Should I consider EA/ED? Advice?

Applying to College
1

<p>Ok, so I've found some matches, but I still have a lot of major reaches on my list =[</p>

<p>Major Reaches:
Brown-- All I needed were the words "Egyptology" and "Open Curriculum" and I was hooked.
Middlebury</p>

<p>My Scores:
SAT:
Latest:1940 (M 710 CR 580 WR 650)
I'm retaking again in Dec.(4th time),previous scores were 1690, 1730.
And my CR just hasn't improved!
570-550-580
BUT I still see a lot of space for improvement, especially in CR, lol.</p>

<p>I'm taking the SAT 2 in Nov. (Math 1 & Chinese)
I'm estimating a 700+ for Math and an 800 for Chinese.</p>

<p>GPA:
90ish(out of 100)</p>

<p>ECs:
1. Invited to be the moderator at SINA (the largest Chinese-language infotainment web portal) for the astrology forum. My writing has made the front page of SINA many times and is quite popular.</p>

<ol>
<li><p>Tae Kwon Do</p></li>
<li><p>Student Council</p></li>
<li><p>Teacher's Assistant </p></li>
<li><p>I also won a bunch of English contests (everything from speaking to writing) but I doubt that counts........</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Other:
I moved to Beijing (I'm an American citizen) when I was 10, I couldn't read or write the language then but now I rank amongst the top 5% in my grade (I go to a regular Chinese high school, not an International one).</p>

<p>FA is really important because I come from a low income family. My mother has had Lou Gehrig's Disease (A.L.S) ever since I could remember. And my dad is the only source of income in our family.</p>

<p>That's pretty much it.</p>

<p>I guess what I lack in ECs and scores I make up for in experience and maturity.
I've got a lot to tell =]</p>

<p>I don't know if I should consider ED or EA.
I'm afraid that my SAT scores are still too low, I don't want to be rejected right on the spot and not be able to try again RD. </p>

<p>Any advice?
Thank you in advance!</p>

2

<p>Neither B or Midd offer EA, they are both ED schools. </p>

<p>The general rule of thumb is that if you need to compare FA packages, you should not apply ED. There are several threads here and on the FA & Scholarship forum that discuss this.</p>

<p>Yes, your CR scores are still very low for these schools, selective colleges will be concerned that you will not be able to be successful within an accomplished cohort.</p>

3

<p>@entomom:
I know that both are ED, but I’m thinking of considering other schools too.
And I’m open to suggestions.
I’m hoping to raise my CR to a 650+，but that would be too late for RD.
I’m also not quite sure what schools I should consider for RD.
My list of matches has too many LACs and I’m not sure if it’s the type of education I want. I think I would prefer an open curriculum more. But the only schools I know that offer an open curriculum are: Brown, Amherst, and U Rochester. And I believe that</p>

4

<p>Hamilton has an open curriculum and has a very high reputation for English, so your awards may help there. I dont think bringing up CR to 650 will make a world of difference in Brown/Midd admissions. You would need to break the 700 to be competitive.</p>