Your Mom!

College Search & Selection
1

<p>I go to a very small school in new hampshire so i am not privy to an abundance of information on colleges. my guidence counsler gives little guidence in the college process and i was wondering about my current list, my stats first then my list:</p>

<p>Gender
M
Location
northern nh
College Class Year
2012
High School
Public
High School Type
rarely sends grads to top schools
Will apply for financial aid
Yes
Academics:
GPA - Unweighted 3.90
Class Rank 1st
Class Size 35
Scores:
ACT 28
Extracurriculars:
coached soccer 2 years, 3 years Youth and Government, class officer 3 years, student council 2 years, 3 years varsity soccer, 2nd degree blaqck belt 7 years, NHS</p>

<p>Leadership positions:
captain soccer, lobbyist youth and government, class treasurer, coach</p>

<p>Volunteer/Service Work:
coach and tutor and class community service= over 200 hours
part time job sophomore year and full time job over each summer</p>

<p>College Summer programs
st. paul's advanced studies program this summer- world religions</p>

<p>American-Match/safety?
Bates
Bowdoin
Connecticut College-legacy
Georgetown U-not sure if i should bother
University of Chicago-EA-really like!
University of Pennsylvania-not sure if i should bother?
Vassar
Wesleyan</p>

<p>if you can think of anymore colleges add to my list and could you give me feedback on my current list!
i will be taking 2 SATIIs this Saturday and will retake my SAT and ACTs next fall</p>

2

<p>no, your mom.</p>

3

<p>Your 28 ACT is rather low for several of your schools...UPenn, Georgetown, UChicago, Wesleyan, Bowdoin, and Vassar. My SAT/ACT conversion chart puts a 28 at about a 1270 (m+v), which is 20 to 80 points below the 25th percentile at each of these schools. Sure, that's not a huge amount, but it makes admission more difficult at schools where admission is already quite difficult. If you could raise your ACT to a 30 or 31 (or higher :)), you would be more competitive at these schools. UPenn would still be a pretty big reach for you, though. </p>

<p>Your extras are probably only average for a UPenn, as well. That's not at all to say that they are bad, but the pool at a UPenn overall has incredible extracurricular involvement, so even though you are quite involved, your ecs do not stand out as impressive in a highly competitive pool. UChicago is more realistic, as long as you raise your test scores, because I believe that they really look at fit and since you are so enthusiastic about the school and will hopefully put a lot of energy into your application, it seems like you could stand out. I also believe that your status as a rural New Hampshire student could work as a minor plus. </p>

<p>As far as other schools to consider:
If you like American, how about GWU? Boston University is also listed as an overlap school of American, and it would be a good match for you stats-wise.
If you like Bates and Bowdoin, what about Colby...right in the same level of selectivity (a high match for you).
Connecticut College seems like a good safe match/safety for you, and Trinity and Skidmore are listed as overlaps. Both of these schools would be safe matches/safeties for you.</p>

4

<p>dont u b talkin bout my mom</p>

5

<p>Match -Conn and American
Bates - high match -low reach
Vassar - low reach -being male should help
Others on your list are all reaches</p>

<p>Low match to safety
Wheaton in Norton, Ma --match/safety, chance for merit might give money
St. Michael's College Colchester, Vermont ( near Burlington) liberal with merit
Pa schools - Dickinson, Franklin and Marshall, Gettysburg</p>

6

<p>I think that you should definitely apply to the University of Chicago EA. You sound really enthusiastic about that school, and you have nothing to lose!</p>

7

<p>thanks alot. my 28 was with no studying at all so i can probably raise to about a 30-31, maybe higher. i knew UPenn was a big reach, but i forgot to mention an interesting EC i have.
This past year i worked with my school, particularly my Theory of Knowledge class to raise awareness on the issues in Darfur. i initiated this project on my own and wrote letters to my congressman. do you think this EC will help in the application process?</p>

8

<p>Chicago does tend towards leniency in SAT/ACT scores... if you check out "results" threads you'll see what I mean.</p>

<p>If you want to check out class profiles from UChicago accepted students...</p>

<p><a href="http://collegeadmissions.uchicago.edu/level3.asp?id=377%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://collegeadmissions.uchicago.edu/level3.asp?id=377&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>And I'd like to point out that 26% of students who submitted ACT scores got between a 26 and a 29, so your scores will put you in the range of consideration no matter what. Higher scores are certainly better than lower scores, but I don't know of ANYBODY ever getting into a highly competitive school based on test scores alone (they really come in handy when it comes to getting into low matches/safeties and occasionally garnering small scholarships at those schools).</p>

