<p>Hello! I am a girl, not singaporean, but I studied in Singapore half my life. LAC is definitely not only for arts. Basically liberal arts involve 'the academic areas of social sciences, natural sciences, fine arts, literature, and the humanities' Some LACs have stronger science departments than others, so you will need to do some research to check that out. I will be attending Smith College, which has a pretty strong science department and an innovative engineering program(run a search on Picker Engineering Program if you are interested). Smith College is a women college though so it is not for everyone. However, I will suggest that you look up a bit on the top women colleges(Wellesley, Smith, Bryn Mawr, Barnard, Mount Holyoke) as these colleges are generally pretty strong in sciences and use a different approach in teaching sciences to women. I started of my college search not considering women colleges at all, but I just sort of stumbled upon Smith and fell in love with it. Another good thing about LAC is that most top LAC gives financial aid to international students. However, do take note that the international student asking for aid pool is much more competitive than the usual fee-paying international student pool everywhere except for the need blind schools. Do PM me if you have any questions.</p>
<p>@bigfish:</p>
<p>-hey! i'm a j2 considering us unis too! and like you: i have the most horrid CT results [contemplates cursing the jc i'm in], and i just hope i can seriously bump my grades up for prelims [and crossing my fingers that my teachers be nice/liberal with my predicted grades too]. add the fact that i'm pretty laidback, easygoing [almost to the point of being a major slacker] = no fantastic recommendations. [technically] no leadership position as well. what are we supposed to do?? can anyone else suggest a few methods for damage control? :)</p>
<p>-i'm only speaking for myself, but from the research i've done.. i don't think the schools you've mentioned will be "easy" to get into for "average" students. they rank among the top schools in america and therefore i suppose you need to have a "hook" in your application for them to consider you, out of the many thousands of well-qualified students, not just from the US but all over the world, who compete for admission each year. of course colleges don't just look at grades/standardized testing.. most insist that they work on a "holistic" approach. so they will consider, albeit at varying degrees, everything: rigour of secondary school acads, CCAs, leadership, community service, achievements, etc. essays and recommendations can also make or break an application, from what i've heard.</p>
<p>cornell is an ivy = although relatively easier to get into than HYP, that also means it's bound to be among the most selective schools. [i swear "ivy league" are amazing magic words that prevent many students from considering other schools that could be a better fit for them, but i digress.] UVa I've heard is the best public university in the US and hence will be pretty selective. i dont really know much about umich, but UChicago has an amazing econs department [among others]. so i suppose that the selectivity can also differ, depending on the department you want to get into.</p>
<p>-LACs or unis, that will depend on your own preference/personality. do you want individualized attention, and a small home-y close-knit feel to the school? consider an lac, though that doesn't mean that you have to rule out some of the bigger schools. Unis i guess would be more for those research-oriented types ALTHOUGH many LACs can also offer very good research opportunities as well. i don't know, there are a lot more things to consider if you're choosing between LAC/uni.. i'm sure those who ARE already in college would be at a much better position to answer this question.</p>
<p>financial aid is also a very huge factor IMO.. i think, if your family is shouldering the cost of your education, you might want to consider the public unis because tuition fees and stuff are cheaper. on the other hand, if you want a substantial amount of financial aid, LACs should be worth looking into.</p>
<p>for myself, i'm looking more at LACs because i will be in dire need of financial aid. and i don't want a student body that is too large. i think if you dont want to compromise on individualized attention and stuff from teachers and stuff, there are some unis that might be just the right size. like maybe lehigh, tufts, bucknell, colgate?</p>
