New to this whole CC thing and would like to do her first question?

Applying to College
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<p>Well, I am a rising senior at Arlington High School. It has a huge graduating class of 828. My rank is teetering between 91/828 and 90/828 so that puts me just outside of the top ten which is pretty frustrating.</p>

<p>This past year I only took two AP’s
APUSH (5)
AP English Language (4)</p>

<p>I have taken all honors classes and this year I plan to take 6 AP’s.</p>

<p>My weighted GPA is a 95.7 and my unweighted GPA is a 92.3 (I’m not too happy about that)</p>

<p>My SAT scores: CR: 700 Math:700 Writing: 700 (2100)</p>

<p>I have started a club The AHS Glee Club. Which provided charity through vocal performance. We put on concerts for different organizations. For instance we had a “Hearts to Japan” Concert this May which raised 1300 dollars for the Save the Children Foundation.</p>

<p>Other mentionable things: I’m in NHS… but who on this forum isn’t?
-I voluteer at my church all of the time. I do bake sales, help out at the church thrift store and provide meals on wheels.</p>

<p>-My brother is autistic (if that counts for anything)</p>

<p>-I’m African American (again I’m not sure if any of this is relevant but I thought “hey, why not?”)</p>

<p>-And where ever I go I would like to stay on the east coast…</p>

<p>I would like to be a business major. More specifically when I attend some sort of a university I would like to double major in Business-Marketing and Public Relations with a minor in Finance.</p>

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<p>So basically, my question to you all is… “What types of colleges should I apply to?”</p>

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<p>The ones you like.</p>

<p>What environments do you like? Schools in cities, in the middle of nowhere, or what?
Where do you want to go to school? In state? Far away? West coast?
How much does prestige matter to you?
How much does a school’s business academics matter to you?
What social scene do you want? Parties? Religious feel? Nerd land?</p>

<p>You need to specify what you want in a college. No one (on CC or in real life) can recommend anything if you don’t describe your interests.</p>

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<p>Being African-American will put you at a huge advantage for Ivy Leagues and other top tier schools looking to balance their diversity.</p>

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<p>True and in retrospect I was pretty vague. In a sense prestige does matter to me. I don’t want to be at some sort of disadvantage when I am applying for jobs later on. </p>

<p>I like big cities and large towns. I am in a very suburban area right now and I am comfortable… I just need to be able to know that all the main attractions are a brisk walk or short car ride away. </p>

<p>I need to be in a school with some sort of voice related club. That is a must. </p>

<p>I have visited a lot of campuses and when my mom asks me how I feel about the campus itself… All I can say is “Oh it’s pretty.” No self respecting university will take me on a tour of a truly hideous place. </p>

<p>I truly don’t care about diversity. Because quite honestly I’m there to get an education and meet new people so the type of people doesn’t really matter to me.</p>

<p>Some place gay friendly maybe. I’m not personally gay but I support equal rights. </p>

<p>I would absolutely LOVE to be in DC, Boston, NYC (any of the 5 boroughs), even New Jersey. </p>

<p>I’m not that picky.</p>

<p>I have looked at Fordham and American and I am in love with them though.</p>

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<p>Nai:</p>

<p>You’re in great shape.</p>

<p>Looking at your numbers – schools like Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford and MIT (referred to here as HYPSM by all), are probably a bit of a reach for you. But not so much of a reach that you shouldn’t apply if you really love any of them.</p>

<p>The next tier of schools (say the rest of the Ivys, and places like Duke, University of Chicago, Northwestern, Washington University of St Louis, Vanderbilt, etc. – Basically, the rest of the top 15 or 20 schools in the USNews Ranking List,) are what probably high-targets for you. Meaning that you will match up well statistically, but the schools have acceptance percentages of <20% so no one is a sure thing.</p>

<p>The top liberal arts colleges (smaller schools – say Amherst) also are in this category.</p>

<p>You probably have an excellent chance at any other school in the country.</p>

<p>BTW – being African American is highly relevant. The term used is “Under Represented Minority” or URM. All or most top-rated schools will make a special effort to admit URMs. It does not mean they will admit anyone who is not qualified, but if you are qualified (and based on your stats, you are) your application will get a major boost. </p>

<p>As far as the other factors you’re looking for - I’m afraid you’ll have to do your own research.</p>

<p>Possible schools for you to consider – Urban Excellent – probably socially progressive.</p>

<p>Harvard, Tufts, Boston University, Columbia, NYU, Penn, Princeton, University of Chicago, Northwestern, Washington University, Brown, Georgetown. If you want to include Fordham and American, they’ll most likely be 'safety schools for you.</p>

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<p>Alright, well the very first thing I thought when you replied was NYU (Stern). It’s New York, I’m almost positive that they have several voice clubs, good diversity, VERY gay friendly, and Stern is ridiculously famous. If you don’t mind that NYU has no real campus (but remember, it’s NEW YORK, the city IS your campus), you have to look into that.</p>

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<p>Thanks guys! I really appreciate it :)</p>