<p>ok I dont want my chances(I'll still apply anyway haha)... I need to know how to categorize my choices. ok so stats... top 10% of largest school in Nashville 3.7 UW taking all the hard courses and blah, 28 on ACT but I'm taking it again in October and I should make at least a 32 but most likely higher. Umm I have pretty good ECs and I have a knack for writing really good essays (I'm so modest) I know I can get great RECs too. Does having a Jewish heritage help? hahah Oh yeah I come from an EXTREMELY disadvantaged background(mum has MS, dad's no where to be found, I was living in lots of places 9th n 10th grade because my mom was staying in a women's shelter so I had to go from friends house to friends house, really rough time which really hurt my GPA, I've had to actually help pay rent since I was 16 working at least 25 hours a week and up to 60[illegal I know] and like living in super poverty hah, but whats a little adversity, could be worse) anyway here are the schools</p>
<p>USC, UCLA, Pomona, Claremont McKenna, Pitzer(I have a great interest in the consortium hah), Occidental, Loyola Marymount, and Chapman</p>
<p>So basically can you guys separate these for me? Do I need some safeties? Any ideas if so? I want a SoCal school preferrably LAC with either good film or business depts... I love me some film...</p>
<p>And the Lord spake, "Thou shalt bump, thou shalt bump..." He then proceeded, "...however, thou shalt not grind, especially in conjuction with the aforementioned bumping."</p>
<p>Your second post was so funny. The reference to "bump and grind"..lol..ROFL..Since no one has answered your post, I guess I'll do my best to answer it. You seem to have good stats, I like how you overcame adversity and all. No, being Jewish will not help you in admissions, unless you are applying to a school that is religiously affiliated or if you write an extremely good essay about discrimination (but you really shouldn't take that route on your application, unless it really shows how you are like as person, instead of it coming off as whining). Here are my classifications,.. </p>
<p>Reaches
USC (boost up that ACT)
UCLA (I think it's a reach for almost anyone who is out of state)</p>
<p>Matches/Slight Reaches
Pomona (20% acceptance rate, it's an LAC, they aren't stats driven like public universities)</p>
<p>Claremont McKenna (22% acceptance rate, how they look at applicants is basically the same as Pomona)</p>
<p>Slight Safety/Match
Pitzer (has a 47% acceptance rate, still pretty competitive, and nothing is truly guaranteed with the consortium)</p>
<p>Occidental (45% acceptance rate, same reasoning as Pitzer)</p>
<p>Safety
Loyola Marymount (60 % acceptance rate, your religion will bring diversity, they are Roman Catholic affiliated) </p>
<p>Chapman (58% acceptance rate, and you are Jewish..they would like the diversity you will bring (it's christian church affiliated)</p>
<p>THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!1 that's about what I was thinking, but I couldn't quite define them. I still fear Pomona is WAY out of my league(I've heard so much about it), but I actually want to go to LMU or Chapman the most anyway hah. </p>
<p>So with religiously-affiliated schools, a differing religion actually HELPS your chances? Hmm that's actually cool. Go open minded colleges. woo.</p>
<p>Sorry, but I kind of think Pomona is out of your league, or at least a reach. It's harder to get in there than USC by quite a lot. CMC and USC are in the same category as still pretty reachy</p>
<p>What about LMU and Chapman? Will I need other safeties, or do those count as safeties for me? so thewholeperson, if those are my safeties it would be
SAS Reach
Pomona
UCLA(out of state)</p>
<p>Reach
CMC
USC</p>
<p>Slight reach/match
Oxy
Pitzer</p>
<p>Safety/Match
LMU
Chapman</p>
<p>Would any of this change with a higher ACT? My practice tests are showing a 33 and I generally make at least what I make on my practice tests.</p>
<p>LMU and Chapman look like good safeties to me, and a higher ACT would certainly be better, however I still think Pomona would be a big reach, oh and I think pitzer isn't even a slight reach, it's just a straight match</p>
<p>So do you think it's even worth it to apply to schools that are even more of safeties than those? It seems that my biggest fear that is that those two arent safe enough so I've been on a conquest to find something even easier to get in to, like Whittier or Redlands, but I think that I'd hate it, because I'd be so intellectually bored, so what's the point? I guess I just worry too much.</p>
<p>I visited Whittier and found it pretty unintellectual and unattractive, but what about USF or Santa Clara? They're northern California, but really good and San Francisco is arguably a much nicer city than LA</p>
<p>Yeah, I've been fairly stubborn on my location. I'm still considering Northern schools, but they have to be like wicked awesome because where I live it can be 70 one day and snow the next day and I'm really trying to escape that, even if it is mainly just rain.</p>
<p>it doesn't snow at all in sf. i live here and it's not even very rainy except occasionally. Santa Clara is especially warm, and LA isn't always warm, I've been there when it was raining a bunch. Another thing of note is that the Claremonts have a lot of gross smog.</p>