I got so many great suggestions for my son here, I’d love to get some ideas for my daughter as well.
She’s a good but not an outstanding student - 3.8 UW GPA (school does not weigh or rank), 1310 SAT on the first attempt, will take again in August and of course can apply TO if it helps.
The school does not offer AP classes, but she’s taking many that are considered challenging, including calculus, and will have 4 years of all five core classes.
Decent extracurriculars including some school clubs, varsity sport, a couple of years of volunteering (over 200 hours), and a summer job over 3 years with a promotion for this summer.
No major competitions, achievements, or awards.
NYC private school (they have not yet suggested any additional schools)
No cost constraints/full pay
Intended major - likely political science and/or international studies. She’s considering law school but may of course change her mind
Essays will likely be solid (school provides a good bit of help), LORs should be strong as she has small classes and great relationships with her teachers.
Her requirements -
small to medium size (2000 to 10000)
must be within a 4-5 hour drive to NYC
must be walkable to town with things to do
I’m not sure how to describe what she is looking for in student body, but according to her it must not be “too weird” or “too preppy” yet she seems to have pretty idiosyncratic reactions to some schools.
Schools that we’ve visited that stayed on the list -
Franklin and Marshall - she liked it a lot and is considering for ED, but worries it’s too small and also may be too much of a reach with a below 30% acceptance rate
American University - liked the size and the reputation in the areas of interest, but maybe too big?
Union College - liked it but may not be great in her areas of interest
Lafayette - liked but not crazy about the emphasis on Greek life
Lehigh - same as Lafayette plus may be too much of a reach?
Ithaca College - liked okay and will keep on the list as a possible likely admit
Clark University - liked okay but did not like the town
SUNY New Paltz - liked okay, will keep as a likely admit
Schools that we visited and took of the list -
Conn College - not walkable to town and felt kind of dead on a nice spring day
GWU - too urban
Skidmore - this one is a bit of a puzzle for me as she liked the town but just could not see herself at the school
I should also add that she is set on ED’ing somewhere. She knows she does not have to but she absolutely wants to know asap and be done with the whole thing. That said, she of course needs to have a backup plan.
I’d look at colleges along the Amtrak Northeast corridor such as U of Richmond, William and Mary, Philadelphia area and Boston. It’s super easy to take Amtrak.
Whenever a student expresses an interest in political science, I often start to think of capitals (state or federal) where there are often an abundance of opportunities for school-year internships and such. I have not limited this list to schools near their capital, however.
And I can’t speak definitively as to the walkable proximity of campuses to shops and whatever else interests your D, but I suspect that most of these will qualify.
Some of these are likely or extremely likely admits for your D, while others are definitely reachier. The counselors at your D’s private school should have a better idea of chancing.
Dickinson (PA ): Seconding @cinnamon1212’s suggestion of this school with about 2200 undergrads and strong reputation for international studies as well as poli sci. (30m from PA State Capitol)
Loyola Maryland: About 4k undergrads at this Jesuit college that’s part of the Baltimore Collegetown consortium that allows students to take classes at other area schools like Johns Hopkins and Goucher.
Providence (RI): About 4200 undergrads and 1.7 miles from the RI State House.
Saint Joseph’s (PA ): About 4800 undergrads at this Jesuit college in Philadelphia
Seton Hall (NJ): About 6100 undergrads, and very strong diplomacy options and popular political science major, too.
Siena (NY): About 3500 undergrads at this school with all the NY Times/SIena polls. 7.2 miles from the NY State Capitol.
Smith (MA): About 2500 undergrads at this women’s college that is part of the 5 Colleges Consortium with Amherst, Mount Holyoke, UMass, and Hampshire.
SUNY Geneseo: About 3900 undergrads
Trinity College (CT): About 2200 undergrads and 1.1 mile from the CT State Capitol.
Lehigh may be a reach but that’s ok. You needn’t get into everywhere. If it fits her…
I agree about Dickinson and @AustenNut added Seton Hall which has a program.
Christopher Newport and Mary Washington in Virginia both deserve a look. Salisbury in MD is about two miles from town but has some in the immediate.
As for privates, Muhlenberg might be worth a look. Hobart too - in Geneva.
I wish you’d include flights - College of Charleston could be a winner for her. About 9k kids - but small campus - and lots of ambassadors visiting, etc. It’s a quick hop from NY. As for Skidmore, I think it’s great - it wasn’t for her…finding out you don’t like something is as good as liking.
Before she EDs, make sure you are ok with the cost - because F&M is close to $90K and a SUNY will be in the 20s.
