thanks for the great discussion guys!
I think I'll stick to my original plans.
Stanford R1 - Just because Stanford is super tough and I need every advantage I can get (and not as many IB feeder companies send people to this one, as they're more GM and away from the other coast =P)
Berkeley R1 - Again, to increase my chances. Even if I get waitlisted (which I heard the waitlisters have a 50% chance of getting in), I will probably be one of the first to be re-considered when R2 apps go in and they can compare me with that class)
UCLA R1 - the whole rolling decisions thing. And I heard they can give out decisions as early as mid-December (from Admissions 411.com). That's a nice "Xmas Gift" to have from a good school!
Chicago and/or Kellogg - R2. Because it doesn't really matter and I simply do not have the time to do 5 apps in R1 all by mid-October (let alone the expressions my recommenders will have when I tell them that I'm applying to 5 schools!) I'll save it for the holiday season to work on Chicago and Kellogg essays. Maybe I'll put an animated Xmas tree in my Chicago powerpoints (don't go and copy that idea now!
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I think those will be the 4 or 5 I apply to unless a huge revelation occurs. I will be talking to an NYU grad, but from what I heard, she had a hard time getting placements on the West coast, which is where I want to end up eventually. So that may be out.