<p>Not sure that 3.7 average would get you into the top tier of these schools, but it’s worth a shot. Beyond Swat, Haverford, and Middlebury, there are fine schools like St. Olafs, Grinnell, Suny Binghamton (very hot right now), SUNY Geneseo, New College of Florida, St. Mary’s in Maryland, TCNJ in NJ (the last 5 are strong publics, as is indeed the venerable and excellent Willliam and Mary). A little easier (and more generous with the scholarship money) is Franklin and Marshall in Lancaster, PA–they give out a lot of $12,000 scholarships. Swarthmore is definitely NOT preppy btw, though Middlebury and Amherst could give off that vibe.</p>
<p>
When you get some SAT/ACT scores then you can see if it might be a safety. If your scores are good you might be competitive for a 1/2 or full scholarship. DD2 attends L&C and loves it. She had a 4.0UW, a 2280 SAT and is challenged.</p>
<p>Wow, I completely forgot about F&M - and I took a class there senior year! It’s definitely not preppy, thought maybe not as quirky as some of the other schools on this list. But they have a good environmental studies program, and environmental science too. Definitely worth checking out.</p>
<p>What’s her major at L&C?</p>
<p>Is a 3.7 really that bad?</p>
<p>3.7 is not that bad. She is is majoring in Math with a minor in Econ. I was just trying to get across that L&C is not a bad college. She loves the location in Portland. They have buses that go downtown every day.</p>
<p>Recently added Colorado College back to my list.</p>
<p>Any other thoughts?</p>
<p>Check out Haverford… has the awesome and popular Growth and Structure of Cities major (at Bryn Mawr through its joint program) also has an environmental studies (now with Bryn Mawr but starting its own in Fall 2011).</p>
<p>“Is a 3.7 really that bad?”</p>
<p>GPAs vary so much from school to school that they are practically meaningless without context. At my son’s high school, an unweighted 3.7 would put you in the top 10% of the class and probably get you into an Ivy or other top tier college, assuming you had good SATs. At least, that’s been the track record for the last several years.</p>
<p>I’m ranked 56/725. That’ll probably go up.</p>
<p>Is Lewis & Clark’s Environmental Studies program?</p>
<p>How about Pitzer, Macalester, Kenyon, Lawrence?</p>
<p>I don’t know anything about L&C ES program.</p>
<p>Any opinions of those schools’ environmental studies programs, anyone?</p>
<p>Maybe try posting in those school’s sub forums (under Colleges to the left)</p>
<p>L & C is a very good school but their ES program… not so much.</p>
<p>Based on what we heard at their information session, Lewis and Clark has many opportunities for students to participate in Portland governnmental and civic organizations.
If you’re interested in urban planning, you would probably enjoy your time in Portland. (My husband is an urban planner 
)</p>
<p>Yes, urban planning! Haha. Well, if their ES program is not so good as one person has said, what would I major in to get an MUP?</p>