<p>Hi, first off let me explain that this is my first time using this website so I'm sorry for any ignorance I show. I'm currently going into my Junior year and ever since the end of my Sophomore year I've been extremely interested in getting into WashU. Unfortunately, I didn't take any honor classes my Freshman or Sophomore year. My gpa is currently a 3.9 and my class rank is a 79/441. For my Junior year I'm taking all honors and AP L.A/History. I'm going to be trying extremely hard this year to make up for my poor previous years. Do you think this will have a major impact on my admission entrance? Ignoring things such as ACT scores and EC's ( I know they're extremely important as well ).</p>
<p>Also if you have any other advice for me please, PLEASE let me know. </p>
<p>There is no “Ignoring things such as ACT scores” where WashU is concerned, because they are renowned for placing enormous emphasis on test scores. It will be tough for you to compete without the “most demanding available” courseload, and test scores will be absolutely critical for you. If you lack strong test scores, you won’t get in. If you knock the tests out of the park, you probably will. </p>
<p>When I say ignore them I was implying that I know those are important for my admission. I’m currently studying for the ACT, I bought a prep book last week.</p>
<p>I just want to let you know I am in a somewhat similar boat as you. Took no honors/AP fresh year and only one honors sophmore year. I loaded up on classes Junior year last year and going to for next year as well.</p>
<p>WashU places disproportionate emphasis on STUDENT INTEREST - they want to know that you are seriously interested in going there. If you can, do a campus visit & an interview. WashU doesn’t like being the “safety” for the kids applying to the Ivy league and other selective schools. I know I’m planning an interview too soon, because I am also interested in WashU. Request info, ask questions, show interest in any way you can. Luckily I live right here in STL though so I can do this pretty easily</p>
<p>Do well on the ACT / SAT though - without the test scores, you probably won’t get in. Also, is your 3.9 weighted or unweighted? If you have at least 3.7 unweighted, you should still be in a faily competitive range for WashU, their average UW gpa for admitted students is 3.8. 25/75% for ACT is 32-34. Try to aim to be within the 25-75 percentile for GPA and ACT / SAT to maximize your chances.</p>
<p>Your class rank is in the 17% - my school stopped ranking this year, but I think I was in round the 23% percentile before they took it down. If you do well Junior year though they will see an upward trend in terms of class difficulty. Good luck!</p>
<p>Yeah I visited WashU last year. It was amazing. How do i schedule an interview though? I didn’t know you could do that, but I’m interested in it since it’s only 30 minutes away from me. And yes it’s unweighted. Thanks for the information man.</p>
<p>I don’t know about the whole “disproportionate emphasis on student interest,” @Ctesiphon … I think most universities value that very highly. Besides, I showed 0 interest- I didn’t even interview- and I’m here! </p>
<p>My advice is not to stress about anything. Do your best and that’s all you can do. It actually looks just as good, I think, to improve over high school, as it shows growth. The last 2 years of high school are more important - but you can’t change the past so there’s no use stressing over it. Just look toward the present moment. WashU wants balanced and happy students as well as ones who can step up to the plate academically. </p>
<p>I don’t know how to schedule an interview specifically, but I would just call the admissions office and set it up. Take the opportunity to visit the campus and check things out - I would do this while school is in session, if possible, just because you’ll get a better feel of it (classes start Aug 25th). </p>
<p>Seriously though take it easy! Be the best person you can be in the present, and don’t let admission to any specific university make or break your energy/motivation/self esteem. Work hard for yourself and the rest will come. Best of luck and feel free to ask me any questions you have as they come up!</p>
<p>Sorry - “Disproportionate” was probably not a good word to use. I’m not saying you can’t get in by not showing interest - but a common vibe I’ve seen on this forum is that WashU highly values student interest in the school. I don’t have any personal experience on that matter but it seems to be a fairly widespread viewpoint whenever WashU is brought up. It likely helps more to show interest at WashU than it would at another school, they want to get something out of all of the mail they send!</p>
<p>@thebunny, out of curiosity, what were your GPA / test scores (if you are willing to disclose)</p>
<p>@thebunny Hey thanks man. I know I shouldn’t worry and stress so much, but if you knew my situation you would understand why I’m trying to hard :p.</p>
<p>While at SOAR I spoke to a lot of incoming freshman on campus and when people mentioned their scores it seemed as if most people had 34+ on the ACT and/or 2240+ on the SAT. Also many people were in their Cum Laude societies as well as Valedictorians/Salutatorians. </p>