What colleges should I be looking at with these stats?

College Search & Selection
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<p>Hello! I really hate to bother everyone with another one of these threads, but I've really been freaking out about this college stuff lately! I'm only a junior, so I'm pretty new to all this. Sorry for the lengthy post!</p>

<p>I am an African-American female from Illinois (suburbs of Chicago).</p>

<p>GPA: UW-Don't really know. I can't imagine it being any lower than 3.5 though. Maybe about 3.7? W-As of the last grading period, it was a 4.3.
Rank: Not entirely sure about this year, but at the end of last year, I think I was about 48/800. I'm not sure how many students my high school sends to top schools, but I know we're not super competitive.</p>

<p>Classes:
I've taken all honors core classes. The only standards I've been in until this year were my foreign language classes, gym, health, and a Ceramics class I took last year. I'm currently in standard US History, though. Here's my current schedule and grades:
Gym A+/Adventure Gym (2nd Semester)
Anatomy & Physiology (Honors) A/A-
US History (Standard, dropped out of AP US :/) A+
Honors Precalculus B-
French III (Honors) A+
AP English B/B+</p>

<p>Possible senior year schedule:
AP English 12
AP Calculus AB
AP Biology
French IV (Honors)
Computer Design/Graphics course
Gym (1st Semester)/Honors Economics (Possibly Honors Psychology if I can take Econ at a CC during the summer.)</p>

<p>Tests:
I haven't taken the official ACT yet, but I took a practice test at my school a few weeks ago (minus the science section) and I got a 27 from the average of the three sections we did do. I wanted to get something a bit more accurate, so I assumed that my science score would be the same as my reading score and calculated that and it was still a 27. I don't plan on taking the SAT.</p>

<p>ECs:
Pretty weak. :(
Speech Team (9, 10) Not the whole year for either year though. :/</p>

<p>Art Buddies (Mentoring, basically.) (11)
Interact Club (11)
National Honors Society (11) I plan on doing these three again next year.</p>

<p>Here are some colleges I've been looking at:
University of Illinois at Chicago
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
Knox College-Small LAC in Galesburg, Illinois. About three hours away from me.
Beloit College-Small LAC in Beloit, Wisconsin. About two hours away from me.</p>

<p>I'm pretty open to anything. The only thing I'm really concerned about is distance. I would prefer schools that are in the Midwest, so I can stay close to home, but I'm open to other schools that might not be as close.</p>

<p>I know this post is pretty long, but if anyone could tell me where stand with the schools I've listed or name some that would be good for me, I'd be so grateful. :)</p>

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<p>Did you take the PSAT? If so, do you think you might have scored high enough for National Achievement? :)</p>

<p>Here are some colleges I’ve been looking at:
University of Illinois at Chicago
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
Knox College-Small LAC in Galesburg, Illinois. About three hours away from me.
Beloit College-Small LAC in Beloit, Wisconsin. About two hours away from me.</p>

<p>Do you know if you’ll be needing financial aid? If so, UMich won’t work for you. Out of state publics can’t meet the need for OOS students. The cost of attendance (COA) for UMich for OOS students is $50k per year, so unless you can afford that, you need to look elsewhere. </p>

<p>BTW…if you’ll be needing financial aid, you need to choose schools that can meet need without big gaps or loans. So, first determine what your financial situation is. Do you know what your family’s EFC will be? Use this online calculator to get an estimate [FinAid</a> | Calculators | Expected Family Contribution (EFC) and Financial Aid](<a href=“http://www.finaid.org/calculators/finaidestimate.phtml]FinAid”>http://www.finaid.org/calculators/finaidestimate.phtml)</p>

<p>Once you know what your family’s EFC is, you’ll be able to compile a workable list :slight_smile: </p>

<p>If money is no object, then awesome! :slight_smile: But, if financial aid is needed, there’s no point in considering schools that can’t/won’t meet need. Some schools are much better at meeting need than others. It won’t matter how great the “fit” is if there’s not enough money to go there.</p>

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<p>your stats are not what cause you to look at schools, your interests are</p>

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<p>Thank you both for your posts. I will be needing financial aid, so I’ll guess I’ll have to say bye bye to UMich. :frowning: Ok, so I used the calculator and it said $15,799.</p>

<p>I forgot to mention some of my interests. Thanks for reminding me. To tell you the truth, I’m undecided about a major. I’m really interested in becoming a doctor, but I don’t know for sure if that’s what I want to do. I was also thinking about French, but I don’t really want to teach, and I can’t see much else you can do with a degree in French.</p>

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<p>I think Beloit may be a great school for you. Good financial aid and your stats may also earn you merit money. They have a beautiful new science center which you would probably be spending some time in as a pre med student. I was impressed with Beloit when we visited last Spring.</p>

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<p>*I’m really interested in becoming a doctor, but I don’t know for sure if that’s what I want to do. I was also thinking about French, but I don’t really want to teach, and I can’t see much else you can do with a degree in French. *</p>

<p>Well, you can always either minor in French or take a few French classes (for personal interest). :)</p>

