3.8 uw + Ivies, Duke = any possibility?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Hey guys, so I’ve been under a lot of stress because I have come to realize (after 2 rejections + a WL) that my 3.8 GPA is not very competitive at all.

I was just wondering if I should continue to hope on the possibility that I might get into schools like UPenn/Duke/Cornell, or if I should give up and start deciding between the two state schools that already accepted me?

Here’s the list of schools I applied to and haven’t heard back from yet: Harvard, Princeton (deferred EA), Dartmouth, Cornell, UPenn, Duke, Georgetown, and Columbia

School: Competitive, semi-intense high school

Objective:

ACT (breakdown): 35 Composite: 36E, 36R, 35M, 35S + 9 Writing
SAT II: U.S. History (790), Math II (760)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.85, 4.129 (w) [Although with my Mid-Year Report, my GPA went down to a 3.8 (uw) and a 4.102 (w)]
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
AP (place score in parenthesis): 6 5’s (APUSH, Microeconomics, Macroeconomics, CompGov, US Lang, U.S. Government), 4 4’s (Calculus AB, US Lit, European History, Statistics).
Senior Year Course Load: AP Physics C: Mechanics, AP Computer Science A, AP Literature, Online Gym, Student Prep, AP French, AP Calc BC, AP Human Geography

Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Commended, National AP Scholar

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
→ Model UN: Leadership Team- help run one of the largest student-run MUN conferences in the state w/ 400+ students, Position Paper awards at numerous local conferences, Honorable Mention at national-level conference
->Debate: Public Forum, obtained one bid to the TOC + made it to the double-octafinals at a nationally-ranked debate tournament + was competitive in regional tournaments
->Tennis: played 3rd doubles/extra singles, team placed 3rd (2016) and 1st (2017), other awards
→ Internship: Interning on a Advisory Board at my City, they make direct recommendations to City Hall on Transportation Issues
Job/Work Experience:
->Taught tennis throughout the summer (2016 + 2017)
Volunteer/Community service:
→ Participated in tutoring, was part of group’s Leadership Team (was part of the Treasury), Community Service Letter
→ Helped at assortment of places (ex: Senior Center)
Summer Activities:
->Tennis
->Model UN preparation for student-led conference

->Read in my spare time

Essays (rating 1-10, details):
->Common App: 9/10

->Supplementals: 8/10

Applied for Financial Aid?:
→ No.
Intended Major:
→ Political Science
State (if domestic applicant):
→ Midwest
School Type:
→ Public
Ethnicity:
→ Chinese/Asian
Gender:
→ Female
Income Bracket:
→ 100k+
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

-> Nope.

Strengths:
→ Test Scores
→ EC’s (kind of)

Weaknesses:
→ Grades: I had strong grades until 1st semester junior year [6 AP’s]. I got a B, 2 B+'s, 2 A-'s and an A. I was able to turn it around and get all A’s in second semester, but then I did poorly again in senior year [6 AP’s- 3 B’s and 2 A’s and one A-]. All of my B’s were in AP classes, so I was hoping that would soften the blow a bit, but I’m not sure.

2

I’ve said this in other threads but you won’t know until decision day.

To be honest with you, your application doesn’t really stick out, considering you’re an asian with no hooks. The stats you have listed are basically what most every other asian has.

BUT

Don’t lose hope. Common App essays are true life-savers. If you think you’ve written essays that resonate, you may as well get into the school that you want. This whole process is based on luck; if a college sees something in you that another doesn’t, you can get in to one while being waitlisted or rejected by another. It’s all a crapshoot. As long as you have the fundamentals (which you do), you should have some chance of getting in. Best of luck :slight_smile:

3

@Lowkeymeow Thank you so much, seriously :slight_smile: Thanks for being honest with me- I’m just so happy to hear that I at least have the fundamentals so that I can still have a little bit of hope :slight_smile:
And haha you made me laugh with the pretty much like all asians part xD I used to think I had some originality with tennis, but then some digging around made me realize tennis was an asian activity too haha

4

You are a competitive applicant for all of these schools. Your stats and ECs are great. A 3.8 UW GPA will not make you an automatic reject. If you’re in the top 10% of your class, than that’s fine. With amazing essays you could get accepted to any of these schools

5

@doorrealthe Thank you so much :slight_smile: It is so relieving to hear that- I think I’m going to put off just focusing on the state schools now until I hear back on the 28th :slight_smile: I just have a quick question: I don’t think my school does rankings, so will that affect how colleges see my 3.8?

6

They’ll compare it to other applicants from your school. Also, I’m pretty sure high school guidance counselors submit information regarding the difficulty of your course load. If you took hard courses, a 3.8 is fine.

7

Reaches are reaches and GPA 3.85 is below their admission average. Check the Naviance data at your school and get some hints on the GPA for admission. There are hopes until the rejection notice, but do not count on it. Start looking at those offered you admission now so you may be able to make a quick decision and act fast when you need to. Don’t wait for the last minute as some may require additional application for honors or housing. Orientation registration may be open before the May 1 decision date too.

