But, I probably won't have time to write hundreds of admission essays, or the money to send in my application to all these colleges.
A lot of schools use the Common Application, which allows you to apply to many schools with only a little extra work per-school.
Lastly, as my objective is to gain admission somewhere, should I only apply to colleges with acceptance rates above a certain percentage? What should that percentage be?
The traditional way American high school students handle this is by applying to a range of schools from ones that they would be very lucky to get into to ones they are certain to get into. Note that acceptance rates are deceptive because certain school receive far more applications than other, approximately as good schools (i.e. Harvard receives tons of applications from people who haven't a chance of getting in whereas, say, less well know schools may have admission standards almost as rigorous but receive fewer applications from people who definitely won't get in). Information about expected GPAs and test scores for admission to each school is out there, either as part of the school's website or in college admission guides which you can purchase. It might also be googleable.
You definitely don't want to only apply to schools with high acceptance rates, on average they are less prestigious and prestige will help you with employment (on the other hand, they're also more likely to give you a free ride). So apply to schools with a range of acceptance rates.
So how should I narrow down my list even further, given that I don't care about other stuff, such as campus size or location?
You should at least consider what the student body will be like. Presumably you want peers with similar interests/intelligence? Easy to travel to and from if you'll be going home? Maybe find out if there are Less Wrong meetups near by? Campus size matters quite a bit-- smaller schools will give you more personal attention, you'll know a larger percentage of people there and you'll feel less anonymous. Larger schools usually have more options, a higher likelihood of finding people with things in common, better facilities etc.
A lot of schools have required courses, you might want to look into what those are for the places you apply. Are you from outside the states? Some schools will have more diverse student bodies than others and many have an international focus-- you might feel more at home there. Do you have any other interests or hobbies?
You definitely don't want to only apply to schools with high acceptance rates, on average they are less prestigious and prestige will help you with employment
If I recall correctly from when I was applying, Oxford has a 25% acceptance rate. There's massive self-selection by students.
Since this fall I will be applying to college in the USA, I have compiled a hefty list of colleges based on the following criteria:
-4-year school;
-co-ed or all men;
-Biology major;
-"full-ride" financial aid available.
The problem's that I have quite a lot of choices, hundreds, as a matter of fact. So how should I narrow down my list even further, given that I don't care about other stuff, such as campus size or location?
Moreover, to how many colleges should I apply? As far as I know, mpst people apply to 6-9 colleges, but some even apply to 20! I guess that by applying to as many colleges possible, my chances of admission go up. But, I probably won't have time to write hundreds of admission essays, or the money to send in my application to all these colleges.
Lastly, as my objective is to gain admission somewhere, should I only apply to colleges with acceptance rates above a certain percentage? What should that percentage be?
If anyone would like to take this in private, I'd be more than happy to receive some advice from any member of the community!