<p>Hi!</p>
<p>I've been looking into colleges lately and, since you guys know so much about admissions and stuff, I was wondering if you could recommend some reach and match schools based on my information (don't worry, I already have some in mind - just want to see what you think!):</p>
<p>I'm a rising senior at a competitive private school in the Northeast. I'm a middle-class Caucasian male interested in studying math and economics (although I want to continue my piano study independently).</p>
<p>GPA: 3.7/4.0 weighted :/
SAT I: 2300 (CR: 750, M: 770, W: 780) considering taking the ACT, but I'm not certain...
SAT II: Math Lvl 2: 790, Literature: 750, Physics: 720
AP: Calc BC: 5, Calc AB: 5, US History: 4, Physics B: 3, Human Geography: 3</p>
<p>Awards:
I won't be specific for privacy reasons:
AP Scholar With Distinction
Bunch of Math Competition Awards
Bunch of victories in national and international piano competitions
Volunteer Service Award</p>
<p>ECs:
Classical Piano (I've performed quite a bit internationally, I also give private piano lessons (paid work) - this is probably my most important EC)
JSA
Math Team (Captain)
NHS
School Newspaper (Editor)
School Art Magazine (one of a few Editors)
Robotics Team (we're not very good, though :P)
a couple other things that I won't mention for privacy reasons...</p>
<p>Volunteer service:
250+ hours
I founded a volunteer group of musicians who give performances to hospitals, assisted living homes, etc. I run the group and perform in every show. We also do a lot of charity drives for local organizations!
I volunteered at a hospital last summer.</p>
<p>I can't think of anything else I should include...if you need anything else just let me know.</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>What are your career interests something in music?</p>
<p>@Nekogami</p>
<p>I’d like to keep my options open, because I am interested in both music and math. I love teaching, so I’d really like to be a math professor or something along those lines someday (I know, it’s a long shot). Whatever I choose to do with my life, I’d like to maintain a piano studio on the side.</p>
<p>I also compose for fun!</p>
<p>Cost constraints, state of residency, and unweighted GPA?</p>
<p>“Middle class” seems to have a very large and flexible definition that is only loosely correlated with income and wealth, so it is not a reliable guide on financial aid. Talk to your parents about what they actually will contribute, and run net price calculators on various college web sites.</p>
<p>You probably want a math-intensive economics department, given your interest in math and economics. You may want to look in the course catalogs of the various colleges and see if the intermediate microeconomics and econometrics courses have math prerequisites more advanced than frosh calculus (= calculus BC), and whether there are other mathematical economics courses offered.</p>
<p>Why bother with the ACT? Your SATs are good enough to be used at any school. With your scores Match schools will also be reach schools (due to a low %age admitted). Rochester and Johns Hopkins would seem to be good alternatives if you can afford the schools.</p>
<p>@ucbalumnus
My parents are willing to pay some, but not necessarily all, of my college costs. So, finances are a bit of a concern, but I know that I will, at the very least, afford my safety schools.</p>
<p>That’s a good point about looking into math prerequisites for econ courses and mathematical econ courses. Thank you!</p>
<p>@Erin’s Dad
To be honest, my interest in taking the ACT is more a matter of personal curiosity than one of college admissions.</p>
<p>Thank you for your advice! I will look into URoch and JHU.</p>
<p>finding the right college is a 2-way process and you’ve only talked out one of the directions. That being what you present as a candidate. The flip side is what YOU want in a college. Other than music and math, you have said little. Located in a large city, a suburb, or rural area? Large U or small LAC? Class size? Type of students the college tends to attract? Interested in a year abroad? Live on-campus or a place where students live in town? I could go on, but I think you get the idea. </p>
<p>Many books on college admissions will talk about the search process, how to explore what you want in a college. Ideally junior year you would have done some visits to colleges of various types in your area to start getting a feel for what is right for you. Its easy to say “it doesn’t matter” but many kids find that actually visiting various types of colleges brings up reactions in them they would not have expected based on just speculating about what they want.</p>
<p>@mikemac
You’re right about the college search being a 2-way-process. I guess my ideal college would be a mid-sized university with under 12,000 students. This way, class sizes probably won’t be enormous, but there could still be scientific research going on on campus. I’m a bit artsy/fartsy myself, so I would like there to be a legitimate arts presence. It doesn’t have to be strong, I just would like to know that I am in the company of some other artistic fellows. Small-ish college towns are great. I don’t mind sports at all, but I’d prefer not to go to a school that is obsessed with football or something.</p>
<p>I like the culture that is stereotypical of U Chicago (intellectual, quirky, artsy, highly motivated).</p>
<p>That being said, there are exceptions to everything. Two of the schools I’m enamored with have less than 2,500 students total, so they definitely are not mid-sized. Another school I really like has almost 30,000 students and is known for its football team. One liberal arts college I visited was in a college town, had a strong academic reputation, strong arts presence, and had accessible professors, but I did not enjoy my experience there at all and do not plan to apply.</p>
<p>Thanks for the responses so far, guys (and girls)!</p>
<p>Anybody else?</p>