<p>Informative posts up there!</p>
<p>There are some things that I want to point out:</p>
<p>I do not think selectivity depends on the department one is applying to, since everyone applies to the university in general (of course, there are exceptions, which are for you to find out haha).</p>
<p>While public universities generally charge lower comprehensive fees, you should also note that they generally do not offer need-based aid (I think some offer merit aid, but merit aid is usually quite little) to international students. Curiously, you may end up paying less for private than public universities, given you are good enough to get substantial need-based (and probably also merit aid) from the former.</p>
<p>still @bigfish:</p>
<p>and i think blur has already answered the science vs arts question pretty well.</p>
<p>i forgot to add: i'm a girl too! lol</p>
<p>@blur: i think i'll be pm-ing you soon, have got questions about the women's colleges you mentioned in your post. yay. :)</p>
<p>@edwinksl: thanks for pointing those out, especially that bit about fees in public unis :) meh, but i thought that for some unis you have to indicate which department you want to get into? that would kind of affect your application wouldn't it? i'd like to use this as a case in point: wouldn't upenn be much tougher to get into if you specifically want to be in wharton, as opposed to say other departments?</p>
<p>but then again, i'm really not very sure about these kinds of things.</p>
<p>limitedvocab: feel free to PM me regarding women college. Especially since I am currently rotting at home waiting for college to start..</p>
<p>^ thanks, for all the advice</p>
<p>ah you see. about the whole fees thing, be it private or public.. i don't feel good about counting on financial/need-based/need blind aid cos you run a pretty high risk of not getting it. unless you are unbelievably talented, probably 2400 for sats, etc etc. insert overachiever cvs. </p>
<p>on the other hand i know lacs are more generous, so i might be looking into that.</p>
<p>but doesn't declaring a need for financial aid kind of lower your chances for admission at some unis? enlighten me with the procedure: do you first indicate a need for financial aid on the form, and then the school replies with its offer? </p>
<p>my friend said something along the lines of, since you're paying so much money already (assuming paying for full edn), you might as well get the best. ie. make your money worth with the unis with the 'brand name'. i know its the typical horrible s'porean mindset, and i swore never to choose a university based on reputation, but i just couldnt help but rethink about that. what'd you think?</p>
<p>I think your friend should stop giving bad advice. =)</p>
<p>Honestly speaking, the brand name thing is overrated. Why:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>Brand names only matter to lay people, and even then certain universities are "debatable brand names" (ie, your Uncle's taxi driver friend has heard of it, but your Auntie's hairdresser hasn't. Then how?)</p></li>
<li><p>Good employers WILL KNOW which are good universities and which are the Mickey Mouse institutions. I go to Tufts, which is a GREAT school, but if I go for a job interview and the HR manager says "Hah? What Tuff one?", then you really do NOT want to work in that company!</p></li>
</ol>
<p>It just shows they have unqualified HR staff, which should lead you to question the quality of the rest of the employees. Would you want a career in such a firm? </p>
<p>If you want to impress randoms at a bar, then certainly go for brand names just for the sake of it. But that can cause unrealistic expectations, lots of frustration and possible heartache. The people who really matter are more concerned with YOU.</p>
<p>That being said, brand names can definitely get you more attention AT FIRST GLANCE. But if you have nothing to back it up (if as a person you are UNIMPRESSIVE) then that brand name does nothing for you. A turd in Harvard is still a turd. (No offense to my Harvard friends)</p>
<p>As a side-note, I turned down some brand name schools to go to Tufts. I just liked the feeling I had there more than the other places. No regrets whatsoever -- I personally think I am in the best school in the world.</p>
<p>But that's my unbiased opinion. Hah. </p>
<ul>
<li>Raoul</li>
</ul>
<p>sorry for spamming again. i sound so despo lol. </p>
