suggestions for where I should apply?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I’m pretty stressed out because I just recently realized I have no idea what to do with my life/where to go to college. I know picking a college doesn't decide my entire life, but still.</p>

<p>I'm a white middle-class girl from southern California applying to college for fall of 08
I’m not sure what my overall GPA is but I think it’s around 4.1 weighted, 3.8 unweighted
SAT I- 2130 (760 critical reading, 620 math, 750 writing)
SAT II- Literature 720, US History 690
AP US History- 4, AP Bio- 3, IB Psych- 4, IB Math Studies- 5
I don’t remember what my PSAT score was but apparently I’m a possible National Merit person</p>

<p>My current school is an independent study charter school which is not looked upon very highly. For a lot of students it’s a remedial/dropout prevention thing but I’m going there to graduate a semester early and get away from the miserable environment of my last school (a tiny cutthroat competitive public high school where I was very depressed and isolated. Everyone was obsessed with grades and scores. Hardcore alcohol abuse was pretty rampant, as were elitism, racism, sexism, homophobia and sexual harassment from both students and teachers). Anyway, I am just taking two high school classes in my senior year (English and Government/Economics) but I am also taking two classes at community college. </p>

<p>At my old school I was on the tennis team, president of Amnesty International and editor of the school paper; however, my current school doesn’t offer any extracurricular activities. I am working in a restaurant, and volunteering with a hospice and an organization called Food Not Bombs that distributes food for free that would otherwise be wasted. I have also won several creative writing awards and attended the California State Summer School for the Arts in 2005 and 2006. I make and contribute to zines (small independently published magazines) and I am working on organizing a new theatre company. </p>

<p>I do not have any desire to go to a prestigious college but I would like to get a decent education. It’s also important to me to go somewhere that is well-integrated into the surrounding community, where there is not a lot of animosity between students and local residents. I do not want to be in a bubble, especially not a hyper-privileged one. I am queer so I want to be somewhere I could be safe and find girls to date but I don’t necessarily want a stereotypical “hippie” school.</p>

<p>I’m interested in lots of things— creative writing, English and Spanish literature, linguistics, social sciences, film, all the stuff that sounds kind of flaky like media, ethnic and gender studies. I am mostly thinking about colleges on the west coast but I’m open to other suggestions as well. Cost is also a pretty big concern for me and my family (who wants to help out but definitely does not have a college fund or a bunch of money lying around).</p>

<p>Thank you so much. Sorry this got so long.</p>

2

<p>Oberlin? It's definitely safe, and there are a lot of queer people. It also has all around great academics, including one of the top creative writing programs, and it has every department you've listed. I know it is stereotypically "hippie", but really, it's not all that hippie, it's just liberal. </p>

<p>Oberlin also gives really great financial aid, like $34 million every year. </p>

<p>Also, your stats should be pretty competitive, even if Oberlin's selective.</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

3

<p>bpe, you sound like an interesting person. Since you're in California, have you checked out UC Santa Cruz? It's somewhat separated from the surrounding community geographically, but you might find a lot of things there which would interest you.</p>

4

<p>You are a strong candidate, do not stress. You should check into the environment at each UC and apply to the ones that seem best for you, since cost is an issue. You should be able to find like minded people at Berkeley and UCLA, but I am not sure how they fit in with the surrounding areas. Scripps and Pitzer may be worth looking at. Occidental and USC give aid, but the environment may not be what you want (I don't know, just suspect). What about Lewis and Clark in Oregon? Tulane gives a lot of merit aid, and is also very involved with the local area in a positive way. It is far from the west coast, though.</p>

5

<p>since you are in california, pomona sounds right up your alley, although it might constitute something of a bubble</p>

<p>schools on the east coast to consider might be williams (will be a 'bubble' though from what i understand), middlebury (good english and spanish), swarthmore (definitely good education but somewhat lacking in national prestige as you mentioned).</p>

<p>you might also want to throw an application stanford's way, just to see. yale sounds like a great place for you too (integrated in the community, great education, liberal), might as well try, right?</p>

<p>also some all-girls schools you might enjoy, if that sounds like something you'd like... scripps (in cali) and smith, wellesley, mount holyoke all on the east coast.</p>

<p>i'm pretty sure most if not all of the schools i mentioned provide 100% of demonstrated need for financial aid.</p>

6

<p>Thank you so much, everyone! I am definitely applying to UCs (probably Santa Cruz, Davis and Berkeley), probably Lewis and Clark, maaaaaaaaybe Oberlin, and possibly Tulane. Middlebury seems pretty ideal academically but not so much location-wise or socially.</p>

7

<p>Schools I think of when thinking not 'name', but good educations:</p>

<p>UCSC
Kalamazoo College
Women's colleges other than Wellesley
Oberlin</p>

<p>Also good for your situation:
Other UC's
Vassar
Arizona/ASU - both free in National Merit Semi - there is a list with some pretty decent schools related to that somewhere, not many considered progressive though, many more that are conservative(Bama, Auburn, Birmingham Southern, Baylor, etc.); New College of Florida could be a fit there, pretty freaking small though - great school, not sure what subjects, free for finalists</p>

<p>A few more names:
Carleton
Macalester
UMichigan - though bad OOS, weak aid(at least merit), high cost
St. Johns - either Santa Fe or Annapolis, has a 'great works' curriculum rather than specifics, might not be for you
Pomona</p>

8

<p>You have to apply to Vassar. Also consider Wesleyan and the Claremont LACs (CMC, Pomona, Pitzer).</p>

9

<p>There are a lot of good Midwestern LACs that would fit you. Beloit, Kalamazoo, Macalester and Lawrence immediately come to mind. And frankly, it sounds like you could benefit from a completely new environment. Your credentials are strong enough that some of these schools may offer significant scholarships. Good luck.</p>

10

<p>UCSC sounds like a good bet. The community there is a bit more eclectic, the academics are good, and instate tuition is probably the best way to cut costs. </p>

<p>Pitzer and Scripps are also good. Very liberal too.</p>

<p>If you want to venture out of the west, Macalester, Mount Holyoke, Vassar, Grinnell, and Wesleyan would probably best fit your needs. All of them are very accepting. I got them off of this list: <a href="http://www.princetonreview.com/college/research/rankings/rankingDetails.asp?categoryID=2&topicID=24%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.princetonreview.com/college/research/rankings/rankingDetails.asp?categoryID=2&topicID=24&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>