Top-heavy application list?

Applying to College
1

I am planning on applying to:

-Brown
-Yale
-Wesleyan
-Williams
-Dartmouth
-Amherst

Here’s the scoop. My family is friends with a very high level Amherst admissions officer who assured me that “if I applied, I would be accepted”. So that’s nice, buuuut I have very little desire to go to Amherst (I’d prefer it over most other schools, but it would be last on that list of colleges). I’m scared that, because all of those colleges are very selective, I would be rejected by all of them and end up being at Amherst, which I don’t think is for me, really. I want some safeties, so I thought of Skidmore, Hampshire, and UMass, but I don’t think I’d be too happy at any of those, either.

I get sick of posting what my stats are, but what the hell.
780 math, 730 verbal, 790 720 700 IIs, homeschooled, 4.0 College GPA (50 credits as of end of semester). I spend about 20 hours weekly volunteering; tutoring, political causes, etc. I am going to study permaculture and natural building for a month this summer and earn 4 college credits. Then I am going to volunteer at an organic farm and then because a trained apprentice in natural building (using materials like straw bale and adobe to create homes with a limited negative ecological impact). I’m reallllly passionate about this and want to be an architect, but I’ve also flirted with the thought of being a classics major (part of my tutoring is teaching weekly classes in Greek drama and the Latin language at a homeschooling center, and I loooooove it). I want a school that would nurture both of these passions and give me plenty of educational freedom. I love New England and won’t even consider leaving it unless it’s to go overseas.

Also, my science background is fairly weak. I’ve taken Bio, Physics, and a lot of horticulture/permaculture/natural building type things, but no hard chemistry. I don’t have the time to. Besides that one flaw, my transcript is looking pretty awesome. I am not planning on matriculating until Fall '06, though, and would probably end up taking chem after submitting my applications.

Anyways, I need help planning more so than most kids because I have no GC to help me, so please bear with me and thank you all.

I want to apply to a few safe-bets where I’d be happy at, and a lot of reaches/range schools. Any help would be great.

Edit: I asked for recs ahead of time from past profs, and they are the “OMGosh I’m gonna cry” flattering type, so that should help. I honestly think that my character/essays would help me the most. I interract and engage wonderfully with adults (I think, being homeschooled, I’m used to it) and when I had my interview to go to Brazil the guy told me that I was the “smoothest interview he had ever had” and told me off the bat how well it went and how much he liked me. I’m really good at writing essays as well, and would obviously have a unique voice, coming from a nontraditional educational background.

2

<p>I say if you can’t find a safety you would be happy, you’re just not looking hard enough. There are so many safeties out there. And why don’t you like Amherst, it’s pretty similar to your other schools.</p>

3

<p>I was worried about my own list being top-heavy as well. In the end, I got rejected by my “safety” WashU, but accepted everywhere else (incl. 4 of the schools you listed).</p>

<p>If you’ve got a spot at Amherst no matter what, then only apply to schools that you would choose OVER Amherst. You’re list is top heavy, but then again, you already have a sure-acceptance in there, so why waste time applying to schools you don’t want to go to?</p>

4

<p>because they don’t like amherst!</p>

5

<p>Take a look at Cornell - their Biological and Environmental Engineering major in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences seems to be right up your alley.</p>

6

<p>Oh my bad, I missed that part. </p>

<p>What is it that you don’t like about Amherst? </p>

<p>I’ve got news for ya - having just visited Amherst, Williams, Dartmouth - they’re very, very similar schools!</p>

7

<p>Cornell, Wash U, the only school on your list that has undergraduate architecture is Yale. If you want to study architecture make sure you have physics, calculus and studio art classes. If you think you want to wait until grad school to study architecture you will need a portfolio showing your creative and artistic abilities. The technical background will help but you will need the art as well.</p>

8

<p>I’m also confused to why the OP doesn’t like Amherst when every other school on her list is very, very similar. I have a similar college list to yours, and I just don’t get the dislike of Amherst</p>

9

<p>Look again-- Amherst and Williams are notably more conservative than the other schools on those list.</p>

10

<p>But I thought they liked Williams?</p>

11

<p>Hey, sorry guys, I dislike Amherst because it’s my town and I want to be somewhere new. Amherst also is a fairly conservative school, but the town is really progressive.</p>

12

<p>hey fids…
good to know you’re concerned about colleges…</p>

<p>but before that, you should spell/grammar check every so often…</p>

<p>no offense, but it’s not “i’m planning on…”</p>

<p>it’s, “i’m planning to” or “i plan to”</p>

<p>… SAT loves it when people mess this up…
NEVER PUT “ON” AFTER “PLAN”</p>

<p>…
sorry if i came from the left field… good luck with college choices, man</p>

13

<p>Oh man, I say “I plan on” all the time. It’s just the way I talk. I never write that way in a formal paper, but it’s totally the way I talk online and it’s probably too intense of a habit to shake off.</p>

14

<p>Wow… I’d never noticed that before - I’m sure I say “planning on” all the time! </p>

<p>Thanks godzcreation :)</p>

15

<p>lol… I use planning on all the time.
my english teacher never seemed to care.</p>

16

<p>I don’t think most people would. Haha.</p>

17

<p>I say planning on too…but I don’t think I use it that often anyways. How quickly this topic got off-topic</p>

18

<p>Hahaha okay, back to my application list!</p>

<p>All the schools I want to go to are really tough to get in. :(</p>

19

<p>well, unless the application fee is a problem, i’d say you should look around more and add a few safeties. I didn’t look at my safeties too carefully and while I’m not going to them, there was a point where they were the only schools I’d heard from and I was a little worried about going there because i had blown them off early on.<br>
I’d look at the new england LACs, there are plenty to choose from and that seems to be your sort of thing, judging by your list. if you live in amherst then aren’t at least umass and hampshire pretty close by? look at similar schools that aren’t in your hometown but may have some of the stuff you are looking for and you might like them better. Definitely visit and keep your mind as open and as positive as you would for the more prestigious schools.
Your info looks very impressive and I think you have a good shot of getting into at least one of the schools on your list, but playing it safe never hurts. And, like I said, approach safeties with an open mind because you want to be happy where ever you go.</p>

20

<p>“too intense of a habit to shake off” - how dramatic! Good thing it isn’t cocaine.</p>

<p>As an adult, I learned to spell better after reading a column by Marilyn Vos Savant who pointed out that you can change habits and that misspellings and the simple gramatical error you make above are also partly motor skill correction. It is must be rooted in caring about the difference, I suppose, but I found it easy to correct my spelling if I would stop and look up the word, rather than continue on. You start to remember, perhaps because you make the effort and you’d rather not stop next time. Link to excerpt:</p>

<p><a href=“http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:6PSXM_oDVEUJ:appl003.lsu.edu/acadaff/cxc.nsf/%24Content/Publications/%24file/Spelling_article_--_vos_Savant.doc+vos+savant+spelling&hl=en[/url]”>http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:6PSXM_oDVEUJ:appl003.lsu.edu/acadaff/cxc.nsf/%24Content/Publications/%24file/Spelling_article_--_vos_Savant.doc+vos+savant+spelling&hl=en&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Re your college question. You should ask that admission person if Amherst is guaranteed as a safety for you. You should be very sure to tell him that you won’t have any safeties or matches, just reaches if this is so and does he think it a good idea. If so, then top heavy is ok. dd got into a very good school ED, so most of the rest of the list could be top heavy (with a financial safety or two.) That broaches the question on whether money is an issue. But Amherst is not really a safety for anyone, even though it is reasonable to be on your list otherwise.</p>