<p>I am a junior currently but I'm leaving to study abroad in Germany for the spring semester in a few weeks so my parents encouraged me to start looking at colleges now. I go to a small private school in Mass that's pretty laid-back and focuses on a strict core curriculum. I visited Middlebury, Dartmouth, Tufts, and Northeastern a couple weeks ago and I kinda liked all of them so now I honestly have no idea where to start my list of schools. I'm pretty much open to anywhere in the Northeast, Midwest, Colorado, or Cali. Stanford seems like a place i would like but I'm not sure I would stand a chance at admission. Your help is appreciated.</p>
<p>Basic profile</p>
<p>PSAT: 233 (CR-800)(M-760)(W-770)
Biology Subject Test: 800
Waiting on December SAT scores
~3.95 GPA (school doesn't calculate)
Rank: probably like 3 or 4/21
No honors or AP classes because my school is so small and we have zero choice for class selection
Won an honorable mention from American Society for Microbiology at Intel ISEF last year and a few other state/regional science fair awards
3 sport varsity athlete since freshman year
Few other random things not worth mentioning
Caucasian
Male</p>
<p>Any guidance at all or school suggestions would be helpful. Thanks!</p>
<p>All the schools you mentioned are within your academic range if your SAT goes as well as your PSAT - it’s just a matter of kicking up your non-academic profile, which you’ve got the time to do. If AP’s are out of the question, just work hard for SAT I and II’s, which currently don’t look like they will cause a problem. You didn’t mention your academic interests but I’m assuming science related? Focus in on whatever it is and try to find volunteer/EC/intern etc opportunities in your subject area, but also keep up a well-rounded profile. Things are looking great right now, so just keep revving up your EC’s and you’ll be golden.</p>
<p>You need to come up with some selection criteria to narrow down your list since virtually anywhere is possible with your scores and grades. Look at size, location, culture, depth and breadth of offerings in your area of academic interest, cost, etc…Once you have some idea of what you are looking for generically, we can provide suggestions. </p>
<p>If Middlebury, Tufts and Dartmouth are the kinds of schools you like, then I’d look into the other NE LACs (Bowdoin, Bates, Colby, Amherst, Williams) and a few others like Brandeis and BU. In the mid-atlantic, look at Georgetown. Check out Duke as well. These schools share some of the same vibe. </p>
<p>And that’s just the NE. There are schools all over the country that might fit - so a few more selection criteria would help narrow down the list.</p>
<p>Unless a building is getting renamed or you’re actively being recruited bya coach, Stanford is a reach for everyone, but you’re an applicant for whom it would be worthwhile to throw your name into the lottery if you think you’d like the school.</p>
<p>You have a really strong application academically and with extracurriculars, so I think you can apply with a reasonable chance at most schools…where you end up applying depends more on your interests in majors/location/size and any other factors that you want to take into consideration. Think about those before you consider your chances of acceptance and then build your list from there.
Also remember that you have time–junior year is really important academically so make sure that you focus on grades and also try to boost your EC’s if you can. Your SAT score appears to be in good shape but take some practice tests if you can to ensure a maximum grade.
As someone else said, the schools you mentioned suggest that you might like other northeast liberal arts schools so you could look into those.</p>