African-American/Black Students Class of 2020 Results/Discussion Page

Student Lounge African-American Students
1

Here is a thread where we can share our results as they flow in. We can start with EA/ED applications, and hopefully use this during regular decision:

RESULTS:

Where were you... [aB][asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Accepted[/color][/size]**

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Where were you... [aB][asize=4][acolor=#FFA500]Decision: Deferred[/color][/size]**

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Where were you... [aB][asize=4][acolor=#FF0000]Decision: Rejected[/color][/size]**

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Where will you be…[aB][asize=4][acolor=#008000]Decision: Attending[/color][/size]**

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown):
ACT (breakdown):
SAT II:
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):
Weighted GPA:
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):
AP (place score in parenthesis):
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load:
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
Job/Work Experience:
Volunteer/Community service:
Summer Activities:
Essays (rating 1-10, details):
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1:
Teacher Rec #2:
Counselor Rec:
Additional Rec:
Interview:

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?:
Intended Major:
State (if domestic applicant):
Country (if international applicant):
School Type:
Ethnicity:
Gender:
Income Bracket:
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.):

Reflection:

Strengths:
Weaknesses:

General Comments:

Just remove the ‘a’ in the bold, size and color in your decision.

MODERATOR’S NOTE: Please only post results using the given format so that this thread can serve as a valuable resource for future applicants. There is another thread provided for discussion, congrats, etc. Non-result posts will be deleted.

2

I guess I will start

Accepted: Rutgers Honors with 13k a year
Waiting on Howard (95% chance I will attend if I get a full ride) , Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Cornell, Brown , Temple more I am probably forgetting but will add when I update later.

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2220 superscore (750M/700CR/770W) 2130 single sitting (750M/700CR/680W :-S)
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: 790 Bio-M 770 M2
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.87/94.1 (VERY strong upward trend. I had a 3.6/92 average freshman year)
Weighted GPA: (No weighted gpa since all of my courses are either Honors or AP)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): School doesn’t rank THANK GOD
AP (place score in parenthesis): 3 (Only 5 available. The people who have gotten into ives from my school so far averaged only about 3 )
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: EMT, APUSH, Fitness/Health, AP Chem, Senior Internship, English IV, Medical Mathematics, Intro to Clinical Research, AP Calc, Forensic Medicine
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
1st for HOSA in Northern NJ
3rd in States for HOSA
National Qualifier

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):

HOSA member and competitor 10-12
Student Movement Against Cancer 9 -11
Relay for Life (Team Captain for 11-12)

Job/Work Experience:
Babysitting my severely autistic cousin after school 10 weeks a year (she would sleepover a few weeks at a time throughout the year and stay with me in my room, took up the bulk of my time, did it for free though)

Volunteer/Community service:
Pre-Calculus Tutor 11

Summer Activities:
Internship/Volunteer at a Physician’s office 9-10
Kean Group Summer Scholars Research Program (Paid) 11

Essays (rating 1-10, details): Loved my Common App, talked about how I attempted to cook and made a borderline vomit inducing treat and how I became a much better cook after the incident. Most people laughed as they read it and loved it, very lighthearted. Supplements were ehh but it depends. At the end of the day it is really subjective. I have read essays where the owners would give it a 20/10 but most people would be like :-t so I don’t really trust essay ratings.

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: My english teacher, my favorite teacher, but also the reason my gpa is low lol. Talked about how I dramatically improved not only grade-wise but as a writer from freshman year. Said she would fight anyone who rejects me because she wrote such a great rec, also a New York Times writer so I know it is well written. 10/10
Teacher Rec #2: My math teacher: Did great in her class but couldn’t really stand out too much since my school has mostly people who are very good at math and science. 7/10
Counselor Rec: Also talked about how I improved grade wise and how I can adjust to different pressures etc I don’t remember everything but she takes it VERY seriously and tries to write the best rec possible for every student 9/10
Additional Rec: None :confused:
Interview: Will update laterz

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Heck ya
Intended Major: Accounting or Biology depending on where I decide to go
State (if domestic applicant): NJ
Country (if international applicant): Mei-Guo
School Type: Very Competitive Magnet, top 15 in the country based on stats (SAT, ACT avg AP Score etc) alone.
Ethnicity:African American
Gender: Girlz Rule
Income Bracket: 150k?
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Black Female interested in Math and Science, 1st gen

Reflection:
Wishing I could build a bridge between now and September.
Strengths: maybe Common App essay, subject test scores are A-OK, strong upwards trend in grades,
Weaknesses: Wish I had more ec’s and leadership roles, being from NJ

General Comments:

The waiting is killing me slowly

3

Accepted: USF, Emory (Emory College and Oxford College)
Waiting on: UF (comes out this friday), FSU, Howard, Harvard, and JHU!

