From these Schools, which one or two should I add?

[hyakku]

Alright, after the amazing positive response my mom got from the PF, I definitely feel that I would get a far more in depth and supportive response here then in C SS. Anyway here's the list, ill explain a little after I'm done:

Indiana University
UW - Madison
Vanderbilt
UNC CH
FSU
UF
U Mich Ann Arbor.

My current list is as follows:
U Miami
USC
Penn State

Those are the three I am DEFINITELY applying to. Now I'm looking (as I'm sure my mom told you) for a good balance of academics and social life, and while these three schools have it, for whatever I Reason I wanna have more options in case when I visit (If I can), I don't like them (I don't expect this to happen as all three have been carefully selected in accordance with many of my preferences).

What I'm looking for:

Diversity (+1 Miami +1 USC)
Mid - Large size (+1 for them all)
Good, solid academics. Top or at least ranked programs in various subjects (+1 for all three once again).
Seem to be on the rise (Again, all three schools have been battling their way higher and higher)
Social Scene (Not everything has to be clubbing off campus and not everything has to be about frats. Sometimes just chillin with a few guys and girls playing games and relaxing. That's the type of atmosphere I want, the party hard, but also being able to just chill on campus).
Weather matters alot less than it did to me a year ago. In fact with this 90 degree october weather I'm beginning to reconsider just looking at warm areas, hence the updated list.

Anyone can gimme any advice? I'm a black male from new jersey with a 3.9 (rising), and a 1370, though I'm fairly certain I broke 1400 saturday. Also, what places do you think I have a good shot at FA at? I know Miami and USC are pretty decent with it.

[NewHope33]

Well, my "two cents" would be UFlorida and UMichigan. But in all honesty it's difficult to make a recommendation based on the general criteria provided. I think most CollegeConfidential parents would say that their kids attend schools with good academics and good social scene. If I may ask, what one specific characteristic (aside from instate location of course) would make you say "No" to a university? [For example, "not near a major airport" was a disqualifier in my daughter's case.]

[hyakku]

Thats a good way to look at it newhope. Well my list of nos were:

No all male schools.
No schools with religious affiliation.
No school where there are very few minorities (not just blacks, I mean hispanics asians, gays, lesbians,etc. I'm from NYC/NJ, so that means you can have twelve feet and as long as you dont step on us with one of them, we honestly could care less) or minorities are treated like well...minorities lol.
No instate schools.

I was heavily leaning towards U mich already, so I'm glad you said that, the other two I was looking at was UNC and UF, but UNC is close to my family in virginia and I don't really know if I want that.

[Marian]

Is the SAT score you listed for critical reading/math only or for the total of critical reading/math/writing?

[midmo]

Is the first list the schools you are also thinking about? If so, I think Vanderbilt has many of the features you are looking for, and your SAT looks in range. It is rather well known for having a good mix of strong academics and good social scene. It is located a mile and a half from downtown Nashville, although much (most) of the social life seems to be occurring on the campus, especially for freshmen. There are fraternities, and they throw a lot of parties, but less than a third of the men actually belong to them, and no more than a handful (officers only) live in the houses; everyone else lives on campus. Next year a new freshman living/recreation complex opens, known as The Commons; Vanderbilt has sunk a lot of money into the project and they are excited about it.

The weather has been very warm this fall, but all of the lower midwest and upper south has been the same way. In general, it is a little more moderate, I'm told. The campus is very leafy and seems cooler than the surrounding town. I'm mentioning this because my son is a student there, and he actually hates hot weather, but he hasn't been grumbling too much.

Vanderbilt has a pretty good financial aid record. There are a lot of merit scholarships, although your test scores may not put you in range of a lot of them. They are, however, a "need blind" school and are on record as "meeting 100% of (determined) need".

I wouldn't be surprised if being a black male is a good selling point. Their enrollment figures for black students are not too bad compared to peer schools, but they are interested in improving the overall diversity reputation of the campus.

BTW, both my husband and I attended UW-Madison, and while it is a very good university with an active social life on campus and in the town, it is very different than a place like Vanderbilt. You will find a lot more individual attention at Vanderbilt, probably better and more personal advising, and you will definitely get to know your professors better. Classes will be smaller at every stage. If you can manage a visit to Vanderbilt or another mid-size campus with a lot of emphasis on undergraduate education, it would be good way to compare the different approaches.

[hyakku]

I really appreciate that feedback mid, vandy was the third school I was considering adding. So far I was thinking in this order:

1. U Mich
2. UNC/Vandy
3. Vandy / UNC (Obviously whichever one doesnt go second gets third)
4. Florida (I realize I said that before it was up there, but I forgot about Vandy)
5.FSU
6. UW
7. IU

Of those I think I have a decent shot at Vandy, plus they have the best academics on my list combined with social life, gonna research their diversity etc. I know that social life is good and all already.

Hows winter there, any chance of snow? AS much as I hate cold I know I'm going to kind of miss the snow.

[midmo]

I don't think Nashville gets much snow. That was a problem for my son as well; he loves snow and winter weather. I guess other things outweighed the climate, in the end.

Most students I have seen commenting on the climate (weather) at Vanderbilt think it is great. It is conducive to a lot of outdoor activities, including outdoor concerts and games. And I guess it is not a bad thing to be able to get to class without dragging along a lot of extra heavy clothing and boots. Having gone to college in Wisconsin and New England, I can see the benefit of that, even though I am a big fan of real winters, myself.

