Please help me find some safeties!

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hello fellow school enthusiasts.</p>

<p>I have been having a hard time finding safety schools that I would actually consider attending. If you wonderful people could suggest a few, it would really help me out.</p>

<p>Here are my stats:</p>

<p>-White female from New England.<br>
-Rising Senior</p>

<p>-SAT: 2080 (I am retaking this. I didn't study the first time around, and it didn't go so well.)
-SAT II: I will take both Chemistry and French in the Fall.
-ACT: 32 (might retake)
-GPA: 4.1 uw (my school uses the 4.3 scale and does not weight)
-My grades are almost always in the A to A+ range, with the occasional A-. I earned a B+ in Algebra II, however.
-AP Scores: I haven't received them yet.
-My school does not offer class rank, but I would probably fall in the top 10-5%. My school has also been consistently ranked as one of the best in the state, although I'm not sure as to how impressive this is, as my state is quite small. There is definitely competition from my classmates, however.</p>

<p>-I have also taken the highest level classes offered at my school, with the exception of Chemistry. I wasn't able to take AP Chem because of scheduling conflicts.</p>

<p>These are the APs I will have taken by the end of my HS career:
-English Composition
-US Government and Politics
-English Literature
-Biology
-French
-Macroeconomics
-Calculus AB (BC is offered, but only online. Math isn't my strongest subject, so I decided to stick with AB)</p>

<p>ECs:
- Clarinet - I have played the clarinet for 7 years, and am the new first chair clarinet in my HS ensemble. I've also participated in many festivals, such as the NE Music Festival, Districts, VMEA's, and AllStates. My HS band also toured in Greece in 2009.
- Photography - I have been photographing for 4 years. My photos have been selected for the Ways of Seeing competition. (Merely being selected is considered a win.) I also created my own photography website.
- Writing - I have been a part of Women Writing for (a) Change for 4 years, participating in both the writing circles and editing.
- Kickboxing - I have been kickboxing for 3 years. This is not a school sport, so no varsity available.
- Editing - I am on the editorial staff for both my HS newspaper and the arts and literary magazine. I will become the senior editor for the newspaper next year, and will continue to be co-editor for the magazine.
- French Club - I have been part of this for 2 years. I also participated in the French Exchange and lived in France for 3 weeks.
- Tutor - I have tutored middle school students during my free periods.
- Community Service - I am part of the Coalition for Community Service and am a Teen Leader for PACT, which is a local organization that holds community-building events. I have over 200 hours.
- NHS - </p>

<p>Awards:
-Excellence in Journalism '11-'12
-Received a scholarship for my project in the VT State Science and Math Fair '10</p>

<p>Internship:
I am currently interning at a UVM research facility under the instruction of a very highly regarded medical professional. The study I am working on deals with Diabetes. </p>

<p>Essay:
I'm expecting that my essay will be great. I'm really happy with its progress so far. English is one of my best subjects.</p>

<p>What I want in a university/college:
-Small/medium sized with a close knit community
-Great student/teacher relationships (I do not want to be taught by professors who only care about their own research)
-Friendly, interesting, and engaging student population
-Internship opportunities
-Anything but a rural campus; suburban near a decent sized city is ideal.
-I would prefer a school in the North East, Mid-Atlantic, or Central-ish region.
-I want to be pushed intellectually to my limits, but at the same time I would like to stay away from a stress-induced nervous breakdown.
-Biology major and English minor or double major</p>

<p>Here are the schools on my "seriously considering to apply to" list:
- University of Vermont (this is my only safety so far. I have alumni status and it is in state. However, I would really prefer to go somewhere else, as it is located literally 10 minutes from where I live)
- Colgate (match?)
- Bowdoin (match?)
- Northeastern (match?)
- Tufts (reach?)
- Northwestern (reach?)
- Brown (HUGE reach, I know)</p>

<p>I'm really not too sure about which schools qualify as matches for me, either. (My guidance counselor has been less than helpful in this respect.) So, if anyone has any ideas, I'd be happy to hear them!</p>