8

@doorrealthe I see, thank you! That makes sense!

@billcsho What you say is true- I have checked the Naviance data, and I am a bit low- however, I try to reassure myself as usually there are one or two people with my same ACT that have lower GPA’s and still were accepted to the schools I am looking at. I will still take your advice into account, though- thanks :slight_smile:

9

If there are only one or two students from your school admitted with similar or lower stat than you, the chance are they have legacy or are recruited. Only if your stat is among or higher than the average of the naviance data that would be encouraging. So don’t be too optimistic.

10

@billcsho That’s true… also considering my demographics, I should be in the average/higher than average range for GPAs and test scores. :confused: Well, I guess we will see on the 28th. I will make sure that I have everything covered for my state schools in the next couple of days, thanks again for your advice (albeit a bit disappointed- but grateful).

11

I think your stats are fine if I’m being honest, thoguhnyoure gpa may be lower if you took difficult classses than you should be fine. Though many of GE schools younapplied to are so difficult and poeple wjith perfect stats get denied to, so I don’t think you should put that on your gpa (mine is also very similar).

12

@User1555 That’s true, but then again to be honest but I feel like a lot of kids who apply are able to do well in multiple AP classes and get a better GPA. I just don’t know- I used to tell myself that “it’s ok, I’ll balance myself with amazing extracurriculars” but I"m realizing that in order to balance a low GPA, I’d have to be close to a national champion in debate or something smilar to get in haha. Plus I have 0 hooks as well… I don’t know haha I just am mad at myself because I kind of told myself that “People with perfect 4.0’s and 36’s don’t get in” but now I realize that, to paraphrase another commenter, “I could live without wearing a seatbelt, but do I want to take that chance?”.

Haha I guess at this point I’m writing this more for a junior/sophomore wondering what they need to do in order to go to a college of their dreams: never sacrifice grades for extracurriculars. Ever. You don’t have to kill yourself to get a 4.0, but at least have above a 3.9 or a 3.95 if you want to maximize your chances for acceptances and also for merit scholarships. Of course, there is the off chance that you could get in with a 3.85, but again, do you want to take the chance (esp. if you are an unhooked applicant like me!)

But thank you @User1555 for trying to cheer me up haha :slight_smile: sorry for being so negative but this is the conclusion I’ve come to.

13

No you’re fine, I’ve come to an opposite- ish conclusion. My extra curricular are pretty good (just being real) I’m a national champion and state champion for mock trial and moot court and I have leadership positions in clubs am I passionate about, I have taken a rigorous course load of 10 AL classes but my gpa is a 3.89 so “lower” I guess. I think that extra curriculars are what distinguish a person and they more so than grades make you stand out. Though it’s clearly important to maintain solid grades.

14

Given my “realistic” schools were too 40 and not necessarily Harvard, Yale, Columbia though I still applied. And I guess the most “prestigious” school I’ve gotten into has been Notre Dame with an invitation to honors so I think a lot of things are relative.

15

@User1555 That’s amazing :0 congratulations on your hard work and achievements- gosh, that is so cool! Of course, I think that you would definitely have a very good shot at pretty much 99% of schools with your extracurriculars! (in my humble opinion of course haha :stuck_out_tongue: )

And a 3.89? Haha I would say that’s an amazing GPA for the amount of AP classes you’ve taken! (plus in my opinion, a 3.89 is basically the same as a 3.9 which I believe is the average UW GPA for some Ivies)

I do agree- both grades and extracurriculars are vital to an application.

Notre Dame- that’s great :slight_smile: congrats on getting in with honors as well! That’s impressive!

It’s true that admissions really depend on the applicant’s background as well- however, I do think that even if they might have something that does complicate their life, they should still tell themselves that they need to reach as high as they can. Sorry, I know that you aren’t saying that, but I just wanted to emphasize that to anyone who might be reading this and are still in high school.

I wish the best for you in all of your college applications! Let me know how it goes :slight_smile: Still can’t get over the fact that you’re a national champion for mock trial! So amazing!

16

Just curious why your ACT Composite is a 35? I would think that a 35, 35, 36, and 36 would average to a 35.5, which would be rounded up to a 36 composite.

17

@mjrube94 My bad, sorry I just noticed that mistake! I got a 34 on Science, not a 35! Thanks for letting me know! :slight_smile:

18

These schools interview applicants. At this point, if you haven’t gotten a call for an interview, you can pretty much bet it’s a rejection.

19

Just wait and see. Yes, get used to one of your other choices. But your scores are fine. It’s too hard to say if one of those schools might find your app “interesting” ( in quotes bc I can’t say what is interesting for each, and likely each is different)!

It’s almost over. Just wait. If you get WL, remember you need to commit elsewhere by May 1. If you get off the WL later you can always withdraw.

20

@coolguy40 Haha sorry I didn’t write it down but I did get an interview for most of them (except for Columbia)! But that’s good news that at least that I’m not 100% rejected!