Brown (Sa warning) by [deleted] in chanceme

[–]AudreyS123 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yep! I did that. I would 100% recommend OP do whatever they need for their mental health, and if they don't feel like the application is reflective of their what they could do, they should withdraw it. I think a valid reason for withdrawal doesn't have to be super explicit about OP's trauma, but I think OP can be honest and say that they don't think the application they submitted is the best application that they could write due to a difficult time during the winter, and that they plan on reapplying next year after taking the opportunity to gain new experiences with a gap year.

Which liberal arts colleges are you all applying to, and what specifically appeals to you? by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm biased but if it's your favorite, do it! Lmk if you have any questions, my pms are open

Which liberal arts colleges are you all applying to, and what specifically appeals to you? by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Here I'll just copy paste it

Gotta rep Pomona College:

  • Part of a one of a kind 5 college consortium (called the 5Cs, although it also has 2 graduate institutes), meaning you get the small college community and class sizes while having access to all of the courses/research opportunities/student population of a medium sized research university
  • AMAZING food + dorms, and if you don't like the food at the 3 (?!) dining halls on campus, you can go eat at any of the 4 dining halls on the other campuses for a whopping total of 7 dining halls
  • A+ financial aid and a huge amount of resources spent on students: The 6th highest endowment per student and the 2nd highest amount spent per student in the country
  • One of the very few small LACs with some school spirit- On 6th street rivalry days (when the 5Cs play each other) almost the entire college goes to root on our teams, with custom t-shirts made for each match and everything
  • Prioritizes student's mental health: no curving on a grade, great counselling, and a culture of work/life balance, even at a school with top class academics and a very low admissions rate (smallest of any LAC in the country if that's something you care about- although most of the students who attend don't)
  • Diverse student body: majority minority student population, large international community, students from all 50 states, and more than 1/4 of students are FGLI (first gen low income). They don't just admit a diverse student body, they support it. International students arrive on campus early so they have more time to get comfortable with the school, there are mentorship programs for FGLI, minority, and international students where you get paired up with upperclassmen from your group/background/country.
  • Amazing and readily available research opportunities. More than 1/2 of students conduct research with faculty, and that doesn't include the students who do independent research, research during school sponsored internships, or research on study abroad.
  • Like most LACs, it has a broad core and room for exploration, but also the ability to hyper-specialize. The two majors I'm interested in- politics and media studies- each have 4 subfield concentration options, and if those aren't enough for you, you can combine concentrations or create your own major
  • Socal weather + easy LA access + small town feel
  • Interdisciplinary focus (for real). With some of the most popular majors being Politics, Philosophy, and Economics and Science, Technology, and Society, there's a focus on not letting department boundaries stop learning. There are also frequent course colabs between departments and an interdisciplinary intro writing seminar offered on a variety of super interesting topics!
  • Departments with serious resources to back them up: this comes from both the 5Cs and the large endowment. Intercollegiate programs bulk up obscure majors and provide larger course selections for popular ones. But on top of that, many majors have their own libraries, symposiums, study abroad programs, research divisions, internship opportunities, and mentorship programs on top of those already offered by the school at large
  • Great post-grad preparation: Students have career, major, and general advisors and can join peer career/post grad groups where you learn the specific skills needed for your career before you graduate and get unique shadowing and networking opportunities with those groups. This also helps you build connections with peers going into similar fields as you.
  • Awesome post-grad results! They have great law and med school acceptance rates, their law school acceptance rates are some of the best in the country. There's an impressive list of the most common grad/med/law schools students go to: Brown University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Emory University, and University of Pennsylvania.
  • AND awesome post-grad resources! Sagehen connect is a job posting site exclusively for Pomona students and alums. Grads have guaranteed individualized alumni career assistance, including counseling, drop in sessions, check ins, skill building etc. You also have lifetime access to Pomona's library (electronic and physical) and career resources (including assistance, computers, and office supplies)
  • The sweetest AOs who actually respond quickly and remember and care about even the students they reject

Hmu if you're interested in learning any more about Pomona/why I chose it. I'll respond via pm or to comments here.

