<p>Hi, so I'm trying to make a list of colleges (which has so far involved massive messy spreadsheets and headaches.)</p>
<p>just so you have..context, I guess? I have a 3.77 GPA (4.3 weighted, have taken 8 APs, got 8 fives, going to take three more senior year), 2280 SAT, 238 PSAT. I'm team leader of the Envirothon club at my school, I have 230+ hours of volunteering for an aquarium, I've been in marching band for three going on four years. I know I want to go to a small LAC. I'm interested in Creative Writing (went to CSSSA this past summer... probably no one cares) and Environmental Science as majors, but I'm also looking for a school with a good music program and amazing food. :D I like the Pacific Northwest, but I'm open to an East Coast school too. </p>
<p>So far my list is
UC Santa Barbara (English program)
UC Santa Cruz
Evergreen (safety)
University of Puget Sound
Oberlin (music, environmental science, their sexy library)
Reed (intense academic atmosphere, close to portland)
Wesleyan (openmindedness)
Colorado (block schedule, outdoorsiness)
Brown (has a Creative Writing major, great location)
Bowdoin (for the amazing food)
Swarthmore
Whitman (I like the sound of the Semester in the West program, but not the frat presence)
Middlebury (beautiful campus) </p>
<p>Should I just apply to all of these? Are there any I can cut?? Or maybe add? I feel like there are way too many really good colleges.
Any advice is so appreciated!! </p>
<p>(PS sorry if this topic has already come up, I tried to search for similar posts)</p>
<p>You have some great colleges on your list. I think Oberlin is a terrific choice and if you get a chance to visit you might want to make some extra time to see Kenyon, approximately 2 hours away. It has an exceptional writing and music program. </p>
<p>I do not know much about the California colleges on your list but the others are very good.</p>
<p>Definitely Oberlin comes to mind when you say music and a top LAC.</p>
<p>I’m not sure I would classify the UCs as LACs. UCSB is a research university – it’s right on the beach, and it has more of a feel of a mid-size public. Santa Cruz is a bit different. It’s on a hill and some parts feel like you are in the woods (although you can see the ocean below). Santa Cruz has a “college” system and thus may feel more like a LAC than other UCs. Both have outstanding faculties – but also strike me as very different than some of the other colleges on the list.</p>
<p>Thanks for the input–the UCs on there are much-less-expensive options, which is why I put them on. </p>
<p>I guess I could apply to all of them, I’ve just heard from others that 9-10 is a good limit. But on this forum 14+ applications don’t seem out of place at all. :P</p>
<p>Nice list. Looks like you’ve covered your bases from safety to reach.</p>
<p>You may be able to reduce the number of applications by using the non-binding EA option for schools that have it (such as Colorado College). Hold off on less-preferred schools with later deadlines until after the EA results are in (although this may not help if you don’t get EA aid results until March).</p>
<p>OK on UCs…with your grades and scores, you are likely to get into UCSB and UCSC, in which case you might start comparing those to others. UCs vs. Evergreen? If you’d go to the UC, then cut Evergreen. UCs vs. Puget Sound? Just a suggestion to help you cut down. I think 14 is too much – the range recommended by counselors is 6 to 10. (BTW, I emphasize UCs because I know those schools better than others on your list and they are solid safeties for you.) To come at it from another direction, Bowdoin and Evergreen seem very different from what I have read. Good luck and hope you get into your first choice!</p>
<p>Don’t worry about the frat presence at Whitman. It’s no big deal. It’s a great option for you as it has a noteworthy Enviro Science dept., has the Pacific Northwest location, award winning annual creative writing publication ([blue</a> moon | Whitman College](<a href=“http://www.whitman.edu/bluemoon/]blue”>blue moon – Whitman College's annual art and literary magazine)) and popular music program. The meals are very locally grown oriented as the school is in an agricultural region of the state.</p>
<p>I think you can eliminate some by focusing on what’s important to you. For example I believe you’re a shoo in at both Puget Sound and Colorado, but Puget will give you considerable merit aid while Colorado has little to give. So how important is merit aid to your decision? </p>
<p>And if you qualify for substantial need based aid, consider eliminating those that don’t meet need. </p>
<p>14 needs a justification beyond that you’re having a hard time deciding which you like.</p>
<p>^ The average merit award at Puget Sound and Colorado College is almost exactly the same (about $10K/year), but at PS they go to about 24% of entering freshmen compared to only about 8% at CC. I think the OP’s qualifications are strong enough to stand a good chance of getting merit aid from either school, although he’d be an even more competitive applicant at PS (where the SAT averages are about 50 points lower per test section). The bottom line on merit aid is that you need to apply to know for sure how much these schools will offer you. But I’d be surprised if either one (especially CC) offered enough merit aid to bring the cost into line with UC (in state) rates. </p>
<p>For need-based aid, the average package is slightly larger at CC, which meets about 92% of need compared to about 85% of need at PS. Need-based aid packages generally will be better at the wealthiest, most selective schools such as Swarthmore or the Ivies (but … first you have to get accepted.)</p>
<p>(Sources for CC and PS aid data: 2009-2010 Common Data Set for each school, which you can Google and download from their web sites).</p>
<p>I’ve seen many with similar stats get much more than $10K from PS but my experience with Colorado (as a counselor) is that the little aid they gave was typically to attract diversity.</p>
<p>Thanks all!
I hadn’t considered EA seeing as I don’t really have a top choice but it sounds like that could make my life easier.
Hmm I might add Denison to there seeing as it’s on that list of NMF scholarship competitions, I had no idea that existed!
As for the Claremonts, I definitely considered it but they’re a little close to home for me.</p>
<p>^ EA is non-binding. So (unlike ED) it still makes sense to use it even if you have not decided on a top choice. The only downside I can think of is that you may have to get your paperwork in a little earlier; other than that, I don’t know why you would not want to use it for any school that offers it.</p>
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<p>Redroses, as I recall your experience is at a very competitive, affluent high school. The demographics there may have affected the patterns you’re describing. As the Common Data Sets show, the average award at both schools is about $10K.</p>
<p>You should take a look at Williams. Strong English department with several writers on the faculty. Excellent music program for majors and non-majors. Strong sciences with focus on environment. Beautiful mountain setting. Great food. 5+ dining halls which for an LAC its size is quite unusual.</p>
<p>To continue Redroses and TK’s debate, while the average awards are similar, the number of awards is significantly different. Colorado College awarded merit aid to 8% of the entering class while Puget awarded merit to 24% (40 vs 172 students). If you assume some kind of distribution of award amounts there will be more high dollar awards from Puget.</p>