Chance DD at Amherst, Wellesley, Barnard, Georgetown and Emory

Chance Me / Match Me!
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<p>High school junior. 3.88 unweighted GPA. Here are my course selections/grades in core classes:</p>

<p>English 9 (Honors) - A, A
Math 9 (Honors) - A, B
American Govt (Honors) - A
Biology (Honors) -B, A
Spanish - A, A</p>

<p>English 10 - A,A
Math 10 (Honors) - A, B
World History (Honors) - A, A
Chemistry (Honors) - A, B
Spanish II - A, A</p>

<p>AP Language Arts (11) - A
Pre-Calculus (Honors) - A
AP US History (11) - A (AP exam score 3)
AP US Govt (11) - A (first semester only)
Physics (Honors) - A
Spanish III (Honors) - A
AP Comp Govt - upcoming (second semester only)</p>

<p>Planned grade 12
AP Literature
AP Calculus AB
Economics (Honors) (First semester only)
Philosophy (Honors) (Second semester only)
AP Spanish Language
AP Physics B</p>

<p>Class rank: top 4 percent out of 586 (public high school)</p>

<p>Activities:
1. Dance - Grades 1-12 - ballet, tap, jazz, modern, pointe (including Alvin Ailey Summer Dance Intensive 2012); also performed in two ballets (Copellia and Les Sylphides); performed at community events throughout the area;
2. LEAD Summer Business Institute 2014 - Northwestern University
3. Volunteer - Library (200 hours)
4. Youth Church - Grades 4-12 - Community outreach; Angel Tree; Feed the Homeless; performed at church anniversary program
5. Volunteer - High School - Back to School (grades 10, 11)</p>

<p>Here's the draw back - did not study for ANY standardized test and it showed. Retaking ACT and SAT in June along with SAT IIs (Math II, Physics, US History)</p>

<p>SAT 1670 composite
ACT 24 composite</p>

<p>Would love advice on ACT Science.</p>

2

<p>Absolutly zero chance with those test scores.You’re about 500 points away from being competitive.
Your high class rank will only help you so far, since you’re at the top of the class and could only pull a 1670, it will raise a big red-flag that perhaps your HS program is not particulary challenging.</p>

<p>You need to be looking at a totally different class of school.</p>

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<p>Brilliant advice from soze. Not mean or judgmental at all.
Your extracurriculars look nice (dancing for that long is a huge commitment), but you do need to retake the SAT and the ACT if you want to have a shot. Considering it will be your second time taking them, and you (hopefully) will study for them, expect them to increase. How much they increase will be up to you, though.
Other than that I think you should have a decent shot!</p>

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<p>@mollified555: What color is the sky in your world?
She’s 500 points short of being a competitive applicant for the schools she mentioned.
She’s got good grades, uninspiring ECs (all of it seems to be stuff you “just show up for”, don’t see her winning anything significant or showing leadership) and a very low set of test scores (which again, would perhaps indicate that her high GPA is inflated by a non-challenging program).
If you think she’s got a “decent shot” you’re misleading her.
She needs to be realistic and look at a different class of school.</p>

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<p>@soze‌: Can you even see the sky?
clearly you didn’t read her post all the way through.
Her test scores are from one session (one session, mind you, that she explicitly says she didn’t study for). From just plain looking at the rest of her post, one can deduce that if she studies (or just plain pays attention during junior year), her test scores will go up.
As for her “uninspiring ECs” dancing for 12 years is a loooonnggg time. Not to mention that is shows dedication and commitment that colleges will appreciate. Anything that shows long term commitment is good.
Yeah, she’s going for selective colleges. They’re hard to get into. But there is a huge difference between being “realistic” and just plain rude and inflammatory.
IF she brings up her test scores and continues to show the same dedication that she has already proven she has, she has just about the same chance as most everyone else on this website-- roughly 20%. </p>

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<p>I’d just like to add that the fact that her UW GPA is a 3.88 and she’s in the top 4% suggests two things in my mind </p>

<p>Either

  1. Her school is very challenging because a 3.88 is usually 10% ish, at least from what i’ve seen. Meaning that it’s very difficult to get that high of a GPA at her school
  2. Her school may not be as challenging BUT being in the top 4% with a 3.88 suggests that other students aren’t up to par so it makes her stand out compared to less academically inclined peers. </p>

<p>either way, she stands out to the adcoms based on this alone
it’s all about how you interpret the data </p>

<p>AND if her school is easier, it’s some what irrelevant with those high grades and advanced courses since colleges evaluate you in the context of your school, noticing that her school has grade inflation makes the adcom stop and say that the student probably wasn’t taught a lot of the things that are on the ACT but this doesn’t count against the student necessarily since they can’t really control what the school curriculum is like </p>

