Please Help Me Decide On These Interesting Colleges And Universities!

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hello everyone.
I'm a senior and it seems that every week my list of colleges changes. These are the colleges and universities that I am considering. Please let me know if any of these are extreme no's or extreme yes's (anything that stands out positively or negatively) according to what I desire in a school and according to my stats. Also, are there any other colleges/universities that would fit in very well with my desires and needs that you think I should consider?? Thank you so much!</p>

<p>Canada-
University of Toronto (match)
University of British Columbia (match)
Queens University (match/reach)
McGill University (reach)
University of Western Ontario (match)
Dalhousie University (match)
University of New Brunswick (safety)</p>

<p>USA-
West Coast:
USC (match)
UC San Diego (reach)
UC Berkeley (reach)
UC Los Angeles (reach)
Pitzer College (likely/match)
Occidental College (likely/match)
University of Washington (match)
University of Puget Sound (match)
Lewis and Clark College (match)</p>

<p>East Coast:
Yale University (reach)- photography teacher has pull at this schoo- does this make a difference?
Georgetown University (reach)- dad attended- does this make a difference?
Boston College (reach)
New York University (match/reach)- grandpa attended- does this make a difference?
Cornell University (reach)- cousin attends- does this make a difference?
American University (match)
Williams College (reach)- uncle and cousin attended, uncle works on alumni association- does this make a difference?
Rutgers University (safety/match)
Elmira College (safety)
Trinity College (match)
Goucher College (safety/match)
Vassar College (reach)
Skidmore College (safety/match)</p>

<p>South:
College of William and Mary (match/reach)
Rhodes College (match)</p>

<p>Midwest:
Kenyon College (safety/match)
Oberlin College (match)
Ohion Wesleyan University (safety)</p>

<p>What I like:
-historic/old fashioned looking campus, preferably gothic/old world/victorian architecture and feeling
-emphasis on great education and academics
-breadth of academics and choices
-traditional academic setup (no non-major colleges/concentrations)
-located in interesting, metropolitan city or quaint, "new england-y" town, or historic town
-great humanities programs
-semi-diverse student body
-prefer cold/rainy/snowy weather
-CA schools are in case I think I will get homesick at last moment</p>

<p>etc.</p>

<p>basic stats:
SAT range- around 1950-2150 on 2400 scale
SAT IIs- predicted: 730 eng. lit., 700 us history, 700 world history
ACT- predicted: 28+
gpa- upper B+ to lower A-, might be up to A average by this semester
extra curriculars:
-photography classes
-painting classes
-drawing classes
-photography internship
-school newspaper staff member, photographer, and contributor
-school literary and art magazine regular contributor
-middle school newspaper staff member and contributor
-jv tennis team for 2 years
-gay straight alliance
-voyces world cultures club
-tutoring of underpriviledged elementary school children for 4 years
-binkie patrol blanket making for homeless for 4 years
-raised money for various african aids foundations
-member of teen art museum group for 3 years
-member of amnesty international and helped at variety of events
etc.
school- extremely competitive and academically rigorous private school
location- los angeles, california
race- caucasian
gender- female
financial aid- no
legacy- see individual notes
personal notes- struggle during junior year- mother very sick from cancer and eventually died
essay topic- dealing with sick mother and life at the same time
supplements: photography portfolio project
teacher reccs: ap eng. lit. teacher (amazing), physics teacher (should be good), photography teacher/mentor (amazing)</p>

<p>sorry for the long post! please let me know what you think! thank you so much!</p>

2

<p>Have you really stopped to think about what you want in a college experience?</p>

<p>Judging by that list, you really need to do so. For example, I dont think i've ever seen University of Western Ontario and Yale on the same list.</p>

3

<p>I have thought about this extensively. That is why I decided to ask the opinions of others to attempt to narrow the list. Basically, this is the list of the colleges and universities that I like. </p>

<p>To refer to your example, I do not find it so strange to have both Yale and U. of Western Toronto on the same list. Firstly, they are both excellent schools and cover a large area of subjects. Secondly, it doesn't matter to me that my list is not "typical." These are schools I enjoy for reasons that matter to me, and that group the colleges close to me, no matter how random the list may seem to others.</p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

4

<p>Relatives that have attended the school definitely helps. I would say just narrow down your list. Unless you have a lot of time and money, applying to all those schools is impossible.</p>

