Anonymous wrote:+ 1 for Dickinson

- 1 for Richmond, which is much more like UVA

Richmond isn't that much like UVA. Richmond is much smaller, much more residential, and more undergraduate focused overall than UVA.

For instate VA, CNU.

Small, liberal arts and public.

Anonymous wrote:Mary Wash is frequently mentioned as similar. However, my DD has a friend who went to Mary Wash and found it very much a commuter school. She didn't like that aspect at all.

75% of Mary Washington students live on campus with more living in off campus housing nearby. So it’s not a commuter school.

Did you mean suitcase School, which would mean a lot of students going home on weekends?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DS’s top choice is W&M and he’s trying to find a few more safeties and matches. Are there any schools with a similar vibe that you’d recommend?
(30 ACT/1320 SAT/5 AP classes so far)

Everyone is listing safeties not matches. For academic matches and similar vibe look at Davidson, Hamilton, Kenyon, Carlton, and Grinnell.

Nope. I know kids with better profiles on testing and APs outright denied by most of these schools. Kenyon, Macalaster and Oberlin are match/high match if you can get the ACT up a point. St. Olaf and Wooster as safeties. GPA matters a lot. What is it?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a kid going to W&M this fall and did similar research last year. Saint Mary's College of Maryland and Mary Washington were the schools mentioned most frequently. Both very nice places in their own ways and good safeties for a kid with your DS's stats.

Is he considering applying ED? I would strongly encourage it. My kid got in ED with slightly higher SAT scores and a 4.1 weighted GPA. Friends with similar stats who waited for RD did not get in.

Interesting question because my DS, a junior at an FCPS public high school, also has W&M as his number one choice and we're looking at other schools to fill his list. CNU is the public in-state option mentioned most often. FYI, we visited W&M last Monday and the auditorium of interested future applicants was PACKED; there will likely be more competition than prior years. My DS says he wants to apply ED1 but even with a 33ACT/1460 SAT/4.1w, getting in may be iffy.

I think your DS has a very strong chance with ED1. I agree with the other poster about focusing on the "optional" (not optional!) essay. Interviewing is less important -- my DD didn't along with lots of ED admits. Slots for interviews filled very early in the summer last year. Look for the "Fall Focus Days" in September. We went for one of those and it was a great experience to hear from professors and students.

My DD would not consider CNU (no idea why) or UMW (too close to home, though I really liked it). Her second and third choices were UVA and VCU, which she liked for totally different reasons from W&M. So visit lots of places -- he might not need other W&M-like schools to fill out a list with good options.

Mary Wash is frequently mentioned as similar. However, my DD has a friend who went to Mary Wash and found it very much a commuter school. She didn't like that aspect at all.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DS’s top choice is W&M and he’s trying to find a few more safeties and matches. Are there any schools with a similar vibe that you’d recommend?
(30 ACT/1320 SAT/5 AP classes so far)

Everyone is listing safeties not matches. For academic matches and similar vibe look at Davidson, Hamilton, Kenyon, Carlton, and Grinnell.

A 30 ACT is the 25th percentile at both Carleton and Davidson so no, they're not matches. (And a 1320 SAT at Carleton is below the 25th percentile.) He might still get in, but they're definitely reaches.

Scores are inflated because of test optional so don’t not apply because of those. But fine if you want to apply only to Mary Washington go then go ahead.

Um, people apply to reaches all the time. You just can't expect an acceptance.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Santa Clara

Totally different type of school.

Could you elaborate on this? A new poster here with a child who is interested in these two schools.