What are some colleges I should look into?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I am about to enter my junior year and I still have no idea what college I want to go to. I haven't really considered any yet either. I live in Louisville, KY and want to attend somewhere that is close, but if my best fit is further away I am willing to do what I have to. </p>

<p>My information is:
Current GPA: 4.0 I take the highest LOD classes my school offers.
I haven't taken any AP courses yet because my school does not offer AP courses to under class men, but I am signed up for AP Bio, AP Psych, and AP English Language for next year. In my senior year I plan to take AP US History, AP Chem, AP English Literature, AP French 4, AP Euro History or Physics (filling an elective here, not sure which) and AP Statistics. Senior year is subject to change based on the availability of classes and how my schedule works. I am also considering self studying a course or two.</p>

<p>I have not taken an ACT or SAT yet. That is typically done junior year here (I am assuming that it is normal to take it earlier in some places from what I've read here.) I plan to spend a good deal of time over the summer studying for the ACT, SAT, and PSAT. Right now I spend at least an hour a day reviewing, but it isn't unusual for it to end up being more if I have nothing to do.</p>

<p>I am ranked 7th in my class of 377 (I go to a private school if that matters. I am unsure of the typical amount of people in one class.) Hopefully that number will be higher at the end of junior year. I did not give as much effort as I should have in my freshmen and sophomore year (I still had a 4.0 GPA, but my grades could have been better if I had actually prepared and not crammed for test late the night before/the day of)</p>

<p>As of now I am unsure of what I want my major to be. I am thinking about Law school but my real preference would be to write. Sadly, I don't see too much of a future in writing.</p>

<p>My extra curriculars include:
French Scrabble
Service clubs:
1: Green Cross-A club at my school that helps with a number of different organizations around the area
2: St. Joseph or Arimathea Society- You attend funerals for those who have no one to be there
Ultimate Frisbee Inter mural
I tried out for soccer but I got cut. (Unsure of whether I could show attempts to be involved. I'm not even sure how much this would matter)</p>

<p>I am not too picky about where I want to go. The only things are that I would prefer that it be decently close (I don't want to go all the way across the country) and I am hoping for a decent amount of scholarship money. Without ACT/SAT scores it is hard to tell what kind of merit based aid I can obtain. I can merely speculate what kind of aid I can get with certain scores. I am aiming for a 33+ on my ACT and a 2200 SAT, but as I said, I have not taken them yet.</p>

<p>Basically I am asking for some recommendations on schools to check out. Tell me what makes that special and why you enjoy going there/ someone would enjoy being there. I want to be able to get decent aid too. If this is too vague I would be more than happy to try to go into more detail on what I want/elaborate on things I've done.</p>

2

<p>You can major in anything before going to law school, though if you want to go into patent law, an engineering or science major as an undergraduate may help.</p>

3

<p>If you are interested in merit aid consider Alabama and Pitt. Indiana also gives out merit scholarships and that is pretty close to you. I don’t know much about the details but you may be able to find out information elsewhere on cc. It is still early for you so you can visit a number of places and see if you can get a better idea of what you are looking for. Usually schools give out merit aid to induce a student to attend who would look for a more selective school in absence of the aid. The most selective schools often do not make merit aid available.</p>

4

<p>It would help to know what kind of schools you most interested in: Large public schools? (U of K, I assume), liberal arts colleges (like Davidson, Rhodes, or Hendrix), or mid-sized schools like Vanderbilt. And what kind of culture appeals to you: big sports/rah-rah, intellectual, artsy, preppy, counter-culture/granola, quirky/individualistic, activist, conservative/moderate/liberal, single sex, religious…A few descriptors would help you get better recommendations.</p>

<p>And finally, how much can your parents afford? Everyone wants scholarships and merit aid, but some people can’t attend college without it. Have that discussion now.</p>

5

<p>^^yep, we need a bit more info. I thought Vandy right away, but what size school are you looking for and what type of school environment? Merit aid? Need based aid? What can you afford?</p>

6

<p>Keep in mind that the only restriction you gave us was regional. Considering law does not restrict where you go fro undergrad. and since you’ve only completed two years of HS and not take SAT ACT, all of your stuff is subject to change. You will get more accurate results if you come back in about a year. All opinions i make from here forward are based on 4.0 weighted and 2190 (these are my scores, and approximately what you predicted). I will also include my results to see if that helps you out.</p>

<p>I agree with Alabama and Pitt. I would like to add Tulane as an option. I think they might do some kind of rolling acceptance based on your scores. Not sure, but i know that i have a few friends who did that for their safety, and i hear that the financial aid is pretty good. </p>

<p>For academic matches/reaches in the region you might consider:</p>

<p>safer matches: Wisconsin, UT-Austin, Case western, UIUC, GW, Tulane
higher matches: UVa, U of Michigan, Wake Forest, UNC, William and Mary,
Reaches: Duke, U Chicago, Rice, WashU, Vandy, Emory, Georgetown</p>

<p>and my results, as promised (4.0weighted 2190)(in-state VA, public HS)
accept: VaTech, GaTech, William and Mary, U of Michigan, Wake Forest, UVA
reject: UPenn, U Chicago, Cornell, WashU</p>

7

<p>Agree with the other posters here that the financial questions are paramount. OP, you say you’re looking for schools that would offer you scholarships - will you be eligible for any need-based aid, or will your family be expected to contribute the full amount? There are many issues to consider - some schools will meet full need, but some can’t; some schools still offer loans as part of a need-based package, and some provide all money as grants; merit aid has some strings attached (you need to post a qualifying GPA at college, which differs from school to school, etc.).</p>

<p>So far you’re in great shape for your last two years of high school. Do an ACT or SAT under conditions similar to the actual test, if you can (time the sections; no distractions; only the same breaks you’ll get for the test), to get a solid idea of how you’ll perform when it counts. Continue to maintain your strong GPA, and explore your own interests.</p>

<p>Suburiboy - great results! Congrats and where will you be attending?</p>

8

<p>Vanderbilt</p>

9

<p>@ frazzled. UVA, Great and in-state.</p>