So confused. Where to focus?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I'm currently a junior. </p>

<p>Stats:
ACT-32(not yet taken junior yr)
SAT-2120
No idea which subject tests to take!</p>

<p>GPA- 4.0 (unweighted)
AP's- US Gov (5), taking Lang, Chem, US history this year, next year Physics, Bio, Lit (these are all the ap's offered at my hs)
Rank:1(tied)</p>

<p>EC's- Speech & Debate (very involved, hopefully state/nationals this year)
FBLA (top 20 at nationals last year）
Governor's school
Math league
Scholar bowl
Mission trips w/ church
Assist ACT prep class for underclassmen
Mentor elementary students
Summer programs at Duke
JV tennis (2 years)</p>

<p>I'm applying to TASP, maybe clarks for this summer. I anticipate becoming national merit finalist (227 PSAT) </p>

<p>I have no clue where to apply! I planned on Duke my freshmen and sophomore years, but I don't know what my other options are. I live in Missouri and plan on majoring in the sciences and continuing to med school. Where should I be looking? Do I have any chance at an Ivy? Thanks so much!</p>

2

<p>Ivies are certainly within reason. Bringing up your scores would help, and hopefully there’s a passion you can highlight.</p>

<p>But don’t count on ivies because the simple fact is most unhooked with your stats won’t get in. It’s become just crazy with the mid tier accepting under 10% this year.</p>

<p>There are amazing Us and LACs out there. Get a Fiske guide and fall in love with some just below the top dozen.</p>

3

<p>“I live in Missouri and plan on majoring in the sciences and continuing to med school. Where should I be looking?”</p>

<p>Is there a reason WUSTL is not on your list? It is one of the best colleges for aspiring doctors.</p>

<p>“Do I have any chance at an Ivy?”</p>

<p>Sure you do, but the odds are never good with the Ivies.</p>

4

<p>As the above person said, why are you focusing on ivies only if you want to do sciences/medicine? Look at WUSTL, Tufts, or JHU. All are well known for having great pre-med programs. Do your research and I think you will figure it out. But just because a school is an ivy doesn’t necessitate that it’s probably the best choice for someone aspiring to do sciences and/or medicine.</p>

5

<p>Thanks for the advice! To clarify, I am in no way focused solely on an ivy league university; I was simply curious, as I am surveying alll of my options. Wash U? I’m sure it could be a good fit, but I am looking towards schools outside of the Midwest. In addition, I feel I may change my mind about medicine. This is where more confusion comes in. I have not eliminated any schools as of yet; all the research I conduct simply leads me further away from any definitive answers on what’s right for me. My college advisor discourages application to far away/prestigious schools in lieu of a free education at a state school. Therefore, I’m not sure how to determine where I should be focusing. I will definitely look into Tufts/Hopkins. Is Duke a good fit? BTW, as far as stats go I predict ACT to be 34/35 after February. SAT should be closer to 2300 after May test; I failed to prepare prior to my only testing. Thank you again to everyone! I am beginning to feel overwhelmed from choices and expectations.</p>

6

<p>

</p>

<p>Depends.
Have you estimated your Expected Family Contribution (EFC)? If so, are your parents able and willing to cover it? </p>

<p>If you expect to qualify for need-based aid, and if your family can cover the EFC, then a selective private school may be an affordable choice. If you’re full pay (with no merit aid) then the private school is likely to cost at least double the in-state public alternative.</p>

7

<p>As far as money goes, it doesn’t factor heavily in my decision. My advisor’s aversion to far away/prestigious schools seems to apply to every student, regardless of their situation. She does an excellent job preparing students for the top scholarships at state schools, but knows/cares little about other locations, as the HUGE majority of students from my school do not leave the 100 mile radius around where I live. The terms “reach” or “match” were entirely foreign to me until I recently happened upon this site. Someone mentioned a Fiske guide…?</p>

8

<p>

I hope that means you’re rolling in it, not that you’re happy at the thought of taking out whatever loans needed to get into the school you like. Because full pay at private schools can be $55,000 / year, and that’s a lot of debt to have at 22 years old. You need to have a frank discussion with your parents about what schools think you can afford (check out fafsa4caster) and what your parents think you can afford.</p>

<p>BUT on the issue of which school, if your school doesn’t send many kids to top schools but you can get awesome SAT/AP scores, that says a lot about your initiative and ability, and the top schools will be more interested in you.</p>

