Hi all, I don’t really know how posts like this are viewed but here it goes…
Here’s my info:
-high school junior
-white male
-3.95 GPA (unweighted, have yet to take SAT/ACT)
-ranked 5 out of 105 by GPA
- have taken nearly all honors/dual enrollment classes offered at my school (only 2 AP classes offered)
-strong extracurriculars, good amount of leadership positions
-AZ residency
-coming from a small, Christian high school
-undecided between engineering and premed/prehealth
What I’m looking for in a college:
-4000-20000 students, may be willing to go larger
-preferably in West/Southwest, not required
-hopefully conservative and Christian (I know this is unlikely.)
-merit based aid
-hopefully will accept my dual enrollment credits from Colorado Christian University and Grand Canyon University
I would love if you guys could post some suggestions about what schools I should consider. Thanks sooooo much to any who respond.
Top programs rarely accept many AP/DE credits because so many of their students have these that their 1st year classes are “above” that level, except in sequential classes (ie., if you’ve taken Calc 1+2 you can start right in Calc 3) and not even always (at Harvey Mudd, ALL students have taken a good amount of calculus - it’s a pre-req for application- and all start in Calc Level 1, which isn’t easy for them despite the title…)
Mechanical Engineering is a risky path for premed since GPAs tend to be low… and med schools don’t care what your major is, they want a 3.6-4.0.
Have you taken any practice tests (SAT or ACT)?
Try HarveyMudd (The Claremonts = 5,00 undergrads) and of course ASU Barrett.
No one can really recommend without test scores.
Need test scores. Have you taken the PSAT?
“strong premed program”
Are you aware that “premed prereqs” are just regular basic science classes that every school easily teaches? There’s nothing special or unique about them.
“strong engineering” There are over 150 schools in the US with strong engineering. The state of Calif alone has at least 25 strong programs. Look for ABET accreditation.
GPA is most important for med school admissions, along with MCAT score.
How much will your parents pay each year? if you don’t know, ask.
Based on the practice tests I’ve taken and what scores people I’ve known have gotten I’d say my ACT would be around a 30 or maybe a little higher.
I would need a good amount of merit based aid to afford to go out of state but it doesn’t need to be full tuition or something like that.
Also, if you had to choose between U of A and ASU’s engineering programs, which one would you pick (both as an honors college student)?
I understand the premed/preheath path but as of right now I am leaning towards engineering, so engineering is more important but I would still like there to be a strong premed/preheath advising program in case I change my mind in college.
What denomination of Christianity do you follow? Someone might suggest schools like Brigham Young University, Baylor University, and Catholic University of America, but it is likely that a conservative Christian will be interested in no more than one, depending on what his/her denomination is.
But many public and secular private schools have ample opportunities for religious activities for many religions and denominations.