Where Should I Apply?

College Search & Lists
1

Stats:
UW GPA: 3.45
Weighted GPA: 3.75
5 AP Classes so far, 3 Honors Classes
APUSH-3 AP Physics 1-1 AP English Lang-5 AP Euro-4 AP Psych-3
ACT: 32 (hopefully will go higher as I will take it twice more)

Extra Curriculars:
Secretary of Debate Team for 4 years
Writing articles at many different websites, published at a foreign national newspaper
2 years of High School soccer (Freshman and JV)
Participated in the Summer Science Institute Program at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB)
Current Member of the Spanish Club
Volunteering

Major:Economics

Current List: UAB
University of Utah
George Mason University
University of Chicago
University of Pennsylvania
Columbia University

Assuming that I can raise my ACT to a 34-36, write some good essays and get some good teacher recommendations, are there any other schools I should apply to and possibly get a full tuition scholarship?

2

bump?

3

Have you used the free college match service on this website? That would be a good starting point.

10s4life is, unfortunately, correct. Unless you have some major hook, those 3 schools are very unrealistic for you.

Use the college match, then get a copy of Fiske’s guide and look for schools where you fit the GPA/test score matrix solidly, and that can work for you and your family financially.

Good luck!

4

I would definitely recommend that you consider applying to more safety and match schools as Penn, Columbia, and Chicago are all very high reach schools for you. 5 AP’s really is not enough to show having a vigorous course load, but then again that all depends on how many your school offers. If they only offer 7 then I’d say great you’re really challenging yourself and that should definitely look good. But if your school offers 15 then Penn and other schools might be suspicious as to why you weren’t taking more. Full tuition scholarships based on merit are hard to pinpoint just by scores and grades. Most of them are kinda specific and look for students that show some certain quality or demonstrate a characteristic; these types usually aren’t even something you apply to they just automatically consider you for them. I would do a lot of scholarship research both within schools and outside of schools. A higher ACT score could definitely help you there, but that’s not all they’re looking for.

5

Check out this list:

http://automaticfulltuition.yolasite.com/

Specifically:

U Louisiana
U Arkansas

6

I’ve changed some of the schools on my list; I would say these schools are pretty permanent on the list at this point considering the college application will start soon. That list includes: UAB, Auburn, George Mason, Pomona, and UChicago. I am still looking for one more school, however; the most important factors for me are that the school has a strong economics department that offers good preparation for grad school and the availability of scholarships. Again, my GPA (weighted) is 3.75, I’ve taken 5 AP Classes and am currently taking 7 more, so I will be graduating with 12 APs overall and 3 Honors classes. My ACT score is a 32 at the moment, but I hope to raise that to a 33-36. Are there any other ideas of schools that might fit what I’m looking for? Or any more suggestions in general about the schools I’m already applying to?

7

Tulane has amazing merit aid: generally if you have a good GPA and a 33 ACT you’ll get anywhere from 100k to 125k over the four years

8

What’s our parents’budget?
Do you need merit aid (your parents make too much compared to their efc) or need based aid (your parents make 125k or less)?
What state are you a resident of?
Any idea of the major pu’d be interested in?

7 AP 's isn’t necessary senior year. What are they and is there a rationale for taking so many all at once?
(top colleges are fine with 6-8 total - take 3-4 senior year, get A’s, and you’re good).

At this point, don’t count Pomona and UChicago - add them and forget them once ounrz done applying. Both offer amazing need based aid so if your family makes 75k or less, or even 125k or less they’re worth keeping just in case, but you should have a more balanced list otherwise. Note that they don’t offer merit aid (or so rarely that it wouldn’t apply to your case) so run the NPC and make sure our parents can’t afford the net price.

Since you have UAB include U Alabama Tuscaloosa since you automatically qualify for a full tuition scholarship and honors college.

GMU and Auburn are good matches but run the NPC. If you depend on competitive scholarships to attend, treat them as reaches.

Right now, your list has one safety. Adding 'Bama, you have two, and thus a choice in the spring.
Now you need to identify three matches and perhaps one reach that isn’t basically put of reach.

9

I am a resident of Alabama. I could qualify for need based aid at some colleges (less than 125k salary), but at state schools like UAB or Auburn I would likely not, and I would depend on merit aid. I am certain I will major in economics or math as my ultimate goal is to get into an economics PhD program.

I am naturally very good in subjects like English, Spanish, and History, which is why I’m taking AP English Literature, AP Spanish Language, and AP Government/Macroeconomics. AP Statistics and AP Calculus BC would be a great help for me if I want a professional career in economics, as the field is so intensely based in math. I am taking AP Physics C:E&M because I realize that it is possible that I lose interest in economics, and if that becomes the case, I can switch to another field like engineering, in which case, the class would also be of great help.

I realize that Pomona and UChicago are notoriously difficult to get into; I realize just how difficult it is for anyone to get in, even with the most impressive grades and test scores. However, they give great aid and have absolutely tremendous economics departments (UChicago is arguably the best in the world). Based on their NPCs, with taking out some, but not too many loans, I would be able to attend for four years.

GMU also has a terrific economics department as well as location and Honors College. I understand their full tuition scholarship is very difficult to get; only 25 are offered out of hundreds accepted into the Honors College, and because I would need such a scholarship to move out of state and attend there, I could classify it as a reach.

Auburn, however, offers scholarships based on GPA and ACT/SAT scores. If I am able to raise my ACT score by a point, I will automatically qualify for a full tuition scholarship. They have a decent department that offers a quantitative economics degree and they are flexible with math classes, and have had students go on to highly prestigious economics grad schools. If I am able to get my updated GPA in by January 15, I could also qualify for Honors College. I would classify it as a match for now, as even with a 32, I could get most of my tuition paid for.

I am hesitant to add Alabama because from my understanding, their economics department is not as strong as Auburn’s, and they seem to be too much of a party school for my liking. Basically, I am looking for schools that either offers high merit aid or very high need aid with a strong economics department, but that aren’t extreme reaches like UChicago or Pomona.

10

However their math/economics are better than UAB and you’ve got a guaranteed full tuition. (Also the environment for honors students is quite different from the general environment.)
You could also apply to ASU Barrett.

It seems you want conservative economics, right?
So, apply to Washington and Lee, Gettysburg, Hillsdale, Notre Dame, Vanderbilt.

Look into Sewanee, UMiami, Denison, Trinity Texas, Villanova.