Chance me ED 2 Boston College, US[+Canada] citizen from small Canadian town weak ECs[4.0 UW, Test optional]

Chance Me / Match Me
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My response was based on the just closed chain which asked out ChemE and finance.

Don’t know about Davis being safe.

Your ethnicity can help but you need for it to come out in essays or ECs. It can’t be used from just stating it.

That said - your targets - is UW Wisconsin (reach without test) or Washington (also a reach, in most cases won’t look at a test). Miami maybe a high match and Maryland a low reach. Or I might be too nice and they may be a notch higher. Illinois is a reach and I can’t tell on the UCs. Michigan is a high reach.

Let’s look at the two I didn’t cover. UNC is not right for your list. NC State would be. Why ? UNC does not have Chem E and the B school is not direct admit. NC State is very solid in both as would be other schools too.

Holy Cross has a bus major and certificate in finance and banking but doesn’t appear to have a finance major. And they don’t have engineering (just a 5 year, two college program).

Reaches - yea are reaches. Amherst has no engineering or finance. Now if you are looking for IB it works but not your majors. BC does not have CHEMe or accredited engineering. Tufts doesn’t have a finance major but does a minor.

So I would pursue Chem E over chemistry because it’s employable at a high wage whereas Chemistry would be much harder. It doesn’t have great outcomes.

Finance - what’s the end goal ? Wall Street ? Regular business finance ?

So you can prune your list or sub some schools for yours that don’t work.

And while you have relatives to help pay, with a 4. and you’ll see your test, you’ll have tons of merit possibilities and the choice to spend $30k up to $90k. For ChemE it likely doesn’t matter.

Two others good in all fields you mentioned (unless IB a possible main goal) Minnesota and Delaware. And both come with merit - they’re leaders in ChemE, easier to get into and more connected than most of your list.

Best of luck.

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???Our daughter felt very safe at Davis. It is a very collaborative environment.

? As a safety, it will be expensive as an OOS student, so if it’s not affordable, I wouldn’t necessarily call it a safety.

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What is your status in Canada? Do you have dual citizenship? Alternately, do you have permanent resident status in Canada?

Also, have you run the NPCs on all of the US schools that you are applying to, and particularly for Boston College?

I think that your chances for admission to BC are pretty good. However, I would not call it a “safety” either in terms of being admitted or in terms of being able to afford to attend.

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Sorry- OP wrote (on the other thread now closed) - he had Davis under safety.

I meant admission wise.

This was the list and his list was related to ChemE or Chem or Finance - so I noted that UNC, Holy Cross, Amherst, BC and maybe Tufts don’t belong - so don’t understand the ED2 to BC at all.

Here’s the list from the other thread. I missed he had UMN on it - great choice - and UDel would be another to consider.

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BC makes zero sense - at least from the other thread - because the student wants to do Chem E (and they don’t have Chem E nor an accredited engineering).

On this thread he just says Chemistry.

The other thread he said - Chemical engineering/Chemistry or Finance

So maybe OP should clarify.

Two threads similar but one closed by the moderators.

But there are differences - such as major.

It’d help to have one thread that’s official.

Chem E would be a much better major outcome wise then Chem…IMHO.

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I am a Canadian citizen, so I am a dual citizen. I haven’t run the NPCs yet, but I will soon. I was referring to UC Davis as a likely school, not BC. Sorry for the confusion.

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Sorry for the confusion. I am open to multiple majors. I am applying to different majors at various schools. BC stands out since it is a liberal arts school and ranks very high in undergraduate teaching, which is very important to me. It also is not too small and in the middle of nowhere like some other liberal arts schools (yes, I know Amherst). I don’t mind whether the degree is in chemistry or chemical engineering. I know that Chem eng may yield better job opportunities. I was considering Udel, but I don’t know much about it; I know it’s tough. I was interested in the holy cross because of their 3-2 program with Columbia; my grandparents both went to Columbia, and much of my family is from and still lives in New York, so that was my reasoning. I also have interviewed with Holy Cross. Overall, for me, there is more to my decisions than just academic rankings as I am sure BC chemistry is not “bad,” and they fit my idea of what I would want in a University. I also forgot to add I applied to UC Riverside (Safety), UC Irvine (Target), and UC Berkeley (REACH). I guess then other than BC, which school would ED ll make sense to you for me? I really appreciate your feedback as I am still learning things about US schools since they’re never talked about here.

