Here are the schools I have narrowed down to on my college list. I would like to hear different opinions on how this school might fit or not fit.
Quick facts:
-Track and Cross country: Varsity (probably state this year for the two-mile in track)
-Cheerleading
-Soccer: League
-Volunteering
-Ambassadors (rotary)
-Triathlons
-All a’s so far…
-In college level classes as a sophomore
-Student Council
-Starting a mowing business
-Starting a running/activity club for underprivileged youth
-Want to go into a science field
-Want to join marines as a navy corpsman after undergraduate years, then go back to med school or graduate school
-Science club
-Maybe debate
-Going to need scholarships/financial aid
-I love anything athletic
-Might minor in history or in a language
Schools (no particular order)
Columbia University
Harvard University
Yale University
Dartmouth College
Cornell university
University of Pennsylvania
Brown university
Stanford University
University of North Texas
Rutgers University:New Brunswick
University of Houston
Princeton university
Stanford University
SUNY University at Albany
Rice University
Duke University
University of Texas at San Antonio
George Mason University
Georgia Institute of Technology
Northwestern University
University of Maryland: College Park
New Jersey Institute of Technology
SUNY University at Stony Brook
Northern Illinois University
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Amherst College
Swarthmore College
Pomona College
Johns Hopkins University
It is quite a list. I would add a few more match type schools. It’s nice to have options and financial offers to consider. Plus the days when a waitlist or rejection comes as they do for anyone it’s nice to offset it with some good news.
The only thing is you should look at is the naval academy too. Perhaps the coast guard academy. They love athletes and smart young women. And to be a corpsman that is an enlisted function you are on the officer track. And you can get support for med school as part of the navy too. Check it out.
First, clarify your financial aid status. Ask your parents to run a few net price calculators (on the colleges’ website) to determine how much NEED based aid your family might be eligible for. If that figure works, then proceed editing your list based on other factors.
If, however, the estimated family contribution isn’t workable then you’ll have to concentrate on colleges that offer MERIT scholarships which many of the schools on your list do not.
Second, are you interested in participating in varsity sports in college? If yes, start contacting coaches. This could be a boost for you.
You hardly need another choice, but if you “love anything athletic” you might swap out Swarthmore for Williams.
I thought I would mention, I have not taken any college entrance exams- I just got my arranged my schedule for sophomore year. Yes, I know, I am over ambitious and looking to far in the future. I am also looking at schools with good diversity.
If you are planning on going into the military, look at the academies and school with strong ROTC programs. IT’s too early to chance anything without test scores and you need to focus your list on safety/match schools first before worrying about the reaches. A safety is also a school you can afford so you need to know what your parents can afford.
@Berniedog A lot of parents don’t like to talk about money. You don’t need to know their entire financial situation, but in order to make a college list you do need to know what is affordable for your family, doubly so if your twin will enter college at the same time.
What you need to know is how much your parents can – or will – spend per year on your and your sister’s education. That figure will either come close to the colleges’ estimated family contribution or it won’t. Your EFC could be anywhere from zero to $560K.
The point that you and your parents may not realize is that many of the schools on your list do not offer merit scholarships, period, no matter how accomplished an applicant you are. They are, however, often quite generous with need-based aid.
If it turns out that your family’s EFC at need-only colleges is outside of your parents’ expectations, then your list should include a lot more schools that offer merit scholarships than it currently does.
You have some time yet to tackle the money issue, so do some research, get comfortable with the process, and gently explain your dilemma to your parents.
@Berniedog
Since you will only be Sophomores, both of you need to start prepping for the PSAT test, by taking online practice SAT tests on Khan academy.
The $$$ test the really matters is the PSAT taken in Oct of your Jr year. Make sure you take that one, even if you have to travel to a HS that offers it.
Do REALLY well on that test, and you will qualify for free or greatly reduced tuition at a lot of less selective “safety” colleges .
Your list is WAY too heavy with highly selective colleges that you are statistically unlikely to get into- NOT because you are not a good student, but because there will be tens of thousands of other all A’s students like you also applying, and there simply will not be enough spots to admit for everyone who is “qualified”.
Dont make the mistake of “falling in love” with any highly selective college(s) .
If you are among the few who are accepted, look upon it as a “gift” , not something you deserved because you worked so hard.
Start building your college list from the ground up by finding safety colleges that your family can afford , where you statistically have a very good chance of acceptance and that you would be happy to go to.
Will they give you a price limit? Or will they assure you that $80,000 per year for each of you and your twin sister is easily affordable to them?
If they will not tell you anything, assume that they are able to contribute $0, but their income is high enough to mean insufficient financial aid. So you should start looking at those schools where you can earn full ride merit scholarships, or the military service academies.
If you’re doing the military, you want to get an ROTC scholarship ASAP. They’ll pay for almost everything. I’m assuming your from Texas, because I’m seeing UTSA, Houston, and N. Texas in the same list. Those are terrific safety options, but UTSA does not have a Navy ROTC program. I would also add Texas A&M. Their Corp of Cadets is considered the best ROTC program in the country next to the academy, and it’s a top science/engineering school. If you don’t like spending your mornings and evenings being yelled at, you could simply go into a traditional ROTC program, like UT-Austin or one of the safety schools listed.
Another school to consider is Virginia Tech. They have a Corp of Cadets as well, and it’s a top science/engineering school.
The private schools are good, but an ROTC scholarship doesn’t cover everything. Room and board is very expensive, and might require more loans to pay for them. The most federal loan money you can take out is $27k for a 4 year degree, so even then, it could put you in a world of hurt if you live in a place with a high cost of living.
No matter which school you attend, you’re going to be a 2nd Lieutenant/Ensign just the same when you get out.
Columbia University
Harvard University
Yale University
Dartmouth College
Cornell University
University of Pennsylvania
Brown University
Rutgers University
University of Houston
Princeton University
United States Naval Academy
SUNY University at Albany
Rice University
Duke University
University of Texas at San Antonio
George Mason University
Georgia Institute of Technology
Northwestern University
University of Maryland: College Park
New Jersey Institute of Technology
SUNY University at Stony Brook
Northern Illinois University
University of Maryland Baltimore County
University of Miami
University of Hartford
United States Military Academy
Temple University
Penn State Harrisburg
Georgia Southern University
University at Buffalo
University of North Carolina at Charlotte
come back at the end of your Jr year with your tests scores and GPA.
As it currently stands, the list is way too long.
Do research on the Ivys- some are small, some are big, some have have distribution requirements, some have none.
In other words, the only thing they have in common is they are part of an athletic league. And being part of an athletic league is not reason enough to apply to all of them.