Unsure about where I should be looking...

College Search & Selection
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<p>So I've been on summer vacation for almost a week now... and since I don't really have anything better to do, I've been starting my college search a little early (I'm a rising junior). I have a pretty good idea of what I want to major in and the type of college I want to go to, but I'm not really sure what tier I should be aiming for (not the specific tiers that USNews or anyone uses, but just in general). Hopefully you guys can help me out a little with my search even though I know it's pretty early :)</p>

<p>Getting into an Ivy is not a priority for me like it is for a lot of people- I mean, it'd be great and everything, but I'd be perfectly content at a slightly less prestigious school with equally amazing academics. Then again, I'm not aiming for just any regular old university either. This is why I'm not really sure what tier I should be looking at. I don't want to go to any giant state universities (not to say that they're bad, because they aren't... I just don't feel that they're really for me), but I'm not sure what level of prestige and acknowledgment is beyond my level. </p>

<p>My top five schools that I'd LIKE to go to are Notre Dame, UChicago, Northwestern, Swarthmore, and Duke. The other schools that I've looked at are mostly Top 20 universities and some of the higher ranked LAC's. As for the actual "type" of school I'd like to attend... I'm looking for a small to medium sized student body, a good location (preferably either in close proximity to a city OR a "college town" kind of atmosphere), a beautiful campus (I know it's superficial, but if I can't stand to even look at the place, I don't know how I'm going to manage living or learning there), and a strong focus on academics rather than partying and drinking. I don't necessarily want a strictly academic atmosphere where partying doesn't happen, but I don't want that aspect to become a distraction to my education whether I choose to be involved with it or not. I'm not religious at all, but if the university is strongly affiliated with a specific religion it doesn't really matter to me (Notre Dame is in my top five, after all). As for geographical location, I'm fine being anywhere from the Northeast/NE through the Upper Midwest. </p>

<p>I'm planning to double major in Classics/Latin and something in the Psychology field (preferably cognitive psych/psycholingustics, but not very many schools have that as a specific major so I've had to widen my search a little). </p>

<p>As for my stats, I tried to keep them short since I've only completed two years of high school...</p>

<p><em>General Information</em>
Type of school: Public... a couple kids get accepted to Ivies every year but it's usually only a handful of kids from the top ten. The only real competition is between AP kids, but it's not a HUGE deal like it is at some schools... no one's THAT hostile :D The majority of seniors end up going to NJ/Philly area schools.
SAT: 2060 first try, didn't study (660 math, 670 CR, 730 writing)... will definitely take again with preparation this time. I HOPE to reach 2250-2350 by senior year.
ACT/SATII's not taken yet, but will most likely take Lit, Bio, and Latin subject tests
Rank: 8/588
GPA: I think 3.8-3.9 UW, 4.0-4.1 W... my school doesn't use a 4.0 scale though so I'm not completely sure.</p>

<p><em>Classes</em>
Rigor: Highest possible, fresh/soph can't take any AP's at my school but I took a soph. level science and doubled up on math during my freshman year
Freshman:
All honors except for Latin (no honors possible), kept A/A+ averages all year
Sophomore:
same as Freshman year
Junior Year Schedule:
AP English III
AP US History II
AP Psych
AP Calc AB
AP Bio
Latin was cut from the curriculum so I can't take Latin III, but I will either be taking another AP (Stats, Gov, or Euro... my school only offers 13 APs, so I will most likely end up taking all of them besides Chem, French, & Spanish) or will be doing Independent Study for Latin (haven't decided if I'll be studying for the AP test yet or not... if I do, I'll take it in my senior year after self-studying for 2 years)</p>

<p><em>EC's</em>
-Academic team (2 years, will do for the next 2... it's really my only main school-affiliated EC, but I do love it.)
-Gymnastics (10 years, non-competitive but very dedicated to the sport)
-Was a staff member on a graphics website (I began making graphics when I joined and I worked my way up to staff member status within 2 years; stayed there until we shut down this past year. Anyway, I love graphic design and although I don't always have time for it anymore, it's definitely a strong side interest of mine)
-School newspaper staff writer (It was for my actual Journalism class so I technically "had" to do it, but I had 1-2 articles published in each issue throughout the year and was a standout writer in the class)</p>

