I’d hold on to Wesleyan. Not because I think it’s necessarily better than any of the others on your remaining list, but, because it’s size gives her the largest on-campus dating pool. Hampshire, of course, has the largest off-campus dating pool.
Monkey wrench thrown in the works by sudden very keen interest in NYU. (Talk about a large on- and off-campus dating pool!). I spent some time earlier trying to figure out how applying to NYU works – do you have to apply to a specific major or just a specific school? Confused. I’ll post query in an NYU-specific board.
Wow what a difference three months and a 6-day tour can make! I almost laugh looking through the posts above in terms of what we’ve learned and what D20 thinks she wants now. In the last 6 days we managed to: rule out NYU (based on Gallatin info session only), The New School, and Wesleyan; confirm that Mount Holyoke is still on the list (did interview and overnight with cousin); add Vassar to the “definitely apply” list; and park Bard on the “maybe apply” list. But perhaps the most interesting takeaway of all after this tour is that she would like to see “more bigger schools in really good cities.”. Not sure exactly what that will look like (or how much more bandwidth I’ve got for visits), but the list she’s going to go research some more includes Pitt (we’re in-state), McGill, Cornell, Tufts, and Northeastern. I’m sure the landscape will have shifted equally dramatically in another 3 months…
Also a pretty strong pivot from psychology to environmental studies as possible/probably major.
Your story is entertaining.
How about DC schools? GWU and American might bring some merit money. Cool city and LGBT friendly campuses. There is some Greek Life which could be a problem for your D. Check out the degree plans plus changing her major should be doable at these schools.
You are a good parent!
Thanks @txstella, I was on the same page as you in suggesting GW & American (and also UVM) for the bigger schools to explore list but she didn’t bite. Surprised about UVM given strengths in environmental, but what can you do? From my limited research over the past day, I’m surprised to see how much more selective Northeastern has gotten! Wow.
Yes, I would think UVM would be a home run. Strong in environmental studies, a small state flagship but large relative to an LAC, Burlington is a town not a city, but a terrific one, and the campus is only about a 10-15 minute walk to Church Street, which is terrific, and beautiful sunsets over Lake Champlain, which is right there, just a couple of blocks from Church Street.
What about the College of Charleston? Terrific urban location, great, funky vibe. Right size (9880 undergrads). Weather is an A+ during the school year. Great school colors (okay, not that important). Not sure about environmental science. I just re-read the thread, which was fun, and it seems like a great fit to me, other than being far away. It’s southern but really sort of a funky island. It is a quality school with very good students.
http://cofc.edu/about/guidesandrankings/
University of Colorado in Boulder is another one. Great town. Stunning campus and region, right at the foot of the mountains. A little large but it didn’t feel overwhelming to me when we were there. Also far away.
Are we done yet?
For anyone following this thread now or later, I wanted to give an update 8 months after the initial post, and 7 months before ED/EA deadlines. Hoping that we are maybe done with D20’s application list, but after all the 2019 admissions kerfuffle, I’m a little nervous about whether we have enough safeties.
So, a recap/update of D20’s profile:
Junior at mid-Atlantic urban independent school
UW GPA 3.83 (school does not weight GPA or rank in class, no APs/IB)
PSAT11: EBRW 710, M 650.
ACT: Proctored practice: 30. Home practice: 31. Taking first official test April 13.
Junior course load: English 11, USH, Bio, Calculus, Latin IV, photography, and 2 semester-long, psychology courses through an online consortium her school participates in.
Anticipated senior course load: English 12, Statistics, Latin V, Senior Art Studio, Advanced Bio, Env Science, Poetry
ECs: Track & Field 4yrs, XC 3 years.
Club involvement: Neuroscience Club, Art Club, Classics Club
Outside of school: Art classes, volunteer art teacher at local art center, runs own (small) design business on Fiverr, babysits.
Junior Project (January 2019) Worked at a small winery/estate vineyard in Oregon (my SIL & BIL own and run it). Loved every part of it, from pruning vines to rebuilding the website to going on sales calls in Portland to chemistry assays in the winery.
Summer plans: Camp counselor at a farm camp next summer, more art classes, more art center volunteering, 1-week environmental science/ecology leadership pre-college program (not competitive).
Future academic interests: Probably environmental science, also interested in psychology, art, gender and women’s studies. Recently obsessed with “zombie pathogens” emerging from melting permafrost.
She is planning to do a gap year (self-funded, not expensive programs), but prob won’t mention that in apps.
We are full pay (with ~20k annual tuition benefit from employer). Merit would be wonderful, but not a deal-breaker.
After a big summer tour and a recent spring break tour and several one-off visits, her list of where she definitely wants to apply (in rough order of preference, I think):
- Mount Holyoke - possible ED
- Sarah Lawrence - EA
- Barnard
- Bryn Mawr
- Vassar
- Bard - EA
- Reed - EA
- (Macalester -- maybe apply, not definite).
Based on GC input and my own research, I think these should be categorized as:
Reach: Barnard, Vassar
Match: Bryn Mawr, Reed, Mac
Likely: Mount Holyoke, Sarah Lawrence, Bard
For completeness, schools she visited but isn’t interested in: Grinnell, Saint Olaf, Carleton, UW Madison, Bennington, Smith, Wesleyan, NYU.
So…are we done???
Or do we need more true safeties? Is this list of 7-8 a good list?
