<p>Two schools that I hear regularly of here that are pretty close to NYC and aren’t particularly left-leaning are Lafayette and Lehigh. High matches for this group, probably. I was going to suggest Sarah Lawrence and Brandeis, but they’re pretty solidly in the liberal-artsy camp.</p>
<p>I’m sure that if you apply to the entire Top 100 list of college, I’m sure that you’ll get into at least one of them. It would be pretty sad if you didn’t.</p>
<p>levirm,
Will add to the chorus for Tufts, American, GWU (if she wants an urban campus), American, Brandeis and Syracuse. BU has a big IR department; someone’s D from our synagogue was in their IR program and was quite happy. Syracuse is a long slog from NYC (though better than traveling in/out of Ithaca!). UMD-College Park has a good polisci department with a lot of connections to IR internships, gov’t agencies, etc. S2 didn’t apply to some of the more “obvious” IR schools because he felt UMD would offer the same opportunities for less $$. He was accepted into the polisci dept. (Limited Enrollment major) and the International Studies section of the College Scholars Program.</p>
<p>American, BU, Brandeis and Syracuse would be on-target for her. Tufts is not an unrealistic reach. With her writing abilities, her essays could put her over the top.</p>
<p>S2 looked at CMU for their Global Policy major (IR with a quant angle), but when he actually visited, he found out only two people actually graduated from the school with that as a primary major. He also found out that the program was about to undergo its second major overhaul in four years. He didn’t care for Pitt, though liked Pittsburgh.</p>
<p>If you’ve been reading these threads for a while, you’ll know Mathmom’s S2 and my S2 both got into Chicago EA and Tufts (and both had a hella time choosing; S2 agonized til 8 pm on 5/1). The quirky essay Qs helped. Your D might want to look at the EPIIC program at Tufts – S says he found his tribe there and is busting his tail, but is HAPPY. [EPIIC</a> (Education for Public Inquiry and International Citizenship) | Institute for Global Leadership](<a href=“Programs | Tufts Global Leadership”>EPIIC | Tufts Global Leadership)</p>
<p>From our school, JHU actually had a sweet spot for kids in the 3.4-3.6 range and 2100-2200 – <em>IF</em> you applied ED. It is a very different environment from say, IR at Tufts, and S2 decided JHU was not his thing.</p>
<p>The young women we know who did the northeastern LAC thing last year found admissions
VERY difficult. OTOH, I hear of a lot of young women on CC who never contemplated a women’s college and fell head-over-heels for Smith.</p>
<p>levirm, University of Rochester fills many of your D’s criteria, though not all (proximity to NYC and creative writing program). Match-y in admissions given her stats, and they can be generous with merit aid.</p>
<p>Levrim, Countingdown has a lot of good suggestions. The first school I thought of was AU. They take common ap without a supplement, so she won’t have to write any additional essays. The campus is very pretty. GW is very urban with one small quad, so I don’t think it will pass that test. UMD has pretty red brick buildings with many quads, so it might work if the size isn’t too big. I ran into someone today whose daugher is a very happy creative writing major at Bucknell. The campus is beautiful, but access to NYC would be difficult.</p>
<p>Good luck with JHU ED. That sounds like a great fit for her interests. I’m an alum, so I always like hearing about kids applying. My daughter has some friends who attend and really like it.</p>
<p>SlitheyTove, thanks you for reminding me…duh! (I was at work when I posted that, and I probably assumed levirm had read the rest of the thread…)</p>
<p>Levirm, S2 also applied to URoch, and got merit $$ (they like IB diploma students). They just broke the IR major off from the polisci major a couple of years ago. FA was not very good, though. Know someone else who got in there and the parental contrib was over 2x any other school’s.</p>
<p>S2’s full list of candidates (he had apps ready for eleven, actually applied to eight – but these were the ones on the table over junior and senior year):
LACs: Grinnell, Claremont McKenna, Reed, Swat, Colby, Carleton, Haverford, Bowdoin, Macalester, St. Mary’s/MD
Mid-size: CMU, Pitt, Brandeis, American, Tufts, Georgetown, UChicago, URochester, William & Mary, JHU, Dart
Large: BU, UMD, UVA, Syracuse, Cornell, NYU</p>
<p>Thanks so much for all of your suggestions, everyone!</p>
<p>“Top schools” are in the eyes of the beholder, but D1, with an unweighted GPA below 3.6, was admitted ED to Tufts. </p>
<p>She attends a highly rigorous school with grade deflation, and I suspect that the rest of her application more than made up for her GPA. In the context of her school profile, her GPA looked far more reasonable, especially when weighted (our district does not weight honors courses, just APs). Her test scores were excellent, and her essays went over well with the committee. Her ECs were, for the most part, non-academic but much loved–a great deal of involvement with the Jewish community and our synagogue’s youth group, growing into leadership roles. In short, the type of application that reads well when considered holistically. Luckily for her, she fell in love with a school that admits holistically. </p>
<p>One other factor was that many of her high school classmates are focussed on tippy-top schools. No one else was applying to Tufts ED, and few (if any) will apply RD. A more machiavellian outlook would paint Tufts as an admissions “bargain”. Not D1’s point of view (or her parents), but for other readers of this thread, something to consider.</p>