Many schools will give an early admit (rolling) so if that’s the entire reason to ED, you don’t need to. But if F&M is truly her favorite - and you’re ok with the cost - then it’s fine. But lots of early acceptances are possible in general.
For clarification, are you seeking schools with absolutely no religious affiliation, or no schools where there there is a significant religious presence/slant? For instance, American University on your list is affiliated with the Methodist church (as seen on College Navigator), though there’s nothing religion-specific in its values (source).
If you want absolutely no religious affiliation, then Dickinson, Smith, and SUNY Geneseo are the only schools I suggested that qualify.
Not sure I’m adding anything new to the discussion, but Dickinson seems like a clear fit, and American U and George Washington U might be, as well. Would she be interested in women’s colleges? Bryn Mawr might be a good fit, and its relationship with Haverford would make it seem a little less like a women’s college. I know that the Poli Sci major is offered jointly between Bryn Mawr and Haverford, and others probably are, too – so you get more resources than you might expect from a small college. There is a shuttle bus that runs between the two colleges (they’re quite close to each other), and students take each other’s classes, eat in each other’s dining halls, and there are some joint clubs.
Before I went back and looked at the geographic limitations, I immediately thought of Kenyon, Macalester, and the University of Denver. I suppose they won’t be under consideration, but if the geographic limits change, you should consider them. Flights between NYC and Cleveland, Minneapolis, and Denver are pretty easy and plentiful, though definitely more expensive than a drive.
I thought of Kenyon and Macalester, too (don’t know much about U of Denver), but yes, then I looked at the geographic preferences. Both have strong language programs, as well as poli sci and international relations (the current US ambassador to Ukraine is a Kenyon graduate, and international relations or studies is a very popular major at Mac). One small correction: Kenyon is close to Columbus, not to Cleveland, although it’s possible to get to it from Cleveland as well. Also, Kenyon doesn’t have much of a town, just a charming village, so probably not ideal for this student.
@Ewost is this a hard and fast requirement, or would you be willing to consider places a plane ride away?
Let us know so we can more accurately answer your query.
Also, what a wonderful gift you are giving your student by fully finding any college. Some folks don’t do this even if they can. This does open up some options for your kids.
What about University of Delaware? Great school, and it does not “feel” big.
University of Rochester is a hidden gem and is just on the outer edge of your travel requirement. Not only does it have majors in PP&E, International Relations, and Poli-Sci, but about a quarter of the student body is international!
You can’t beat Wellesley for Poli-Sci and international relations. It also has cross registration with Babson and MIT, which both have surprisingly interesting courses in her area of interest. Cross registration at Brandeis as well. The women’s colleges are a little easier to get into than one would expect for their reputation because half the competition for admission has been eliminated.
Take a closer look at Union. It is in fact great in her area of interest, including a semester in Washington with internship.
The Eisenhower Institute at Gettysburg with a center also in Washington makes them an interesting option in her areas of interest.
I’m going to give one more - it’s a little too big but for a 3.8 and 1310, it might be worth a look. It’s a fine school with tons to do - nearby, 20 minutes away and just a train ride from Boston.
UNH
It’s 11,500 kids - so it’s bigger than the 10K you mentioned - but it’s not overwhelming.
You say 2-10K but F&M is under 2K - so I wonder if the up to 10K is true - or will all those be overwhelming ??
Just another thought for a student with your profile.
@tsbna44, do you mean University of New Hampshire? (University of New Haven was just mentioned.) if so, nice school. And close enough to Portsmouth that a lot of students wait tables in the restaurants there.
University of Vermont offers some similar qualities, but the majority of its students come from out of state, giving it even more of a private college feel. It has a downtown location in a great college town on the shores of Lake Champlain. A little more than a 5 hour drive from NYC.
She’s fine with a historical affiliation. She’s not okay with a current significant religious presence or any kind of theology requirements. So American or Marist would be fine in that respect, but most (all?) Catholic schools would not be.
I should probably clarify the priority of her requirements in general.
Distance from home is, at least at this point, non-negotiable. Five hours is really pushing it, as she wants to be able to come home on the weekends if necessary. One of the biggest draws of F&M is that there’s family nearby. So definitely nothing that requires flying.
Setting is probably the second most important thing. Ideally, she’d like to be in a city with easy access to public transportation. As far as the setting, American is pretty much perfect. Lancaster is a bit small but okay. Dickinson would be too rural.
She has said no to single-sex schools. We’ll probably revisit that, but I think most of them are also too small or too rural, so probably not a great fit.
Size seems to be more negotiable, but with her Goldilocks-like attitude, it’s often too small or too big. My guess is that somewhere between 3000 and 5000 would be just right, but with all her other requirements, there are just not many options in that range.