And how important will it be to ED @ MHC? (Their admissions rate differential between ED and RD is tiny - averaging 55% ED vs. 51% RD last five years. Last year was the biggest difference in last 6 years: 58% ED, 50% RD.)
According to Naviance, MHC has accepted every applicant from D20’s high school for the past five years, including girls with worse stats, but it’s admittedly not a huge sample size. Ditto for Bryn Mawr. She is comparable to accepted students stats from her school for SLC, Bard and Mac.
Thanks for your input!
MHC adcom specifically said in the info session that there is no boost for ED. My feeling is that that’s accurate, and that any discrepancy is due to ED applicants being marginally more qualified (for instance, someone with a marginal GPA and upward trend is more likely to apply RD, where first semester senior grades would be considered; likewise if someone is trying to raise test scores).
With 2 EA schools, I wouldn’t add at this point. If no love in December, there’s still time to rethink. Particularly given the gap year - I honestly think a kid-driven gap year doing something interesting would make her a stronger applicant the next year, if she didn’t like the outcome this cycle.
My brother-in-law’s cousin went to SLC, and she is a totally amazing person. That looks like a great list!
Your D sounds like an interesting girl who knows what she is looking for.
It’s a good list, but I am thinking that Bryn Mawr and Reed are more like high matches/low reaches. I think match schools for her should have a somewhat higher acceptance rate. She will get a bit of a boost if she does well on her ACT. If she loves MHC, she’s done. Seems likely that she will be admitted.
Does she want to add another reach? Because honestly, she sounds like a great candidate for Bates. Of course I am biased, but Bates has a very respected environmental science program and excellent arts too. It’s also truly test-optional. She could also consider Whitman as a match, in Washington State, especially as she enjoyed being in Oregon and might get some merit aid. It’s a really lovely school and has a good environmental sci program. I think both those schools would offer a good vibe for her interests. But as it stands, yes, I think she’s good to go. Keep us posted on her progress.
ETA: Agree with the earlier suggestion of Skidmore. It’s a reach though.
So interested in this post since my daughter has similar stats. Is a junior, very artsy. Loved Skidmore, Brandeis, Barnard, BU (not NYU). I am wondering what safeties we should be looking at. Is MHC a safety with these stats? Good luck!
@parent1973 My kid would really like MHC to be a safety, and would be delighted if it were her only admission, but with a ~50% admission rate, I personally don’t consider it to be a safety. (My junior daughter has a slightly higher projected SAT score, a slightly higher UW GPA, and weaker ECs than @Itisatruth 's daughter. Naviance is unhelpful, because her school sends basically no one out of state.) Agnes Scott, with guaranteed merit for stats and a ~70% acceptance rate, is her safety.
I would add to help people interested in MHC and BMC that both schools are very interested in students who “get” what they’re about. I wouldn’t necessarily say that they want this “more” than excellent academics and GPA but both schools really care about the community aspect of their campuses. This means that they want clear and well-articulated signals from the candidates of affection for and support of that community. How will your daughters participate? What are their attitudes about academics and learning? (Both schools are non-competitive and more collaborative schools. BMC is known for caring “more about what you’re learning than grades” sort of thing. Probably MHC shares that somewhat. Both support this sense of community through participation in the student government. Both have honor codes that the students actively support, and which helps to create this unique and homey learning environment. Etc.)
I love this post and your process! I agree that Reed is a slight reach and unfortunately, no merit aid. I have a kid at Oberlin and it’s such a good fit for your D in so many ways. It’s not near a big city but Cleveland is really pretty cool and up-and-coming. Oberlin’s campus is so lively, many students never leave it. Also my D is on the track/XC teams. PM if you want more info.
@Itisatruth I’d agree with @Dustyfeathers on MHC. They are definitely looking for fit. Also probably not a safety anymore. They tightened up admissions quite a bit due to last few years of larger than expected classes. Unofficially, parent network is reporting closer to 40% admissions this year but could be lower. So most definitely do the interview, visit if you can etc (maybe you have-I did not read whole thread). I think Reed is a reach for yours. Your Oregon location will help with Mt H but not Reed. Lawrence might be worth looking at as another match/safety. Decent merit too. University of Puget Sound and Whitman might be nice additions to list.
@allyphoe --yes, my DD has a school she wants but with a 30% acceptance rate at best, we need some safeties. Which schools are you looking at that you think are safeties? I posted about this and got some recs for Sarah Lawrence, Bard, Clark and Dickinson. We have not checked any of them out yet and still seeking input. We are also somewhere Naviance is not helpful since school is so small
@parent1973 Posting over on your thread. 
@Itisatruth, it sure looks as if you all have done due diligence and a stellar job of it. Hats off.
If your D would honestly feel happy about attending either SLC or Bard, then I think you’ve got all the safeties you need.
Barnard has become a lottery ticket school. I think it should now be considered a high reach for these stats unless there is a hook. 2018: Barnard 14% accepted, middle 50% ACT range 30-33. Vassar 21% of female applicants, ACT range 31-33. Look at the common data sets for test scores ranges and admit rates broken down by male/female. Being very conservative with her current stats I would sort them:
High Reach: Barnard, Vassar
Reach: Bryn Mawr, Reed, Mac
Likely: Mount Holyoke, Sarah Lawrence, Bard
Safety: ???
https://www.mtholyoke.edu/media/class-2023
36% acceptance rate, down from 50%. (They’ve had two unusually large classes in a row, so I’m interested to see how it shakes out in the end, after any wait list movement.)