5

<p>Does anyone see any schools that stand out as good or bad on my list?</p>

6

<p>If the reasons you like the schools are personal to you, and you do not want to tell us what those reasons are, there is no way that we can help you. You haven't given enough information. You can get better advice by reading the guide books.</p>

7

<p>definitely an odd list.....you have really tiny schools in the middle of nowhere and huge schools in a metropolis; very liberal schools and conservative schools; 'jock-culture' schools and 'artsy' schools; schools that are known for its on-campus life/tight knit community and schools that have little to no social life occuring on campus.</p>

<p>you really need to decide what exactly you are looking for!</p>

8

<p>^ I agree with huskem, I don't see a pattern here and for a senior you need to really get busy focusing that list. Can your guidance counselor help you out?</p>

<p>Also, can you afford all these schools or do you think you'll qualify for adequate financial aid or do you need merit money?</p>

<p>P.S. I do not see either Oberlin or Kenyon as necessarily a safety for you.</p>

9

<p>Try this - Decide on one or two safeties that you would be happy to attend and can afford. Eliminate the rest of the safeties. Then compare the reach and match schools to your safety(s) and see whether, if accepted, you would attend them rather than the safety.</p>

<p>It's great that you like so many things, and you sound as though you could be happy at any number of schools. Is this the case? </p>

<p>Do you think you are romanticizing some of these schools and their attributes, like the cold weather? Have you figured out the time and money involved in traveling to some of these schools?</p>

<p>Have you looked at the departments that interest you the most? Do they have enough courses and faculty to keep you interested for four years? </p>

<p>Good luck! Let us know what your new list is and why you've made some of your choices. It is hard, but the application process is all about learning about yourself.</p>

10

<p>I think you should consider Wesleyan. Should be a slight reach with your numbers.</p>

11

<p>Thanks everyone. I am in the process of right now narrowing my list down. I am doing more looking into what exactly I want. I have narrowed down some of my schools in the west, where I know I could not be as happy as in other places. Do you think it is fine for me to have more matches and reaches than safeties as midwesterner suggests? I will continue to explore more indepth these schools. Futernyustudent- do you really think that Wesleyan is a good reach? I really do like this school but always felt it was too out of reach. What do you think? Thank you everyone for your positive input.</p>

12

<p>This is my limited list so far:
-U of Toronto (safety/match)
-U of British Columbia (safety/match)
-McGill U (reach)
-Queens U (match/reach)
-U of Western Ontario (safety/match)
-Dalhousie U (match)
-U of New Brunswick (safety)</p>

<p>-Pitzer College (safety/match)
-U of Washington (safety/match)
-UC Berkeley (reach)
-UC LA (reach)</p>

<p>-Yale U (reach)
-Wesleyan U (reach)
-Georgetown U (reach)
-Boston College (reach)
-Elmira College (safety)
-Goucher College (safety/match)
-Trinity College (match)
-Rutgers U (match)
-Cornell U (reach)</p>

<p>How does this look? Any suggestions?</p>

13

<p>Might want to replace BC with Tufts or BU, if interested in diverse student body.</p>

14

<p>Keep BC...after reading many of the OP's posts, I think it has a lot of the attributes the OP is looking for (old world feel, near historic big city, big in humanities, cold weather, etc.). BU has zero old world feel.</p>

<p>I'd dump Pitzer, Elmira, & Goucher (you'd be explaining what/where you went the rest of your life). I'd also dump Rutgers (even people from NJ don't want to go there).</p>

15

<p>What do you want to study?</p>

16

<p>
[quote]
BU has zero old world feel.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>I wouldn't say that....sure it's no Yale in terms of old world feel, but BU has some of the colonial aspects left over in its dorms and stuff...now if you want to talk about a school with zero old world feel, talk about NYU or MIT. Now THOSE have zero old world feel.</p>

<p>By the way, dump Cornell and replace it with University of Virginia.</p>

17

<p>All I know is that Kenyon has awesome speakers every year.</p>

18

<p>The BU I'm familiar with has McDonald's and other gaudy fast food places all along the south side of Commonwealth Ave. There's something about the golden arches that neutralizes any old world feel within a 400-yard radius. BC, on the other hand, is surrounded by large usually Tudor-style homes on heavily wooded lots.</p>

19

<p>What top UK universities and college would match my stats (can include safeties, matches, and reaches)? Let me know. Thanks!</p>

20

<p>Yes, I've seen the McD's near BU. However, I think that BU is stronger academically than BC. BC is quite overrated.</p>