<p>**ABSOLUTELY take both the ACT and SAT!!! ** I can’t stress that enough!!! Many kids do MUCH better on one than the other and that can make a HUGE difference for acceptance or for merit scholarships since schools will accept whichever is highest. You think that you might get an ACT 27, but that’s usually not high enough for merit money. However, you may score much higher on the SAT!!! Typically, schools look at Math and CR scores for determining merit on the SAT.</p>

<p>I am serious about taking both tests. If you were to read various kids’ stats here, you would often see big differences in SAT vs ACT. </p>

<p>Since you’re thinking about med school, you need to consider this. You’ll likely have to borrow a lot of money for med school. (I have a pre-med son, so I’ve looked into this). Med school costs about $220-260k (publics and privates). So, if you’ll have to borrow for that, you’ll want to borrow as little as possible for undergrad otherwise you’ll “run short” when you’re in med school. You can’t borrow an unlimited amount. </p>

<p>The good news is that any good school can prepare a pre-med student for med school. If you choose a decently ranked school that is strong in Bio, chem, math, and physics, and you do well on your MCATs, then you can get into med school. :slight_smile: So, if you can find good schools that will either give you lots of merit or won’t cost a lot, then consider those schools.</p>

<p>You also need to talk to your family about whether they can pay the EFC (which you estimate as being about $16k per year.) If they are willing, then that’s great. If that is too much for them, then getting good merit scholarships may be needed - otherwise you’ll have a gap. (another reason to take both the SAT and ACT.) :)</p>

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<p>^ I agree with the advice to take both ACT and SAT. However, only a [relatively] few kids do much better on the ACT than on the SAT or vice versa. It is not common. If you see big diffs in the stats of kids here, then it’s because the kids here are unusual (which we kind of know is true anyway because the majority of kids here post stats that are through the roof). The better argument for taking both tests is so you don’t have to limit yourself to institutions that take one but not the other and possibly scrambling to take the other test at the last minute when you’re stressed and likely to do poorly.</p>

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<p>Thanks for all the advice! Yea, I’ll definitely be talking to my mom about how much we’re willing to pay. It might not be all that accurate anyway since I used the quick calculator because my mom isn’t at home right now. And about the SAT, I’ve never had any exposure to it. A lot more emphasis is put on the ACT here in the Midwest. Do you think I have enough time to prepare for the SAT, take it (retake if necessary), and have the scores ready by fall of next year (I want to apply early to the schools I like the most)?</p>

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<p>You definitely have enough time to prepare and take the SAT twice before time to submit applications next year. </p>

<p>I agree with mom2 that some do much better on SAT than ACT - my kids being two who fall in to this category. Also do a search for Ziggy method on CC - I so wish I knew about this before my kids took the ACT - this would have helped tremendously.</p>

<p>Also I recommend that you look at some colleges that interest you - look at what they want for admissions (sometimes they say recommended) - more selective schools ask for SAT IIs.</p>

<p>Your stats are great and there is no reason why you can’t get your scores higher since you are starting early and are motivated.</p>

<p>There was a great thread about how a student used CC tips to get in to an Ivy - I’ll go back and look for it and post it if I can find it.</p>

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<p>Here it is - Treeoflife posted this on another thread today - <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/327663-senior-members-ode-college-confidential.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/327663-senior-members-ode-college-confidential.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>It is a great!</p>

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<p>Ok, I guess I’ll look taking the SAT then. Like I said, I haven’t had any exposure to it. How long do you think I should study for?</p>

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<p>I hate to mindlessely bump this, but I was looking for a little more advice about the SAT and maybe some more college suggestions too!</p>

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<p>Welll you should consider one of your top in-state schools, University of Illinois Urbana Champaign. Looking at your EFC, looks like you can afford to pay University of Minnesota- Twin Cities out of state tuition. A lot of mid-west residents also apply to University of Iowa, you could use it as a safety.</p>

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<p>Wow, do you really think I could get into UIUC? Lol.</p>

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<p>There is a chance, I think its one you should consider…</p>

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<p>Do some practice tests and aim for a 30 on the ACT. Then you’ll be in a good position, even if you fall a point or two short.</p>

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<p>Oh, that’s something I forgot to mention! I am working on bringing up my ACT score. A 30 is my goal. I’m in a prep course, and I do plan on taking some practice tests. My school offers a ton because most of the students here aren’t where they should be in terms of scores.</p>

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<p>BryDeeC - your best bet for getting good info on how to prep for the SAT is the SAT/ACT forum. Here is a good thread on it:<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/sat-preparation/68210-xiggis-sat-prep-advice.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/sat-preparation/68210-xiggis-sat-prep-advice.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Mostly it is a matter of time, money, and personal preference as to how you go about it. Both my kids did best with a book, discipline, and a timer. They preferred princeton review or the college board book - if you decide to purchase a prep book, go to the library or bookstore and look at different ones before you buy.</p>

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<p>Don’t be so defensive re EC. Mom2 gave great advice.
Other schools to think of are Earlham St Olaf Macalester Oberlin Alleghenny Kenyon</p>

<p>And many excellent East Coast LACs are looking for more bright African Americans such as you and will be generous with aid–Haverford; Muhlenberg; Susquehanna; Drew; Alfred; Bard</p>