School Suggestions for Physics Undergraduate (Overall discussion?)

College Search & Selection
1

Greetings!
Basically, I’m a senior currently applying to colleges, and I need some assistance choosing which colleges to apply to on the college app. I strive to get my PhD. in astrophysics. Also, I’m an Arizona resident and, while I am primarily considering staying in-state for blatant financial reasons, I need some suggestions for colleges through common application that have fantastic physics programs and preferably research for undergraduate students.

Colleges I’m currently applying to (no order): University of Pennsylvania, UC-Berkeley, UCLA, UCSB, UChicago (Debating this one, loads of essays required and idk if I even stand a chance), University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Arizona State University (Barrett Honors), University of Arizona (Honors).

Statistics and garbage I always see that makes me feel inferior:
GPA: 3.95 (UW), 4.51 (W)
ACT: 34
APs taken: 3 Junior year, 5 Senior year (I wasn’t allowed to take any before junior year, mostly everything else is Honors courses).

Leadership stuff:
President and Founder of INSPIRE Club (Club dedicated to tutoring younger students that can’t afford official help around the state of Arizona)
President of Science National Honor Society (SNHS)
Vice President of STEM Club
Recording Secretary for Physics Club
Treasurer for Unitown Club (A club dedicated to the leadership camp I was nominated for to represent my school, lol that sounds pretentious I’m sorry)
Camp Counselor for Minitown (Abridged version of Unitown but targeted toward middle school students)
Link Crew Leader in Link Crew (Program dedicated to helping freshman transition to high school)
Competitor on school’s Science Olympiad team

Volunteering:
Worked with elementary school’s Robotics Club for 2 years, continue to do so every friday
Spends lunch 4 days a week tutoring physics students for free
Has volunteered at my local library for 3 years, and I’m a member of its “Teen Advisory Board”

Essay:
I’m not going to be that person that’s like, “my essay is amazing please Harvard bow down,” but I think it’s good in the sense that it speaks deeply from who I am and the struggles I have faced with the bisexuality caused me to attend online school because I was bullied out of public schools and lacked help from my religious household. Plus, future physicists tend to be nutty, and I believe my essays show that uniqueness to me.

If you actually read through this, thank you for spending time that you can never get back to try to show someone else guidance - I really appreciate it. Just say whatever you want about colleges, me as a whole, whatever.

2

With the cost differences that you are implying and the $30,000 per year parental contribution limit you mentioned in another thread, what would cause you to choose one of the other schools over UA and ASU?

If you cannot think of any reason to choose the other school over UA and ASU, you may want to drop it from your list.

If cost is a big factor, you may want to consider other schools instead with lower or potentially lower costs:

Stony Brook
Minnesota
Maryland (reach for Bannecker - Key full ride)
North Carolina (reach for Robertson and Morehead - Cain full rides)
Ohio State (reach for Eminence full ride)
Duke (reach for Robertson full ride)
Rutgers (reach for Presidential full tuition)
Texas A&M (reach for President’s Endowed full tuition)
Rochester (reach for Renaissance / Global full tuition)

3

The following are national liberal arts colleges that have produced at least one Apker Award recipient (for undergraduate research in physics):

Bucknell
Colgate
Franklin & Marshall
Hamilton
Haverford
HMC
Middlebury
Mt. Holyoke
Oberlin
Swarthmore
Wesleyan
Williams

(Augustana College deserves a mention, though it is typically classified differently.)

Several of these colleges could be suitable for you. Most have their own observatories.

(Source: American Physical Society.)

4

UCs OOS are not worth it for someone that wants to get their PhD.

I would strongly advise you to keep UChicago on your list. If you make your essays interesting, there’s no reason why you wouldn’t stand a chance.

5

@merc81

I might add that although Wesleyan is normally classified as an LAC, the Apker Prize sponsors make it compete in the research university category because of its small doctoral program. All of its wins have against much bigger colleges (Harvard, MIT, Caltech, etc…)

6

You have asked this question in different forms multiple times. It doesn’t change the answers. You have a $30,000 budget with a much higher expected family contribution since you have described your parents as wealthy and unwilling to provide more. It does not matter how good of a student you are. It doesn’t matter how motivated you are. Unless you are discussing merit scholarship schools, cost is strictly determined on what the school determines your family should pay, not what your family is willing to pay. They do not care that your parents aren’t willing to contribute according to their formula.

Have you run the net price calculators for the schools on your list? If your descriptor of wealthy is accurate and your parents are really only going to provide $30,000 per year, how are you going to meet the differential? Based on your “incredibly rich” descriptor, you have 2 schools on your list that you will be able to afford. http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/discussion/comment/18850682/#Comment_18850682

7

Re: #2

No Reed in the list? (see http://www.reed.edu/physics/announcements/index.html )

However, these are all likely to be unaffordable, unless they offer big merit scholarships that bring the price into the OP’s cost constraint (parental contribution $30,000 although parental income/wealth will disqualify from need-based financial aid).

8

Why not consider Michigan State? MSU offers merit scholarships to OOS students, has an excellent honors college, and a cyclotron.

9

Re #6: The Reed student referenced was a finalist, but not an Apker Award recipient/winner.

10

For Physics the very best undergraduate programs are at Caltech, Stanford, and MIT – all very selective universities. What you’ll find at these colleges are passionate physics undergraduates, summer (and possibly school year) opportunities to work with world-class researchers, and a vibe that emphasizes innovation, collaboration and excellence. I encourage you to apply to these 3 universities in addition to the others on your list.

11

No merit aid at Reed, so likely unaffordable for the OP.

12

Re: #9

Caltech, Stanford, and MIT will be unaffordable to the OP (parental contribution limit is $30,000 per year, parental income/wealth high enough so that OP will not get need-based financial aid), so it is not worth the bother to apply to them unless the OP can get a really big external scholarship (which is probably even more of a reach than admission to those schools).

13

For physics with the possibility of a merit scholarship, RPI is easy to recommend.