[wnewport]

If the schools are common application, apply to as many as possible that you are remotely interested in. The $40-70 fee is nothing in the long run. I applied to 8 schools and wish I would have done more. It is nice to have a lot of options. Schools have a way of growing on you after you apply while some become increasing less appealing. (I really liked WashU as my first choice, then I loved Tulsa as a safety school. Now I know I really wouldn't have been happy at either.)

I applied to some schools on a whim the night of the deadline. I happened to get accepted into one of them, and I ended up going there.

I hope this helps.

Go buy a Princeton Review and set up a college prowler account. Those helped me learn about a lot of schools.

 

[rb67]

Even if your sister didn't get in, you should still give it a shot and spend lots of time on your personal statement. Don't shortchange yourself. This is something that has a direct impact on your future career and will give you experiences that can't even compare to what you've experienced your entire life. Take the time and apply to anything you think you'll be happy at, regardless of whether or not you think you'll make it. It's worth the chance, and you really aren't losing anything other than the application fee which is admittedly quite high.

As for USC, I was thinking about applying there but was really discouraged by the recruiter that came to our HS. He was talking to us about the school. When we asked him questions on scholarships, all he talked about were sports based scholarships. The financial aid programs seemed really competitive for non-athletes and the base tuition for USC was way too high without any scholarships. I didn't really like the culture of USC as yourself. Very socially oriented and lots of "rich kids" was the impression I get.

Outside of USC, I still recommend taking a look at University of Washington, Arizona State University, University of Arizona, Colorado State, Rice, University of Nevada Las Vegas, University of Texas, and a few more. Does it have to be on the coast? Also, a little plug for the university of my home town; UNLV has a decent business school and has a pretty diverse student body since it's in Las Vegas. Tuition isn't bad and admissions shouldn't be tough. They've justed finished a string of construction and the new buildings are amazing. The library is state of the art with all books having RFID tags instead of bar codes and the 3 story gym has flat screens at all the stationary bikes. There are plenty of things to do in Las Vegas other than party too. I enjoy hiking and photography. LA is about 4 hrs away, Zion Nat. Park is 4 hrs, Grand canyon about 5, etc etc.

 

[chesebert]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rb67 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Even if your sister didn't get in, you should still give it a shot and spend lots of time on your personal statement. Don't shortchange yourself. This is something that has a direct impact on your future career and will give you experiences that can't even compare to what you've experienced your entire life. Take the time and apply to anything you think you'll be happy at, regardless of whether or not you think you'll make it. It's worth the chance, and you really aren't losing anything other than the application fee which is admittedly quite high. As for USC, I was thinking about applying there but was really discouraged by the recruiter that came to our HS. He was talking to us about the school. When we asked him questions on scholarships, all he talked about were sports based scholarships. The financial aid programs seemed really competitive for non-athletes and the base tuition for USC was way too high without any scholarships. I didn't really like the culture of USC as yourself. Very socially oriented and lots of "rich kids" was the impression I get. Outside of USC, I still recommend taking a look at University of Washington, Arizona State University, University of Arizona, Colorado State, Rice, University of Nevada Las Vegas, University of Texas, and a few more. Does it have to be on the coast? Also, a little plug for the university of my home town; UNLV has a decent business school and has a pretty diverse student body since it's in Las Vegas. Tuition isn't bad and admissions shouldn't be tough. They've justed finished a string of construction and the new buildings are amazing. The library is state of the art with all books having RFID tags instead of bar codes and the 3 story gym has flat screens at all the stationary bikes. There are plenty of things to do in Las Vegas other than party too. I enjoy hiking and photography. LA is about 4 hrs away, Zion Nat. Park is 4 hrs, Grand canyon about 5, etc etc.

what the?? no University of Michigan A2 recommendation? .....appalled..disguised.

One of the best (law, engineering, medical, business) school; which other university offers that combination??? !!! (Standford is arguably not as good in their medical and business program as Umich) - yeah..flame me!

 

[granodemostasa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by chesebert /img/forum/go_quote.gif what the?? no University of Michigan A2 recommendation? .....appalled..disguised. One of the best (law, engineering, medical, business) school; which other university offers that combination??? !!! (Standford is arguably not as good in their medical and business program as Umich) - yeah..flame me!

Mich is almost as hard to get into as Cal and Stanford.... so it would be kinda hard to recommend that school. the dude was just being realistic. And it's probably appropriate... I played it safe so that I wouldn't waste money.


let me suggest University of Oregon, i'll do a page on it in a few hours, but right now i'm studying...

 

[loveheadphones]

When I was looking for schools, I visited OSU (oregon state) and really loved it. Beautiful campus, great people. I think they have rolling admissions, which could be nice.

oh yeah, what's with this:
"Berk consists mostly of the same type of students: those with medium-high GPA and scores and above- average extracurriculars, no more no less."

way to stereotype 30,000 people, bro... your location should probably also read Palo Alto...

