Where Should I apply ?

College Search & Selection
1

High School Junior: GPA 3.83/4.0 and SAT 1340/1600 Demographic: 16 Male, Born in Africa, raised in England and live in Maryland.

Special Details:
I am graduating a year early from high school at the end of my junior year. I have exceeded graduation requirements through dual enrollment courses at my local community college. I am pursuing early graduation because of the severe limitations that my school puts on my course selection as well as the negative atmosphere.

Leadership Roles:
2016: Program coordinator for educating youth (Middle and High School) on the importance of UN’s Sustainable development goals, in collaboration with WBFN.
2016: Citizenship Law Related Education Program Award by the MD State Bar Association
2016: Chief Organizer, Voter Registration Drive in collaboration with Prince George’s Board of Elections
2016: Chief Organizer and Coordinator, County College Fair
2016: First Place Varsity Public Forum Award, Prince George’s Debate League, Spring Tournament
2015-16: Chief of Staff, Young Democrats, CHF
2015-17: Speech Mentor and Varsity Member, Debate Team
2014-17: Principal’s Action Committee
2015-16:Student Aid and Class Officer (LSN Gov)

Organizations and Clubs:
2016 - 2017: Spanish Honor Society Member
2014 - 2015: Future Business Leaders of America
2014 – 2015: Member, HS Football Club
2015 – 2017: Member, HS Debate Team, County Champion
2015 – 2017: Member, Mock Trials
2015 - 2017: Community Day, Vice President

Internship/Volunteer Experiences:
2016-date: Mentee under Irving A. Williamson, Chairman of the US International Trade Commission
June – July, 2016: World Bank / IMF / Inter-American Development Bank Teen Summer Program
August – date, 2016: WBFN Intern
2012 – 2013: Montgomery General Hospital / Olney Thrift Store, Olney, MD
2010 – 2013: Good Shepherd of Olney, MD (Variety of Community service projects)

Courses:
AP Computer Principles
Honors Spanish 4
English 1010 (Community College)

Currently:
AP Computer Science
AP World History
AP English Language
Pre-Calculus

Currently, my unofficial transcript at the local community college has my GPA at 4.0 but I have only completed 1 class so far.

2

@BGMuleri Try to come with a first pass of what you think would be a good fit for you, and then people can help you refine it.

To start with, I’d suggest UMD college park, your flagship.

3

Looks like from other posts you are interested in poli sci/international relations and you aren’t a US citizen? Will you be a full pay applicant or will you need significant need based aid and/or merit aid? The answer to that question will give us a better understanding of what schools would be in the realm of financial possibility for you.

4

@lr4550 Cost according to my dad isn’t too big a factor, however getting some merit aid would be very nice. My dad is more concerned about whether or not I can get in and seems pretty unconcerned about the cost. I am a U.S permanent resident which means I do qualify for FAFSA and other forms of aid. The current list of schools I’m applying to is:

  1. Dartmouth College (Reach) (ED) Chances ?
  2. University of Maryland College Park (Match)
  3. George Washington University (Safety)
  4. Salisbury University (Safety)

My mentor and I spoke and he believes it would be very beneficial if I got a quality liberal arts education which is why I really like Dartmouth. (Also wanted to try my chance at an Ivy)

5

Okay, that helps quite a bit. Dartmouth is a reach for everyone so you may as well take a look at some more schools that are still selective but not tippy top and that still give good merit. Macalaster College in St Paul, MN and even Willamette University in Salem, OR (state capital borders campus) come to mind because both are strong in poli sci/IR. I know those schools are farther away, and that might be a problem, but they do give merit $$ and provide a top notch undergrad education. GW is also a good choice for your interests and chance for merit aid- it has a different feel from the smaller LACs so visiting schools can be important to find out if size/campus matter to you.

Also wanted to point out you can search the “Common Data Set” for any school you are interested in to see what the latest profile is of their incoming class. Go to section C (usually page 7) to find #applicants and #admittance, also mid 50% test scores. Also the CDS reports percent of students receiving financial aid, ranges of aid, and even how much merit aid is given (or not). It’s a great resource.

6

Also just wanted to add that you should find out from your dad exactly what he is willing to pay… it all sounds fine to you now if the answer is “cost to my dad isn’t too big a factor” but the reality many students find the deeper they get into the process is that full bore tuition at $65K-70K per year becomes unpalatable pretty quickly. Some excellent schools do give merit money but often even $10K-25K isn’t enough to bring the full cost of attendance into a comfortable ball park. I want to reiterate how important it is for you two to be on the same page, to know what he is willing to pay if indeed you don’t qualify for any need based aid. If you do qualify for need based aid, make sure to run the NPC for each individual school to get an idea of your EFC (expected Family Contribution).

7

Not sure Dartmouth is in range. Lock down University of Maryland, Towson State, and perhaps another in State option. Look at alternatives to add in where merit aid with your stats are possible - look at mid range Liberal Arts colleges.

8

If Dual Enrollment (DE) at your local community college comes at no cost to you (and/or your parents), have you considered finishing your senior year in high school and doing ONLY DE courses? You could potentially complete as much as 30 credits during your senior year, paving the way for early graduation from college and saving a significant amount of money in the process.

One of my kids took this route and will complete her undergraduate curriculum in 2-years (plus a mandatory summer session). Like yourself, she could have finished high school at the end of junior year, but elected to spend the entire senior year on campus at the local community college through DE. She estimated that her total educational cost savings from doing dual enrollment was in excess of $50K , since her DE courses were free (Tuition/Fees/Books) to high schools students in our state. She is now in the process of applying to a number of graduate programs.

9

@ClarinetDad16 Do you know of any good LACs that maybe waives application fees, I know Dartmouth is slightly out of range but it’s still one of my favorite schools and I want to at least apply. Do you know of anything barring retaking my SAT/ Taking SAT IIs that could help put me closer to Dartmouth range ? I wrote my essay about leaving a legacy in the places I move and forming a network, which is something I think Dartmouth could appreciate.

@Jamrock411 I desperately need to get out of my school, I’m not willing to consider staying at all, my mentor and counselor both advise that I seek a LAC that can help me. I plan on applying to a ton of scholarships and have a pretty extensive spreadsheet filled with them, my current predicament is ensuring how I lock down a spot at any top colleges.

10

There used to be a bunch of schools that offered early admission (after junior year). There are much fewer now.

I think that a personal recommendation from someone like your Mentor would actually carry a lot of weight at a place like George Washington.

Look into Early Admissions programs at:
Carnegie Mellon
https://admission.enrollment.cmu.edu/pages/application-plans-deadlines
look under early admission

USC
https://dornsife.usc.edu/resident-honors-program/

Boston University
https://www.bu.edu/admissions/apply/more-applicant-types/early-admission-program/

Allegheny College
http://sites.allegheny.edu/admissions/early-admission-for-high-school-juniors/

Emory University.
http://apply.emory.edu/apply/rd.php

Oberlin
https://new.oberlin.edu/arts-and-sciences/admissions/first-year-applicant/early-admission.dot

Syracuse
http://admissions.syr.edu/apply/enrollmentoptions/

Knox
https://www.knox.edu/offices/registrar/catalog/admission

Albright College
http://www.albright.edu/catalog/admission.html

11

@ClassicRockerDad Do you know of any more ? If you had to could you list these schools in order of how you view them (haven’t visited any of them)?