Hi guys. I was curious if I could be recommended some colleges to apply to.
GPA:4.1(Weighted) 3.9(Unweighted)
SAT:1420
AP’s Taken High School Total:4
Total Honor Classes:2
Some majors that interest me are computer science, biochemistry, biology, and engineering. I prefer a medium to large college. I also live in California, so colleges in-state would be nice, but I do not mind applying for out of state colleges.
Thank You For Reading This
UCLA is great and you might be able to get in with your stats. Cal Poly SLO and UCSB are both very good schools that have excellent engineering programs. Stanford has a very highly ranked bio program as well as UCSD. Stanford is very selective though, so try to raise scores and GPA if you want to go there.
For out of state there are just too many options that fit your criteria. You should start by looking at affordability which I may or may not be an issue. If it is not an issue I could give you one list, if it is then you will have to first determine if “need based” is a viable option for you. We can then start from there…
I don’t think affordability will be an issue. I am planning on applying for scholarships and applying to FAFSA. If’ I don’t have enough still, I will probably take out student loans and pay it when I’m older. Also, the schools mentioned above kind of seem like reach schools. I was wondering if I could also be recommended some schools that are slightly easier to get into and some safeties.
In state - I would round out the top UC’s as well as SLO and SDSU. OOS has lots of options but run the NPC’s for each to see what’s really affordable. Full tuition scholarship possible at some mid tiers with your SAT score/grades.
Put San Jose State at the top of your list for terrific CS, great value, and a match with your stats. UC Santa Cruz also could be a match and is great for both CS and the life sciences. You have a good shot at Cal Poly but a lot will depend on which major you choose.
You are right that the schools mentioned in post #1 are reaches for engineering and CS. A great school/program that might interest you is ASU’s honor college, check to see if your stats are in the neighborhood for that.
Finally, if you haven’t already done so, visit the Net Price Calculator for UC and Cal State to get a sense of how much each school will cost you and which grants you are eligible for. Every college has a Net Price Calculator so if you’re applying to private or out of state schools run the NPC on those too.
For a safety, apply to SJSU for Software Engineering.
Seconding ASU Barrett Honors.
Also look into WUE universities such as Colorado State, NM Tech, or Montana State.
CS, Engineering, and Biology are among the most competitive majors. So, assume the students admitted to these majors are in the top 25% applicants (you can find that in the CDS or collegedata).
What’s your UC GPA?
UCLA would be a reach.
Since all UC’s have the same app, you can apply to UCSB, UCD, UCSC which are all very good for your interests, then add UCLA. Add CSU’s - SDSU, Cal Poly SLO, CPP, whatever CSU is in your district qnd, depending on NPC, a few private instate or OOS universities (Lewis&Clark for biology, Gonzaga for CS and Computational Thinking, Whitman for CS and Biology…)
Cost: not all universities give the same scholarships. Most don’t care whether you can pay or not, providing students we zero or negligible scholarhip (if you can afford 25K/year and the university offers 7.5K off a 45k cost, it is a pointless scholarship since you can’t afford the University anyway) and as a student you can get a 5.5K loan for freshman year, period. Scholarships mostly come from the government and from the colleges themselves, as well as from the State since you’re lucky to be living in CA which provides State Aid if you stay instate and attend a public university.
Run the NPC on several universities and bring the results to your parents. Be ready for them to be shocked at the cost, then have a frank discussion about what they can afford to pay from income and savings (do you have a 529? Do you have a rough idea of your parents’ income?)