<p>i do agree that a higher score would be better though. maybe try the SAT? and knowing the rules/layout of the test is half the battle anyway so the second time should actually help a lot. especially since the ACT is all about timing and less about actual content. </p>

<p>Your ECs look solid to me especially if you write about dance in your essays since it’s clearly something you’re passionate about. Try to get a leadership position to be really secure. </p>

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<p>Sorry, parent here of a grad of one of the schools listed. Soze is exactly correct on the score increase…saying that you got a poor score because you didn’t study doesn’t say much for your work ethic. Anybody that knows they are taking TWO standardized tests and doesn’t study an prep for either is not the type of student who any of your schools listed is looking for. Sorry if that sounds harsh but students sometime need a reality check. </p>

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<p>Marilo, the OP did take the SAT. You may need to read the post before giving out false hope.</p>

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<p>i literally just said she needed to retake it. im not giving out false hope. i said exactly what everyone else said…that she needs to raise her score… except that you may be evaluating her in the wrong context. </p>

<p>many students take it without studying for the first time to see where they are at and how to improve so saying that she’s not the type of student that those schools would want just because she didn’t study for the act the first time is completely unfounded if she’s willing to do it again and study </p>

<p>@Tampa2015‌ the take away here is that, in my opinion, you look good with everything else but you NEED to raise those scores. I would say at the VERY minimum you need a 27/28 to be even considered. I got a 30 my first time and i’m still not safe at Barnard. To have a good chance you need a 31 or 32 or above, realistically. But i think if you put in the work, you can do it. I got a 1710 on my first SAT then took the ACT practice and got a 27. After just practicing and learning how to time myself correctly i brought my score up to a 30 without learning any actual new content so i’m proof that raising the score actually has little to do with how smart you are so just do a lot of practice tests and maybe learn the english rules because that’s super easy to improve on (i got a 36 on the english so i know). </p>

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<p>Again, she is light-years away from a competitive score.
Let’s not forget one other thing: all points are not earned or spent equally.</p>

<p>To wit:</p>

<p>She needs to go from a 1670 to approx. 2200 in order to be a competitive applicant for these schools.
If she really, really does well and gets a bit lucky she might get 300 more points (which is a huge improvement). The problem is that those last 200 points are much, much harder to get than the first three hundred and if you’ve been following CC for any length of time you’ll realize how significant those ponts are:</p>

<p>Going from a 1700 to a 2000 is clearly desirable, but doesn’t really “move you up” to a totally different class of school and a 2000 is still well below-the-line for many top schools.</p>

<p>Going from a 2000 to a 2200 is another matter entirely, those 200 points make you a compettive candidate for ANY school.</p>

<p>Her SAT and ACT (taken on two different days) are quite comparable, leading one to believe that her test scores are not outliers, but in fact reflective of her ability. Again she might be able two squeeze out maybe 300 more points, but she <em>still</em> will be well below-the-mark.</p>

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<p>Tampa2015, I think the other posters have already pointed out well enough that your test scores are a weakness. What are you currently doing to get ready for the next round of testing? Also, do you have an idea of what you are wanting to major in? Do you have any other kind of hook, that might mitigate your scores a bit? Do you have a job planned for this summer? </p>

<p>Right now you have some work to do to make your application stronger if you want to have a realistic chance at the schools you list. But you’ve done the work at school with a very rigorous schedule. </p>

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<p>How about looking at test-optional schools like Smith and Mount Holyoke?</p>

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<p>I appreciate the feedback. </p>

<p>When I took the standardized test, two weeks apart, I figured I would get an idea of the format and take both test a second time for a real score. I am retesting in June. I have AP exams ongoing but I have time to focus on the ACT format between the end of class and the retake (June 14, 2015). I was not familiar with the format and ran out of time on all sections. </p>

<p>As for the extracurriculars, dance is a very intensive sport. I dance about thirteen hours every week. I also played volleyball for two years and that took about fifteen hours per week for twelve weeks. In addition to my weekly dance schedule during the school year, I had dance every summer for more than 35 hours per week (for four weeks).</p>

<p>My church youth group projects take up about 20 weekend hours during the school year. As a member of the National Honor Society, we have additional projects. Finally, I have volunteered about 25-30 at the Back to School at my high school. </p>

<p>@soze
Thanks for the information regarding the scores. But I disagree that my extracurricular activities are “show ups.” Over 5,000 students from around the world auditioned for admission to the Alvin Ailey Summer Dance Intensive. Only 250 were accepted, including me. That is a huge recognition. However, I realize only those with knowledge of dance would know that. Many people audition for parts in ballets - most get rejected. I danced in two. That is another huge recognition that only those with dance knowledge would appreciate. Seems you have no appreciation for dance and the sheer discipline it requires. The folks at Barnard, Wellesley, Emory, and Amherst will appreciate the dance commitment. Barnard, Emory and Amherst have dance programs. In the dance world, there are no leadership positions - you are recognized by the programs you get accepted into and the performances. Moreover, most people perform only one or two forms of dance (ballet, pointe, modern) - I perform five. </p>

