<p>Another comment on the ability to do the work: I think that LAC adcoms are fairly knowledgabel about how admittees will perform at their schools. Once in, the LAC support systems make it fairly easy to stay in, much more so than large universities or highly competitive ivies. </p>
<p>I know absolutely nothing about Goucher, and in no way mean to disparage it as a first choice. I just think it's a bit early in the process to need to pick a first choice, especially an ED one. We started researching and making lists around the beginning of junior year. I kept a month by month chart of the short list and early choice. It's amazing how it changed over the 15 month research period. My son's ED choice was the last school he visited (and that was a last minute decision) and wasn't on any of the previous 15 lists. In the end it was just right. Seeing the campus and talking to the kids and administration filled in a dimension that no other medium could have provided.</p>
<p>Comfort level -- academic and social -- is purely subjective. One of my son's friends turned down Yale for Pomona (equal financial aid at both). Everyone was astonished but he knew what he wanted. I hope your daughter finds that wonderful balance between realism and idealism.</p>
<p>A teacher who writes so many recs will hear from the students how they did in the admission process; an alumni interviewer will also hear what happened to the interviewee. So I should not discount her opinion by any means. And I see Smith as a real possibility for your D. But let's see how she does on the PSAT and the SAT beofre hatching more chickens and schemes :).</p>
<p>A Smith alum? I think you should look again. Alums tend to be very aware of their current student body at Smith. How long ago did this teacher graduate from Smith? If it's less than 5-10 years, it's no doubt that she will have learned the fact that while Smithies graduated from hs with so-so stats, they do reach their potential at Smith because they are given that chance to prove their abilities by the admissions.</p>
<p>Sometimes it's best to listen to the teacher who knows the student very, very well because she might have insights in your D that you may not have seen. From your posts with her AP Euro class, it sounds like the teacher really cares about your D, so I would listen to her. For example, during my application/waiting process in my senior year, I used my 11th grade English teacher (one of my recommenders) as a sounding board. While she tried to remain unbiased and neutral about my college choices and to help me figure out which one was the best, she always ended the conversations that I should go to Smith because she felt that I adored getting to know my teachers very well, would do better in smaller classes, and that I would be more confident and happier and will excell in all-women's classes. Well, I didn't choose Smith based on the third reason because I felt comfortable being in classes with men. </p>
<p>Halfway through the semester already, I realized that she was right on all of those reasons. Darn right. How the heck did she know!?! Guess she knew me well enough to know what it takes to achieve my potential. I don't think your D's AP Euro teachers is being clueless.</p>
<p>But looking for matches early in the college search process is great! Just try to reach for the stars, too!</p>
<p>hmmm. . .with that sort of institutional opinion spread I would stick to your plan until SAT results and this year's grades are known. </p>
<p>But I might put Smith on the list. . .looks like a high 1200s SAT + AP euro history teacher's rec would get your D in there and it certainly is in the CC Parent Top 10.</p>
<p>Well, she's an old alum, but her daughter graduated 5 years ago. But Smith really isn't of interest to my daughter - as Mini would say, no Y chromosones. :) </p>
<p>I had a talk about all of this with my daughter - she wasn't concerned by the teacher's comments. She just took it as a compliment. Said she had looked Kenyon up on the internet and it did sound like a reach but a school she might like. Since we'll be going to Earlham next spring, we might try to fit Kenyon in as a super-reach. We'll see. I am well aware that so much can change in the next year! </p>
<p>We are flying up to San Francisco next week to visit the University of San Francisco and St. Mary's College of California. Both would be safeties for my daughter. She is trying to find one good safety or match in California that she would be happy with. I'll post a trip report when we get back</p>
<p>As I've written elsewhere, the Smith admissions office has received explicit instructions from the college prez to de-emphasize test scores, after two years of study by both faculty and the office of institutional research where they couldn't find a link between SATs and academic performance once there. The alumni interviewer receives instructions from the admissions office, and interviews are heavily weighted. They say it right on their website - they want "heady and nervy" and "intellectual excitement". If your d. fits the bill, it would be a terrific place. (Obviously, I like it, or I wouldn't have agreed with my d.'s judgment that, for her, she should choose it over Williams and a bunch of other places to which she was accepted, or which sought her out but to which she didn't apply.)</p>
<p>Having said that, Goucher is not chop liver! It has (as you know) a proud history, terrific campus, good location, excellent faculty. Sounds like you may have more visits to do. (Smith was close to the bottom of my d.'s pile until she visited, and then it soared. And she was coming from Evergreen, so she knew about Y chromosomes!)</p>