<p>i was just skimming through the old pages and i realized a lot of people here are going to LACs. can i get some general stats as to where everyone's going? you and friends you know.. i dont know. anyone. anything. (now i sound really desperate.)</p>
<p>and i rmb theres someone going to conn? you know i think conn is a beautiful place. :) it's one of those places you see in the pictures and you immediately fall in love with. </p>
<p>if you wouldn't mind, tell me more about your colleges! in terms of sch culture, the more popular majors, specialised schools (like wharton buisness or pratt engineering) and stuff. speaking of which, do you guys take into consideration the school culture, location, weather, international population (especially s'poreans) and etc when you make a decision?</p>
<p>because i've heard about crazy party schools with dominant greek scenes and people are drunk every night.. not very enticing, personally. sometimes i wonder if us is too liberal for me. don't you worry about the fitting in? would you rather have a s'pore/asian circle to fall back on?</p>
<p>[edit]</p>
<p>yup, raoul, thanks for strengthening my convictions. guess i asked a stupid question. told myself to stop bothering with the whole rep thing since the beginning. haha.</p>
<p>raoul: "Hah? What Tuff one?" That made me LOL.</p>
<p>just curious, how did you get around the application process? tufts has this weird system right? like short answer questions and what seemed to me like a kajillion essays to write. i guess it's to put off anyone who isn't really serious about attending tufts, am i correct?</p>
<p>bigfish: that's the way! you know, i get slightly irritated whenever people bring up the whole prestige issue. not that i'm parading myself as the "oh i don't care about that, and i know so much more than you do" kind.. it's just that, i feel that people would be missing out on so much if they only based their college choices on that mindset. and i've got friends too whose parents are like that and i feel really sorry for them. it's like, "liberal arts? that's not for very smart people isn't it? why can't you go to ivy league/stanford/whatever brand name?" :(</p>
<p>and to answer your other question, while i'm nowhere close to making any definite choices or anything, i'm certainly going to take culture, location, weather, international population and stuff into consideration. not so much for singaporeans, 'cause i'm not singaporean, but i'd like to go to a school that's pretty diverse and welcoming to international students. i wouldn't worry so much about the s'pore/asian circle thing because i'm pretty sure you'll make good friends with kids from different countries. and the fact that we're all international students would already create a bond between all of us, i imagine. but of course having singaporean schoolmates would be pretty nice too :) </p>
<p>and that's why i think cc is awesome. not being able to visit campuses is slightly compensated for by the fact that there are students around whom we can directly ask about colleges and stuff.</p>
<p>bigfish, I don't believe in questions being stupid. It's an Asian thing to denigrate the asking of questions. Getting away from Singapore and into a culture that actually encourages you to question everything is great. So keep asking questions, whatever you want to know. </p>
<p>I could go on about Tufts for hours (and if you came to the Tufts booth at Experiences 07 a few weeks ago you would've seen me doing that to poor passerby's...haha). It's best to hang around the cc forums of schools you want to visit and get ideas from the current students who post there. </p>
<p>Also, I highly discourage "falling back" on Asians/Singaporeans wherever you decide to go to for uni. The whole point of going somewhere different is to learn and live in a different culture. One good point about me going to Tufts is that 1 or 2 Singaporeans go there each year (if at all). Of course the year I start school they send 12 Singaporeans. =)</p>
<p>Nothing wrong with Singaporeans, but you need to be outside your comfort zone to learn and grow. You don't have to become completely American, but you shouldn't avoid them. My good friends in college are all American, but the normal, good type. I stay away from the binge drinkers and pot smokers. </p>
<p>limitedvocab is right in looking at the big picture before narrowing down names. Questions you should ask yourself are:</p>
<p>Big uni or small one?
Campus or City?
