what i'm looking for, help?

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I was wondering if some of you generous people here could maybe help me out with my college search by sharing some of your insight. I already have a huge list of schools I'm considering, so instead of looking for even more suggestions, I'll be looking for schools you al suggest that I was previously interested in but might not have known enough about. Warning: Rather than just listing things off, this kind of just turned into a mini essay about what I want in a school, haha.</p>

<p>I'm currently a junior in the IB program at a high school which has consistently been ranked in the top 20 of Newsweek's "Best HSs" (not sure if that means much though). </p>

<p>I was originally planning on majoring in Computer Science or Computer/Electrical Engineering, but have recently been bouncing back and forth between CS, Economics, and a few other more liberal arts-type majors. </p>

<p>I've read Loren Pope's books "40 Colleges that Change Lives" and "Looking Beyond the Ivy League..." and like/understand/agree with a lot of it, regarding why small schools are better and big research universities, not so much. Also about it being somewhat unnecessary to jump into specializations like engineering right from the start. I'm still looking into engineering though, perhaps in the form of a 3/2 program, or just a smaller school that is strong in engineering as well as liberal arts (like Rice). </p>

<p>After visiting Eckerd College yesterday, I'm not sure if a school as small as 1600 is right for me. Growing up smack dab in the middle of a town that wouldn't exist were it not for the huge State U that dominates it, I really prefer the way big universities are more integrated with the surrounding city rather than the way Eckerd is set in it's own self contained campus. Are there any schools on the smaller side that are more like the former? I think (sub)urban is the type of environment that suits me best. I still think that maybe 3-5k (no bigger than 10k) could be the right size for me. I could be wrong though, seeing as I've only seen the extremes of size (35k and 1600).</p>

<p>I like a lot of diversity in the student body, and have trouble imagining myself somewhere that white kids like myself make up more than 80% of the student population. I could probably live with it, but I would much prefer diversity in race, economic status, religion etc. Political views too, to an extent, but I lean to the left and can get rubbed the wrong way by aggressive conservatives...</p>

<p>Location is not that important in terms of distance from home, but I much prefer warmer climates. Let's just say I can hardly tolerate Florida winters...</p>

<p>So, I think I've covered most of the things that are important to me. I don't know if I'm being too selective, but I'd rather look for the perfect school and find a few that come close instead of being vague and then having to narrow it down. As far as any other little things...
-good public transportation
-attractive campus
-some sort of music scene
-residential campus</p>

<p>As far as -my- credentials go...
SAT scores:
CR: 680
M: 740
W: 740</p>

<p>I've only taken it once so far; might take it again to try and improve my CR score. ACT scores are yet to be received since I just took it last week, ha.</p>

<p>4's on AP English Language and Euro Hist; taking English Lit, US History, and Physics this year. All my classes are AP or IB, and besides the ones I just mentioned, also include Art (3rd year), Spanish 3, and Precalc. Next year I'll be taking Chem which means dropping Art, but I might opt out of chem to continue art and then just take Enviro instead.</p>

<p>Extracurriculars: Brain Bowl/Academic team (2 years), Mu Alpha Theta/math club (2), NAHS(1), Youth in Government(1). I'm planning on continuing with all of them in senior year except for YIG (ended up being a huge waste of time). Going to run for Senior Class Pres. and go for President of Brain Bowl also (since of all my clubs, it's my highest priority). </p>

<p>So...I suppose that's it. This was really long, sorry, haha. Thank you if you took the time to read all of it!</p>

2

<p>Your post is too long. In my opinion, "Colleges That Change Lives" is interesting but outdated. Ironically, although I find your post to be too lengthy, I also think that it does not give enough relevant information to enable one to offer appropriate suggestions.</p>

3

<p>What information do you feel I should add/cut out to facilitate suggestions?</p>

4

<p>Rice, Carnegie Mellon (CMU) University, Stanford Univ., Univ. of Illinois & Harvey Mudd College are worth investigating for either EE or Comp. Eng. Georgia Tech as well. Rice & Harvey Mudd College are the two best choices based on your posted info. Lafayette, Lehigh & Bucknell--all in Pennsylvania-- may also be worth considering.</p>

5

<p>I was going to suggest Harvey Mudd as well... I think the Claremont schools in general would fit your criteria well. Harvey Mudd is an engineering school, but it stresses liberal arts a lot more than many others- it requires that a certain amount (maybe 1/3?) of your classes come from areas outside of science and math. There are a lot of choices for classes too because you can cross-enroll at any of the other Claremont schools.</p>

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<p>Maybe Trinity University in San Antonio might be worth a look.</p>

7

<p>If you're very sure that you want to major in CS/engineering, then by all means look at Mudd. If you're bouncing back and forth, though, I'd strongly discourage you from limiting yourself to a math/science core + at least one tech degree (major or minor), as you would have to pursue at Mudd. If you want to research Claremont, I'd recommend looking at the other colleges, where you could benefit from cross-registration and other strong tech programs (though not another 4-year engineering option), but where you'd have more flexibility.</p>

