Click here to go to the NEW College Discussion Forum

Hey! I just finished my junior year and I'm trying to figure out where to apply to college this fall. What do you think my chances are at Reed? Any other college recommendations? Thanks!

Entering senior at a top 10 public high school in California
GPA: 3.5 UW/ 3.65 W (upward trend with the most challenging curriculum- definitely low for Reed, though)
SATII Writing: 800
SATII Literature: 690
I'm taking the SATI in October after I do test prep this summer- will probably be around 1400, but I'm not sure
By the end of senior year, I will have taken 8 APs and 1 honors class (AP Music Theory, AP Psych, AP Euro, AP US History, Hon. English, AP English, AP Gov/Econ, AP Stats, AP Calc AB)
I'm probably going to major in Classics and either English, History, or Poli Sci
I got 4's on the AP US and AP Psych tests

-Member of Junior Statesmen of America- 3 yrs
-Mock Trial- 2 years
-Vice President of Philosophy Club
-Staff writer on school newspaper
-Member of Amnesty International- 3 yrs
-Member of History Club
-Member of the school district's Diversity Committee, which works to combat such issues as homophobia in the school environment
-I'm starting a book club and a Democratic club next year, both of which I'll obviously be president of
-Member/Volunteer at Feminist Majority Foundation
-Volunteer/Organizer for John Kerry for President/ Kerry Campaign Writers Bureau/ Students for Kerry (about 15 hours a week)
-Participated in National Youth Leadership Forum for Law in Washington DC this spring
-Won the underclassman award at my school 2 years in a row, once for English, once for Precalculus (each teacher picks one student from years frosh-junior to give an award to for academic excellence)
- Won the California Governor's Scholars Award for high STAR test scores
- National Merit Commended Scholar
- I'm in the Gifted and Talented Education Program (GATE) at my school
-Took classes at UC Berkeley every summer I've been in high school (got straight A's in them)
-Taking classes at local community college as well
-During budget cuts, I led a letter-writing campaign among the students to protect the teachers and programs that had been put in jeopardy
-Wrote a novel (unpublished) and 2 plays, one of which was performed at UC Berkeley
-I don't know if this will factor in at all in assessing my grades, but my mom has been unemployed for a year, on top of which there was a death in the family, the combination of which made for a stressful junior year to say the least. :-( However, my grades have definitely rebounded significantly.
-I'm a very strong writer and will be able to get great recommendations

If someone could let me know what you think my chances are, that would be great!! By the way, I'm also looking at Haverford, Brown, Mt. Holyoke, Vassar, Bard, and Trinity (CT), but I don't know if I'm on the right track with those schools...

Also, does anyone know what Reed's financial aid is like? Thanks!!

By Emeraldkity4 (Emeraldkity4) on Saturday, August 07, 2004 - 06:06 pm: Edit

Our experience with Reed financial aid was that they met EFC and bulk of aid was grants.
Some students have also recieved merit award after they began Reed, but my daughter hasn't qualified for any of those.
I think your grades and stats look very good particulary if you are a strong writer.
Be sure and visit if you can, the feel of Reed turns somepeople off.

By Leftyleftist (Leftyleftist) on Monday, August 09, 2004 - 12:12 am: Edit

That is sooooo comforting to hear that Reed seems to have good financial aid (although I think it's safe to say that I probably wouldn't qualify for any sort of merit aid that they offer).

I actually have visited Reed once about 2 years ago, though I wasn't seriously looking at colleges at that point. I went to Portland to see Springsteen on the Rising tour, spent about 6 hours in Powells (best bookstore ever!), and then we decided to check out the college while we were relatively close by. It seems like a really beautiful campus with a real progressive feel to it (and I just love Portland!).

I know that I'll be able to submit really excellent writing- it's my forte- and my personality seems to fit well with Reed (independent, intellectually curious, passionate, politically active for the left), but do you think that my GPA is going to weigh me down too much in the admissions process?

By Emeraldkity4 (Emeraldkity4) on Monday, August 09, 2004 - 01:20 am: Edit

your stats are above my daughters, however she applied for 2001 -2002 and the #s of applications as well as #'s for people who decide to attend is up.
However my sense is that real interest in Reed as a first choice is a plus. It has been frankly second choice for some students looking at Brown, Columbia and other top name schools, if you can convey that you are interested in Reed for itself, especially if you are able to visit, talk to students and profs and maybe a alum interview, I think they would be happy to enroll you.
Students are backing off from having USNEWS determine where they apply, but as you have probably seen on these boards "name" is still a big deal to many.
( If you like Powells try Powells on Hawthorne a short hop from Reed and not as overwhelming as big store. My favorite Portlandy hangout is the nickel arcade, makes me feel like I am 14 again!)
http://web.pdx.edu/~nac/pdxdirtcheap/

By Leftyleftist (Leftyleftist) on Monday, August 09, 2004 - 01:48 am: Edit

I'm definitely going to at least get an alum interview, although I'm hoping that if we can get enough money together, we might be able to drive up to Portland and do an on-campus interview/campus tour. I'm not going to get my hopes up though- the economy is horrible right now, particularly here in the SF Bay Area...

Is your daughter liking Reed? My favorite thing about the school, other than the intimacy of it, of course, is the humanities core class, and I thought that I'd talk about that it the "why reed" essay, since that is also really specific to Reed, rather than generalizable to Brown or Vassar. It just gives me comfort that there are still schools out there that want to educate students in the Greek and Roman humanities! Then again, I literally just ended Greek and Philosophy summer classes, and I intend to major in classics, so I admit I'm rather biased. :-) I'm pretty sure that I'd love Reed, and I love the first year curriculum enough that I can actually see myself applying to Reed ED, basking in the glory of the humanities class, and if I like it through the end of the first year, I'll stay, and if not, I can transfer elsewhere with a solid education in Greek and Roman civilization...

I did go to Powell's on Hawthorne. I liked it as well, but there's something so magical about being in the main one on Burnside because it is so overwhelming and filled with so many books that I'm in love with. I want to live there! Maybe I could work there if I went to Reed- that would be dangerous... If I make it up to Portland anytime soon (whether for an interview or as an incoming freshman), I'll be sure to check out the nickel arcade! :-)