How to get into top NE libarts colleges? midd,bates,colby,bowdoin... i'll have a b+/a- gpa by senior year?

Question

Junior, getting ready for visits and everything. Just curious how I can be competetive at good schools if I'm not a you know 4.0 student like a lot of ppl. I go to a small private school that is very hard. I think I'm going to have good recs, I'm involved in playing music w/diff groups two nights a week. I'll be alpine captain as a senior. I work in a children's center at a ski area during the winter, waitress during the summer. Community service at art openings.....etc..... Any tips, I'm a good writer and was chosen by my school to apply for the young writer's writing conference at bread loaf. Not too worried about interviews, I can normally hold my own with adults b/c i'm around them a lot.....
Any advice is definitely appreciated=)

Answer 1

Ace your SATs, get great letters of reference from your teachers, write a literate and interesting application statement, and you should be fine.

In my opinion, in your case, the SATs will be critical.

Answer 2

It sounds to me like you'll have a pretty good chance. If you're a woman then you might also want to try some of the women's colleges.

You said you waitress during the summers, any chance of getting some work experience that's more connected to an academic interest?

Also, you may want to look into specific programs at the various schools and if you find ones that you find especially appealing then you might want to mention those in your application essay to show that you are serious about an interest in that specific school.

These are just some ideas, I have never been on a college admissions committee so I have no for-sure suggestions.

Oh, regarding the rigor of your school, I suspect these schools will be familiar with it so that shouldn't count against you regarding the possibly lower gates (compared to what you may have gotten at a less rigorous school).

Answer 3

I also recommend looking into women's colleges. Smith is well-known for producing sucessful writers - Sylvia Plath, Jane Yolan, Madeline L'Engle, Mary Mitchell, etc. I think you'd have a good chance of getting into Smith.