Please suggest some schools for my son…

College Search & Selection
1

<p>S is finishing his sophomore year. Considering his grade, I think it’s a little early for a “chance me” thread. Instead, I was hoping the CC experts could offer some guidance to help us focus our college search over the next 18 months. </p>

<p>I guess his 10th grade “practice” PSAT scores were decent because we’ve got some pretty nice recruiting mail coming in. Rice, Vanderbilt, JHU, and even Brown, among others. I’m proud, but a little surprised, if you know what I mean. (He’ll be taking a PSAT prep course before the “real” test to boost his chances against Maryland’s high NMSQ threshold.)</p>

<p>Here’s a summary of the kind of applicant he’ll be…</p>

<p>WGPA 4.0, UW 3.75 (as of end of 10th grade)
Sophomore PSAT 72 CR, 68 M, 60 W
W Rank 45/318, UW Rank 55/318
White male, resident of Maryland</p>

<p>9th Grade
Honors Conceptual Physics
Honors Chem I
Honors English 9
Honors Geometry
Honors US Govt
French I
Percussion Ensemble
Health -- Teen Leadership</p>

<p>10th Grade
AP US History
Honors Algebra II
Honors Chem II
Honors Bio
Honors Global Perspectives on Literature
French II
Percussion Ensemble
Health -- Weight Training</p>

<p>11th Grade (future)
AP World History
AP Physics
Honors Trig
Honors American Lit
Honors Psychology
Honors Percussion and Wind Ensembles
Honors French III
Honors French IV</p>

<p>12th Grade (future)
AP Psych
AP Stat
AP French
Honors Brit Lit
Honors Percussion and Wind Ensembles
Financial Literacy
Issues of American Society (a.k.a. Current Events)
French Aide</p>

<p>ECs
Taijutsu 2nd Degree Black Belt (12 years training); Marathon runner/finisher, Ski Club 4 years, French Club 3 years, Cross Country 3 years, Track 3 years, (Hopefully he’ll add an a officer position to at least one of these as a jr or sr.)</p>

<p>Academic Honors
NHS, Winner – Random House Student Writing Contest, Some sort of college-level French test in 10th grade </p>

<p>Community Service
Minor, ordinary stuff. Possible large solo project this summer, but not worth banking on.</p>

<p>Career Talk…
Current interests include CIA Agent (IR major, per their website), Interpreter, and Psychologist</p>

<p>He has definitely ruled out all types of medicine, engineering, and information technology.</p>

<p>Schools…
He has ruled out Rice due to distance from home. (ha! Rice might rule him out.)
Doesn’t think he wants an urban school setting
But, wants to tour Loyola of Maryland because he hears they have nice dorms. :-P (ugh, 15-year-olds)
I’d guess his range is a 400 mile radius from Baltimore/Washington
His dad and I are hoping he steers clear of U of Md College Park. (waaayy too big for him)
He’s highly social and we can definitely see him joining (if not leading) a frat</p>

<p>So, bring it on. Give me your suggestions for schools he should consider. </p>

<p>Thanks! Kelley</p>

2

<p>Its probably obvious to you, but Hopkins has one of the best international studies programs around. It also has close ties to the intelligence agencies (NSA in particular) which helps when looking for a job (my son was an IR major at Hopkins and he was heavily recruited by the agencies although he choose to work for a think tank for 3 years before heading off to grad school). Although it is an urban campus--Loyola is only 1 mile north so I'm assuming its location can't be that big of a deal. Besides, JHU's campus is beautiful and, when on campus, you don't realize your in the middle of a big city.</p>

3

<p>Georgetown?</p>

4

<p>So, Hopkins and Georgetown. Hmm. </p>

<p>Based on how I've described him, would you consider them matches or reaches?</p>

5

<p>If he continues his 4.0, (why doesn't he take on more AP? Those look super impressive if he could get A's). </p>

<p>His PSAT scores look (no offense) pretty typical for the day-to-day top-tiered-school kid. With some help, he’ll probably boost them for a National Merit. With good SAT scores (above 2300 and 700 for SAT II’s), and with more EC (think leadership, that’s what I’d say) and some president roles in big school organizations, a great app, and some more focus (that’s what most of the good colleges look for), then it’ll be easy for him to get into a top tier LAC (Amherst, Wesleyan) or public (but I’m not sure there are many good public non-urban schools). Ivies take a lot of dedication and either fantastic EC or an enormous award. He should be able to shoot for Cornell and Brown easily.</p>

6

<p>Don't mislead them by saying it will be "easy" for him to get into Amherst...though he will hopefully be competitive at top schools.</p>

7

<p>Sounds like he'd fit in nicely with some of the Patriot League schools: Bucknell, Lafayette, Colgate, Lehigh...all smallish, non-urban, within the 400-mile radius, and would give him that East Coast polish that the CIA prefers.
Others might be Boston College, Villanova, William and Mary, Davidson, Wake Forest, and Duke.</p>

8

<p>DB, I'd suggest that your son take a look at some of the New England small liberal arts colleges. The combination of academics/music/sports is highly regarded and the quality of education and graduate school entry track record is very, very good. </p>

<p>Some names to consider: Williams, Amherst, Hamilton, Colgate, Bowdoin. All very social, sporty atmospheres. Middle road politically. Excellent political science, history, economics.</p>

<p>Williams is the one I'm the most familar with so a special note: Top notch academics, excellent music department with ample performance opportunities even for non majors, sports-focused community -- club sports as well as varsity, balanced political agenda. Social, extroverted, multifaceted kids.</p>

<p>I would suggest that he plan to submit a music recording even if he doesn't intend to major in music. Colleges always need talented musicians. (See the college websites under "supplementary materials.)</p>

<p>Also if he's interested in participating in track on a varsity level he should find out about contacting coaches.</p>

<p>You don't mention your financial position. If your son will need financial aid to attend a private, educating yourselves about options is an essential starting point. If you're planning on paying full freight or if you will qualify for substantial need based aid, then his list can be open ended. If he will need merit based aid, his list will look very different.</p>

<p>I work in international business and live overseas where I have a lot of interaction with foreign service officers (including CIA/FBI) and NGO employees. Although most of the them have advanced degrees from top international programs, like Georgetown, JHU, Princeton, their undergraduate experiences vary widely. So he should choose his college based more on the ambience and personality than the individual programs.</p>

<p>Having said that, I'd agree that the top schools for undergrad IR are JHU, Georgetown, Tufts. Plus HYP of course but I think you're looking for ideas that you might have missed. </p>

<p>Good luck and keep us advised of his progress!</p>

9

<p>I think it's a bit early. I mean, your son is still only half-way through his high school career. Though many high school students want to look towards college, it's quite difficult to judge what you want before the reality of college seems real. Also, you don't want to burn him out before junior/senior year with college visits!</p>

<p>Just let him continue his success. And let him develop his own preferences. The thing about college is that it's about your child and helping them choose the place they'll be happiest. Time is on your son's side!</p>

10

<p>Recent Deputy Director of the CIA John Gannon was from a Patriot League school - Holy Cross.</p>