 

[rb67]

Quote:

Originally Posted by chesebert /img/forum/go_quote.gif what the?? no University of Michigan A2 recommendation? .....appalled..disguised. One of the best (law, engineering, medical, business) school; which other university offers that combination??? !!! (Standford is arguably not as good in their medical and business program as Umich) - yeah..flame me!

I certainly was close to recommending Michigan, but it's expensive if you aren't on scholarship. Also, it's in the cold land that is Michigan, he's from Hawaii so I figured the weather might be too different. Obviously, though, I liked it enough to spend 4 years here

But since you mentioned it, if you don't mind the location, Michigan is an amazing school. We've got a huge student body and there is always something to do. A good portion of the students are real serious since the non-serious guys go to Michigan State. (JK

) In terms of diversity, i believe something between 10-20% of the school is international. It certainly feels that way in my classes. And, the business school ranked in the top 5 in the nation when I was doing college searches.

I chose Mich because I wanted to do aerospace engineering (#3/4 rank) but also had strong interests in Japanese and the language department is excellent.

 

[Khanate]

What about McGill, they're slack with applicants and pretty cheap!

Only downside is snow in winter hehe

 

[chesebert]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rb67 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I certainly was close to recommending Michigan, but it's expensive if you aren't on scholarship. Also, it's in the cold land that is Michigan, he's from Hawaii so I figured the weather might be too different. Obviously, though, I liked it enough to spend 4 years here But since you mentioned it, if you don't mind the location, Michigan is an amazing school. We've got a huge student body and there is always something to do. A good portion of the students are real serious since the non-serious guys go to Michigan State. (JK ) In terms of diversity, i believe something between 10-20% of the school is international. It certainly feels that way in my classes. And, the business school ranked in the top 5 in the nation when I was doing college searches. I chose Mich because I wanted to do aerospace engineering (#3/4 rank) but also had strong interests in Japanese and the language department is excellent.

I didn't know umich aerospace program got dinged in these past few years, when I went there, it was #1 in the world!

I almost..almost went aerospace

but when I got the idea that EE has the most difficult curriculum of the entire engineering school where at least 25% of the 1 year fail, I am like damn..I want to be an EE! ...

But the most amazing experience I had at umich was the time I was watching a test run of a hypersonic jet engine (I think it went to mach 6) at the aerospace lab. That was sweet!

Umich has a lot to offer and employers love to come to Michigan to interview, because Michigan students know their stuff, work well in a diverse situation, and not snobby; I think it was ranked as the #1 place to hire for business firms and #2 place for law, outranked only by Harvard.

If having a job before graduation,(almost guaranteed) working for the most impressive company, and doing the most interesting things sounds exciting, I think the OP should really consider Michigan.

 

[skyline889]

Thanks again for the advice guys. I looked into Michigan and it looks like my CR is at the top of the average SAT scores but my Math is at the bottom of the average. The average GPA is also a lot higher than what I have right now, 3.7-4.0 so I'm not really sure I stand a chance of getting in. The campus looks great and it seems like they do indeed have a strong business program, I also wouldn't mind the change in weather though I don't know how well I'd do in sub-freezing temps.

 

[skyline889]

Hi guys, just have a question about SAT scores. I've taken the reasoning test three times now and each time I did better in one subject but worse in another, most schools take the highest from each though right? If this is true my highest will be a 2020 which is decent but not great but if not, my highest score will be my first test, which would be disappointing to say the least (12 hours of my life gone).

BTW here's my list so far, haven't really knocked any off yet:

Realistic:
U. Oregon
Oregon State
Gonzaga
UW
U. Puget Sound
Santa Clara U.
USF
U. Redlands
UOP
Loyola Marymount

Stretch/Dreaming

:
NYU
George Washington U.
U. Mich
Wash U.
Stanford
U.C. Berkeley
USC

 

[no1likesme]

I suggest a small school with no grad programs. That way your professors actually teach the classes. My university has about 3500 students and I absolutely love it. I am on a first name basis with most of the faculty. My freshman year I actually was given extra credit in one of my classes to make fun of one of my other professors in another class.

 

[filipelli]

Quote:

Originally Posted by loveheadphones /img/forum/go_quote.gif When I was looking for schools, I visited OSU (oregon state) and really loved it. Beautiful campus, great people. I think they have rolling admissions, which could be nice. oh yeah, what's with this: "Berk consists mostly of the same type of students: those with medium-high GPA and scores and above- average extracurriculars, no more no less." way to stereotype 30,000 people, bro... your location should probably also read Palo Alto...

HAHA THANK YOU!

Do I need to post my GPA and SAT scores up here to show people how CAL is not that selective?!

 

[skyline889]

A small university would be great but I guess I'm not looking for something really small. What schools would you recommend? The only small no-undergrad school I've been sent stuff from is Westminster and it looks like a great school but I don't know if I'd want to have to transfer schools after two years.