What are good match/safety schools for me?

College Search & Selection
1

I’m planning on majoring in computer science, so I’d to go to a school with a good CS program.
I also plan on going to med school after undergrad.

I already have a list of schools that I’d love to go to but are I think are reaches for me (UIUC, Stanford, USC, Purdue, etc.) but I need to make a list of safety/match schools.

Stats
SAT: 1570 (790ERW, 780M)
ACT: 34 (not planning on submitting this, just the SAT)
Subject Tests: Math2 (740, planning on retaking), physics (700)

*My HS uses a 5.0 scale, so the max gpa w ap/honors is 6.0
Freshman yr: No APs | UW gpa: 4.166, W gpa: 4.33
Sophomore yr: No APs | UW gpa: 4.75, W gpa: 4.9
Junior yr: AP CompSci A (5), AP Physics 1 (5), APUSH | UW gpa: 4.75, W gpa: 5.4
Senior yr: AP Chem, AP Calc BC, AP Psych, AP Lit | gpa TBD

UW gpa: 4.5, W gpa: 4.9

**Low cumulative, but note the massive upward trend

ECs
Varsity gymnastics co-captain
Volunteering at hospital (2 hr/wk)
National Honors Society
Contributor to school nonfiction book
Worked on school magazine
Self-learning Swift/iOS app development, hoping to put together an iOS app by end of summer

LoC: Getting letters from AP CompSci and AP Physics teachers

I know I’m probably not able to into super competitive CS programs, but I want a list of schools I can go to that have at least good programs.

2

bump?

3

Hamilton might be a high match for you and offers what would, based on coding contests, be regarded as a competitive CS program:

https://www.hamilton.edu/news/story/comp-sci-department-hosts-college-computing-conference

The advantage to a program on this scale is that most CS classes are capped at about 20 students or fewer. Nonetheless, the range and depth of courses appears comparable in many respects to that of larger schools:

https://www.hamilton.edu/academics/departments/Courses-and-Requirements?dept=Computer%20Science

4

Cost constraints and state of residency?

Remember that medical school is expensive.

5

@ucbalumnus I’m a resident of Illinois; I’m not too sure about cost, so I’m factoring that out for now

6

RPI would be a match. Also, I think you are a match for Purdue.

I have a question though. Can you major in CS and still have enough room in your schedule for all the pre-med requirements? (I know you can major in anything and be premed but I’m speaking from a more practical point of view in terms of scheduling). It also seems like a tough major since pre-meds basically need near perfect GPAs.

7

@momofsenior1 I’m not dead set on doing pre-med, I just think it’s a compelling option. I am sure, however, that I want to major in computer science

8

Talk to your parents about what they will contribute and try the net price calculators on the college web sites. Avoid being the student unpleasantly surprised in April when all admission offers are too expensive.

You cannot know that a college is a safety without knowing that it is affordable.

9

@ucbalumnus According to all NPRs, I should be receiving pretty substansial financial aid from many colleges; this is why I’m focusing more right now on what schools I can actually get into as opposed to their prices.

10

A 1570 makes you a good candidate for all of the top CS schools.

The following is a list of the top 10 CS schools with the approximate number of offers they make. Ordered by number of acceptances.

School, offers (slots)
Princeton 200 (130)
CMU 300 (150)
Stanford 350 (300)
MIT 350 (300)
Washington 400 (200) - 200 oos
Cornell 500 (250)
UIUC 800 (400) - 400 oos
UCB 800 (400) - 200 oos
UT Austin 1000 (500) - 100 oos
Gatech 1200 (600) - 600 oos

Michigan 400 (200) - 200 oos
Purdue 600 (250) - 350 oos

11

Probably not so much with GPA that is probably equivalent to a 3.5 on the usual 4.0 scale. Even the 10th-11th grade GPA that is probably equivalent to 3.75 is not so great for super-selective schools or CS majors.

12

@Greymeer I know that my SAT makes me competitive for all schools, but my GPA is definitely lacking and my ECs aren’t amazing; this is why I’m having some difficulty with figuring out which schools are match schools. Thank you for the information though!

btw- What do you mean by “number of offers they make”? Also, what does “oos” mean?

13

If a school has 200 spots in a program and historically 40% of students offered accept, they will offer/accept 500 students. Only 200 will enroll.

The oos is the approximate number of “out of state” offers.

Also keep in mind half those offers are for guys/girls.

CS Safeties - UCF, ASU, Oregon State

Oops, those Michigan numbers are wrong…

Michigan 750 offers (350 slots)

14

Note that the selection of computer science as a major can be unnecessarily complicated by a choice to attend a school that restricts enrollment in that major. If you were to choose a college at which all majors are open to all students, this would not be an issue. Note as well that unsourced rankings of “top” schools for CS are often derived from graduate school rankings, and therefore omit what may be actual top programs for an undergraduate, such as those at Harvey Mudd or other undergraduate-focused colleges.