The east coast has lots of vibes. One school might feel preppy, but the school a few miles away might not.
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Funny. My daughter did not like the campus, nor the location…kind of like Wake …in the vicinity of action but not close to any action…if you will.
It was one of the most beautiful campuses I have ever seen, but not for her. Wake Forest wasn’t for her either. You are right- close to the action but not quite there.
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DD is very happy at another beautiful campus at Rhodes. When we visited, she felt it was as beautiful as Richmond but with more down to earth mix of kids. So it was a good trade off.
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OK I’ll bite! Top 10 and bottom 10 from your list. The top 10 were all on D24’s list at one point or another (some don’t have her current major but still sad to see them go). The bottom 10 had something about them that was a non negotiable deal breaker (for example, space constrained secondary admission at UDub).
Top 10 (alphabetical)
CalPoly University-San Luis Obispo
Case Western Reserve (OH)
Lawrence University (WI)
Northeastern (MA)
University of Connecticut
University of Pittsburgh
University of Rochester
University of Wisconsin (Madison)
WashU (St. Louis)
Whitman College (WA)
In the middle (no particular order)
Kenyon College (OH)
Oberlin (OH)
SUNY, Binghampton University (NY)
Clark University
Connecticut College
Grinnell (IA)
Macalaster (MN)
University of San Diego
University of Richmond
Univ of North Carolina, [Chapel Hill]
University of Colorado, Boulder
Boston University
San Diego State (CA)
Bottom 10
Davidson (NC)
Fordham University (NY)
Loyola University Chicago
Rutgers (NJ)
SUNY, Stony Brook (NY)
The College of Wooster (OH)
Univ of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
University of Utah
University of Washington (Seattle)
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Since you asked, here is my opinion on the top 10 from your list, ranked based on many subjective criteria:
WashU
Davidson
Kenyon
BU
UNC
Uof Richmond
Grinnell
Fordham
Case Western
Pitt
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I am having a hard time coming up with 10 from this list that meet location, physics, size, and value requirements.
It seems to me (I may be wrong) that after major, location is most important to your daughter, and cost is most important to you.
I would choose BU, Fordham, Northeastern. Minnesota, Pitt, Rochester, Wisconsin, Wash U, Case, and Colorado.
Note: class size may be big at some, and you will likely pay a lot more than $60,000 a year at others.
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My top:
Minnesota
Boulder
Stony Brook
Pitt
Washington
Utah
Rutgers
SDSUh
Case
BU
Bonus - Mac but only Mac of the LACs.
This gives you what you want in budget, with a mix of great physics, likelies and a few maybe you’ll get lucky $ wise.
I don’t think this matters. I do think you need to look at a variety of school types. And so all this paralysis by analysis is fine for fun but will all change by the time you apply.
But given your desires and the continual city talk, this is what I’d choose.
Actually I’d make a beeline to UMN. After Arizona which isn’t on the list as you don’t like, it was the next to make sense - big city, liberal, top program, great value.
That said while I don’t think the Grinnell, Kenyon and Lawrence type work, after some visits you might find out - these work better. While Davidson, Richmond, Clark and potentially even Boulder and Stony Brook types also don’t seem to fit, you don’t really know. Mac could surprise.
But you still need to go sample all sizes and environments so that your student can figure this out. You have a start but no real reason for a top 10. It’s premature. But it’s good you have a wide and varied list.
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I would add Rutgers as an additional school to my list. Easy to get to NYC, great performing arts program, and strong sciences.
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Everyone who is suggesting BU and Rutgers these are not going to give the performance opportunities. They have strong bfa programs and the main productions will be limited to their students. And Rutgers does not have a MT program.
My list is based on performance opportunities for non bfa students
Oberlin
Northeastern
Davidson
Lawrence
Binghamton
Richmond
All of the very big schools will have student productions but may have significant limitations for theater classes and university productions for non major students
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My niece is there, a rich white girl (currently studying abroad in Spain). My daughter had the stats but didn’t even apply (unfortunately she’s not a rich white girl).
