<p>I was not quite sure where exactly to post this. Sorry, if this is the wrong forum.</p>
<p>I am a U.S. Immigrant of Indian descent. Currently, I am a sophomore in high school. My majors have not been picked yet, but I am interested mainly in Computer Science and Business, along with Diplomacy and Linguistics. My grades are in the A~B range (honours), and I am currently signed up to take two AP tests my sophomore year (Physics C: Mechanics and Computer Science A), and planning on taking plenty more throughout my high school years. I speak three languages(English, Hindi, Malayalam) and learning one more(Spanish). I am also an active member of FBLA and the Speech And Debate Team, and am decided on joining NHS next year. I am most definitely going to take PSAT, SAT, ACT, and subject tests.</p>
<p>I do not have much of an idea on when or how to pick a college. Of course, I would not mind going to an Ivy League like Harvard or MIT, but I would like to know how exactly the college picking process is and what mistakes not to make. I will also say my current college picking thought process is ranking them by the prestige they have to their name, which I know is not the correct way to go about doing that. Any advice is appreciated, and thanks in advance for any words of wisdom!</p>
<p>If you’re only a sophomore, it’s a little early to worry much about all this. Focus on your schoolwork, other activities, family and friends for now.</p>
<p>Next year, after you have your test scores, you can make a very rough judgment about the range of schools where you might be competitive. By locating the end points of this range within the US News rankings, you can define an initial set of 20-30 schools (for example, the #20 - #50 national universities). Among these, try to find reach, match, and safety schools (3 or 4 of each) that satisfy your interests with respect to size, location and setting (urban/suburban/rural), costs, academic strengths, or any other feature that is important to you. When you get it down to a list you’re starting to like, do a “sanity check” (or two or three) with your Guidance Counsellor and on this board.</p>
<p>Mistakes to avoid:
applying to the #N-ranked through #M-ranked schools without any regard for personal “fit” (size, location, etc.)
selecting too narrow a range of reach-match-safety schools
ignoring small colleges, or schools in the Midwest and South, that may get relatively few applications from Asian immigrants
paying too little attention to cost </p>
<p>Resources:
this board
books in the “College” section of a large bookstore (Barnes & Nobel, Borders, Amazon)
<p>Don’t just apply to schools at Harvard level. I don’t know what you’re GPA is, but given that you’re taking AP Phyiscs C as a sophomore (!) I’m sure you’re great academically. But so are the thousands upon thousands of students that are applying to Harvard and MIT. Be sure to apply to safeties. Also, make sure your EC’s are outstanding.</p>
<p>You also need to sit your parents (or whoever it is who will be helping you pay for college) down and talk with them about where the money will come from. Lots of parents don’t want to do this because they don’t really want to have to think about the cost of college, but do your best to encourage them to do just that. College is a lot more expensive now (like maybe even more than ten times) than it was when they went to college. If they haven’t checked lately, the numbers might really scare them!</p>
<p>There are a lot of smart and helpful parents here in the Parents Forum and the Financial Aid Forum who can help you and your parents find out whatever it is you need to learn about financial aid and paying for your education. You don’t have to let your parents even know your log in. Just tell them that a mom you know thinks that they might like to learn more about this. One really good website to visit is [FinAid</a>! Financial Aid, College Scholarships and Student Loans](<a href=“http://www.FinAid.org%5DFinAid”>http://www.FinAid.org)</p>
<p>If you and your parents know how much your family can afford to pay, and how much the colleges and universities are likely to expect your family to pay, then you will be able to find Financial Safety schools that offer your major and that you like in case you can’t afford some of the other places on your list.</p>
<p>Wishing you all the best as you and your family start this process!</p>
<p>I recommend finding a book called Rugg’s recommendations. He has lists of school recommendations by major. Look at the lists for each of the majors you are interested in and find schools that are on all 4 lists. He usually lists schools of all levels of difficulty in terms of admissions so you won’t just be finding the schools in the top of the US News rankings.</p>