[thumper1]

Well...there's not a lot of snow in the bay are of CA or in Miami either. It sounds like you are looking for financial aid as well. How much??? If it's a lot, the out of state publics on your list might not be a good choice. Most of them reserve merit aid for students from their states but they do have some scholarships for OOS students. Why are you not considering at least one public university within your state? There might be a good reason, I'm just curious as to what it is...especially if finances are a consideration. I guess I wonder why Rutgers isn't on your list?

[hyakku]

I know it seems like I should consider rutgers, but new jersey is a black hole. I know generations of families who have been here literally since before the great depression, and this isn't like one or two, I can honestly say probably over 50% of the people I know have had their family in jersey for 60+ years. It's too mundane, same old thing, and theres never anything spectacular occurring in jersey. To me the state is a dull industrious wasteland (unless you go to central or moreover south jersey, then you just get the hicks and dullness without the industry), that keeps people here for decades. AS good as being settled and stable is for some people, I need adventure and action in my life, otherwise I feel like I'm stagnating, which is something I hate.

BTW, the SAT was out of 1600 lol, and yes FA is being considered but I feel that we could handle paying (I've been working for quite some time, and my mom is experienced with loans and grants so although a school with good FA is of course going to be considered over others, my mom has stressed to me not to worry about costs until acceptances are coming and just apply where I'm interested).

I also kind of remember why I was wary about Vanderbilt, it seems to be like 70:30 split on sites like ************** and even up here where people feel that the rich kid stereotype is still prevalent to people who actually ATTEND the school. Again though, I think I will have to actually go and SEE how diversity and socioeconomic status is factored in there.

[boysx3]

Indiana would give you mucho merit money based upon your grades and scores alone, not to mention your urm status. We know a lot of kids there, and everyone loves it both for the academics and the social life. I'm not sure how it ranks on the diversity scale, but a school of its size should have a critical mass of every kind of student.

[midmo]

re post #9, last paragraph: Yes, there is money at Vanderbilt. I attended a football game on parents' weekend, and I was astounded at the jewelry being worn by some of the parents. I don't see any ostentatious displays among the student body, though. I've visited the campus quite a few times over the past year, and the student body looks pretty normal to me, on a day to day basis.

Private schools do have a larger number of affluent students than public schools that are supported by taxpayers. That isn't too surprising. I think the stereotype is overblown at this time, though. I think it was a lot truer a generation ago.

I think you would do yourself a disservice if you decided not to visit because of a general feeling unsupported by your own experience. If it is an incurable turn-off that some of the students will be taking pricey trips over breaks while you (and my son) are investigating the price of Greyhound tix home, well, that is another story, because I assure you that some students will have nice stuff and go nice places.

Of course, if you find the student body pretentious, shallow, snobby and unfriendly, well, nobody wants to go a school where he is isolated like that, and that is a good reason to go somewhere else. But you really don't know that until you make a visit. I suggest you arrange to sit in on classes, spend some time with current students, preferably some majoring in your general areas of interest. And just sit around the public spaces and observe the students.

[thumper1]

I think you should visit Indiana before you make any decisions. Your comments about NJ could also apply to Indiana. Not meaning to diss Indiana as a state, but it has no more or less to offer than NJ does. IU is a great school and so is Rutgers. I would put them on par with each other to be honest.

[cangel]

UF, FSU - It is getting harder and harder I know, to get in to the Fla schools as an OOS. Will be a URM help with this? With the Bright Futures,is there any OOS FA??

Chapel Hill is a great school with a 4 season climate. It is hot in Florida for probably half of the school year - the first 2 months and the last 2 months, but you can go to the beach!

[tsdad]

You can go to the beach in NC too Cangel plus you can go to the mountains. Great mountains (east coast variety which means some spectacular fall colors) , great beaches, and UNC is a great school.

I also put a plug in for Rutgers. I went from RU to UNC and came back to NJ for two years and then spent over 30 years in metro DC. I'm now in Wisconsin. Point being hakkyu you don't have to stay in NJ if you go to Rutgers.

And btw, USC (if you're talking about the University of Southern California), great choice.

[cheers]

Kid...I think mini and JHS told your mom that your stats put you among the top 100 black male seniors in the USA. Hopefully they will weigh in (Congrats on possibly cracking 1400) .

If that's true, I'd say your list could use a few reaches. More on that in a minute.

Diversity.

Keep in mind that the surrounding city provides the biggest diversity boost. Miami is a great choice, as is LA. Those are great cities for 18 to 22 year olds--although you might need a car in both to really enjoy them as a junior and senior.

What other cities are amazing? You've done New York. Skip it. I'd have you look at Boston. Washington DC. San Francisco. Chicago. Those are the happening American cities for young people.

Nashville, St Louis, Ann Arbor, Chapel Hill...those are great campuses in sedate, suburban oriented cities. Those are great cities to raise your children in. The music/dance club scene cannot compare. The diversity cannot compare. The ratio of old to young cannot compare.

That's my 'diversity' pitch. Don't count on the university population to provide that diverse feeling from a stat of 8% AfAm. Think about planting yourself in a diverse city so that when you are a junior and senior, you don't feel hemmed in by whatever in happening on campus.

Reaches

Now for my reach pitch. Please, please please add some reaches. You only need one absolute safety and I think you have it in Penn State.

Add a super reach or two.

What about Harvard? Georgetown? (the Jebbies aren't going to tie you to a cross) Stanford? (semi sleepy town but close enough to SF) U Chicago? Northwestern? Brown? (semi-sleepy town but close enough to Boston)

Dream big kid. You have given yourself the opportunity to dream big. Well done to you. You should have a wonderful four years of college.