Last year, I desperately wanted to play college soccer and I received and accepted an offer to play at Washington and Lee University early in the fall. It came down to W&L, Wesleyan and Macalester for soccer and I selected W&L because I thought it was academically the strongest and particularly strong for my interests. However, as other students from my school started to make commitments, I started to second guess my decision and now I wonder whether or not I made the right call. I attend a fairly prestigious high school on the East Coast and kids from our school generally find themselves at great colleges. With my stats, I think I could have gotten accepted to a number of elite universities but because I ED’d to W&L I didn’t get selected for the Johnson Scholarship (I think primarily because they knew I’d be attending regardless). To give you an idea of my stats:
35 ACT
4.11 GPA
Club Soccer Captain, State Finalist, County Semifinalist, Section Champ, winner of award given to players for work ethic and sportsmanship
Intern on 2 political campaigns
Biliteracy Seal Recipient
Commended National Merit Scholar (NJ)
Tutor for multiple students in a variety of disciplines
So it’s been eating at me for a long time now: did I make a mistake? If so, what should I do? Although I know I’m making it seem like a bad situation, I know W&L’s still an excellent school and likely only half a tier to a tier below the Ivies. I do love and want to continue to play soccer, but should I make an effort to transfer to a school like Williams where I could continue to play but has more academic prestige? I plan to attend grad school and I do think W&L’s a place where I can thrive academically, but should I try to go somewhere with a better reputation?
Wash & Lee is fine academically. The issue with Washington & Lee is whether or not the school culture is a fit for you. If so, then attend & excel; if not, then take a gap year & reapply to schools which are a better fit for you.
From my perspective, Wesleyan University & Macalester College have campus cultures which are very different from that found at Wash & Lee.
P.S. Is W&L affordable ?
Why is Wash & Lee “particularly strong for [your] interests” ?
Unless you are prepared to take a last minute gap year, nothing you can do at this point but go to W&L. Transferring may or may not be an option in the future, but I don’t think it’s a good idea to head off to school as a freshman with the idea that you will be transferring. Give W&L a chance and stop second guessing yourself.
Don’t get too far ahead of yourself. First its a great school. Second without a hook many others with stats equal or better to yours don’t get into W& L or equal schools and end up going to their states flagship. They just don’t mention it very much. Be proud of the accomplishment and have a great experience. Good Luck
OP: With your stats, athletic talent & public service (tutoring), your will be admitted to many colleges & universities after a gap year.
But what, besides soccer, is important to you ? Also, most National Universities offer competitive club soccer if you feel that Division ! is above your skill level.
In short, need more information about you including desired major & any career objectives. Also, how do you feel about Greek life on campus ?
Thanks so much for the advice. I’d loved to have gotten the Johnson, but yes W&L is fairly affordable. I’m really interested in Economics and History - they’re often noted as W&L’s stronger/est majors. There’s also the Mock Convention, a tradition where the student body predicts the off-party’s presidential candidate. They have a super-high level of accuracy, it’s one of the oldest in the country and it receives coverage on CNN and C-Span. I thought it’d be really cool to get involved in and work on.
W&L is a great school. Some ED kids do get Johnsons but it is so competitive that the year my D went Admissions published a blog saying that a number of Valedictorians and students with perfect scores didn’t get Johnson invites. Everyone who my D knew who was on a sports team had a great group of friends and a lot of support from other students. Lots of kids from elite boarding schools/private schools.
I did look at several NESCACs but I really only started to work hard and get really good my junior year. I likely could’ve played at Wesleyan but didn’t love the social scene. Rutgers would be difficult and I probably wouldn’t earn significant time if I did make the team.
I’m fine with Greek life and in terms of majors I’m thinking about Philosophy, Environmental Science, Econ and Political Science. Although my future plans are slightly hazy, my dream would be to win a Rhodes Scholarship or some parallel honor (though obviously it’s a long shot regardless of hard work) and earn a Master’s in Public Policy at the HKS. @Publisher
@tgbernard17 It sounds like W&L is a great choice for you, and from what you posted, the only reason you are second-guessing is “I attend a fairly prestigious high school on the East Coast and kids from our school generally find themselves at great colleges.”
You need re-frame your definition of “great colleges.” A great college for you is not the same as a great college for your classmates or anyone else. Just because W&L doesn’t have the same name recognition and profile as some other schools doesn’t mean it’s a bad choice. It sounds like it has everything you are looking for, which makes it great for you.
It seems to be a big part of ED to get Buyer’s Remorse. See and hear it a lot. I guess it’s just human nature.
I agree that W&L sounds like a good match for you. No telling if you’d have been accepted to Williams or Wesleyan. You did not complete the application process to those schools . Yes, it is possible you coukd have gotten the Johnson, but then you may not have. There is no way of telling. By applying ED, you got the benefit of ending the entire college app scene early. You sacrificed finding out “what if?” That was the trade off.
Sure, if you find that you don’t much like W&L, do make transfer plans. But give it a chance. It’s a fine school and appears to have s lot you want in a college. It’s the “what if’s” that are bothering you.
You’ll be attending the most selective college in the Commonwealth of Virginia, @tgbernard17. Right there you have an objective aspect with which to distinguish your choice.
One technical aspect that I’ll comment on because it seems to arise from time to time relates to “strong/est” programs. This appears to be a reference to Fiske, which doesn’t really consider strength of majors across colleges. For example, W&L would seem to be very good for economics, but perhaps not among the very top colleges in its category: https://ideas.repec.org/top/top.uslacecon.html.
The above notwithstanding, you seem to have made an excellent choice in selecting a school that aligns so well with your interests and goals based upon its overall academic quality.