<p>I really don't have many EC's at all, but I'm planning on volunteering this summer (not sure where yet, but it'll be somewhere that interests me... not just resume-building) and hopefully joining a few more clubs next year as long as my school offers them (we're in the middle of a budget crisis in NJ... I know that's not a valid excuse for my first two years, but it is the truth otherwise.)</p>

<p><em>Awards</em>
High honor roll every semester (highest at my school, there's also regular honor roll and merit roll)
Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Regional Gold Key Award (freshman year, didn't enter this year but I may next year)</p>

<p>Sorry if any of this was hard to follow... but if anyone has any suggestions for colleges that they think fit both my interests/criteria and my academic level, I'd love to know! Thanks in advance and sorry for the long post :)</p>

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<p>I think you have a very good list so far. Johns Hopkins, Brandeis, Haverford, Case Western, and Tufts also sound like good fits.</p>

<p>Wesleyan, Bowdoin, and William & Mary are less urban but would fit academically.</p>

<p>Rutgers and TCNJ are obvious safeties for a NJ resident. Possibly Drew as well, since you’re aiming for relatively small schools.</p>

<p>Doing an independent study of Latin, if your school lets you do so, would be a wise move. Most top colleges expect at least three and usually four years of a foreign language.</p>

3

<p>tl;dr</p>

<p>jk lol</p>

<p>I think you’re spot on with Swat and Chicago for Classics or any humanities based major.</p>

<p>I’d check out Trinity College and possibly Lafayette as more safety-ish/likely options</p>

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<p>For another safety(ish) school, there’s also St. Olaf College in Minnesota. I’ve met the majority of their Classics faculty and they are the most amazingly awesome people ever; I can’t wait to take classes with them this fall. The campus is gorgeous, there is much less partying than at most schools, and the people are crazy nice. It is religious (Lutheran), but I’m not religious either & I didn’t feel at all uncomfortable there. There is a gymnastics club in Northfield, which is an adorable college town of ~17,000, and there’s another college five minutes away (Carleton). It has great pizza places too. :slight_smile: And it’s only 40 minutes from the Twin Cities. Although it’s not too well-known on the east coast, I felt like St. Olaf still has great academics, especially in the sciences, math, and foreign languages. They have really great merit scholarships too.</p>

<p>Oh, and I also agree that you should strongly consider the independent study of Latin; it looks good to show initiative & depth in one area.</p>

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<p>Thank you both! After this thread drifted onto the second page I decided not to bother anyone by bumping it, so I appreciate that you guys took the time to respond :slight_smile: </p>

<p>Just to add- I really, really am hoping that my school lets me do independent study… like you said, warblers, I know that most colleges do want 3-4 years of a foreign language, usually all of the same language. I’d much rather study Latin independently and show colleges how dedicated I am to the language than just take up another language that doesn’t interest me at all in my junior and senior years.</p>

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<p>Maybe look at Boston College or Vanderbilt.</p>

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<p>Thanks! :slight_smile: I’ve thought a little bit about Boston College… my school has sent five (maybe more… I’m not exactly sure how many this year went) top ten students to BC over the past two years so it’d be easy to see how kids from my area have adjusted to the school. I never really considered Vanderbilt because I’m a little hesitant of the “country” aspect (for lack of a better word) which is a lot different from what I’m used to being from NJ and all, but I’ll look into it again :)</p>

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<p>animull- sorry I missed your post before! I just saw it now looking back over the thread. I actually have heard of St. Olaf before, but only from a friend of mine who stayed there last summer for a week-long camp for a youth group or something like that. I never bothered to look up the actual college but from the way you’ve described it, it sounds great! Merit scholarships are something I’ll be focusing on since my older sister will be a junior in college when I’m a freshman (and therefore I’ll be depending on scholarship money to pay a large portion of my own college tuition)… so that’s also very good to hear :slight_smile: Thank you so much for the input!</p>

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<p>Sure thing! I’m kind of biased though, since I’ll be attending this fall. :slight_smile: (Sooooo excited!) If you’re still interested this fall, I can give you the inside scoop. Feel free to PM me. I can also help if you’ve got questions about William & Mary, as warbler suggested. I think W&M would be a great match too if you’re okay with it not being in NE/midwest.</p>

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<p>Congrats and good luck in the fall!! and I just may take you up on that in the future :slight_smile: </p>

