Soc, PoliSci, and IR - College Planning HELP!

Applying to College
1

<p>Hello, </p>

<p>I am now a junior in high school, and I'm interested primarily in the areas of political science, sociology, and international relations. </p>

<p>I believe I would like to work for a think tank or as a professor in one of these fields. I really want it to be something that helps people.</p>

<p>What would be the best colleges, careers, and majors for me?
Of course, it's way too soon to know definitely, but I just want to use this to explore all of my options. </p>

<p>Right now, I'm looking at applying to:
Swarthmore, Harvard, Georgetown, Princeton, Yale, UChicago, Grinnell, UC Berkeley, and Macalster.</p>

<h2>What do you think about attending a LAC first, and then attending a top university for graduate school(s)? Some say this is smart, as it allows for better undergrad education, but others say it limits your opportunities. </h2>

<p>Here are my stats:
*4.0
*5 on AP US Gov in 9th grade; waiting for APUSH score
*790 on SAT History Test (as sophomore)
*President of volunteer group
*On a governor appointed board
*Founder of a global awareness group
*Secretary of a civic group's board that promotes the downtown district in my city
*Intern for UN Association
*Starting UN Student Association group at my school
*Working to start a political organization for youth in my state
*Speech - "All State" sophomore year for a speech.
*Spanish Club
*Math Club, first at a competition
*Student member of school board
*Will begin historic research for bicentennial celebration of the dam by our town.
*I started taking college classes as a freshman, and will have a lot of credits when I graduate</p>

<p>Thanks for your help!</p>

2

<p>Hi, I got your message. First I would say to make sure to take a lot of AP classes, read books related to the subjects that interest you, stay up on current affairs - to show interest and to learn if you really do like Polisci/IR. Also use the UN association at your school to explain what areas of the world interest you because that will def help with deciding upon a major (ie. through MUN I have discovered a real passion for African politics and may major in African/ Middle eastern studies). </p>

<p>I would say the majors to look at for colleges are: IR, Political Science, Economics (International Economy), Middle eastern/african/asian studies)etc. </p>

<p>In my own college search I have been considering many of the same colleges and have gravitated towards LAC schools due to interdiscplinary options. just as you said you can go to a more focused program for grad school, but undergrad seems like the time to explore. that said I would suggest you look at Middlebury, Colgate, University of Pitt, Bates, Colby, Williams, Cornell, and Stanford.
Obvs these schools are all very different and it depends if you want a high research oriented university. Cornell could kind of be the best of both worlds in that you have the ability to research whatever subject interests you (not just science).</p>