Picky picky.. how's my list?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>So I'm trying to finalize my 'list'... it's hard. lol</p>

<p>GPA: 3.4 (weighted, i think...)
SAT: 1960 (first try, may retake)
ACT: 30 (35E, 27M, 32?R, 24?S, will retake, hope to get a 32+ superscored)
Limited ECs (Environmental Action, 2y, possible leadership)
3 AP classes, fairly rigorous schedule.
Ranked top 37%, class of nearly 500.
I'm doing everything I possible can to improve my GPA this semester for a last-minute boost.</p>

<p>I want to major in Ecology (Biological Sciences), or Zoology but not many places offer than anymore. </p>

<p>I go to a public school in Pennsylvania.</p>

<p>Here's what I have so far:
Most don't exactly match my major, which is why I'm looking for more schools.</p>

<p>RIT (would major in biology)
SUNY-ESF (would major in Wildlife Biology)
SUNY-Oswego (Zoo Technology Program)
Juniata College (Zoology/Biology combo?)
Drexel (Biological Sciences)
UMBC (Biological Sciences)
University of Rochester (Biological Sciences)</p>

<p>So far my top choice is University of Rochester. I visited and it blew me away. I loved the location, the campus was beautiful, the size is perfect, and the open curriculum is a huge draw. Bascially, there's nothing bad about it. xD Unfortunately, it's a reach.
So I'm looking for other schools.
The furthest South I'll go is North Carolina
The furthest West I'll go is Illinois.
I would prefer a school in an urban area or at least within half an hour of one.
I prefer private schools but they need to be affordable.
I don't know exactly how much my parents can afford but I will definitely need financial aid.
I prefer schools with about 5000-10000 people, no bigger than 15000.
I don't want to apply to Penn State. I hate everything about it. </p>

<p>Also, I'm wondering if it's worth applying to 'major reach' schools, like Haverford, U Chicago, etc?
Thanks</p>

2

<p>

First, do you know what your EFC is, or how much your parents are willing to pay? Those are usually two different things. If you need FA then you should reconsider UMBC. As an OOS student you’ll get nothing except federal FA. Where is your in-state public that you can afford? What is your class rank? If it’s not very high, with those grades and scores you won’t make it into Haverford or Chicago.</p>

3

<p>You and your parents need to figure out what they can afford now, it will I fluence everything from the list to whether you need to up scores for merit aid potential.</p>

4

<p>My mom isn’t entirely sure, but she says she can afford around 10k/year.
My class rank isn’t very high (top 37%)
I’m doing my best to get straight A’s this semester to give my GPA a boost.
I’ve decided that I won’t retake the SAT’s, only the ACTs, and I hope to get a 32+ superscored. I am also taking the SAT Subject tests in bio and math 2.</p>

<p>I do NOT want to go to a large school (ie Penn State, Temple). However, I’m pretty sure SUNY ESF is a safety, financially and academically, and I visited and it seems awesome. </p>

<p>Is there any other schools I should look into?</p>

5

<p>Very few schools superscore the ACT. Don’t rely on that. Your scores certainly match up well with ESF. The scanned CDS they have online doesn’t show what the importance levels are for scores vs. anything else. <a href=“http://www.esf.edu/ie/documents/SUNY%20ESF%20FALL%202008%20COMMON%20DATA%20SET.PDF[/url]”>http://www.esf.edu/ie/documents/SUNY%20ESF%20FALL%202008%20COMMON%20DATA%20SET.PDF&lt;/a&gt; </p>

<p>How is ESF a financial safety when it costs $28K OOS and your mother can only pay $10K?</p>

<p>If you can get your GPA up to a 3.5 cum you could qualify for 2/3 tuition at U Alabama. That may be hard in one semester.</p>

6

<p>Even not superscored I’m confident I can get a 32.</p>

<p>ESF says it meets 100% financial need.
Penn State is more expensive, and doesn’t meet 100% fin aid. </p>

<p>And again, I don’t want a big school.
And I’m doing my best to get my GPA up.</p>

7

<p>Unless you know what your EFC is you don’t know what financial need will be met. Try using the FAFSA4Caster for a preliminary read on that.</p>

8

<p>I emailed the colleges that are on my list so far to ask if they superscore the ACT.
URoc, Juniata, and RIT have replied so far saying that they do. SUNY-ESF doesn’t, but my scores are already above their mid 50.</p>

9

<p>Heed the advice of those who say to use an FA forecaster. Your mom might say 10K, the forecaster might say 25k.</p>

10

<p>looks good</p>

11

<p>I don’t know most of the information for the FA calculators, my mom told me she used one and got around 10k, but said it seemed a little ‘off’. That’s all I know.</p>

<p>I’m also considering University of Pittsburgh, would that be a match or safety for me?</p>

12

<p>Pitt’s primary weighted category is GPA with course rigor, then scores. While your scores are at the 75%ile your GPA is at the 22%ile. It’s a reach.</p>