<p>You want out of the midwest. Are you interested in big schools or small? Greek scene or not? urban or rural? Huge choices of classes or close relationships with profs?</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

9

<p>Try to get a sense of how you feel about size and that will help you focus (as well as getting a good guide to review). If you can visit a nearby large university and a liberal arts school, whatever you feel about that comparison will probably apply to some extent to other small/ large comparisons. Wash. U. compared to Grinnell and then Tufts compared to Amherst or Middlebury, for example.</p>

10

<p>There are a number of guides (Fiske, Princeton Review, Insider’s Guide, etc.) that provide profiles of schools–these can give you a good idea of where you might want to apply. They are really long, though (most include a few hundred schools at least), so it helps to at least have an idea of schools you might want to check out instead of just trying to read the whole thing. You can find them at your local bookstore.</p>

<p>I’ll throw in Vanderbilt and Rice as suggestions–I think you’d get into at least one of the two–but you haven’t given us much information about what you want in a school beyond being premed and liking Duke. I would encourage you to consider that some. Some things to think about: size, location (urban/suburban/rural), atmosphere (intense versus laid-back), student body (nerdy or more conventional? Greek life? how important is it that they be up to your intellectual level?), academic philosophy (intellectual or more pre-professional?). There’s also the strengths of the various departments, although I think the importance of that is overblown. Most of the schools you will be looking at have strong academics in general, although a few are noticeably weaker in the sciences, and as a pre-med you might want to stay clear of those. </p>

<p>(There’s no need for you to go to a “good pre-med school” if none of those schools appeal to you–what does “good pre-med school” mean, anyway? A lot of the time it just seems to mean “attached to a strong medical school,” which is nice, but in no way necessary.)</p>

<p>To someone who favored Duke (medium-sized, urban, relatively laid-back and conventional), I might recommend schools like Tufts, Vandy, and Rice (as above), Northwestern and WUSTL (although you don’t want schools in the Midwest), possibly also UVA and UNC (although I don’t know much about their science departments). Maybe Penn, although that’s something of a reach with your scores. If you were willing to go smaller (and rural), I might add Dartmouth (also reachy), Middlebury, Davidson, and Whitman.</p>

<p>That’s if you want to attend an “elite” school in the first place, which is a whole different and very contentious debate. Right now I’m paying a premium to, essentially, be a B student at a big-name school, and I do think it’s worth it, but you might not. There’s something to be said about going to your state school for nearly free, having a good time, and making great grades with relative ease–although life is rarely easy for a premed whereever you go, heh. Ultimately it’s up to you to choose the path that will leave you in the best place in four years.</p>

11

<p>The in-depth advice is really helpful. Thank all of you so much for taking the time to advise a perplexed 17 year old. To clarify a few things that will better refine my search: I do not anticipate any loans being necessary. If they were, I would without a doubt be completely content with Mizzou. On the questions raised concerning specifics, I would prefer a big city being near (1 hour away) but a college town for the campus itself. I don’t care about Greek life. Intellectual level is very important to me. The last thing I want is to repeat my high school experience of constantly being “the smart one.” I would most prefer an academically demanding school. Coasting is dull and I seek a thorough education in dedication and critical thinking skills.</p>

12

<p>

I totally understand this, and this was what my son chose, with my full encouragement (and envy). I think you should do the same. That being said, I’ve read repeatedly that med schools care a LOT about GPA, and some of the very top schools don’t have the degree of grade inflation we’ve become used to. It’s good that you don’t coast, but there may be repercussions later. Maybe the med schools will be understanding of a lower GPA from a top school and maybe not.</p>

<p>

Claremont schools near LA - Harvey Mudd (science, no grade inflation), Pomona/Pitzer/Scripps (LAC). Also Caltech (no grade inflation) near LA and Olin near Boston. Many others, of course, but I don’t know what they are. </p>

<p>One way we searched was to go to college board, work through the find-a-college questionnairre, and sort the many results by Math SAT descending. Crude but interesting.</p>

13

<p>You sound like the kind of person who would really enjoy Rice (no frats or sororities - accepting students, intelligent students who interact in class, urban environment, enough different from Missouri to give you a change, but not so different as the east or west coasts). Many of my fellow alums became doctors. Rice has reasonable tuition which is helpful when you are full-pay.</p>