p>I know it’s hard to put together a balanced list that is both intellectually challenging and generous with aid, but you shouldn’t have to take the community college route. Because your personal pluses and minuses are difficult to quantify, you need to take a more strategic approach than just looking at the numbers. I think you are already doing this but that you could dig a little further.</p>

<p>Try to be more analytic in your understanding of how colleges – especially small LACs – build a balanced class. In what is commonly called “holistic” admissions, the admissions committee targets several diversity factors: e.g., race/ethnicity, religion, family economic status, talent/skill, life experience. They create a mental “thumbnail” for each applicant, and check off what that student can contribute to the campus community. At small schools, if a student can cover more than one base, more the better. </p>

<p>Your thumbnail, as I perceive it, is high achieving Hispanic female in the sciences. That’s going to appeal to many colleges, but more so to colleges that have a hard time attracting and retaining Hispanics that fit their academic profile. Those are most likely to be in rural locations (which is a positive for you) and/or in the Midwest. It’s somewhat of a contradiction: You may prefer a school that’s racially diverse, but a school that’s less racially diverse may be more interested in you.</p>

<p>Your pluses in addition to your ethnicity are your demonstrated ability to overcome adversity (life experience), music (talent) and family economic standing. You minuses are that you essentially had a “lost semester” which drags down your GPA and may be considered an academic risk, and you need a substantial amount of aid.</p>

<p>So what you need to think about – in addition to what you want in a school – is what the schools want in their student bodies. You might look for colleges that focus on the following characteristics in admissions:
Need to recruit more high achieving Hispanics<br>
Put emphasis on math/sciences
Put emphasis on music as an EC (not conservatory)
Meet demonstrated need
Willing to take academic risks </p>

<p>In answer to your question about Conn College: I think it may be more mainstream, and offer less intellectual challenge than you are looking for. I’d agree that St. Olaf and Ohio Wesleyan would be good options, as would Smith and Holyoke. </p>

<p>About Williams and other reaches: It’s very difficult to predict which selective colleges will overlook your breakdown semester and focus on your strengths. That’s why I’d look for reaches that fulfill the other four characteristics. If you could cover yourself with an EA acceptance, you could expand your reaches and drop some of your less selectives. </p>

<p>I’m not that familiar with admissions at the mid-sized privates on your list, but I can tell you that many good small LACs in rural and midwestern locations would find you a person of interest, even the most selective.</p>

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<p>@Ctesiphon‌ Carleton really does seem perfect, and St. Olaf seems like a good second choice in case Carleton doesn’t work out. I’m not sure I’d consider St. Olaf a safety, but it does have a significantly higher acceptance rate, and I believe it meets full need, so I’ll apply there as well.</p>

<p>@momrath‌ I wasn’t aware that colleges considered such factors. I am more than willing to sacrifice ethnic diversity to attend a school with an intellectual atmosphere, strong math field, and stellar music programs, which all of the schools on my list have.</p>

<p>I realize that my academic record makes me an ‘‘at-risk’’ student, but I repeated every class with As, so my GPA actually didn’t suffer much(3.95uw, 4.25w). However, fact is that those Fs and Ds are still there, so I agree that I need less reaches on my list, it’s just really difficult to decide which ones to remove because they’re all so amazing.</p>

<p>Okay so here’s my new list for now (Still reach-heavy, I know):</p>

<p>High Reaches:
Rice, WashU, Swarthmore, Middlebury/Williams(I’ll choose one), Carleton</p>

<p>High Matches/Low reaches: St. Olaf, Grinnell, Wesleyan, Whitman</p>

<p>Matches/Safeties?: Ohio Wesleyan(EA), UCs(Riverside, Irvine, Santa Cruz, Davis), Holyoke or Smith</p>

<p>How is that list? Should I still narrow my reaches? Also, does anyone know how big of a role Greek life plays at Ohio Wesleyan?</p>

<p>Well now that I’m actually considering womens’ colleges, does anyone know much about Bryn Mawr? I’ve heard that they have a strong math program, but does anyone know if they have any of the other characteristics? How does it compare to Smith/Holyoke?</p>

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<p>If you actually repeated the D/F semesters of the courses, then UCs and CSUs will use the higher grades when calculating GPA (although UC admissions readers will see all of the grades). See <a href=“http://www.calstate.edu/sas/onestopkiosk/documents/csu-uc-a-gcomparisonmatrix.pdf”>http://www.calstate.edu/sas/onestopkiosk/documents/csu-uc-a-gcomparisonmatrix.pdf&lt;/a&gt; . Be aware that the UC and CSU application period is coming up soon.</p>

<p>Regarding the three women’s colleges you mentioned, all three have cross-registration agreements with research universities, so that if running out of math courses is a concern for you (some very advanced students in math may find that to be a problem at some or many LACs), you have the cross-registration options (although you would have to deal with commuting logistics). Barnard is another women’s college with a cross registration agreement with a research university across the street (so no commuting hassles).</p>

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<p>Just to clarify, I believe that you can overcome your bad semester. Nearly every applicant has at least one weak point – some more than one. The key is to compensate by emphasizing your strong points – in your essays, recommendations, resumes and supplements, and to target colleges that are likely to value your strengths and points of differentiation.</p>

<p>I also didn’t mean to suggest that you should further limit the number of reaches and high-matches that you apply to. Actually, because it’s difficult to predict how colleges will react to your weak point, you may have to widen your list. I believe a lot of LACs are sympathetic to hardship and are willing to take chances on imperfect applicants, but it’s difficult to predict which ones will relate positively to you specifically.</p>

<p>My opinion is that as long as you have solid safeties (and ideally an EA acceptance) apply to as many as you can competently handle. Since you won’t be visiting, you’ll have to be especially creative in the “Why X” essay.</p>

<p>If music is an important activity for you, then you should consider submitting a music supplement, even if you don’t intend to major in music.</p>

<p>So, assuming you have the energy to apply to all the reaches and low reaches on your list, I’d even consider adding a few more like Hamilton, Kenyon, Haverford, Bowdoin, Oberlin.</p>

<p>I don’t know much about Bryn Mawr except that it has an excellent art history program and it’s in a consortium with Swarthmore, Haverford and Penn. Smith and Holyoke are in a consortium with Amherst, Hampshire and UMass. Smith and Holyoke are more rural; Bryn Mawr is in suburb of Philly. All three are academically rigorous, though I’m not sure about math specifically. Smith is the most politically active and I would say has the best music program. </p>

<p>Another idea for a safety would be Lawrence University – excellent music and I believe good math.</p>

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<p>In your situation, it might be best to apply to 15 schools, assuming that they are well chosen. </p>

<p>Because you cannot visit these schools now, you really cannot be sure whether you like them or not. This means you could benefit from having a long list. There is nothing wrong with waiting until you have been accepted to make visit (although some schools really want you to “show interest” and visiting is a prime way of showing interest). Some colleges will actually pay for a URM to visit – including a plane ticket! Take advantage of that if you see it.</p>

<p>Personally, I think you might want to put Oberlin back on your list. It seems like a good fit to me… meets 100% need, music program, etc… <a href=“http://new.oberlin.edu/office/financial-aid/”>http://new.oberlin.edu/office/financial-aid/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Among your safeties, I’d ditch some of the big public universities, and add either Guilford or Whittier. They are both likely to offer you nice aid packages, and they are more similar to the other LACs you are applying to. </p>

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<p>I believe there are 2 Bible/Theology courses you have to take as part of the Gen Ed requirements at St. Olaf.</p>