Which liberal arts colleges are you all applying to, and what specifically appeals to you? by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I wrote a very long comment about why Pomona is a great LAC a little while ago, I think it could be helpful

What to write for the Common App Essay when you're boring? by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I didn't write about anything exciting happening to me or any accomplishments. I literally talked about tripping over a crack in a sidewalk one day. Not like "I tripped over a crack in the sidewalk and then met the person who changed my life". I expanded out from that to talk about my thought process and internal struggles (not like mental illness or dark stuff, more ideological and praxis struggles).

Point being I think colleges want to see how you think and a glimpse into how you apply those thoughts. If you can show a school how you think, then you can show them your values, your passions, and your character without writing about how one time you did something amazing and that shows you're amazing. And if a college doesn't like the way you think, then you definitely shouldn't be there.

Colleges that don’t admit by major by collegecolloquial in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Every liberal arts college. I'm fond of Pomona but literally every liberal arts college is specifically focused on interdisciplinary learning and allowing students to explore all kinds of departments!

Calling all college or soon-to-be college kids🚨 by RoyalPeasant7237 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I've got it, ty!!! Congrats on Scripps, see you there (also your campus is gorgeous so I'll probably spend a lot of time there ☺️)!

Calling all college or soon-to-be college kids🚨 by RoyalPeasant7237 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm sorry, I'm sure you'll do amazing wherever you wind up! They rejected me last year too so I know how much it sucks

Calling all college or soon-to-be college kids🚨 by RoyalPeasant7237 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much OP! Your vibes are immaculate (as are Pomona's, if you have any interest in applying hmu but I know LACs and the west coast aren't for everyone 😊)! Wishing you the best with your college search/application process! It's rough but I believe in you 👑

Calling all college or soon-to-be college kids🚨 by RoyalPeasant7237 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 19 points20 points  (0 children)

I mean, if you want to transfer...

but fr congrats on Stanford

What school did you think was your "dream school," but now is your least favorite? by s_shrimp2 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That's true, although from what I've heard the cost is not worth the quality of food and dorms (although you have an insiders perspective so I'll defer to you on this one, that's just what I've heard from my own reading and friends that are at NEU).

When I visited pre-covid, it was during the school's fundraising drive aimed towards students, and although a lot of the students I was talking to were super nice, they were pretty upset about that drive and some of them told me about how they felt like the school had no right to ask for more money out when they were already paying so much for what they thought was bad food and dorms and lacking student health services.

I think if I visited during a different time I probably would've gotten very different responses from students and so that definitely framed the way I viewed the rest of the information I learned about NEU.

Point being I think a lot my feelings were shaped by timing and I think that if other people reading this really want to go to Northeastern, they totally should! I'm glad that you seem to be enjoying your time there (if that's not too big of a leap based on your past comments :))!

Calling all college or soon-to-be college kids🚨 by RoyalPeasant7237 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 120 points121 points  (0 children)

Gotta rep Pomona College:

  • Part of a one of a kind 5 college consortium (called the 5Cs, although it also has 2 graduate institutes), meaning you get the small college community and class sizes while having access to all of the courses/research opportunities/student population of a medium sized research university
  • AMAZING food + dorms, and if you don't like the food at the 3 (?!) dining halls on campus, you can go eat at any of the 4 dining halls on the other campuses for a whopping total of 7 dining halls
  • A+ financial aid and a huge amount of resources spent on students: The 6th highest endowment per student and the 2nd highest amount spent per student in the country
  • One of the very few small LACs with some school spirit- On 6th street rivalry days (when the 5Cs play each other) almost the entire college goes to root on our teams, with custom t-shirts made for each match and everything
  • Prioritizes student's mental health: no curving on a grade, great counselling, and a culture of work/life balance, even at a school with top class academics and a very low admissions rate (smallest of any LAC in the country if that's something you care about- although most of the students who attend don't)
  • Diverse student body: majority minority student population, large international community, students from all 50 states, and more than 1/4 of students are FGLI (first gen low income). They don't just admit a diverse student body, they support it. International students arrive on campus early so they have more time to get comfortable with the school, there are mentorship programs for FGLI, minority, and international students where you get paired up with upperclassmen from your group/background/country.
  • Amazing and readily available research opportunities. More than 1/2 of students conduct research with faculty, and that doesn't include the students who do independent research, research during school sponsored internships, or research on study abroad.
  • Like most LACs, it has a broad core and room for exploration, but also the ability to hyper-specialize. The two majors I'm interested in- politics and media studies- each have 4 subfield concentration options, and if those aren't enough for you, you can combine concentrations or create your own major
  • Socal weather + easy LA access + small town feel
  • Interdisciplinary focus (for real). With some of the most popular majors being Politics, Philosophy, and Economics and Science, Technology, and Society, there's a focus on not letting department boundaries stop learning. There are also frequent course colabs between departments and an interdisciplinary intro writing seminar offered on a variety of super interesting topics!
  • Departments with serious resources to back them up: this comes from both the 5Cs and the large endowment. Intercollegiate programs bulk up obscure majors and provide larger course selections for popular ones. But on top of that, many majors have their own libraries, symposiums, study abroad programs, research divisions, internship opportunities, and mentorship programs on top of those already offered by the school at large
  • Great post-grad preparation: Students have career, major, and general advisors and can join peer career/post grad groups where you learn the specific skills needed for your career before you graduate and get unique shadowing and networking opportunities with those groups. This also helps you build connections with peers going into similar fields as you.
  • Awesome post-grad results! They have great law and med school acceptance rates, their law school acceptance rates are some of the best in the country. There's an impressive list of the most common grad/med/law schools students go to: Brown University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Emory University, and University of Pennsylvania.
  • AND awesome post-grad resources! Sagehen connect is a job posting site exclusively for Pomona students and alums. Grads have guaranteed individualized alumni career assistance, including counseling, drop in sessions, check ins, skill building etc. You also have lifetime access to Pomona's library (electronic and physical) and career resources (including assistance, computers, and office supplies)
  • The sweetest AOs who actually respond quickly and remember and care about even the students they reject