<p>As for W&M, I think I’d be fine even though it’s not in NE/midwest… Duke is part of my original list after all, so I guess I do have my exceptions! Overall, I’d think I’d rather just not go to any of the far extremes (far West Coast, deep South)… far enough to be someplace new and interesting, but close enough where coming home isn’t a total pain for me or my parents :smiley: But anyway, thank you so much again for your help! I really appreciate it. :)</p>

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<p>Your stats look great overall, but as you said, your SATs will need to come up to make Swat, UChicago, Duke, etc. realistic options. Anyway, having said that…</p>

<p>Have you considered Carleton? I know some people who considered Swarthmore/U of C that also really liked Carleton. </p>

<p>Other schools that came to mind were Williams, Middlebury, maybe Macalester…the only thing is that the drinking rate at Williams and Middlebury might be higher that you would like, from what I’ve heard, but I’ve also heard that it’s definitely possible to distance yourself from that if you want. It might be worth looking into, in any case. </p>

<p>Maybe also consider Haverford, which is in the Tri-Co consortium with Swarthmore? I’ve heard it has a different feel from Swat, but I’ve also known a number of people who have applied to and really liked both. </p>

<p>If you’re interested in Notre Dame, I agree that BC and perhaps Georgetown might appeal? </p>

<p>I’m assuming you’re female, so if you’re open to it, some of the women’s colleges could be really good fits. Some of them also might be less reachy that the schools you have so far. If you’re open to that, maybe look into Wellesley, Smith, Mount Holyoke, Bryn Mawr, Barnard…</p>

<p>I think a lot of the schools I listed would be matches/reaches, so definitely look into some safer schools, but hopefully some of these schools might be of interest!</p>

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<p>“Merit scholarships are something I’ll be focusing on since my older sister will be a junior in college when I’m a freshman (and therefore I’ll be depending on scholarship money to pay a large portion of my own college tuition)”</p>

<p>I suggest you start by having a serious conversation with your parents about how much they can afford to pay, how much your EFC is with a sibling in school, how much debt you will be expected to assume and then start looking at your college list. </p>

<p>None of the schools on your list so far offer merit aid, nor do most of those suggested by others, so if this is critical, you may need a new list. St. Olaf’s does provide merit aid. So does Grinnell, Macalester, Hendrix, and some other mid-western LACs.</p>

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<p>You also need to talk to your parents about what your family can afford. (edit - it appears I crossposted the same thing with M’s Mom :slight_smile: )</p>

<p>Since you are in NJ, I suggest you also consider Rutgers.</p>

<p>[Rutgers</a> Classics Home](<a href=“Page cannot be found”>http://classics.rutgers.edu/)</p>

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<p>Californiadancer- I haven’t looked into Carleton before, but I will now that you mentioned it. For the three LAC’s you mentioned, I think I could deal with the drinking rate as long as I’m able to efficiently distance myself from it, like you said. As for Haverford, I think I’ll probably end up checking out the whole consortium since they’re not an incredible distance from where I live and then I’ll decide which one(s) feels right to me. And yes, I am female… I’ve heard that Bryn Mawr is great for classics, but I am a little hesitant about the all-women aspect. I think I could probably adapt to it though since Haverford and Swarthmore are so close by and are part of the consortium.</p>

<p>M’s mom & susgeek- I’ve talked with my parents briefly a couple of times and they have made it known to me that I will need to focus on finding schools with good merit aid as well as applying for additional scholarship money. While finding merit aid is going to be very important for me, I don’t think that it will end up being absolutely crucial in terms of where I feel I can apply. My sister is going to college with the maximum Presidential Scholarship for her school so that is paying for a significant amount of her tuition… I know that this by no means will take care of ALL of her costs, but I think it might give me a little more leeway with applying to slightly more selective and expensive schools that offer less merit aid. The Guidance Dept. at my school also has an entire bulletin board of scholarships that my sister didn’t really pay attention to (if she had applied for any of them, I’m sure she would have won at least one or two… even to just help pay for textbooks or something small like that), so I know I’ll be taking advantage of those when it comes time to apply.</p>

<p>About Rutgers… I know it is a very solid school and it’s also close to home, but pretty much half of my high school ends up going to Rutgers or Rowan every year. I’ll still probably apply to both as safeties, but I really do not see myself going there. I need some new faces :)</p>

<p>Thanks to everyone for the input ! :)</p>