How is this list? (Safety/match/reach appropriate?)

College Search & Lists
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<p>GPA: 4.0
Class Rank: 3 out of 360
SAT: 1500/2260
Interests: Political Science, Public Health
Extracurriculars: Leader of several clubs, 300+ volunteer hours, captain of varsity sport, Member of committees on state-level and region-level of student council, qualified for National Science Bowl, state medalist in Science Olympiad, state qualifier in debate.</p>

<p>Colleges: Colby, Cornell, Dartmouth, Princeton, UVA, Vanderbilt, Washington and Lee, Williams, Yale, and UGA!</p>

<p>Do I need to apply to any more schools?</p>

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<p>Is cost a factor? If so, are your parents able and willing to cover your Expected Family Contribution at each of them?</p>

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<p>You have very good status but you are still applying to a lot of very competitive schools. You only have one college resembling a match on your list (Washington & Lee, which I would say is a match because of your stats).</p>

<p>If you’re interested in political science and public health, look into American. It’s strong on poli sci and has a public health major. You may also be interested in Tufts, as it also has a community health major.</p>

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<p>Thanks for the comments! In response, if I add schools, I will be looking to apply to schools that cover 100 percent of need. Basically, if I get accepted, I will follow the best financial offer. And julliet, my list is too reach-heavy?</p>

5

<p>Very high stats students may not have that many matches – many of the “stats matches” are reach-for-everyone schools.</p>

<p>Use the net price calculator at each school’s web site to get a financial aid estimate for your situation.</p>

6

<p>Okay! I still have to fill out FAFSA and CSS! And, I would prefer a suburban college with access to outdoor recreation, but I would not mind an urban school in a bubble or a rural school with active access to the outdoors. I prefer mid-size schools, as well. Are there any other schools I should add to my list other than possibly American and Tufts as mentioned above?</p>

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<p>Emory meets 100% of need, and while it may have a low acceptance rate, could be considered a match. The poly sci program is very strong, and it’s right next to the CDC. Public health officials frequently give guest lectures, and many students do internships there. Plus Emory’s acceptance rate is actually higher than Tufts, the outdoors club is quite active, and it’s A LOT warmer.</p>

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<p>I think there needs to be more strong matches and true safeties. Acceptance at Tufts is 21%, so I consider it a reach despite the stats. What about your state schools?
Are there other factors under consideration such as location, size, FA etc.?
Do you *need *to go to a school with a public health undergrad major specifically? There are way fewer of those than Poli.Sci. It looks like most people get a graduate degree in Public Health, so you could tailor your undergrad to your specific career interests. There is some good info in here on potential undergrad majors or minors:
[What</a> is Public Health? - Frequently Asked Questions](<a href=“http://www.whatispublichealth.org/faqs/index.html#student_faqs2]What”>http://www.whatispublichealth.org/faqs/index.html#student_faqs2)</p>

<p>Did you check this website? [url=&lt;a href=“http://www.asph.org/document.cfm?page=200]ASPH[/url”&gt;http://www.asph.org/document.cfm?page=200]ASPH[/url</a>]</p>

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<p>Public health is more of an accessory interest, and it is not a necessity. I think that I will be able to adapt to any school with a political science major, which I think would be most schools. And when hen, since I live in Georgia, I visited Emory, and I did not particularly like it. But thanks for the suggestion. And Beantowngirl, I have already been accepted into the honors program at my state school UGA. Any more semi-match schools that sound like they fit? I have considered Middlebury, but I thought it would be redundant to apply there and at Williams.</p>

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<p>Well, it is redundant but you need redundancy when applying to the super selective schools since the admit rates are so low!
You need to find some good poli.sci. schools that are a little bit easier to get into. Try using college navigator and use the search options to find schools with PoliSci where you SAT scores put you in the top 25%. BU, Fordham, GWU, Lafayette, Northeastern, Syracuse, U.Rochester etc., however many of these are not full-need though some have good merit aid for the best students. [College</a> Navigator - National Center for Education Statistics](<a href=“http://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/]College”>College Navigator - National Center for Education Statistics)
Another approach is to look at the list of full-need schools and see which ones fit your requirements - [Colleges</a> That Claim to Meet Full Financial Need - US News and World Report](<a href=“http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2012/02/16/colleges-that-claim-to-meet-full-financial-need]Colleges”>http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2012/02/16/colleges-that-claim-to-meet-full-financial-need)</p>

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<p>Ok, I checked out the links! Thanks, Beantowngirl! The College Navigator works perfectly for finding matches!</p>

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<p>That can be a good strategy, but only if you can cover all (or nearly all) of your Expected Family Contribution. To be safe, run the net price calculator for each of these schools, then verify that your parents are able and willing to cover the EFC. Some families are shocked to discover how high it is.</p>