<p>That said, Claremont in general may not be a great match for you. The consortium gives the schools a feeling of being larger than they are, but they're definitely self-contained. Town/gown relations (to borrow a term from Princeton Review) are good, but the schools aren't integrated into the community in the way that a large university would be. The schools may not have the racial diversity that you'd like. Public transit is very limited (it's possible to take into LA, but not something you'll want to rely on, and local public transit is virtually non-existent...also pretty unnecessary since the campuses are so residential). I suppose there's a music scene, but I wouldn't say that it's a dominant feature of campus life. That said, the climate is good, some of the campuses are quite attractive, there's a good amount of geographic + ideological diversity, the campuses are residential, size is right...</p>

<p>Basically, Claremont would be worth exploring. I can imagine you liking it, but it didn't jump to my mind from your original post. Mudd is not a good option unless you're quite sure that you want to take their core and complete at least one degree in math/science/eng. Pitzer, in particular, might be a good match for religious and racial diversity, + music scene, though CMC and Pomona could also interest you (but would both be reaches).</p>

<p>I didn't find your post too long, but it is difficult to make suggestions because the info you give is largely...vague. Or very broad. Distance from home doesn't matter, warm-ish climate, medium-size is good, should allow you flexibility in major, should be diverse. All good criteria, but it doesn't do a lot to bring specific schools to mind. Also, your EC's don't tell us too much about what you'll want to pursue, what you enjoy, etc. And the fact that you're not really looking for suggestions makes it feel like in-depth descriptions might be time-wasters.</p>

<p>Some more info that might be helpful (emphasis on the first two)...
**
- What schools are you already looking at, and why?</p>

<ul>
<li>What are some schools that you've taken off your list (i.e. those you're hoping we suggest here), and why did you remove them?
*</li>
<li><p>What kind of music scene do you want, and how important is that to you?</p></li>
<li><p>What kind of student body are you hoping for? Do you want to be able to have political conversations over dinner, do you want to be able to sit around discussing math in the common room, do you want kids who are smart but not particularly intellectual, kids who are quirky, kids who are politically active, lots of science nerds, lots of kids who like science but *aren't 'nerds'...?</p></li>
<li><p>Do you have an urban/rural/suburban preference, and why?</p></li>
<li><p>What kind of social scene are you looking for? Do you want a relatively dry campus, do you want a big party scene, do you want a place where alcohol is usually present but you won't be pressured to partake, do you prefer movie nights and video games to frat parties, do you want a Greek scene...?</p></li>
</ul>

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<p>Thank you to everyone who has replied so far. </p>

<p>Schools I'm looking at already included Rice, Lafayette, Lehigh and Harvey Mudd, so seeing those mentioned was nice. As for the first three, I like the blend of liberal arts/engineering options like I mentioned. Fordham, for its idea of educating the whole person based on its Jesuit background (though the religion itself is not important) and its proximity to NYC. Cornell College's and Colorado College's "one course at a time" set up sounds appealing, because I think I work best when focusing on one thing at a time. Then there are a few schools that appeal to me but I just can't put my finger on why, like Washington U in St. Louis, Elon, Roger Williams, and Davidson.</p>

<p>Schools I've taken off my list - most any giant state university, specifically those in Florida (despite the fact I could go to them for basically free). Eckerd, felt too confining and I just couldn't picture myself there for four years despite the stimulating city a short drive away. I'm not too interested in the "prestige" of a college - if none of my friends have heard of it, I'm not bothered, but I wouldn't simply cross a school off my list because it has a big reputation. </p>

<p>Revisiting the climate idea, warm winters aren't that much of a priority, especially since if I was to put a limit on distance from home, that would eliminate California. My only problem going that far away would be the cost of traveling back home. So yes, warm is nice, but if I found the perfect school up in New England, I think I could take the cold.</p>

<p>Music scene isn't truly that important, but if there is a fair sized city that gets frequent stops on my favorite bands' tours (mostly alternative rock, pop rock, pop punk, etc.) within 2 hours driving, that is a huge plus.</p>

<p>Student body? Political discussions are great if people can keep their tempers under control, but I'd rather continue a discussion based on that day's class material regarding some sort of ethical issue or philosophy. I guess my ECs would suggest that I'm more of a nerd myself, so I definitely have no problem with them, be them science nerds, video game dorks, or people who geek out over whatever their current obsession is, an author, a musician or even a musical. I love it when someone is passionate about something, and 'quirky' describes most all of my friends.</p>

<p>Urban or suburban is preferable, I'd love to have some sort of 'distraction' when I need it, in the form of a play, museum, or just window shopping at the local mall. </p>

<p>A big party scene is all right, but as a non drinker who plans on staying that way, I don't want to be somewhere where everyone believes you need a drink to have a good time. Similarly, a Greek scene it fine, but if it and the frat parties dominate the weekends, I'd be turned off.</p>