<p>CONGRAT’S to ST’s D… I’m sure you guys are on cloud 9!!! I’m reading the ED and 2011 posts and I am so excited about next year for my DS… win or lose…</p>
<p>I think my DS will hopefully be in the 'reading holistically" camp… He is an amazing kid, with so many things going for him… just not a 4.0… This is good news ST… I am so happy for you!!</p>
<p>Congrats, ST. My D1 goes to Tufts and has found it a wonderful place - smart kids but not “in your face” about it all the time, lots of varied interests and generally friendly and kind people.</p>
<p>D2 got a likely/safety acceptance today - her “top” schools won’t be telling us any time soon. It’s nice to see that the holistic approach is working for some of these kids. We’ll be hoping for that, too.</p>
<p>Congrats to SlithyTove AND EmmyBet’s Ds!!! Great news. I consider Tufts a top school (just like I consider Bard a top school…of course, results may vary if you are someone focused on HYPS which we never were). </p>
<p>We get our next piece of the picture with my S ED to Wesleyan–we’ll know on Monday. Sure we are nervous, but less nervous than we would have been without his Bard acceptance, since S truly loves Bard.</p>
<p>S is out of town today competing in one of his major ECs, and I’m about to go to work. SO…busy is good!! Less time to dwell on things.</p>
<p>GKM - I’ll be very curious how your son handles a Bard-Wesleyan decision. Both wonderful schools, but really quite different. I’m wondering if after spending the IDP day at Bard his feelings about Wesleyan have changed at all. And I imagine he’ll have to decide quickly, on Wesleyan’s account. Best of luck and keep us posted!</p>
<p>EmmyBet–if Wesleyan takes him, he’ll have to go–its an ED school. Bard’s IDP is early action with a May 1 decision deadline (the school philisophically doesn’t like ED and I can totally see their point).</p>
<p>He loves Wes because of what they offer in the sciences–really the best of all the LACs he looked at. He loves Bard because it fits him so well. although in his view it offered so much less in the area of study he wants. Both schools are very strong in the performing arts, his second big thing.</p>
<p>If he gets into Wes he will be THRILLED. If the doesn’t, it will sting, but he’ll be thrilled in a different way–he gets to go to Bard (or one of the other LACs he’ll apply to RD–he dropped a few off his list after the Bard admission, but I don’t know where the remainder lie in his thoughts anymore…no reason to discuss until after the ED decision)! LOL, I guess (hope?) it’s a no-lose situation for him. </p>
<p>Wes is his big reach…they take 20% of applicants, and with my son’s GPA…we’ll see!</p>
<p>GKM, my son sounds remarkably similar to yours: a science kid who’s also into theater. Wes is on his list – and like your son, he loves it b/c it combines both of his interests and also b/c among its peer institutions it has the best funding/research opps for science. Bard isn’t on his list, although I thought it should be. What Bard does have that I think is terrific for a science kid is a research relationship w/ Rockefeller U in NYC. Kids from other colleges have to apply to the science research program at rock u and they only accept something like 6% but they must take a few kids each year from Bard. What a wonderful opportunity to work at a world-class research institution!</p>
<p>double posted</p>
<p>anyone interested in science and the arts: check out this video from Grinnell. Brand new state of the art science and arts facilities. Should be on any list that also includes Bard and Wesleyan! (assuming one is willing to go to school in the midwest)</p>
<p>[YouTube</a> - Grinnell College “That’s Science. This is Grinnell”](<a href=“Grinnell College "That's Science. This is Grinnell" - YouTube”>Grinnell College "That's Science. This is Grinnell" - YouTube) </p>
<p>Great option for those B+/A- applicants with excellent test scores, rigor, intellectual passion.</p>
<p>SDonnCC, that video was great. the kids are so articulate and very interesting. I’ve sent it on to my son but I wonder if it’s too late to add it to his list since there is no way we can visit before he’d have to send an app. Could research it over break but that’s about it.</p>
<p>I know SDonCC–I tried very hard to interest my son in Grinnell and Oberlin–but he just would not look in the Midwest. </p>
<p>Renaissance Mom–Yes, the Rockerfeller research oppty is fantastic. The new science building is also impressive, as is the theater. Your son probably should at least consider Bard.</p>
<p>Did your son ED anywhere?</p>
<p>My son did not visit Grinnell before applying – only after he was accepted! But, he loved what he read about it and was able to give a very articulate and thoughtful reply on the supplement about his knowledge of the school and really showed him as a fit. It’s a short question that is fun to answer!</p>
<p>btw, my son started out the college search saying he didn’t want to go anywhere that required flying, but I convinced him on April vacation of junior year to see some midwest schools before making a final decision. He loved what he saw and yes, is now attending Grinnell!</p>
<p>my above post is confusing. Just wanted to clarify that he visited other midwestern schools junior year, but didn’t see Grinnell until April of senior year after his acceptance. Just to reassure RenaissanceMom that it’s not necessary to visit a school before applying (unless it’s nearby to where you live; then these small schools really think you aren’t showing interest).</p>