College Application: Which to apply early to?

College Search & Lists
1

Hi, I’m a prospective junior going to a small (250 students in class) and academically slightly above-average school in Massachusetts. My passion lies in the automotive and aerospace industries. Therefore, I want to study mechanical engineering as an undergraduate and I’ve been looking a numerous schools lately.

Before I go into any further, here are some stats to understand me as a student better:

UW GPA: 3.9-3.95
SAT: 2230 (780-M, 750-CR, 700-W)
SATII: (Taking in June) Math 2, History, and Chem
Rank: 3rd (not going to change in senior year, the lead the top 3 have is too large)

APs: Chem (5 expected), History (3/4 expected), Language (4 expected) Senior Year APs: Physics, BC Calc, Comp Sci

ECs: Math Team, Science Olympiad, Student Council (Webmaster as Sophomore), NHS, XC (captain Senior year), Spring/winter track), Tutor, National Latin exam freshman and sophomore year (Maxime and summa cum laude awards respectively+ could’nt take junior year due to MASC leadership summit)

In terms of schools, here’s my list so far:

UMich, Cornell, Northwestern, Princeton, Columbia, Northeastern, Stanford, Georgetown (3+2 engr), and UMass A(safety)

My question is whether I would have a chance at most of these schools. My school rarely sends anybody to an Ivy, and is generally not well known. I’m thinking about applying to Princeton early action, but I don’t know if that would increase my chances. Therefore, I’m leaning towards applying early decision towards Northwestern. I have seen most of the schools already and I’m just wondering about my chances.

2

Your stats are great. One thing I’ve learned on here is to not apply Early Decision to any school you can’t pay cash for. An ED acceptance means you must withdraw your applications at all other schools; you sign a promise to do this on the ED application. So apply to Early Action schools if you feel they give you a bump in admission. Some schools my son is looking at only consider you for Honors or merit aid if you apply Early Action. The frustrating thing is that if you apply for financial aid it will probably be early April 2016 before you find out which school you can afford to attend. BTW you need a couple more safeties. People with 2400 and 4.0’s UW get rejected from top schools all the time. A safety is also a school you can afford to pay for with minimal loans. Good luck.