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I would focus less on rank, specific names, and more on what you want to do.

If you want to do Chemistry, it’s great.

But if you are concerned with outcomes and you are strong at math and physics, you might want to do chemical engineering.

You also need a budget - and then to know, if you could go for $20K or $40K, would you rather than a BC if you will.

There are many many many schools - and they can fit your need.

But please focus on what you want to do - it’s far far far more important than the name.

If you don’t know what you want to do, that’s ok too - but to apply to one school in Hotel and another in Chemistry and another in business is odd.

Being all over the place doesn’t bode well.

So you need focus…

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If you’re undecided for your major, it’s fine. You’re 17. That, to me, means you need to explore options. Choose a college where you can.
Chemistry is a solid major and if you want liberal arts (and you’re clearly interested in a Jesuit education) then ChemE isn’t what you want but BC and Holy Cross both are. And if you find out you don’t like that major you can switch - BC offers a lot of possibilities if it’s the right environnement for you. If you don’t want a jesuit education (with required Humanities/ethics/philosophy/religion classes) then you can ED elsewhere.

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The University of Delaware is a great choice for chemistry. Nice location, and they’re generous with merit aid.

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I’m curious how you answered the 650 word supplemental essay for Nolan? (don’t share the essay here, just looking to see how you addressed fit to the major) Here it is:

Cornell SC Johnson College of Business

What kind of a business student are you? Using your personal, academic, or volunteer/work experiences, describe the topics or issues that you care about and why they are important to you. Your response should convey how your interests align with the school to which you are applying within the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business (Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management or the Peter and Stephanie Nolan School of Hotel Administration). (650 word limit)

As others have said, if you can get a second core subject teacher LoR to replace this one, that would be better (assuming some of your schools require two core LoRs, this one won’t fulfull that requirement).

I second UDel for Chem E…one can’t do better than that school for Chem E, and it’s a great college town as well.

Lastly, I concur you should run the NPCs. Here’s Cornell’s: Net Price Calculator

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This student and their family need to discuss this. There are families who are willing to pay a larger amount for college for their kids. Of course, there are some who flatly refuse. But this is a family discussion.

This student seems confident that his family and extended family will help with college costs. I think they should make sure that is the case.

And then we can just concentrate on their chances at this nicely varied list of colleges at a variety of price points as well as selectivity. Great list!

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May not apply to OP, but for future reference to folks following along- Holy Cross has a 3+2 engineering program with Columbia U. There’s also a newly developed 4+1 accelerated Masters in Science and Masters in Engineering with WPI (Worcester Polytechnic Institute). Hardly a “just a “ opportunity to get a BS and MS from two top New England schools.

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My daughters and I are also dual citizens, although we live in the US. Both daughters applied to universities in both the US and in Canada. One attended university in Canada. One attended university in the US.

There are plenty of similarities between university in the US versus Canada. The biggest difference is the price. Our youngest was interested in small schools, and had the stats for the highly ranked Liberal Arts Colleges here in the northeast of the US. What we actually paid for a full four years at a very good small university in Canada was less than what it would have cost for one single year down here in the US. This savings has helped a lot for her sibling who is currently getting a DVM in the US. She also got a great education in Canada (and her sibling got a great education in the US).

Another difference is predictability of admissions. In the US admissions is based on many issues, and is very difficult to predict. In Canada, if you have the stats (you do), then you are pretty much in. We considered every university in Canada to be a safety for both daughters (this is not considering the French language universities since none of us speak French well enough). Also, in Canada you get to take more classes in your major and there are fewer general education requirements.

