Rejected ED1

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I was rejected ED1 from Reed and now I'm heading back to the drawing board. </p>

<p>Stats first:</p>

<p>3.69 GPA (weighted). My school doesn't even show us unweighted GPAs.
Ranked 82 out of 643
1790 SAT
27 ACT
I am a terrible multiple choice test taker. I did really well on both my essays for the SAT and ACT, but badly on the multiple choice. </p>

<p>I've taken all AP and Pre-AP classes during my four years of high school with the exception of algebra II which I took as a regulars class because I really hate math. Bad idea. I've been struggling to catch up in math since then because of the bad teaching quality I had that year. </p>

<p>This year I'm taking
AP English 5
AP Calculus AB
AP Government
AP Psychology
H- Anatomy
H- debate 4
Art 1A (so I can graduate. Ha. I'm a slacker when it comes to required courses). </p>

<p>I'm maintaining an A average in everything but Calculus where I have a B average.</p>

<p>Other things:</p>

<p>Debate- 4 years (captain sr. year)
12 years of dance
AP scholar
NHS</p>

<p>However debate and dance are my two biggest ECs and take up the majority of my time</p>

<p>Here's what I want out of college: </p>

<p>Academically: I want an academically stimulating environment. I want the school to really emphasize academics heavily. The reason I loved/love Reed so much is the 'life of the mind' ideal. I might want to major in Neuroscience/Psychology(I love them both dearly), but I'll most likely end up in English/creative writing since that's much more of my thing, regardless of my youthful ambitions. My new debate coach was shocked when she learned that I loved to grade essays and asked my English teacher about it. My English teacher told her that I was 'extremely qualified' to it and was one of her strongest writers. Moral of the story: I need a school that is strong in the sciences and humanities so that no matter what my major ends up being, I'll have a good education. </p>

<p>Location/size: I want a relatively small school (less than 10,000), but nothing suffocating like 400. I almost applied to St. John's College, but the size and lack of majors is what eventually turned me away. Though, I still really admire the school and realize what a great education the people who go there get. Right now I live in Texas, but really want to NOT live in Texas next year. :) I'm hoping to head north where there are real seasons. I also LOVE the cold and the snow. The more north and the more snow the better. </p>

<p>I live in the suburb of a huge city, but still far enough away that if you look outside my school windows, you see cows grazing. Because of this, I can be comfortable anywhere from the middle of nowhere to the very middle of a city. I'm not picky about that much. Mainly as long as it's not in the south. </p>

<p>Socially: I'm captain of the debate team, and want to keep debating in college, although the availability of debate wouldn't be the make or break factor in a college choice especially if the college was fabulous otherwise. I'm pretty socially liberal (I support gay marriage and abortion rights), but otherwise I'm very middle of the road. I can handle an extremely staunch liberal population, but would go crazy in a staunchly conservative one. I claim no religion and would most likely never attend a college with a religious affiliation unless the affiliation was from long ago and no longer strong. </p>

<p>I like all kinds of people so I'm not picky on that front. Preppy or grunge or striped or polka dots don't bother me at all. As long as my classmates are at school to really learn, I couldn't care less what their stereotype is or any of that. </p>

<p>The only thing that might be of interest is that I have no interest in the Greek system and would prefer there to be no Greek scene on campus at all, or if there is a Greek presence, I would prefer it to be very small. One of the main reasons I’m not applying to SMU is because of their hardcore Greek system that kind of dominates the campus. I'm also not interested in sports at all, and the only sports I would even consider in college would be dance or fencing. I do love to fence, would like to keep doing that in college as well. But I don't really want a school that places a huge emphasis on sports of any kind, unless that was really balanced out with really strong academics. Even then I'm not so sure. </p>

<p>Any suggestions would be great. </p>

<p>Except for Reed, I was accepted to the other two schools that I completed applications for- Knox and Ohio Wesleyan, although I'd attend the former before the latter. </p>

<p>Other schools on my list are: </p>

<p>Bard
Grinnell
Lawrence U
Austin College
Macalester
Oberlin<br>
Lewis and Clark
Colorado College</p>

<p>However, I'm not sure about many of them, and this surely isn't a final list. I'm looking for other suggestions or advice about any of the schools listed. </p>

<p>Another factor which is actually kind of important: </p>

<p>I have a hedgehog, and so the allowance of pets in the dorms is kind of important, although my mom loves the hedgehog too, and kind wants her to stay when I leave for college, so it wouldn't be the end of the world if a college didn't allow pets.</p>

2

<p>Look into Beloit. Similar to Lawrence but a little more Reed-like.</p>

<p>Also, a weird super reach idea: U Chicago-- though with your scores it is a huge longshot. However, essays are very big there.</p>

<p>I would go to <a href="http://www.fairtest.org%5B/url%5D"&gt;www.fairtest.org&lt;/a> and check out the No SAT schools. Your scores & class rank are not so hot for the "intellectual" schools... off the top of my head Bowdoin is a fairtest school that is snowy and intellectual. Bard is also SAT optional I believe.</p>

<p>If you are female I would definitely suggest you look into Smith, Mt Holyoke, & Bryn Mawr.</p>

<p>Good luck.</p>

3

<p>If I had the stats, I would have applied to U of Chicago. It's really neat and all that, but I'm not going to even bother. </p>

<p>I like Beloit, I've been thinking of applying for a while. </p>

<p>I wouldn't go to an all girl school. I am female, though.</p>

4

<p>Think about a women's college as a match; you will get more intellectualism there than a coed school with similar stats. My daughter felt the same as you did but she wound up applying to Smith after a visit. It was a very impressive school-- it has incredible facilities. The 5 college exchange means you will meet guys, never fear. At Bryn Mawr you can actually dorm at Haverford and major at Haverford. It is quite a cozy relationship. The women's colleges tend to give better merit aid as well, and the alumnae network is phenomenal. Wells is a coed former women's college with great aid, and you can take classes at Cornell. Goucher too is now coed and could be a good match for you.</p>

