Creating College List for Aspiring Psychology Major

College Search & Lists
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I’m hoping for some advice on expanding my S27’s college list. My older son (S24) had a very specific major in mind and that helped narrow his list but our S27 is interested in Psychology and Environmental Studies which are popular majors at many schools. He has over a 4.0 UW GPA and 4.4 W GPA, 1530 SAT, many state and national awards in science and writing, excellent longstanding ECs and community service (particularly in environmental and fresh water science). Highest rigor coursework at a highly regarded private school in a Midwest city.

He’s most excited by schools in or near a city where students actually explore and engage with what the city has to offer (not a “bubble” campus). He also wants access to water, parks and nature. He likes campuses with a culture of civil discourse and that encourage many viewpoints. His sibling is at UChicago, and he’s met many current UC students through his brother and admires how open minded the UC students are.

His list so far includes:

University of WI (likely guaranteed admission under state program), UChicago, Northwestern, Boston College (his school places many students at BC each year), Claremont McKenna, UPenn, Swarthmore, Rice, UCLA. (He’s visited all of these and liked them)

What other schools could he add? Especially schools that could be considered target or high target schools.

Thanks

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It would still classify as a reach school, but WashU could be good to look into. A lot of their framing is in the “in St. Louis; for St. Louis” vein, which tracks with what your son sounds like he wants, in terms of town/gown crossover.

Fordham could be a good “engaged, urban” likely for him to think about. (Not as much access to nature, obviously.) Pitt is a fan favorite on the boards here, and it could be another urban-but-with-nature-nearby likely option. As a bonus: rolling admissions means he’d hear back from them pretty quickly.

For targets … it’s not in an urban environment, but I’m a big fan of William & Mary, and they’ve recently been investing heavily in a new marine science school (in case your son wants to pick up a minor, or switch out of psych). Apart from the urban thing (which I get), I think it could be a really great target to think about based on the other criteria you’ve laid out. Also, perhaps, the University of Rochester as a target, though I will have to defer to others with more experience with it for specifics.

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Thank you for those insights. I’ve been very curious about schools in Pittsburgh, we’ll add Pitt to the list for sure. William and Mary’s school of marine science sounds intriguing but is William and Mary heavily Greek? Our son isn’t really particularly interested in schools that depend heavily on Greek life for socializing.

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Good question. William & Mary is not heavily Greek. It does have fraternities and sororities, but the school works hard to make sure that there are a lot of non-frat options for socializing. Lots of clubs (I think over 400?), on-campus concerts and events, a cappella groups, service projects, etc.

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You didn’t mention the financial end of things. It seems like he is quite qualified for some reach schools and he has a safety. Curious why Swarthmore when he doesn’t want a “bubble” school. I think suggestions may depend on finances (some Ivies and “little Ivies” for instance have great aid). I also like the Colleges that Change Lives schools ctcl.org. Is he applying early anywhere?

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Fortunately, there are no financial constraints. As for Swarthmore, he liked it because the train station to Philly is right near campus. He likes that Swarthmore is part of a consortium with schools in Philly. He also loves the nature around Swarthmore and considered it the best of both worlds (access to nature and a city). The Swarthmore science building appealed to him as well. He likes small liberal arts schools if they’re near cities and have strong science resources. (Like CMC and Swarthmore). He’s a humanities and a STEM person.

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A target if he demonstrates a lot of interest is American University. A 20mn metro ride and he’s in DC, with a full day in the schedule dedicated to externships/internships/experiential learning.

Wondering if Macalester (in one of the best city neighborhoods!) or Case Western (same idea) might be of interest?

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I suggest Wesleyan University (3000+ enrollment) in Middletown, CT, a small city of 50,000 population, only 20 miles from state capital, Hartford. The Wesleyan campus sits right in the middle of the city. The campus book store, for example, is on Main Street, a short walk from campus. Middletown sits on the Connecticut River, which provides opportunities for canoeing and kayaking on a protected stretch of the river which has been designated as one of “the last great places” by the Nature Conservancy for its relatively intact fragile ecosystem and the relatively undeveloped nature of the river estuary for its 26 mile run from Middletown to Long Island Sound, free from urban development. Across the river in the town of Portland is the beginning of the Air Line Trail, a 70 mile rail trail, which runs through a variety of landscapes, including woodlands, state forests, and small towns & villages all the way to the Rhode Island border. Great for biking, hiking, running, jogging, and long walks.

