What colleges would be right for me?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I am a junior at a competitive public school in MD. </p>

<p>I have some colleges in minds, but I don't know if those are necessarily right for me...</p>

<p>I guess I'll just say some things I would like in a college.</p>

<p>Location: Proximity to a city (aka not in the middle of nowhere), but needs to have some sort of campus; prefer warm weather over cold...but that's not a deal-breaker
Size: Would prefer middle sized, but i love some small LACs; DO NOT want a big unviersity
Social/Academic Balancing: I want to go by "play hard, work hard," but no pressure to drink and a university not ruled by greek society; frats can be there as long as they aren't an overbearing presence on campus. I want to be able to have intellectual stimulating conversations during school, but still have fun over the weekend, at night, etc.</p>

<p>I am very intrigued by a wide variety of subjects, and I have no idea what I want to do late in life (definetely not math/science---something humanities driven). I want intellectual, but not nerdy, fun but not rowdy. </p>

<p>Stats: UW: 3.9 (4.0 scale), W: 4.5
ACT: 33 (34 superscore) SAT: 2140 (taking again in March-->weak spot of Math which I hope to raise)</p>

<p>Schools I have thought about/considered...Can someone tell me if I would fit these (based on limited knowledge): Brown(reachh, i know), Northwestern, Tufts, Wesleyan, Pomona, Reed, Middlebury, Tulane, U-Miami, Vanderbilt, WashU</p>

<p>So, it would be nice if someone could tell me if those fit and what other schools would.</p>

<p>Thanks! =) (i can give more info if needed)</p>

2

<p>Of your choices, I would suggest:
Brown - Fits about all your criteria (except the weather). The name says it all, amazing school. Of course the Ivy League will be a crapshoot.
Pomona - Warm LAC with some of the happiest students in the nation. Would fit all your criteria except for the fact that it is not mid-sized and maybe its location, but I beleive it’s about 30 mins from LA? I may be wrong on that. 18% acceptance rate, so safeties will be needed. Also check out Claremont McKenna while you’re at it.
Tufts - Fits your criteria except the weather. Great location outside Boston. It is a little bit science slanted but is known for top programs in every subject. I would say it’s a high match.
Wesleyan - Great size between LAC and mid-sized university. Great academics and student body. You have a very good shot at Wesleyan, you’re just above the SAT range and average GPA. The location and weather does not fit your criteria, but I would suggest you look into Wesleyan. :)</p>

3

<p>Doesn’t match with the weather but Macalester (ST. Paul MN) might be worth a look.</p>

4

<p>Before I finished reading your post, I thought of Vanderbilt. It is in Nashville, so it would be warm, and in a city. Your grades and test scores are probably a fit.</p>

5

<p>Look into Davidson and Vassar. In addition to Brown being your reach, try a LAC reach such as Amherst?</p>

<p>You have Vanderbilt on your list. Take it off. If you’re sure that you don’t want a large greek scene, etc… don’t waste your time.</p>

6

<p>UMiami</p>

<p>good education + you live in the best area of the best city in the country.</p>

7

<p>Maybe U of Chicago? Not sure about the weather, though…</p>

8

<p>You live in MD. Why Not JHU? It certainly satisfies your criteria for the most part. +, they have extremely good humanities there that often are not known about due to the excellence of their Science programs.</p>

<p>What major, specifically, are you looking at? JHU has top 3, top 10, and top 25 programs in Writing, History, English, Internation Relations, Psychology, Public Health, Econ, Art History, East Asian Culture, French, German, Music (with Peabody Conservatory of JHU), etc. It’s in Baltimore, but has a very nice campus with great security, etc. +, the student body, though often misconstrued on this board, is pretty much work hard, play hard. It’s also close to DC via $7 MARC train if you’re interested.</p>

9

<p>ok, weather isnt THAT big of a deal…i’d just PREFER warmer weather…but I can deal with the cold and the weather isn’t a make/break thing for me. And for size, I mostly just don’t want too big; i’m starting to be okay with a really small school even, because pomono/reed/other LAC’s sound cool despite their smaller size</p>

10

<p>I think you’re a reasonable match for Reed (meaning 50/50), but visit overnight before applying; most come away feeling strongly one way or the other. Also consider Carleton, Grinnell, Oberlin.</p>

11

<p>Wake Forest maybe, and look at Claremont McKenna while you’re looking at Pomona. THey have the College Consortium there, and it may be good since you seem like you may want a small LAC feel with the social life of a medium size school.</p>

12

<p>u should definitely check out tufts. It is in a nice suburb of Boston, is quite small for a university and it is strong in just about every academic category. You should also consider haverford-- it is just a train ride away from Philly I believe.</p>

13

<p>I would consider Emory.</p>

14

<p>I thought of Tulane while I was reading your post. I think that would be a pretty good fit but I see you as more of a LAC-type so maybe Tufts? Even though it isn’t a LAC, it kind of has a LAC “feel,” I guess. Maybe the University of Miami but I’d probably put that at the bottom of your list because it just doesn’t seem to fit what you really want, besides “work hard, play hard,” warm weather, city…</p>

<p>I would suggest you looking at the list of LACs and going from there. Look at each school’s proximity to a city, where you fall in terms of grades and such (I think you’re okay for any LAC with your grades and SAT and ACT scores), majors, etc. There is so much research that can be done that it really comes down to your preferences—small ones or big ones.</p>

15

<p>As a safety (both academically and financial since it’s so affordable for OOS), I’d suggest you take a look at New College of FL. It’s not for everyone, but it’s worth a glance. Might be a little too small, though, with under 800 students.</p>

<p>Also, maybe Haverford? It’s cold, but it sounds up your alley–LAC with easy access to Philadelphia. By that token, maybe Swarthmore as well?</p>

16

<p>Pomona is nice, not exactly close to LA - traffic is really bad around here. It is also incredibly hard to get into. If you do you will have a great time, but it is really small and it really does not look like LA around there. Do not spend summers there because air quality becomes a real problem. Good luck!</p>

17

<p>Thank everyone for everything.</p>

<p>Sometimes I’m confused about what I want, and although I might end up at a LAC, I want to apply to other types of schools, too (and I’ll visit to see how I like it).</p>

<p>Thanks though; I’m definitely gonna write down these suggestions.</p>

18

<p>Swarthmore…
20 from philly
hard academics
two frats on campus that do it up very nice on the weekends and all are welcome to them
no cops on campus, very lenient with drinking because of the play hard mentality.</p>

19

<p>You sound like a good candidate for all of the schools on your list, but they will mostly be reach/match schools. You could also consider Emory and Rice. I’m having a hard time coming up with a match/safety school that meets your criteria. Perhaps, Rhodes or University of Richmond or American?</p>

20

<p>That’s my problem; all the types of school I want…there seems only matches or reaches. :(</p>

<p>No to American–I live too close; I want to get away.</p>

<p>I don’t really know anything about Rhodes or University of Richmond. I’ll look them up though.</p>

<p>Thanks</p>