Searching for more safety schools for my DS

[Anonymous]

Searching for more safety schools for my DS. School does not calculate rank or GPA, but he's has mostly As &A-s in rigorous classes, with 3 B+s sprinkled across the transcript, at a very rigorous DC private school. SATs 1520. Solid extracurricular activities but nothing super-unusual or distinctive.

Any suggestions? He prefers medium sized schools that are not too isolated or rural. Dream schools are Brown and Chicago. Some semblance of a thriving college town or nearby city would be nice. Thanks for any ideas.

[Anonymous]

Target/safety would be case western
Likely safety Brandeis (although maybe it’s too small?)
True safety Belmont (it’s a pretty campus near Vandy)

[Anonymous]

Pitt? My DD at a W public school with a 3.98 UW and 4.73 W and a 1500 was just accepted here and it was her safety.

[Anonymous]

I agree with Case. Also maybe U of Cincinnati.

Not sure these are exactly safeties but also consider:

Clark
U Rochester
Loyola Chicago
U Denver
Fordham
Drexel, maybe Haverford

[Anonymous]

Franklin & Marshall, Pitt, GW (depending upon his major)?

[Anonymous]

What does he want to study? What do his college counselors say?

Case western is great - I think of it as being very math/science focused (lots of pre-meds). But probably more of a target.

I can think of lots of targets but safeties are hard for those stats (my kid is similar). I would appeal to college counselor.

[Anonymous]

Pitt, Ohio State, UMBC? All in cities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Pitt, Ohio State, UMBC? All in cities.

Umbc is close to a city, not in it.

[Anonymous]

What is the obsession with Pitt?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Searching for more safety schools for my DS. School does not calculate rank or GPA, but he's has mostly As &A-s in rigorous classes, with 3 B+s sprinkled across the transcript, at a very rigorous DC private school. SATs 1520. Solid extracurricular activities but nothing super-unusual or distinctive.

Any suggestions? He prefers medium sized schools that are not too isolated or rural. Dream schools are Brown and Chicago. Some semblance of a thriving college town or nearby city would be nice. Thanks for any ideas.

Brown and Chicago have polar opposite curricula/educational philosophies. He needs to dive deeper or he's not going to be admitted to either one. Those two schools in particular care that applicants demonstrate awareness/understanding/buy-in to their respective educational philosophy. (I'm trying to be helpful, not negative.)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Target/safety would be case western
Likely safety Brandeis (although maybe it’s too small?)
True safety Belmont (it’s a pretty campus near Vandy)

Brandeis is small and it's not really in a college town. I think Tufts, BU, and Northeastern would be better if he's interested in the urban or college city/town lifestyle.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Searching for more safety schools for my DS. School does not calculate rank or GPA, but he's has mostly As &A-s in rigorous classes, with 3 B+s sprinkled across the transcript, at a very rigorous DC private school. SATs 1520. Solid extracurricular activities but nothing super-unusual or distinctive.

Any suggestions? He prefers medium sized schools that are not too isolated or rural. Dream schools are Brown and Chicago. Some semblance of a thriving college town or nearby city would be nice. Thanks for any ideas.

Brown and Chicago have polar opposite curricula/educational philosophies. He needs to dive deeper or he's not going to be admitted to either one. Those two schools in particular care that applicants demonstrate awareness/understanding/buy-in to their respective educational philosophy. (I'm trying to be helpful, not negative.)

Yeah, agree. (Granted, I majored in Economics and Stats, where there is a particularly big divide between the two schools.)

[Anonymous]

What does he plan to study?

[Anonymous]

Mid size safeties in cities - what major(s) are of interest?

Also recommend schools like U Roch and Case, but they are not safeties - acceptance rates too low for that. Case also heavily considers interest/manages yield. I would put them at high target. Look at Tufts (another reach).

Hard to find Brown/Chicago atmosphere among safeties. But, in general, mid size safeties in or near cities, I agree with DU, add Marquette, Gonzaga.

Low targets: Santa Clara (suburban, yield management/show interest, some majors are high targets), Fordham, American.

Large: GWU

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is the obsession with Pitt?

No obsession but it's not a bad school to apply - rolling admission is always nice, not too hard to get in, middle of city, not TOO big or too small...Having one acceptance early in the process is priceless.