Anonymous
08/25/2025 12:11
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
Anonymous wrote:- Ideal small to medium-sized interdisciplinary college in a city or suburb
- chemistry major, also wants to take classes in AI and applied math
- wants high exposure to professors and research opportunities
- has strived in high rigor environment but doesn’t want the kind of place where fun goes to die or everyone is studying for grades
- collaborative, highly intellectual culture where students love learning, not all about jockeying for IB connections or the next IPO opportunity
- Female, unhooked, non URM, from a top private, full pay, quiet nerdy but has lot of friends
- 1580, 3.88 from a school that’s known for rigor/doesn't grade inflate (no one gets a 4.0), decent ECs (STEM leadership, part time job year round, volunteer year round, some regional math and writing awards)
Rice would be the reach here. But the ECs need to be there, and it's somewhat beneficial to apply ED. They started an AI major this year, so they have the classes for that. MIT would be the other reach. But again - ECs, essays, LOCs. But there's no advantage to applying early to MIT early, so save that one for RD.
Other schools would be Berkeley, Georgia Tech, UIUC, Penn, and Cornell. CMU is also good, but it's a where fun goes to die school.
Safety is your state flagship.
Anonymous
08/25/2025 12:10
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
Anonymous wrote:Reach: VA Tech, Ohio State
Target: Santa Clara, Tennessee
Safety: Grand Canyon, Iowa
OP asked for small/medium size schools…
Anonymous
08/25/2025 12:08
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Reaches: Brown, Yale, Harvey Mudd, Stanford (stay away from Cornell, Dartmouth, Penn, Harvard, Duke).
Targets: Hamilton, Haverford, Middlebury, Bowdoin, Bates, Davidson, Wake, W&M
Safeties: Beloit, St. Olaf, Denison, Kenyon, Colby
(Given stats and a small elite private school, these targets are different than what many would suggest for a public school student).
Doesn’t make any sense. Why stay away from Cornell?
Well, it's not near a city, and it's a grind.
Then why stay away from Penn?
Ugh its the most IB douchey of the Ivies. Read the OP's requirements please.
Anonymous
08/25/2025 12:08
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Reaches: Brown, Yale, Harvey Mudd, Stanford (stay away from Cornell, Dartmouth, Penn, Harvard, Duke).
Targets: Hamilton, Haverford, Middlebury, Bowdoin, Bates, Davidson, Wake, W&M
Safeties: Beloit, St. Olaf, Denison, Kenyon, Colby
(Given stats and a small elite private school, these targets are different than what many would suggest for a public school student).
Doesn’t make any sense. Why stay away from Cornell?
Bc she doesn't want competitive or pre-professional or large.
Anonymous
08/25/2025 12:04
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
Check out Wesleyan—great chemistry department, brand new science facility opening. Collaborative, small classes with great professor relationships. Socially welcoming to all types of kids. Sweet spot size at 3000 (with a few hundred grad students, as well, mostly in the sciences). In a good-sized town with easy access to NYC and Boston. My kid is so happy there.
Anonymous
08/25/2025 12:01
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
Anonymous wrote:GPA weighted or unweighted?
Private. 3.88 puts you on the very top.
This is the typical stats for HYPSM.
Anonymous
08/25/2025 11:59
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Reaches: Brown, Yale, Harvey Mudd, Stanford (stay away from Cornell, Dartmouth, Penn, Harvard, Duke).
Targets: Hamilton, Haverford, Middlebury, Bowdoin, Bates, Davidson, Wake, W&M
Safeties: Beloit, St. Olaf, Denison, Kenyon, Colby
(Given stats and a small elite private school, these targets are different than what many would suggest for a public school student).
Doesn’t make any sense. Why stay away from Cornell?
Well, it's not near a city, and it's a grind.
Then why stay away from Penn?
Anonymous
08/25/2025 11:57
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
Anonymous wrote:Reaches: Brown, Yale, Harvey Mudd, Stanford (stay away from Cornell, Dartmouth, Penn, Harvard, Duke).
Targets: Hamilton, Haverford, Middlebury, Bowdoin, Bates, Davidson, Wake, W&M
Safeties: Beloit, St. Olaf, Denison, Kenyon, Colby
(Given stats and a small elite private school, these targets are different than what many would suggest for a public school student).
Bowdoin is not even a tiny bit easier than Harvey Mudd. Only more difficult.
Anonymous
08/25/2025 11:57
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Reaches: Brown, Yale, Harvey Mudd, Stanford (stay away from Cornell, Dartmouth, Penn, Harvard, Duke).
Targets: Hamilton, Haverford, Middlebury, Bowdoin, Bates, Davidson, Wake, W&M
Safeties: Beloit, St. Olaf, Denison, Kenyon, Colby
(Given stats and a small elite private school, these targets are different than what many would suggest for a public school student).
Doesn’t make any sense. Why stay away from Cornell?
Well, it's not near a city, and it's a grind.
Anonymous
08/25/2025 11:56
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:- Ideal small to medium-sized interdisciplinary college in a city or suburb
- chemistry major, also wants to take classes in AI and applied math
- wants high exposure to professors and research opportunities
- has strived in high rigor environment but doesn’t want the kind of place where fun goes to die or everyone is studying for grades
- collaborative, highly intellectual culture where students love learning, not all about jockeying for IB connections or the next IPO opportunity
- Female, unhooked, non URM, from a top private, full pay, quiet nerdy but has lot of friends
- 1580, 3.88 from a school that’s known for rigor/doesn't grade inflate (no one gets a 4.0), decent ECs (STEM leadership, part time job year round, volunteer year round, some regional math and writing awards)
I love how every post feels compelled to point out that their private school does not inflate grades. The fact is, virtually all schools do, private or public.
Another fact is, some schools do not! . My kid graduated from a school that notoriously does not.
His 3.87 / 1560 was therefore enough to get into a school with a < 5% admission rate unhooked — though without the qualifier, ppl like you would recommend Wisconsin.
To OP, ditto Brown as a reach. Maybe MIT.
Anonymous
08/25/2025 11:56
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
Anonymous wrote:Reaches: Brown, Yale, Harvey Mudd, Stanford (stay away from Cornell, Dartmouth, Penn, Harvard, Duke).
Targets: Hamilton, Haverford, Middlebury, Bowdoin, Bates, Davidson, Wake, W&M
Safeties: Beloit, St. Olaf, Denison, Kenyon, Colby
(Given stats and a small elite private school, these targets are different than what many would suggest for a public school student).
Doesn’t make any sense. Why stay away from Cornell?
Anonymous
08/25/2025 11:54
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
Macalester for target.
Anonymous
08/25/2025 11:54
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
Anonymous wrote:Reaches: Brown, Yale, Harvey Mudd, Stanford (stay away from Cornell, Dartmouth, Penn, Harvard, Duke).
Targets: Hamilton, Haverford, Middlebury, Bowdoin, Bates, Davidson, Wake, W&M
Safeties: Beloit, St. Olaf, Denison, Kenyon, Colby
(Given stats and a small elite private school, these targets are different than what many would suggest for a public school student).
spot on
Anonymous
08/25/2025 11:53
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
William and Mary, Carnegie Mellon, Villanova, many if not all top SLACs, BC, Holy Cross, Claremont colleges. Maybe Carleton in MN.
Anonymous
08/25/2025 11:52
Subject: Pls suggest 2 each for reaches, targets, safeties for this student
Anonymous wrote:GPA weighted or unweighted?
ITS PRIVATE!!!!!!