With 1470 in SAT and 800 in Math 2 & 800 Physics which computer science schools will offer a good fit?
Each school publishes the 25%-75% test score range for accepted students. You should take a look at the top schools you are interested in and see where you fit. For example:
http://admission.enrollment.cmu.edu/pages/undergraduate-admission-statistics
https://www.hmc.edu/admission/discover/#class-profile
Your SAT scores have virtually nothing to do with finding a good fit. Higher scores do one thing. They open more doors. That’s all. You might find that the very best school for YOU is an easy admit that could care less about SAT 2 and has a much lower average SAT.
What is your budget? Do you have geographical or weather preferences? Do you want a very small, small, medium, large or very large school? Or, are there sizes you don’t want, but the rest are fine? Do you care about class size? What sort of major related, non-class related activities would you like (clubs, competitions, etc.)? What non-academic things are you interested in? Plus, MANY more. Only you can determine what makes a good fit.
thanks for the quick response.i am looking for schools where doors wouldn’t be shut with these scores. i am a bit fixated on rankings so looking for top 20 comp science schools with aid.
Rule 1: Try not to be super fixated on rankings.
Rule 2: Your scores are fine and will get you in to a lot of great programs. Find one that you like.
With Merit Aid or need-based-aid?
Top 20 according to who? As @boneh3ad said, don’t focus too much on ratings. YOUR methodology is most important. Most would say that a Porsche 911 is better than a Chevy truck, but what if you want to haul wood?
- Courses and grades are typically more important than test scores for most frosh applicants (exceptions may be those from high school situations where colleges may question the reliability of the grades, such as home schooled students).
- At many colleges, computer science is popular enough to be enrolled to the department's capacity, so admission selectivity to the computer science major is higher than for the school overall.
- At many colleges, declaring or changing into the computer science major is difficult due to it being enrolled to the department's capacity. See http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/discussion/comment/19854939/#Comment_19854939 (but verify on school web sites).
- Fit is not about prestige or admission selectivity (beyond that you actually have to be admitted to the school in order to be able to attend). Cost (after financial aid and scholarships, if any), computer science offerings, other subject offerings, general education requirements, and non-academic factors need to be considered to find schools which are good fits for you.
SATs are just a hoop to jump through, and yours are good enough to get you into most places. Don’t fixate only on top 20 schools, because to be honest, undergrad classes are going to be the same everywhere.
Per the rankings, I go to a top 10 school for my major. I got looking the other day at sample exams for some classes at my no-name commuter school back home, where the average SAT for freshmen is 1050. The content covered was nearly identical, and to be honest, the no-name school covered some things in a little greater depth. So far, I doubt the education I have received here is really any better than the one I would’ve got back home, rankings be damned.
Finding a school you can afford is a hundred times more important than the USNWR rankings, so apply to less prestigious schools as well as the big names and see what scholarships you can earn.
thanks guys for your valuable feedback. any inputs on top comp science schools meeting financial need ?
Again - don’t sweat the rankings.
There are seldom any hard and fast scholarship offers unless you make NMF or something. Just apply to wherever interests you. Private schools tend to offer more scholarships, but they usually have an ungodly ticket price to begin with. You may be able to get some merit money from a second-tier public university if you are a “big fish” in their admit pool. That being said, the state school I mentioned earlier only offered me 10K in scholarships spread out over two years. It was cheaper for me to go to the program I’m at now than to stay at home, and that’s why I’m here. But as far as cost, you usually won’t know till you get an offer letter. So spread your applications far and wide.
Go to the website for each of the Top 20 schools on your list, and run their Net Price Calculator, using your parents most recent tax info. That will give you a sense of how much financial aid you will receive. Note that most of the top schools will not give merit scholarships (or at most, a few very competitive scholarships that you shouldn’t count on getting). If the numbers look affordable after running the NPC, then spend more time looking at those schools to see where the fit would be best. Good luck.
Again, top 20 according to who?