<p>Can't hurt to throw one of these in.</p>

<p>Another way to go for intellectual is the "alternative" schools like Bennington, Hampshire, Marlboro. They are small and attract alternative types. If you are focused you can get a great education, if you are not it is the 5 or 6 year plan.</p>

5

<p>Oberlin is a great school. If you go the all female route look at Mount Holyoke in MA, might be a bit of a reach though.</p>

6

<p>I do understand the appeals of an all girl school, but I really just don't feel that it's for me at all. </p>

<p>It's not an atmosphere I feel I'd enjoy, and would constantly wish I attended a coed school instead of my own. </p>

<p>wavelength- Oberlin is a great school. I don't think I'll get in at all, but I'm still applying because it's a really neat little school.</p>

7

<p>I attended an all girls school (though I transferred out, not for that reason though) and honestly, its really not bad. I mean, I have a boyfriend so I wasnt exactly looking for men, but, it was really comfortable. Its great to be able to express yourself with other women and not be shy or embarressed to talk about "female" issues. </p>

<p>Personally, I never expected to go to an all girls school. In high school, that was the LAST place I would have started looking for colleges. But it seemed that every school I looked at and was interested in was all girls! Even now that Im transferring, it seems that all the really good liberal arts schools are all female. I was just accepted to smith, and its a wonderful school. Im still not sure if I will go, but its amazing.</p>

<p>PS...the 5 college system is great. As SBmom mentioned, Hampshire is more of an "alternative" school, if youre interested in that. I applied, its a great school. The whole '5 college area' is certainly worth checking out.</p>

8

<p>I suggest Earlham, I second Bryn Mawr and suggest Mount Holyke (5 college area--SATs not required!)</p>

9

<p>TSSSIL - From what you've described about yourself, I second the recommendation of Earlham College. (Carolyn wrote some excellent posts last summer about her and her daughter's impressions of Earlham.) </p>

<p>Having two first rate colleges already in the bag with Ohio Wesleyan and Knox already put you in an enviable position.</p>

<p>Drew University in the New Jersey suburbs just outside NYC is another solid liberal arts college with a cosmopolitan flavor (and very good merit aid). The College of Wooster in Ohio has a reputation for children of professors from other colleges sending their kids there so they must be doing something right. Kalamazoo College in Michigan (funny name but excellent school) is another Midwestern top notch liberal arts college. If you aren't dead set about leaving the South, Hendrix College in Arkansas gets consistently solid reviews from various CC board posts. Its student body also has a reputation for being liberal. Hendrix is known for good merit aid plus a relatively low tuition for a private college of its caliber.</p>

<p>A bit larger university strong in all the liberal arts is the University of Rochester. If it were just a few hundred miles closer to the Atlantic Coast (say outside Boston or New York) UR would be overwhelmed with applicants. As an applicant from Texas, you would probably benefit from a geographic diversity advantage.</p>

10

<p>Try Drew University in New Jersey.</p>

11

<p>College of Wooster</p>

12

<p>What about Bates? SAT optional (I believe - only 51% submit scores) and sounds like your kind of school.</p>

13

<p>Thanks for all the suggestions, I'll certainly look into them.</p>

<p><em>Edit</em></p>

<p>Except for the schools that have a deadline of January 1. School is already out, making it impossible to get transcripts and the like</p>

14

<p>some of these schools, Beloit, Wooster, will take your app after the official cut off date. With your SATs and GPA, you would have needed to visit and apply ED to stand a chance at Oberlin or bates. If you are not looking for much aid, and can apply somewhere slightly larger, Ithaca College might be cool.</p>

15

<p>Also try Ursinus College, located in a suburb outside of Philadelphia. It's coed, very liberal, great writing programs, and SAT optional.</p>

16

<p>How about Whitman College in southeastern Washington State? Traditional coed strong LAC with ~1450 students geographically not so far from Reed with a nationally-ranked debate team. Whitman recruits debators. Whitman values application essays a lot - more important than standardized test scores (see Whitman website). Having said that, the mean SATI of class of 2009 is 670V/670M. You'll have some supplemental application essays to write - but if you're good at it - no sweat - and could work in your favor.
You love the snow? Whitman near the Blue Mountains and has excellent collegiate ski team and lots of the regular students either downhill or XC ski. 300 days of sunshine - not as cold as the Northeastern LACs, but for most people that's a plus. Major complaint seems to be that it is in Walla Walla, Washington and far from big city life.</p>

17

<p>Many schools just need the main app in by the due date, and supplementary materials (SATs, recs) can dribble in. There was a thread last year with "late due date" schools on it.</p>

<p>I second (third?) Earlham, and also suggest Hendrix, in AK, as worth investigating.</p>

18

<p>Lawrence: snow, fencing, strong academics and a welcoming open mentality for all types of students. In a little city so you can walk to stores. Don't know about your hedgehog but wild rabbits roam the campus.</p>

19

<p>If you are interested in neuroscience, one of the best undergraduate programs in neurobiology is at the University of Washington. They have an honors track that one can apply to after admission as well.</p>

<p><a href="http://protist.biology.washington.edu/neurobiology/%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://protist.biology.washington.edu/neurobiology/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

20

<p>I would really urge you to consider Kalamazoo College. It's a school that's not talked about much on these boards but it would seem to have everything you want: cold weather, strong bio and humanities, intellectual intensity (one of the highest percentages in the country of kids going on to doctorates.)</p>

<p>You'd have a great shot at getting in. </p>

<p>I was a K College undergrad and went to Brown for my doctorate.</p>