narrowing down my college list
I'm currently a high school junior and I have 17 schools on my list right now. I've toured 4 of them and loved every single one. I'm planning to tour the other 13 this summer/fall. My counselor says that 15 should be the maximum number of schools I apply to, and I assume my list will get shorter as I tour the rest of the schools, but my gpa is not so great (I have a 3.6 as of right now) and I only have 3-4 schools that I'm almost sure I'll get into but I'm worried I won't have many good options for college. Should I prioritize boosting my gpa and doing well on the sat and my ap tests or should I prioritize only applying to places that are realistic based on my gpa right now?
It depends. If your 3.6 GPA is unweighted, that's actually a really good GPA. If it's weighted, it's still good. I would say don't spend so much time applying to so many colleges. If you're doubting which ones you'll get into, I'd say apply to the ones you're sure you'll get into and then 2-3 more.
And yes, definitely work on improving your GPA and getting good test scores. It's never too late to improve.
Now if it's the competitive schools that you're wanting to get into, I guess you could apply for more of those. While college is a big decision, don't get too worried about it.
My recommendation would be to continue improving your grades further. They are already good yet increasing further will only help. :-)
I’d also recommend adding schools with greater acceptance rates so you have a few more safeties. The pandemic caused some oddities in college admissions, so I think it’s better to cast a wider net with schools that are safeties.
You have good grades and will get in somewhere you like. Congrats on what you have accomplished so far!
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