<p>After months of chiding from my counselors and parents, I think I'm finally down to 6 schools:</p>
<p>USC
Boston College
Fordham
NYU
University of San Francisco
Loyola Marymount
and maybe Boston University</p>
<p>(I live in SoCal)
However, I'm not sure if my list is safe enough. I've seen so many horror stories of kids not getting into college, I want to make sure I have enough "safety" in my college choices. </p>
<p>(You can check my stats profile to see my stats)
Briefly though:
4.0W, 3.7UW
Hispanic
Competitive private Catholic School
Lit: 640 Spanish: 740
ACT 29
BTW, I'm going to retake my ACT and I'm shooting for 30+. Didn't like the SAT.</p>
<p>Do you think this list is okay? Or should I look into more schools just in case? Money for applications is kind of an issue so I don't want to apply to 10+ schools like many people do.
Thanks! :)</p>
<p>I'm not really familiar with selectivity at USF and LMU, but since you're in Socal why not apply to a CSU (like Cal State Long Beach or Cal State Fullerton) or a UC as a financial backup in case "disaster" strikes and you don't get into your first choices or they are too cost prohibitive even with financial aid?</p>
<p>A true safety is one that you are certain to be admitted by, and that you can afford to attend without any financial aid other than federally defined need-based aid. For most students, this means that they need to find a public university or community college for the "true" safety. Fortunately for you, California is crawling with good options for in-state residents. It shouldn't be difficult for you to locate a true safety. Just be sure to develop at least a preliminary attachment to it even if you don't truly "love" it. That way if everything goes wrong, you will have somewhere to start in September '09. </p>
<p>If application fees are problematic, talk to your guidance counselor about arranging fee waivers. You may find that you qualify.</p>
<p>And, if you plan to retake the ACT, do plan to spend some time with a test-prep book to make sure you have your exam strategies down cold. Don't expect to do better just because you are taking the exam again.</p>
<p>Gabs, you're getting good "academic" advice from folks, but I'd like to ask whether you've been able to visit these schools and determine whether you like the on-campus atmosphere, student population, surrounding area, etc. There are BIG differences between some of the schools on your list (USC vs. NYU, for example). My daughter had very strong reactions when she visited various schools, and a number of schools that looked very good on paper, ended up off the list based on the visit. Good luck.</p>