The primary criteria in D17's search are affordability and strength of academic programs. Beyond that, her biggerst concern is best summed up as: "If you are the smartest person in the room, you are in the wrong room". She wants to be in the right room. She does not want to be the big fish. She wants to learn from, and be inspired by, the bigger fish.
We know there are very, very smart people at every school. But she would like a place where it is easy to find a community of very smart people.
We believe she would thrive in an environment like University of Chicago. But schools in that tier are beyond our budget. We are looking for full-tuition scholarships.
Which type of school would be a better fit?
* A smaller university with fairly high ACT range (for example, Tulane)
* A larger university with a strong Honors College (for example, U of Alabama)
Stats: 34 ACT, 3.9 unweighted GPA, 4.5 weighted GPA, class rank 1 of 600, likely NMF. EFC 34K, can actually afford 20K.
Other background: She will likely major in Math. She is also interested in Physics, Astronomy, and Economics. She likes schools with a lot of rah-rah spirit, and with things going on all the time. She does not want a rural college. She does not plan to join a sorority. Schools with religious affiliation are not a good fit.
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