Wesleyan’s College of the Environment offers a secondary linked major or minor in Environmental Studies which can be combined with any other major for a double major or major + minor. It is Wesleyan’s open curriculum - albeit with student selected distribution requirements - which provides the flexibility to accomplish this.

Wesleyan doesn’t just talk the talk but in its long history has developed a close working relationship with the city, including the green roofs project. A recent Wesleyan graduate was the Mayor of Middletown during the pandemic, the youngest mayor in the state. Wesleyan’s 300 acre campus includes a small student run farm, growing food which is distributed in the city. Wesleyan has initiated a variety of projects in Middletown, including a community health center downtown, with a building that is an exemplar of green roofs.

The Psychology Dept is excellent and long-standing. In addition to the traditional Psych major, they offer a major in Neuroscience & Behavior. As is the case with most long established colleges, Wesleyan once had a robust Greek presence, the remnants of which are still visible in the old frat houses, some of which have been repurposed. But as it approaches the 200th anniversary of its founding, participation in Greek life is now fewer than 10% of the students. On the other hand, what remains alive & fresh is the long tradition of the free exchange of ideas on campus. Who better to oversee and maintain such traditions than Wesleyan alum ‘78 and University President, Michael Roth?

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I think Dickinson and Whitman would be good target / safeties but Hendrix underrated but not in city. Whitman and Hendrix are top feeders in psych PhDs that aren’t reaches. Occidental may be another. Since he likes the Midwest, how about Macalester? Back to the east - F&M and Lafayette might work as targets/likelies. Would the single class at a time interest him ? Colorado College

You can also look at programs within a school. For example, College of Charleston is levels below your son. At the same time, the Charleston Fellows program (interview only) attracts top students. My daughter isn’t your son - she turned down W&L, UF, UGA and U of SC Honors - so she’s legit, just not your son legit. Her bff in the program turned down Rice, Vandy and Penn. But since you’re looking for targets. The school is safe - the Fellows isn’t. You’re in the city and lots of nature is nearby. You have to apply to Honors for consideration. They also have the Ketner Scholars for kids into community service.

Rochester is a target and Brandeis a target / likely may be a few more.

You know - Pitt is in a great area. It’s strong in most everything. Too big but Chicago is big too. Nature not that far away. It’s a safety of course but reputed.

Just some thoughts.

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Wow. Thank you so much for your response. Wesleyan sounds like a great fit for our son.

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Just thinking as I was in Montreal at Parc Nacional Mt St Bruno yesterday and Oka is on the other side of the city - there is nature EVERYWHERE.

Maybe too big but McGill I’m assuming is safe statistically.

Btw - on my last post, I picked them all but Hendrix as city /things to do - like F&M is in Lancaster but nature nearby.

And I purposely picked only targets or safeties/no reaches. One could argue a school like Colorado College is a reach but as full pay, out of state, I like your odds.

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Yes, when you said that you were looking to add target schools to your list, given his interests, Wesleyan seemed like a really good fit. It is highly selective (16% acceptance rate) but his SAT score is around their 75th %ile, so his probability for acceptance is highly likely. As one of the “Little Ivies”, it offers great faculty and attracts highly capable and motivated students from all over the country. One of the things that I particularly like about Wesleyan is that at 3000 full time undergrads, it’s a little bigger than the typical small, liberal arts colleges, which tend to average around 2000+/- students. The extra size gives Wes a little more vibrancy and a little more diversity just because the raw numbers are a little bigger with an incoming freshman class at around 750 rather than 500. But it’s not sacrificing the small class sizes and access to professors that we expect at a small LAC. One of the bonuses that you get at Wesleyan is access to a couple of dozen restaurants on Main Street with great food from all over the world.

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Given your OP and other suggestions, maybe also look at Connecticut College, Trinity College (CT), Providence College, Tufts?

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