<p>@staceyneil - I am considering Smith, Mount Holyoke, and Babson College. My current scores will probably get me into all public schools in Florida. So I think I have some safe schools. </p>

<p>I know I bombed my standardized tests. But there was discussion around the school about just taking them to see what they are like. Of course, that was a bad decision and I should have taken the test seriously. But that can only be rectified by my June scores. </p>

<p>Any additional advice?</p>

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<p>That AP exam score of 3 was World History. I take US History next week.</p>

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<p>@Tampa2015‌ like i said before, PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE. take as many practice tests and sections as you can before the test. it really is a speed and accuracy test. know EXACTLY what to expect. and LEARN THE ENGLISH. people spend so much time worrying about their score and feeling like they’re dumb over it but the English part of it is literally a set of like 25 rules that you need to memorize before the test. It takes me 25 out of 45 minutes to do the English section and score perfect or near perfect (35) every time. i urge you, and beg you to take my advice. you will spend so much time trying to improve other sections which is good but improving the English is the surest, easiest and fastest way to improve your score. </p>

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<p>Tampa, my daughter got into Barnard 8 years ago with a 27 ACT. SAT’s in the low 1900’s. Barnard will definitely appreciate the dance, particularly the ballet. (Anyone who considers your ballet creds to be “uninspiring” is a total idiot and should be ignored.). Admissions rates at Barnard are somewhat smaller now than they were when my d. was admitted, but the score ranges haven’t changed. An ACT of 24 for Barnard is low – but 7% of Barnard admits have lower (though the HEOP program might account for many of those – HEOP eligibility actually requires lower scores).</p>

<p>I think your efforts would be best spent focusing on the ACT. If your SAT II scores come out ok, fine – but if not you may want to rely on ACT scores only, since at most schools if you submit ACT w/ writing you don’t have to submit SAT II’s. </p>

<p>Daughter submitted a dance resume to Barnard that listed the various roles she had danced over the years, as well as the names of the dance groups she had performed with. So I would agree that it is valuable to list those – if you had a soloist or principal role in the ballets, you might mention that as well. </p>

<p>Of course you can also consider test-optional schools – I think both Smith & Mt.Holyoke are test optional, and Wesleyan is going test-optional. </p>

<p>One more point: don’t post your scores on “chances” threads at CC. You will get really bad advice as well as abusive and demeaning comments. Go to this web site instead: <a href=“https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/”>https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/&lt;/a&gt; –
you will be able to see score ranges for all colleges, plus get information about the relative weight theygive to scores. Use the scores to help guide you as to whether a school is a reach or a match. </p>

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<p>@calmom
Thank you for the encouragement Calmom. I appreciate the sound advice. </p>

<p>I have been dancing for years and I danced the part of Dawn in Copellia. I am working on my standardized tests scores. I also saw that Wesleyan had gone test-optional. That presents another avenue. I will check out that website. Hope your daughter liked Barnard. </p>

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<p>If you can’t get your test scores up then you need to focus on test optional schools. Try Bowdoin, Wesleyan, etc.</p>

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<p>@‌calmom
I just read about the HEOP (and BOP) programs at Barnard. Thanks for the tip. That’s why I appreciate College Confidential. You rock!</p>

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<p>Yes – if your financial situation would render you eligible for BOP at Barnard --then you would actually want to avoid a CR test score that was too high. (Maximum SAT Reading = 620; maximum ACT English subscore=24). My daughter’s SAT scores actually would have qualified --though I don’t know if we were poor enough to qualify on the financial end – but her English score on the ACT was much higher, around 30. The reason that her ACT composite was lower was due to weaker science and math scores. </p>

<p>I am NOT suggesting that you deliberately avoid scoring higher, however – I think you are much better off to do try to do the very best you can when you retake the tests, but simply keep the BOP program in mind as a fallback if you can’'t seem to manage a significantly improved scores. </p>

<p>I think you should definitely plan on submitting an arts supplement to colleges. My daughter shared a very short video (less than 3 minutes) of some of her choreography. (I remember we worked to make it shot enough so that there was a chance that an admissions staffer would actually have the time to watch it. I’d note that my daughter had no intention of majoring in dance in college —but it is very clear to me that Barnard really values it dancers. They have a strong dance program with instruction in ballet and modern dance on many levels, beginner to advanced - and I think the dance instructors appreciate having good students in their intermediate and advanced classes. </p>

<p>I think that these days Barnard is a reach for anyone – but a strong dance background, particularly in ballet, is a definite plus factor that will help boost your chances there. </p>