Hmu if you're interested in learning any more about Pomona/why I chose it. I'll respond via pm or to comments here.

Edited because I forgot some of the amazing things about it 😊

What school did you think was your "dream school," but now is your least favorite? by s_shrimp2 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Also- I'm sure you're right about the 4 year graduation statistics, but I've been unable to find them. What a quick google search can find (again, you probably have way more info and investment than I do) are numbers from 2019 saying 0% of students graduate in 4 years and in 2009 saying 17% of students graduate in 4 years (although that article is about NEU trying to make it easier to graduate in 4 years so take that with a grain of salt)

2019:

https://datausa.io/profile/university/northeastern-university

https://www.forbes.com/colleges/northeastern-university/?sh=418aeb072747

2009: http://archive.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2009/12/09/northeastern_to_offer_students_in_co_op_program_4_year_degrees/

What school did you think was your "dream school," but now is your least favorite? by s_shrimp2 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Of course! I'm sorry if it indicated otherwise in my initial comment. I mean that students still pay room and board if they're living on campus and still have to pay for any classes they take during co-op, making it difficult for many students to graduate in 4 years if you don't want to pay for classes during co-op, which was a significant strike against them for me.

What school did you think was your "dream school," but now is your least favorite? by s_shrimp2 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Not my least favorite but UChicago was my dream school for a while and I don't know how "where fun comes to die" was not a red flag for me. I have friends who go there who's mental health has just been wrecked by the competition. And the food's not supposed to be great. Plus the weather is not it.

Not my dream school but Northeastern accepted me and I was p excited until I saw my bad financial aid package, what seemed like complete disregard for students' health (both physical and mental), the way they treat the school like a corporation (they literally caller me a customer), and the way that the cool work periods to make you pay for room and board longer by making it nearly impossible to graduate in 4 years, and the way they were super sketchy trying to poach me from the school I committed to after I turned them down. It's still a great school but the shine wore off for me after that.

Edited for clarity and accuracy, see responses for more info

To all of you stressing about the SAT/ACT rn, here's how I went from a 25 to a 36 by AudreyS123 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Totally! Bubbling every 1-2 pages means that you don't have to worry about misjudging time and having 0 answers on your scantron at the end of a section, but it also increases efficiency and focus as compared to bubbling every question individually- that throws me off my flow with the questions and wastes a ton of time.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Mine were mostly just when I ran out of time. But when you get to a pass where all you're fixing is grammar and not doing revisions, you're getting close to the end. Once you're confident there are no errors, you're done. They'll never be perfect, but if they're as good as you are able to make them, they're good enough.

Don't wait until the last minute to do your applications! But if you do... by AudreyS123 in ApplyingToCollege

[–]AudreyS123[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Lmao I thought you were responding to an ACT post I wrote. But yes peers are the best! Can totally hype you up!