<p>Thanks a bunch! :)</p>

2

<p>are you willing to leave new england or upsate new york?</p>

3

<p>Yes, I am definitely willing to leave the Northeast. However, I would prefer to stay closer to the East Coast. I want to be able to get home fairly quickly if the need should arise.</p>

4

<p>lehigh university-bethlem,pa
muhlenberg college allentown ,pa both still in northeast and near an airport (same airport)
lehigh valley International airport , you have to probably change planes leaving from there but the airport is really close.
a little futher west butler university, and a little further south wake forest.</p>

5

<p>Definitely look into some of the LAC’s (liberal arts colleges). The majority of them are located in the northeast and have what you’re looking for.</p>

<p>REACH
Amherst
Swarthmore
Haverford
Wesleyan
Vassar</p>

<p>MATCH
Bates
Connecticut College
Trinity
Lafayette
Franklin and Marshall
Skidmore</p>

<p>SAFETY
Bard
Ursinus
Muhlenberg</p>

<p>As far as the colleges on your list:

  • Colgate (high match, but realize that it’s rural)
  • Bowdoin (reach, and also rural)
  • Northeastern (low match/high safety, and it is a large research university with more lectures and research-oriented professors, so you may want to take this off your list)
  • Tufts (reach, and it would probably be a good fit)
  • Northwestern (reach, and it is also larger, though intellectual)
  • Brown (reach, and I think you would like it there)</p>
6

<p>Have you asked your parents how much they are willing to pay?</p>

7

<p>If you want a college with a close-knit community, I wouldn’t recommend Northeastern. This is only hearsay (so go check it out for yourself, don’t take me at my word!), but a friend of mine there ended up transferring because he didn’t like how party-oriented the community was. </p>

<p>Northwestern’s community is complicated. It can be tight, if you get lucky in your first year, but overall there tends to be a distance between professors and students. I have a friend you could talk to about that if you’re interested.</p>

8

<p>Not a safety but William and Mary?</p>

9

<p>My parents have told me that budget is not a problem.</p>

<p>All the schools on my current list have been recommended to me from family friends and relatives. I realize that they don’t all have every requirement on my list, but I’m willing to give them a try - I’ve scheduled tours for later this summer.</p>

<p>I’m also expecting a 2200-2300 on my SAT retake, if that helps at all.</p>

<p>Thanks for all the suggestions! There are definitely some that I’d like to look in to.</p>

10

<p>I believe these schools might be good matches for you for admission. At each of these schools, I have known students to be happy and successful.</p>

<p>Hobart William Smith
Western New England College
St. Anselm’s
Elmira
Marist</p>

11

<p>Bowdoin is definitely a reach! I had a 35 ACT, good EC’s, 4.2 W GPA, top 2%, etc. and was waitlisted. I suggest University of Rochester as a match/safety, especially if you get your SAT up.</p>

12

<p>if you like colgate and bowdoin, you might like lehigh, lafayette, or trinity.
if you like brown, you might like connecticut college and skidmore.</p>

<p>i agree that northeastern might not be the best choice if you want a close knit community.</p>

13

<p>I applied to schools this past year having similar stats (2020 superscore),classes taken, and close ECs.<br>
Tufts might be a great match (I was accepted), but you really have to show an interest in the school through your essays for a better chance.
Also, from my experience of being wait listed at Columbia and Dartmouth, you may not be as far of a reach for Brown as you might think. </p>

<p>Maybe Vassar, Union or Lafayette would probably work as “safeties”.</p>

14

<p>Vassar is not a safety, even with the 32 ACT! It has a below 20% acceptance rate.</p>

15

<p>Is that for this year?
The acceptance rate I found was 23%, which with a good, and well presented, application, isn’t too unreasonable.</p>

16

<p>Oh my bad, admit rate was 22.5, I was thinking of Wesleyan. I’d say OP has a chance, but not a safeties chance. Probably a low reach/high match depending on fit and essays and “My Space” submission.</p>