<p>Hey guys! I'm a rising senior and I need some help on expanding my rather short college list (particularly with safety and match schools). Got any suggestions for me?</p>
<p>Statistics/Info:
[ul]
[<em>] Ethnicity: Chinese
[</em>] Gender: Female
[/ul]
[ul]
[<em>] Fairly large public high school (~3000) in California (Bay Area).
[</em>] Unweighted GPA: 4.0
[<em>] Class Rank: 1 out of about 650-ish
[</em>] APs: World History (5), Chemistry (5), Calculus BC (5)
[li] Senior Schedule: AP English, AP Government and Politics, AP Statistics, AP Biology, Journalism, Psychology, Western Philosophy[/ul]</p>[/li]
<p>[ul]
[<em>] SAT I: 2300 - (CR) 730, (M) 770, (WR) 800
[</em>] SAT II: World History 740, Math II 800, Chemistry 740 (retaking), also planning on taking Biology in October...
[/ul] Extracurriculars/Awards/Community Service:[ul]
[<em>] American Red Cross Club (Co-President)
[</em>] California Scholarship Federation
[<em>] Math Club
[</em>] Science Olympiad (Parent Liaison): 2nd place medal at regionals
[<em>] Girl Scouts: around 7 years; earned Bronze Award and Silver Award, working on Gold
[</em>] Piano: a little over 10 years; few medals at US Open Music Competition
[/ul][ul]
[<em>] Volunteer at a Chinese culture summer camp for kids
[</em>] Stayed in North Thailand for about a week teaching English to children whose parents are in rehab
[/ul] Already planning to apply to:
[ul]
[<em>] Stanford (which will definitely be tough...)
[</em>] UC Berkeley, UCLA, UCSD
[<em>] Harvey Mudd
[</em>] Duke
[/ul][ul]
[<em>] Looking into Harvard, Yale, Princeton, etc., but I haven't done enough research yet for any others to be set in stone.
[/ul] Other:[ul]
[</em>] The DukeEngage program appeals to me a lot, so I was wondering if anyone knew of colleges with similar programs? I know many of them do have service programs, but Duke's seems to be particularly strong and offers a lot of options.
[li] I'm planning to major in chemistry, biology, biochemistry...something around there, so I'd prefer a school strong in sciences, though it's not completely necessary. :P[/li][/ul]</p>
<p>I know my family hovers somewhere right around the 80K income bracket (just barely below it, I think)…does that help at all? ._.
And as for NMF, probably not. I got 203 last year, so I think the most I can hope for is Commended.</p>
<p>Do you prefer any particular type of college? Do you like urban colleges, rural, small, big?</p>
<p>I can start suggesting Northwestern, UChicago etc but it really depends on what you like. Northwestern for example has a really strong chemistry dept. but then sports aren’t as big as that in Duke/Cal. Sure the campus is by the lake and is stunning, but it’s not for everyone. UChicago is good too, but they’re in the city and have the core…</p>
<p>If you are looking into colleges outside the west coast, take a look at Carnegie Mellon, Cornell, Rice. I saw that you’re applying to Harvey Mudd but Caltech’s not mentioned (they tend to have an overlap) does that mean that while you want a school strong in the sciences you still don’t want it to be too science oriented? You might also want to add a school that is very likely to offer you a merit scholarship such as USC or Case Western.</p>
<p>I’m not into sports much, so athletics isn’t a big factor for me. As for college type, I’m generally looking for a urban/suburban school…Size-wise, I’d prefer medium-ish (or at least 2,500+), though obviously Mudd isn’t quite in that range.</p>
<p>As for academics, I’m wavering. I’d like to get a broader/more liberal education while still having a focus on science, but most of the liberal arts schools seem a bit on the small side.</p>
<p>I’ll definitely be looking more into your suggestions though! Thanks. (:</p>
<p>Out of curiosity, why not Pomona, especially if you’re already looking at Mudd? Pomona is a bit closer to the size you want, with ~1600 students, and the consortium mitigates much of the isolation felt at a small college. Pomona will definitely give you a broad, liberal education, and additionally, its biology and chemistry departments are very strong. Also, Pomona is generous with need-based aid, which you will most likely qualify for.</p>
<p>Emory: great location in North East Atlanta, strong in the sciences (lots of pre-med kids, though I’m not sure if that’s what you would like).</p>
<p>Rochester: science-oriented school in New York, could be a safety for you.</p>
<p>I’d suggest Reed but it’s an LAC so it is a bit small. But it’s great in the sciences so if you’re willing to go below your 2500 limit, then do consider it.</p>
<p>verdricity: I was actually pretty curious about Pomona; it’s just that I didn’t get a chance to visit the campus (as I did with Mudd). I know Mudd’s pretty much science/math-based…is Pomona just bigger and broader in general, then? The financial aid would definitely be a plus.</p>
<p>And look into Emory, Rochester, Reed. Got it. :D</p>
<p>In that case I strongly suggest UChicago and Columbia. Both of the places have the Core and will give you the kind of education you’re looking for. Besides both are urban schools and have about 6-7k undergrads.</p>
<p>While you can replicate the Core at other places, you won’t be at an academic disadvantage since everyone has to take it. </p>
<p>As for urban schools within the size range, CMU, WUSTL, Northwestern and John Hopkins.</p>
<p>I wouldn’t say Pomona’s a bigger and broader Mudd. Mudd is essentially a tech school with liberal arts requirements, Pomona is a true LAC with all of the humanities and sciences that go along with that. While Pomona itself has around 1600 students, the Consortium has a total of about 5000 students and there is a good deal of interaction (if you choose it) so you can get both feels.</p>
<p>I agree with what Suin said about Pomona. Regarding the consortium: when you have five colleges that are literally adjacent to each other, a great deal of social and academic interaction is going to take place, such that you end up with the feel of a small university. Even if you didn’t see Pomona, hopefully you saw some of the other colleges and got a sense of the area.</p>
<p>I was just curious about Pomona because you didn’t seem absolutely set on the sciences, and wanted a liberal arts education. I’ve heard that Harvey Mudd can be extremely intense–which is great if you are completely set on science, math, or engineering, but it can be a little overwhelming if you’re not. Of course Mudd is still technically a liberal arts college, and you can take classes at any of the other colleges for a solid liberal arts education. </p>
<p>I’d second the University of Rochester; I applied as a safety, but it’s also a very nice college with a flexible curriculum. Speaking from experience, while their need based aid is not fantastic, they offer good merit based aid.</p>
<p>I’ve been told that, in general, there are a lot more liberal arts schools on the East Coast that are “better,” though I know the Claremont colleges are an exception. If I do decide to apply to more East Coast schools, I probably won’t get to visit any of them first, which does worry me a little…</p>
<p>Also, forgive me if this sounds somewhat ignorant, but what’s the difference between going to larger colleges/universities with a general education program (e.g. Harvard), and going to a smaller liberal arts school? Obviously the student population and campus culture are going to differ significantly, but how does the difference play out education-wise?</p>
<p>WashU and Cornell, reaches but less so than other ivies/peers. You would be a good candidate for applying ED to one of these schools given how competitive the ivies are for Asians from the Bay Area.</p>
I got 203 last year, so I think the most I can hope for is Commended.</p>