<p>If you want to know more about Chicago, PM me. I'm a huge fan :-)</p>

9

<p>Sure, that's a nice ec to brag about :). Will it be a big factor? I doubt it, but it never hurts to throw that kind of interesting tidbit in.</p>

10

<p>bring that ACT up and you'll be ok. Take it until you get a 30, though higher is always better.</p>

11

<p>Do you do anything that is unique to rural New Hampshire and only could come from there? For example, if you like science or geology, do you know things about the geology of your region? Do you hike the White Mountains not as a one-time tourist but OFTEN, really knowing the places and having feelings for certain parts of it?</p>

<p>How about your connection to your town. Small towns and their governments often mean that kids know and are known better within their communities than the suburban kids, and that brings confidence. You probably know some important people in your town and understand the characters that run the place. Most h.s. kids can't get their heads around that in a larger place, but I bet you know the selectmen, sheriff, or town leaders as people, so you might have some thoughts or insights about how small communities are run. That's interestng and actually quite relevant to living on a college campus, if you think about it.</p>

<p>Do you like politics or government? Since New Hampshire is the FIRST state for the presidential primaries, you have better access to hearing more about the candidates than anyone else. They'll be coming to your state and paying all kinds of attention to it. If you go out and hear some of them speak, you don't hve to agree with them but it's interesting and shows some curiosity about the country as a whole. (My family lives in Henniker and they really get spoiled with all the attention from the candidates). </p>

<p>I know from my relatives that NH state politics has changed quite a bit, becoming more progressive (your new governor and congressman). Has that changed your town at all? I'm not saying to be partisan-political in an essay, but it's perhaps an interesting topic if you've noticed how a traditional town responds to change. If that means something to you (since you'd mentioned Darfur, I thought you might have some interest in government or current affairs, just fishing around here...)</p>

<p>Do you have skills that are from the region, or knowledge about forestry,
the maple sugar industry, anything uniquely regional? </p>

<p>These are just point-of-view kinds of things, to mention in essays or whatever. Most kids come from suburbs or cities, so try to reflect on what you offer from a rural setting. It's unusual and good to be from NH.</p>

<p>If you apply to anywhere northern and snowy, it's wise to mention your being very accustomed to rough, snowy winters. Some kids are kind of unhappy with snow, but you'll be used to it.</p>

12

<p>I think you also need to add some safety schools. UVermont, UNH, Boston U,
Tufts, Brandeis, or some from lower ranges all come to mind. It's no insult, it's just strategy -- everybody needs safety schools!</p>

<p>And actually, Tufts and Brandeis aren't safeties, more like match/reaches unless you improve a lot on your scores.</p>

<p>But the rural residence can sometimes be a real advantage. I think it helped my two older kids very much because when they applied we lived up in the Catskill Mountains and nobody came from there. You still need all the other attributes, the grades and activities, but sometimes AdComs are curious about a kid from a small town. Do reflect on what the small town upbringing means to you and make it your strength. It's great that you worked for Darfur but that's going on all over the country. You might have things to mention that only someone from a small, accountable, aware-of-each-other town can offer. The LAC's on your list are all communities, too, and you'd have a lot to offer because you know how to get along with everybody, probably, and can't hide. Some of the most tolerant folks come from small towns, where everybody knows everybody else. So, think about it....</p>

13

<p>I'd say you've gotten a good chance at Vassar at least.... your class rank, GPA, and gender BY FAR outweigh your not-as-high ACT score (25%-75% for Vassar is 29-31). If you're really concerned about your ACT because it's too low for UChicago, UPenn, and Georgetown, you could always retake or try the SATs too. But I'd say, for Vassar at least, that's probably unnecessary.</p>

14

<p>Tufts is certainly not a match. In fact, it's just as high a reach as UChicago.</p>

15

<p>being a male and a legacy will get you into conn.
you'll definitely get into american, most likely bates. vassar is also quite possible (again, being a male is very helpful at small LACs)</p>

16

<p>thank you for all of the help. i will write about my small town experiences in my college essay and mention in my interview, seeing as how it has shaped who i am today. all of the responses were very helpful!</p>

17

<p>i just thought of this, neither of my parents graduated from college, does this help me in the admission process?</p>

18

<p>Yes, that would be a push factor for you as well.</p>

19

<p>Your St. Paul's program is also a big plus!</p>

20

<p>how are you a legacy if your parents didnt graduate?</p>