From the current list, I’d probably have these as my top 5:
- Case Western
- Lawrence
- Macalester
- U. of Minnesota – Twin Cities
- U. of Rochester
I saw that no women’s colleges made the list, but I’d still give some serious consideration to Bryn Mawr. Awesome physics opportunities, tons of small classes, easy access to Philadelphia, and the population of the consortium is about 4500 undergrads, so not super tiny. When combined with the merit aid possibilities, I really think it’s worth a good look. How to Do Theater at Bryn Mawr and Haverford Colleges
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I wouldn’t pick Northeastern. Again I visit with my oldest (very advanced technical magnet kid). Neither she nor I were impressed. Freshman classes/labs that were shown as cool advanced DD had in younger grades. Tour guides were not impressive and not well articulated (that is minor.). But admins who did presentation got me puzzled when I asked what make your school to stand out. The answer was Coop. I was done. Coop is outside of school. Building Coop into curriculum is fine, but is this all? DD crossed NE from the list and didn’t aplly.
Also I am not sure that Coop will be that important for Physics (that would need masters) or MT major… I know you like Boston. I would go in a heart beat to BU, but I wouldn’t pay for NE anywhere above $40k. I know there are many NE supporters here, but it is nowhere in comparison to other top technical schools.
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My top 10 (mostly based on Physics and overall) would be
BU
CASE
UIUC
UNC(Chap. H)
Wahington (St. Louis)
University of Rochester
Unv of Wisconsin
Univ of Wahington (Seattle)
Stony Brook
Rutgers
I would also apply to your safety and favorites(Utah, Lawrence, Binghamton, Univ of Collorado etc.) and call it quits at 15.
I would say from my list she will get some acceptances and some merit (I do not count Utah) to stay within 60k but my top 10 are difficult admits except Rutgers and Stony Brook.
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OP, you almost can build a distribution table and see what are the most popular top 10 and then visit them 
.
BTW you absolutely need to visit and actively show a lot of love to Case. (I would do art supplement there too.) In my opinion it is ideal place for your DD. Not big, not small, in a heart of art district, very strong in science. Case wants a lot of demonstrated visit. Even simple visit is not enough…
NC State has both a great physics program and nuclear engineering (and own reactor).
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Think we have to be realistic on merit aid. With a 4.0 rank#1 and >33 ACT you are in a very decent spot but it takes more than that at some of these schools. Is she taking the hardest possible schedule? 35-36 ACT are not uncommon at these colleges. And for physics everyone will have high stats.
BU for example gives merit to very very few. it was about 7-8% of admitted a few years back and my 3.9/35ACT son didn’t even get accepted. U of Rochester is stingy with merit - it’s hard to get a big enough package for the cost
If you want top50 school AND merit - that’s a hard combo. I feel like urban schools at the CWR, Pitt, Fordham, UMinn, etc level are more realistic for merit than classic, desirable city schools like Northeastern, BU, GW, URoch, etc.
Also, is grad school in the picture? Teaching? Law/business? Data science? If she attends somewhere with few/no loans then a masters or a career change is much more affordable. (A PhD in science is of course different than a masters with stipends and grants paying the lions share.)
With our kid with the great stats we had our academic and financial reaches but got nothing from them while he got $30k from the likes of Fordham & RPI, $10-15k at better public’s, and some full rides to AZ and Stony Brook but in the end, to really knock down the loans it was Pitt or similar for us where he was a top student
I suggest applying broadly but make sure there are places where she is a top student
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UMN is a top physics school and is urban.
Rochester is a top physics school - but is not urban.
I left off the CU Boulders of the world - which are suburban and have some urban aspects because it seems like the city outweighs the other things - and that’s not Rochester.
But no matter what - the lists were are giving ony work until the first visit l- and then everything changes.
The OP is, and I’m no different, a paralysis by analysis person.
But then the kids get on campus and no - yes, no, maybe, etc.
It’s not as simple as a spreadsheet.
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Just to throw in another possibility, have you thought about the UK? Lots of great highly focused physics programs, very cheap compared to OOS/full pay private (especially at current exchange rates, likely <$50K per year anywhere outside London) and many universities have very active student groups running amateur productions. You wouldn’t have classes in MT, but you also wouldn’t have the restrictions encountered at many large US publics where productions are limited to those in the major. Here’s an example: https://www.cumts.co.uk/
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Oberlin also does not have a MT program. All musical theater productions are student run. Performance opportunities for non voice majors are plentiful-- they can audition in to any of the many vocal ensembles and choirs.
And at BU, even undergrads have difficulties getting performance opportunities-- they are often reserved for grad students and visiting artists.
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