East Coast or West (More of a culture question -- people are very different in different parts of the country)
and so on.</p>
<p>Then once you have a criteria of the above, then you look at the good schools that fit the above criteria and are strong in the department you are considering majoring in. </p>
<p>Rather than looking at name schools for the sake of name schools, the criteria above is to see whether you personally can tahan 4 years in that environment. Once you're happy where you are, your performance will improve accordingly and everything else will fall into place.</p>
<p>Just some thoughts.</p>
<ul>
<li>Raoul</li>
</ul>
<p>Hope you don't mind an interloper. I am an expat in Singapore, mom of 2 kids who are now in US unis. I think there are a few misconceptions that are worth clearing up here.</p>
<p>The US has other places other than the east and west coasts. If you are looking for money to help fund your education in the US, and if there is anything questionable about your qualifications, in particular, geography should matter. The schools on the coasts attract the most international applicants. Many great schools in the mid west are looking for internationals and mid-westerners are relaxed and friendly and genuine. Cost of living is cheaper, too.</p>
<p>The large state schools are not cheaper- unless you are an in state resident. For many kids, Americans and otherwise, the smaller schools which provide merit aid are much better financial deals than even their in-state school! Make sure you do your math first. </p>
<p>I have one son at an Ivy, another at a top LAC. They are different kids and would not have been happy at each other's school. Try to consider your 'whole experience' in thinking about your US college experience, rather than just seeing it a stepping stone to money or grad school. It should be so much more than that!! </p>
<p>Have fun and good luck!</p>
<p>Hi anitaw,</p>
<p>I was by no means excluding schools that aren't on the coasts. I simplified the point by saying "East or West", but the justification about "culture" meant geography (Thank you! That's the word I should have used but couldn't think of when I wrote the post)</p>
<p>Culture of the locals differ depending on the part of the US you're in. International students have different levels of comfort depending on that location, which is the point I was trying to make. That greatly contributes to the whole college experience point you brought up which I wholeheartedly agree with.</p>
<p>Well i recently got offered a place in Ohio State Uni. Its a school in the mid-west. I'm not too sure how good or prestigious a school it is. But i do agree with Anitaw that international students do prefer to apply to the big-name schools along the coast. Just my opinion. Anyway, Im planning to study Finance in the Fisher College of Business in OSU. </p>
<p>I am planning to apply to a few more unis before actually confirming where to go for my undergraduate degree. Some schools i'm considering applying to are NYU, Haas(UC-Berkeley), UT-Austin and Kelley(Indiana Uni). I do know NYU and Haas are long-shots. Some may even say stupidity with my grades. </p>
<p>This is why I kind of wanted to stress something about the american education system. The reason I didnt apply to Unis in Aus or UK was simply cos most of the unis there were gonna look at my A Level grades and rule me out as a candidate immediately. US Unis on the other hand have a more all-rounded approach when evaluating students where everything from SAT, Academics, CCAs and community service play a part. </p>
<p>Any comments on OSU as well as my post are welcome. Thanks. =)</p>
<p>I think the general consensus is that OSU is a good state university. I have heard very good things about some of its programs, so I don't think you should worry. If USNews rankings are anything to go by, OSU is ranked 57th.</p>
<p>If you apply to other schools, don't you have to forfeit your OSU place? If so, are you sure you can get into OSU again? I am not insinuating anything, but **** happens, so it is always good to weigh the consequences of reapplication. :)</p>
<p>EDIT: I heard its honors college is awesome!</p>
<p>Well, I have until next feb to confirm my place in OSU. I think I forgot to mention that im entering uni in 2008 and not this year. So I figured i'd just give it a shot to applying to a few other schools just to try my luck i guess. Esp Haas as I've got an uncle who lives about 30 miles from Berkeley. I've heard some good things about the honors college too, but too bad the application for the honors program in fall '08 isnt open yet. Does anyone have the US NEWS rankings for the business colleges for 2007. and for the Finance Program too. It would be great if someone could post that up.
And to edwinksl, its reassuring to know that Ive got admission to a good uni, not comparable with the ivy league and all, but nonetheless a good school. =)</p>
<p>I don't want to sound discouraging, but Berkeley will be pretty tough because it's one of the few US schools that require A Levels and that will count against you (unlike the rest where you can apply using your O Levels).</p>
<p>OSU is a good school; I have a friend studying dance there.</p>
<p>why is no one posting? now's surely the crunch time for apps rite?</p>
<p>erm anyone from TJC here?</p>
<p>I think everyone's having or preparing for prelims. Only the NSers are hanging around.</p>