suggestions for colleges?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>So the time comes to fill out applications. I look at my list and its basically 4 UCs. I think I need a little more diversity. If any of you experienced CCers can suggest any privates that I may be interested int, I'll invesigate those.</p>

<p>here are my stats:
3.8-39 GPA (UC) 3.5-3.6 uw
34 ACt
800 IIC
800 Bio</p>

<p>APChem(5) AP USHist(5)
I took all but one of the honors/ap classes at my school</p>

<p>not any outstanding ECs. jus the usual 200 hrs comm service and a few clubs but no leadership. Took classes at community college. interned at high tech companies over summers.</p>

<p>yeah thats my profile.</p>

<p>I m looking at private schools that are matches or reaches</p>

<p>all help is greatly appreciated</p>

2

<p>If you're in California, have you considered the Claremont colleges? I'm looking into them myself. With your subject scores in math and bio, you look like a Harvey Mudd type. With the honors and aps, you're obviously smart and hardworking, so what happened to your GPA? Just explain that in the app.</p>

3

<p>but isnt Harvey Mudd a LAC. I am not really interested in learning about stuff from the classical age.</p>

<p>As for my GPA. I experienced a major dip in my sophomore year but managed to salvage it with my junior year grades</p>

<p>10 first semester - 3.8
10 second semester - 3.4
11 first semester - 3.7 (3.4uw)
11 second semester - 4.3 (3.9 uw)</p>

4

<p>lol, now what do I say to that...
I'd say you have a bum semester, like I had once. Didn't really matter after that bomber</p>

<p>Also, w hy are all the CCers awake waaaay after my bedtime? And i'm 18.</p>

5

<p>Are you planning to major in Bio? Berkeley, San Diego, Irvine, Santa Barbara, Colorado Boulder, Stanford, Cal Tech, U Washington St Louis, U Chicago, U of Washington, Northwestern.</p>

6

<p>Harvey Mudd is a LAC, but it is also an engineering and science school - think Caltech or MIT on a smaller, not quite as selective scale</p>

7

<p>Eclipsed, I live on the west coast, so if you live in the East I would be awake 3 hours after you if we both stayed up until 1 in the morning.</p>

<p>squarehead, Harvey Mudd is not the type of LAC where you learn about 'stuff from the classical age.' I don't think they even let you major in the humanities. It's a total technical place, as cangel said, like Caltech only not so crazy-selective.</p>

<p>Bummer about the bum-semester. But if the grades were in English, History, or P.E., that's totally understandable (esp. for a place like Harvey Mudd).</p>

8

<p>I'll try harvey mudd. It sounds like all you experienced CCers are unanimously for it.</p>

<p>I had 2 bum semesters not 1.</p>

<p>Yeah. the majority of my Bs were either in English, Spanish, or Art. I got a B in regular history once and a B in Ap history once but my Ap teacher was ridiculously demanding. (I hope that 5 on the AP shows that). I never got a B in math or science (I took all the APs and honors).</p>

<p>Couple questions tho:</p>

<p>U of Washington as in U of washington in seattle?</p>

<p>IS Harvey mudd more of a reach or a match?</p>

<p>Does UC Davis have a good bio prgram?
Ive heard of UCB UCSB UCSD but what about Davis</p>

<p>Thanks all</p>

9

<p>I would think UC Davis has a pretty good Biology program. They were originally an agricultural school, and it seems to fit. UC Davis is a huge, huge student body--like a city in itself--as far away from an LAC as you can get. I'd go for UCLA for sciences, though, especially if you want to go Premed.</p>

10

<p>what about purdue?</p>

<p>does it have a good bio program?</p>

11

<p>Purdue is worthless for you unless you get a full ride. Think Carnegie Mellon, Emory, Michigan, WashU, Rice.</p>

12

<p>You need a systematic approach to picking colleges, and asking for random suggestions is not that approach. there are about 3,000 4-year colleges in this country. You'll get the same 20 or 30 names mentioned on this forum, but that doesn't begin to scratch the surface.</p>

<p>Really it depends on how important this is to you, and how much effort you're willing to devote to it. Since its only the start of August you have plenty of time to do a thorough search, but its only going to happen if you want it to.</p>

<p>Here's what I recommend:</p>

<p>1) Learn whats out there. Get 2 or 3 books about college admissions since each author has a different point of view. Start with a book by Loren Pope such as "Colleges that Change Lives", and a second book. </p>

<p>2) Set expectations. This means having your parents fill out one of the financial aid estimators to see what they are expected to contribute, and see if they can/will do that. This means evaluating your stats critically and choosing colleges that are realistic and not dreaming of the same set of Ivy's and top LACs everyone else lists.</p>

<p>3) Investigate. Visit nearby of various types; a large U, a smaller U, a LAC, an urban school, a rural school. Talk to people, take the tour. Find out what you prefer. </p>

<p>4) Set criteria. With the info you've gathered in step (1-3) put together a list of what you're looking for. Is it a school in CA or farther away? What type school? What type of students does it attract? What activities do you want/dont-want at the school? A big-time sports program, for example? A large studies-abroad program? The chance to take music classes? The better informed you are about what you're looking for, the easier it is to recognize it when you see it. "I need a little more diversity" doesn't quite narrow it down enough :-)</p>

<p>5) Select. Get one of the books that lists hundreds of colleges. Read thru and find colleges that provide what you want. Pay particular attention to a safety and matches. Then blow one pick on a reach. Most students do just the opposite; they fill out a list of reaches, then try to pick a safety and a match or two. Just look at some threads on this forum to see what I mean.</p>

<p>6) Check it out. Visit the schools if you can when its back in session, preferably overnite. Ask the school to put you in touch with current students home for the summer in your area. Read the school paper online, look for live-journal entries by current students, etc. Try to build a picture in your mind of whether you'd really be happy there.</p>

<p>So there it is. 6 steps you have time to do this summer. Or you can pick more or less by chance from the suggestions you get on this forum. Its really all up to you.</p>