Safety Schools?

College Search & Selection
1

I have a tentative list, but many of them may be too far out of my reach, so I am looking to find a few safety schools. Academic rigor is my top priority-I want to go to a school where I will be surrounded by studious types and people who value education…No party schools, please! I am also looking to avoid anything in the south-I live in Texas right now, and I am trying to get as far away from this state as possible (I’m a little too liberal for this area). I already have Seattle U and Washington State U (Pullman) on my list, as well as the American University of Paris. I have also been looking at CSU Long Beach, but I’d really prefer an urban environment (think big city).

Academics:

GPA - Unweighted: 3.55
GPA - Weighted: 4.22
Class Rank: top 25%
Class Size: 809

Scores:

SAT I Math: 570
SAT I Critical Reading: 710
SAT I Writing: 670
SAT Composite :1950
ACT: 29
AP English: 5 (I’m taking a few more AP classes this next year)

Significant Extracurriculars:

Science National Honor Society
Started nonprofit organization
Administrative assistant to CFO of an insurance firm

Leadership positions:

President of Journey to Dream (School club)
French Club officer

Volunteer/Service Work:
Operation Kindness volunteer

More about me/my hooks:

I am a minority female (African-American), and the first in my family to go to college

Desired College Characteristics:

Location type: Urban, Small City
Size: Small (Under 2,500), Medium Small (2,500 - 5,000), Medium (5,000 - 10,000), Large (10,000 - 18,000)

Area: East Coast, West Coast
Importance of cost: Important but I already know college is going to be important, esp since I am applying only to OOS

Teacher Recs:
French teacher and History teacher, and possibly my mentor, who is one of the top lawyers in the area (he’s very well known, but I don’t plan on that getting me into a great school)

College Plans:

I intend to major in philosophy & minor in French, or double major in either philosophy/French, phil/poli sci, or phil/international relations (schools with study abroad and internship opportunities are definitely desired)
After college I plan on going to grad school and pursuing law, so I know that a school’s prestige isn’t everything, but it would really help with getting into a good law school if my degree is from a good undergrad school.

Thank you!

2

Importance of cost doesn’t fill the knowledge vacuum. What can your family afford? Right now your Class rank, GPA and scores won’t get you very far if your family can’t afford it. Look here: http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/

3

How would you afford the American University of Paris?

4

Seattle University is a Catholic institution. Washington State University is situated among the wheat fields and legume farms of eastern Washington. Neither college is particularly “liberal.”

Do your homework and do not rely on assumptions.

5

<<<
I already have Seattle U and Washington State U (Pullman) on my list, as well as the American University of Paris. I have also been looking at CSU Long Beach, but I’d really prefer an urban environment (think big city).
<<<

Unless your parents are going to pay the costs for those schools, they won’t be affordable.

What are your parents saying? How much will they pay?

6

@LakeWashington Yes, I realize that Seattle U is Catholic and that WSU is in Pullman (the middle of nowhere). Trust me, I’ve done my homework, but I appreciate you letting me know. Although Seattle U is Jesuit, it’s located in Seattle, which is a pretty left leaning place. I grew up in the bible belt, so I can handle a little religion-I just don’t want to live in an area that is all church all the time. And despite Seattle U being a Catholic school, the classes aren’t religious based. I have friends who are not Catholic that attend the school and they not only love it but also recommended it. @mom2collegekids My mother didn’t have the opportunity to attend college, so it is very important to her that I do. Education is a priority in my family, and when it comes to going to a good school, cost isn’t the most important factor. I have a few scholarships already and plan to apply for several more, but my mom has every intention of helping me pay. I also have a job and I am saving the money I earn.

7

Please sit down with your mother, and run the Net Price Calculator at the website of each of the places on your list. Find out how you and your mom can make this work without putting one (or both) of you into a whole lot of debt. That is especially important because there are few scholarships for law school, and you will likely have to pay for that entirely with loans.

Law school admission is almost entirely numbers-based. Your GPA and your LSAT score will matter much much more than then name of the college or university on your diploma. Provided the institution is half-way decent, you can safely choose the cheapest one.

If you can prep for and re-take the ACT and get your score over 30, you will have more options, so please consider doing that.

8

If you want west coast and liberal, what about Lewis&Clark or even Willamette?

The following are all need-blind and
Reed is as studious as they come (they’re always in competition with Swarthmore as to which college overloads its students with homework the most) and it’s a unique environment you need to investigate before deciding whether it’ll go on to your list.
In California, obviously Occidental and Scripps.
Macalester sounds like it’d be right up your alley, very international-based, and they have an exchange program with Sciences Po in France!
St Olaf since you say you can handle “a little religion” (it’s more liberal than Seattle U). It’s got excellent ROI, tries very hard to diversify, has excellent sutdy-abroad programs, and is strong in foreign languages.
Moderate (but compared to the Bible Belt, probably very liberal :p) and stellar for Foreign Language, Dickinson.
Very liberal, very serious, and stellar for French (one of the best programs in the country): Bryn Mawr. Actually when I read your description of what you wanted in a college I immediately thought Bryn Mawr would be on your list.

Run the NPCs for all of these: they’re likely to be more affordable than either Seattle U or Washington State. (I wouldn’t recommend WSU since it’s way more conservative than you’d think plus as a directional OOS I’m not sure it’d be affordable AND worth the high price premium.)

9

Csu long beach is a great school, and is actually in an urban environment. The city is incredibly diverse and liberal. Also, oos tuition is relatively cheap. However, it’s not exactly a safety school because they give priority to local applicants, meaning that oos admission is much more competitive.

10

Should University of Portland be on your radar, if you are looking at U of Seattle? Both similar, and Portland is also progressive Pacific NW area that is lovely.

Good luck!

11

You can get full tuition + room at Howard. It’s in Washington DC. They have a philosophy major.

CSU Long Beach is urban, and not terribly expensive. I wanted to go there, but it’s much harder to get into if your out-of-state.

I’m not sure exactly what your family can afford, but these schools are safeties, urban, & under 25K:
-Gallaudet University
-San Francisco State
-St Joseph’s Brooklyn
-Temple University