UC Davis does not have financial aid for out of state students. The same is true at the other universities of California. You will be full pay there (unless you somehow qualify for in-state pricing). You would likely be looking at spending half of your parents annual pretax income just to attend university.

I do know several people who have gotten their bachelor’s degree in Canada, and then got either their master’s degree or a PhD in the US. This includes at universities such as Princeton and Stanford (and the University of Washington). Our daughter who got her bachelor’s degree in Canada is currently applying to PhD programs in the US, so we will need to see how that goes. However, she had very good research experience (and great grades) in Canada, and fairly quickly got a good research job in the US after graduation so that experience should help her applications. A bachelor’s in Canada plus a master’s degree in the US is likely to cost less than just getting a bachelor’s degree in the US, plus you will have the master’s degree. A PhD in the US is likely to be fully funded so the price really isn’t an issue.

I think that you should get applications in at a few universities in Canada. If you want suggestions for small universities (which tend to be less well known) they let us (and particularly me) know.

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I answered the question about a negative travel experience, how I used it to start innovating different projects in my marketing/entrepreneurship class, and how it made me realize I was passionate about hospitality, etc. I also talked about my interest in the financial side of things and the program I attended. Lastly, I talked about specific programs at Nolan that would allow me to further my pursuit of the hospitality/business industry. That’s just a quick overview.

I will also get my French teacher to write my second LOR, so don’t worry.

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UC Riverside cannot be considered a safety because it is unaffordable. You’ve stated that you are mostly concerned with getting admitted to the schools and not worrying about costs now. However, if you were accepted to Riverside, how would you pay $70K+ per year?? That same issue would affect Davis, Irvine and Berkeley.

If you are not a resident of California, you cannot access California scholarships and grants that the residents can access. Your financial aid will be extremely limited by Federal loans and their grants which are considered “chump change” when trying to pay for tuition and fees at a UC.

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Thanks for your imput. I have already applied to EA at UBC, which is really the only canadian school I’d consider attending. I am still working out the financial side of things.

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The reality is that the finances come first.

It’s too late now but it should have been planned before you started applying.

So the question I asked before is - if you can go to and I’ll throw out two:

BC is $85K. With a 4.0, U of Arizona is $25K. Once you get your test, schools like Alabama and MS State might be less than $20K.

If U of Arizona is $240K over four years less than BC, would your family let you go? And it’s really more - as they lock the tuition for four years - BC doesn’t.

It sounds like - they’ll figure out how to get you to BC - but that’s not an answer.

How - loans? Who is paying them back, year after year for many years. Selling their home or retirement?

I’m not saying you can’t make it happen - but saying - we’ll figure out how to get me there is not a solution.

Now it’s too late to have the conversation but if money is an issue, there are still great schools that you can apply to and at much less cost than BC. When I see you’re going to ED to BC but with no certainty to pay, I scratch my head - a lot!!!

Great school - if you can afford it.

Hopefully you can - but it sounds like you’ve got no plan to do so - and the time to have developed that plan was before you applied, not after.

So I would not ED, I would get with my family to develop a realistic budget, and then find tune my apps (if needed) to fit the budget determined while I still have time.

Guess what - you can get a degree in chem, chemE, or finance at a ton of schools and do just as well as you can from the next career wise.

Good luck.

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Well I haven’t applied to most of the schools on my list yet. Only the UC’s, UT Austin, UMN, UW and Cornell. My parents both support me applying ED II to BC or wherever I want, and they both know the financial impact of that. I am almost certain we can find a way to pay; I have no siblings and I have no direct cousins so both sets of my grandparents have been saving for me to go to college. They all understand the cost of going to a US school; they are Stanford and Columbia alums. Tomorrow If I’m admitted to Cornell then obviously I will not be pursuing BC or anywhere else. My grandparents always told me to focus on getting into wherever I want to go and not worry about the cost, so I’ve taken that as a hint that they are willing to assist. You’re right that I need to develop a concrete plan and establish who’s going to pay for what.

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Good luck for tomorrow - let us know what happens. Fingers crossed! :crossed_fingers:

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