<p>Just curious...am I crazy for planning on applying to about 20 schools? It's just so hard to narrow my list down...</p>
<p>I applied to 17 colleges an I found this number to be quite manageable with the common app. Some people on this site will tell you to narrow it down to 10 or so schools, but as long as you would truly be interested in attending each of the schools on your list, 20 or so should be ok. Applying to a large number of colleges is also particularly useful if you are seeking merit money or have unusual financial circumstances (like me,) as different colleges distribute aid differently.</p>
<p>i had the same situation, it may seem hard to narrow down the list but just ask yourself, if i got accepted would i want to go there. also look at review sites, and try a visit some of the schools, look at there stats, and yours. i'm sure you can narrow your list down to about 15 or less.</p>
<p>I managed to get down to twelve applications with all but one being a common app so it's def possible, just as said before, if you would be happy going to any of the places on your list then definitely go for it, though beware of heavy application costs and i would suggest [though I didn't do this when I was applying] doing online applications that waive the fee, and from there good luck :).</p>
<p>Beware of application fees and fees to send your test scores all over the place though. 20 schools at 30-50 bucks a pop plus 8 dollar test scores add up quickly.</p>
<p>Personally, I think 20 applications are a lot. Suppose you go through with this plan and are accepted at half of these schools. That will then give you 10 schools to choose from. Do you think it will be any easier for you to have done some self-analysis to determine your interests vis-a-vis academic interests, size of school, urban vs. suburban vs. rural, research university vs. LAC, etc.?</p>
<p>You may also want to consider that EACH of the colleges you apply to will want to know why you are choosing them, and the demonstrated enthusiasm will make a difference to many private colleges. That's a lot of essays to write. Further, check with your h.s. guidance counselor. Some GC's will limit students (often to around 10-12 colleges) because the large volume of recommendations (and for teachers making recommendations) places added work burden on them. The diluted enthusiasm you have for a limited number of schools may also translate into diluted enthusiasm by your recommending teachers. If YOU don't know what you want, how will THEY know how serious you are about EACH of these colleges. </p>
<p>Understand that many colleges consider GC and teacher recommendations to be important. Teacher recommendations especially can be important to many private colleges -- check with each college on HOW important. The Adcoms receive thousands of letters. The ones that specifically mention the name of THEIR college will stand out more than a proforma letter that's been used for 20 applications. </p>
<p>Yes, you might be able to "manage" 20 applications, but consider the impact of your diluted efforts on the quality of EACH application and consider the impact on those whose assistance you will require. Once the applications have been submitted, it gets very busy. Each school will generate requests of various items you will need to submit. Invariably, students will become exasperated by colleges who have "not received" some item, such as a teacher recommendation... and there will be teachers who will become exasperated by the volume of recommendations to be done under tight deadlines. Even with the Common App, most colleges have individual supplements that must be submitted. Caveat: it can get hairy.</p>
<p>Remember, you have more time to consider which colleges you want to attend now than you will have once you receive acceptances. In other words, you only have one month (April) to decide among the colleges where you have been accepted, so use the time now to narrow down your list.</p>
<p>Also remember you get responses in late March/April, giving you one month to visit them all and decide. At that time of year colleges will let you stay overnight but only on the weekends so be prepared to have an intense spring...</p>
<p>I'm having a hard time getting below 15. My college counselor wants me to get it down to 8-10, but I'm an international student (US resident since '01, but with a diplomatic visa) for whom financial aid is a concern, so I'm just worried that none of them will work out. I've done a lot of research, and I think I'd be happy going to any of the schools on my list, so it's not a question of not knowing my preferences... I'm just too attached to all of them and can't decide which ones to cut.</p>
<p>the one good thing about the college admissions process when you have too many colleges to apply to is that you have that extra time b/w the january deadline and april 1st. So in that time you def have a lot of time to visit schools again, plus you have both a february break (at least my school has one) plus spring break. However, I'm not going to act like I did this, though i should have, and as a result I squeezed in some visits about a week and a half before the may 1st deadline, but in the end I felt like i made the right decision, though it was def hard to break down the 12 choices, though in reality you know to yourself that there's only like five or six which you are really considering.</p>
<p>^ so very true, haha. even though i have a list of 10-12 currently, prospectively, i would probably only want to attend a few of them of them (unfortunately, those being reach schools)</p>
<p>Yeah, though at the same time if any of the other colleges were my only choice i def would be happy regardless, so i guess that's the only thing to really look out for when choosing colleges is that you would be comfortable regardless of the results.</p>
<p>My only problem is that most of the schools on my list are reaches and I'm just too attached to them I guess...</p>
<p>Yea, I had been attached to quite a few, but after a while I realized I had to let my instinct come into play, so..</p>
<p>I think common application only allows you to apply up to a max. of 20 schools (and the app. fees, considering that most schools still do require a fee even through the online process, will easily overshoot the $1000 mark... but at the same time I think it's worth it). </p>
<p>I tried to narrow my list of schools down to 10, but the truth is that I really really want to add JUST A FEW MORE (reaches). My counselor recommends that AT LEAST 50% of your prospective schools should be realistics and safeties... what a dilemma!</p>
<p>Apply to 8 and no more. If you want to apply to more I bet your basing it on prestige which is a terrible way to decide.</p>
<p>Choose 2 safeties (incase a safety fails)
Choose 2 matches
Choose the rest as reaches. </p>
<p>Choose based on the school. Forget about rankings, prestige, etc. You will always do better in a mediocre school that you love to be in than a "great" school that you hate.</p>
<p>Sephiroth, you can't generalize like that. I have 15 schools on my (current, yet to be narrowed down) list and I assure you that prestige has nothing to do with it. Rather, I need to apply to more than 8 schools because as a foreign citizen living in the US and in need of significant financial aid, I can't take admission to ANY college for granted. There literally is not a single school in this country that I could consider a safety. I've chosen my list based on what schools would be good fits for me, academically and socially, and which ones could potentially give me aid, and I'm having a hard time eliminating some (yes, even the "less prestigious" ones) because I genuinely like all of them. And, like I said, I'm also terrified that I won't get into and get sufficient aid from any of them.</p>
<p>I'm not saying that some people make their lists based on prestige, but "Apply to 8 and no more. If you want to apply to more I bet your basing it on prestige" is a terrible generalization. It's just not as clear cut for some people.</p>
<p>20+ apps?? and this is becoming the norm??</p>
<p>it's no wonder 2010 decision letters all began with
"We received a record number of applicants this year...."</p>
<p>
I'm not saying that some people make their lists based on prestige, but "Apply to 8 and no more. If you want to apply to more I bet your basing it on prestige" is a terrible generalization. It's just not as clear cut for some people.
Um, so that's "I'm not saying that people DON'T make lists based on prestige"... kind of changes the meaning of the sentence.</p>
<p>Granted, when I applied to 12 colleges, some had been choices only b/c of prestige. However, I'm not going to apply to a school if I know that I'm not going to enjoy the environment, so I figure that as long as your happy with all your choices you shouldn't let anyone criticize you. And especially since in your case it's very important how each app ends up.</p>