A Dose of Realism, Please?

Applying to College
21

I do not agree that Duke is a low reach. The acceptance rate is 9%. Anyway, this person needs safety schools.

OP, your high school is large and full of people who have no choice in where they attend school. College is different, in that most people decide they want to be there. This is especially true of smaller colleges. Think about the kind of experience you want, and not just the name. What is important to you? Do you care about greek life, or lack of? Big sports? Intimate atmosphere? Personalized interaction with profs? Opportunities to do research as an undergrad? Urban, suburban or rural? Easy access to the outdoors? There are a lot of colleges out there that can give you a fantastic education and the kind of experience you desire, and they aren’t all called Yale.

As an aside, in Princeton Review’s annual list of best professors, Kenyon College, pop. 1700, has 8 of the best 300 profs in the country. James Madison U, with a 61% acceptance rate, has 9 of the best profs. Yale, pop. 12,385, and a 6% acceptance rate, has 2. Something to think about.

22

You could look at Carnegie Mellon. Their Institute for Strategy and Policy is up and coming, and includes a semester in Washington DC. In addition, you could double major in big data, a very strong area for CMU.

23

@ucbalumnus Thank you! It’s quite fascinating to see how popular CS is, but those class sizes (at those schools especially) … wow.

@GT1998Dad Thank you for the suggestion!

@Lindagaf The reason why Yale, Stanford, and U of C are (as of right now, anyhow) my top three universities certainly isn’t the name. I’ve done research into each school, and they seem like they epitomize the university ideal for someone like me. I love how Yale and U of C have strong residential systems, and I appreciate how close Stanford is to home. In all three cases, the campuses aren’t in the middle of a small town, distant from a major metropolis. I’m certainly not a party-goer, I don’t plan to participate in Greek life, and I’d rather not attend an LAC due to the size.

With Yale, going beyond the residential college system which seems particularly conducive to meeting like-minded peers, I love how the institution seems to focus on the humanities. I recognize that the school is of great prestige, but for me, the prestige in and of itself is not a draw. On the contrary, the school is filled with top-notch professors and experts in their respective fields, with alumni in high places, and this would give me opportunities that another school perhaps might not. The school is obviously near-impossible to get into, which of course translates into a student body that is already tremendously accomplished. That is the kind of environment I want to be in; one where I always need to push myself and have the means to do so.

With regards to the University of Chicago, I’ve read that it’s not quite the school for the party crowd (which I am most definitely not a member of). Everything I’ve seen points to the school’s strong emphasis on academia, and I think I would feel quite at home amongst other intellectually-minded students.

Stanford, like the other two, is an excellent educational institution. It’s in California, so I would be within driving distance of home, and it’s also not too far from San Francisco. While I don’t know if weather is going to be a consideration (I have yet to experience a Northeastern/Midwestern winter), if it is, than it doesn’t get much better.

Prestige really isn’t a factor for me. The quality of education, the academic culture of the institution, and the opportunities I will be afforded when there certainly are.

With all that being said, would the University of Oregon, the University of Wisconsin - Madison, or the University of Washington be considered safeties? Practically everyone at my school that has applied has been accepted, according to Naviance.

Thank you so much for the guidance — it means a lot!

24

@psycholing Thanks! I’ve heard that CMU leans heavily towards engineering/CS. Is that the case? I’ll look into the ISP further, but so far, it seems amazing!

25

CMU’s two highest prestige areas are CS and acting, but some of their other majors are extremely well respected in the field. I am (per my user name) a psycholinguist, and so was aware of their groundbreaking work in this area, as well as in cognitive science more generally. My son is majoring in ISP + plus their new program in behavioral economics — he has so far been very impressed with his professors in these areas. He is already doing (paid) research with one prof, and will start a second research project in the spring with another one. He says all the students are very focussed and passionate about their topic(s) of interest – CMU is for people who basically know what they want to do – not for those who are exploring or who are likely to change majors several times (like I did in UG – haha).

I mentioned CMU to you because they appear to prefer poly sci types who also have talent in math. My son was offered a nice merit scholarship – I suspect he was considered desirable because he had the combination of quantitative skills, + poly sci experience + languages.

26

btw: I went to Mich. That IS a good place to find yourself/change majors several times, etc.

27

@psycholing Thank you! Yeah, I had more-or-less discounted CMU due to its reputation for CS and the STEM-dominated culture that appeared to result from it. It seems like this program would be a very good fit for me. I think I’ve more or less found myself, it’s just I’m interested in almost everything (albeit to varying degrees) so I have no idea as to whether or not things will change. I don’t think they will, but of course, I’m 17.

28

Well you can change majors within Dietrich (the liberal arts school of CMU). In fact you don’t have to select a major until 2nd semester Sophomore year. What would be more difficult at CMU is changing schools – like going from a liberal arts major to a science or engineering major. Also if you want to do 2 majors (like math or big data and ISP) it requires careful planning from the beginning.

29

Can your parents afford the out-of-state publics without financial aid?

Note that math is a competitive admission major at Washington (possibly due to spillover from those rejected from computer science): http://www.washington.edu/uaa/advising/academic-planning/majors-and-minors/list-of-undergraduate-majors/

30

You don’t need to justify your choices to me, but you do need better reasons than proximity and weather in order to get into Stanford. All of those qualities you have mentioned can be found at many other schools. None are specific to Yale, U Chicago, or wherever. James Madison U is clearly also full of top notch professors, at least 7 more than Yale. A close friend went to a SUNY and joined a ton of clubs, got internships, found great opportunities, etc… He went to grad school and lives in a mansion. No one needs to go to a tippy top school to be successful and find opportunities. Do you see what I am getting at? You need to get below the surface of what appeals to you about those schools if you really want a shot at getting in.

U Washington is highly regarded and you are OOS. It has a 45% acceptance rate, so you would probably get in if your school’s naviance shows that others have been accepted. I am sure you would get into UO and UW. If you are just looking for safeties at this point, maybe you should consider some privates where your stats would get you attractive merit offers. Look for acceptance rates at privates that are 35% and above, ideally, and show interest. Again, U Rochester and CWRU would probably be really good options given your areas of interest.

31

OP, I applaud your courage to ask for a “dose of realism,” as I presume you are not seeking affirmation of your superior academic record. If you want a reality check, read the post at the following link, http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-admissions/1876770-what-did-i-do-wrong.html

My advice: Be humble with your definition of “match,” and “safety.” Where you and your high school peers apply/get accepted does not reflect your high school standing. Expect the process to be “unfair.” Resist the temptation to fantasize a future at a dream school that rewards your relative success as compared to your friends, siblings or whoever you compare yourself to. Additionally, and most important, find a safety school that you love as much as Stanford, UChicago or Yale.

32

It depends on what you want to study and how it’s being paid for. If it’s coming out of your pocket, the elite private schools will drown you in student loan debt, which will more than nullify any potential salary gains. I would try going for a scholarship.