<p>Oh yes of course, that’s quite secondary. It’s just that being that i’m new to the USA I don’t know much about all these schools, so i’ve tried to talk about it all with a few of my friends, you know, ask them where they’re applying and why, etc.</p>
<p>I’ve sadly only been able to visit UNC Chapel Hill, i’ll probably try and visit Davidson College, but other than that I haven’t been able to visit any campus.</p>
<p>I tend to think that public universities would be the least forgiving about a low GPA because they tend to be less holistic and have more rigid guidelines. If I were you, I would write a little more about your situation in the additional information section, pointing out your GPA in a french school would have been more than acceptable and that the main problem is that because French schools don’t offer honors or APs, even though you took a rigorous curriculum, it was not recognized as such by your American high school. I would also mention that you are confident in your ability to handle a challenging workload, as is shown by your grades in junior and senior year and your AP scores.</p>
<p>The problem you have now is that while small schools would be your best bet for safeties, small schools also like you to have shown some interest, by visiting. If I were you, assuming money is no object, I might apply to a few more schools in big cities, including Drexel (Mar. 1 deadline), University of Denver (Jan. 15), Tulane (Jan. 15) and U Vermont, and then see if there’s any way to visit any of the small schools that might be of interest. Muhlenberg (really nice school in PA) has a deadline of Mar. 1, Franklin and Marshall has a deadline of Feb. 1 and Rhodes has a deadline of Jan. 15.</p>
<p>I think the tip top tier schools are too much of a reach except Brown is quirky so maybe they will give your application a 2nd look. The state schools are really driven by GPA & SAT scores so you might have a lot of disappointment there as well (i.e. UVM, Rutgers) You should check there exact ranges they typically do not make too many exceptions unless they need more OOS full paying tuition students.</p>
<p>The smaller private colleges can skew their statisics any way they want (their game their rules) so many might be willing to disregard your GPA from France. However a school like BC - no b/c they recieve 30,000 applications no reason to make exceptions unless you are legacy, etc.</p>
<p>Sticking to North east & midatlantic (or NC) look at Washington & Lee (VA), Furman (NC). Davidson might work out but note it is brutal academically 
Also I have a feeling Penn St could work out. American U (in DC) is very diverse & would like your background, Catholic U too. </p>
<p>Let me put a plug in for Elon. D is there & loves it - pretty sophisticated school that continues to raise in the ranks. Big study abroad program w 80% participation- they would love you & your experiences.</p>
<p>Note you have to show demostrated interest in these schools. B/c your application is so not typical you want to draw a lot attention to it so reach out with follow up emails to all the ad com people. (don’t bother with BC)
Don’t get too hung up in the rankings or name brand appeal of your future school. Go where you can afford, & the fit feels right. You will succeed.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice guys. So basically: in the “additional info” section of my CommonApp I should explain my situation better as “midatlmom” said, i’ll definitely do that, hopefully it will help me out.</p>
<p>And I should try and consider smaller schools/private schools. American University would be a good school to look into? I had before but for some reason I got the feeling they were too competitive for me?
I heard a lot of odd things about Elon, many people have told me it’s a party school with a poor reputation, while others have said it’s a great school, so i’ve been hesitant about it…</p>
<p>I really appreciate the advice guys…all of this is so stressful.</p>
<p>Have you considered Drexel? It’s located in Philadelphia, with 11,171 students and a March 1st deadline. Your SAT scores are within their range, though your GPA is a little low.
Also, Catholic University in Washington, D.C. could be an option based on your scores. They have a February 15 deadline. They have 3,573 students.
Also, Seton Hall would probably be a good fit for you. It’s about 20 minutes away from NYC by train, so it’s close to a big city. It has 5,213 students.
University of New Hampshire could be a good fit. It’s one hour from Boston, and has 12,485 students. I don’t know how your GPA would affect you there, though.
Also, consider Adelphi on Long Island or University of Illinois-Chicago</p>
<p>All of these schools have a good reputation, so you couldn’t go wrong with any of them!</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice! I’ll look into all of them!</p>