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2190 (I really wanted to break the 2200 mark) 730 in all categories
ACT (breakdown): 32 (30M, 32R, 32E, and 32S)
SAT II: 770 Math II, 660 Molec Bio
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0):4
Weighted GPA: 6.96 but prob moved to 7 since I still maintained As and am in IB.
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 99th percentile in school for sure…last time I checked 29/ 12k in county
AP (place score in parenthesis):APUSH (5), Psych (5), Lang (5), Euro (3) <—(LOL that was hard)
IB (place score in parenthesis): Take in May
Senior Year Course Load: IB HL (Bio, Eng, Psych) IB SL (Math, Spanish, History)

Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
Rotary Youth Leadership Award
Distinctive Service Citation for Interact
National Merit Commended
AP Scholar with Honors
Principal’s Honor Roll all 4 years so far
Award for Excellence in the Florida State Fair (Graphite portrait of Whitney Houston since I draw and am working on starting a business with some other artists if all works out).
Superior for Violin (9th grade)
Rising Star Award in the Relay for Life American Cancer Society Event (raised over $1000)
Emory Scholars Finalist (although not sure if this really counts as an award)

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Interact (VP, P), Red Cross (Secretary), Relay For Life (Team Captain), Tampa General Hospital Volunteer, Seeds of Hope Volunteer, Graphite Art, Violin/ Piano (8 years), Yoga/ Racquetball (more of recreation)

Job/Work Experience: None
Volunteer/Community service: See Above ^^^prob around 200hours…
Summer Activities: Art, Violin…
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 11! I realized the best way to write an effective essay i to write it like a story…if that makes sense. So for instance, I mentioned how my family used to spend the summers when we were younger in comparison to what other children would do and wrote about my volunteer experiences to sort of counterbalance academic drive to show a more rounded individual. Plus it helped that I’ve done so many scholarship apps that it was really easy to take what essays I already had and just embellish them some more or remove info to fit the word requirement. Wrote about how my sister and I would sit in front of a whiteboard we had in our living room with our dad in the summer as we tried to get ahead in math (since he’s an engineer) and related it to an incident where i overcame a subject in math i had a problem with. the counterbalance was discussion of my volunteering incident in the hospital.

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 10 (English teacher and we are really close!)
Teacher Rec #2:10 (History teacher and we are also close, especially since I kept asking her for scholarship recommendations and she was happy to oblige…even when she had papers to grade)

Counselor Rec: Not sure but it was probably fine too. I don’t really talk with my guidance counselor often but i have spoken with her enough for her to realize I am academically driven. :slight_smile:
Additional Rec:

Interview: Had one with Emory which WAS GREAT! The lady was laid back and definitely expressed her interest in my talents as well as offer her own opinion on Emory. It just made me love the university more and at that point I was thinking “If I don’t get accepted here I will die”. I will have one with Harvard soon…now that one I’m worried about if there is anyone out there with advice? DX

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yep!
Intended Major: Biomed eng. , bioch., or Neurosci
State (if domestic applicant): Fl.
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: AA (although I should really say Caribbean American)
Gender:F
Income Bracket: 140k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM? I guess (especially since I’m black and female and interested in STEM)

Reflection:Honestly I’m just speechless about everything and my whole high school experience was great! I would definitely say looking forward to what university has in store

Strengths: COMMUNITY SERVICE
Weaknesses: Testing scores and not doing enough athletics (it’s funny because literally right before i entered high school I was like “I’m totally going to try being more active and join soccer” …Yeah that didn’t happen)

General Comments: Good Luck with everyone else and their ACCEPTANCES
PS. I will update on the universities I get accepted to as they occur. March 1 is just around the corner! :smiley:

4

@BlackHuntress Its so eerie how similar our profiles are lol

5

LOL Now looking back at it SOO TRUE @cosmeux XD XD XD

6

Congrats!! Did you apply ED I to Emory?

7

Congrats on Rutgers 13k!!!

8

@JDBoi78 No RD. But because I applied for the Scholars Program and made finalist, they sent the admission letter anyway to a select few telling them their admission to either Emory, Oxford, or both :smiley: early through the OPUS communications not the part where it said “View Admission Decision”. I guess that’s because technically I was supposed to find out on March 1…

9

Oh, that’s amazing!! Congratulations!

10

Decision: Accepted

(These are all EA)

  • Tulane University ($27k/year)
  • UAlabama + Honors College ($17,300/year)
  • Ohio State + Morrill Program + Scholars Program (full tuition)
  • College of Charleston + Honors College (merit award pending since I just my interview weekend)
  • UofSouthCarolina
  • Howard University + Invite to apply to BS/MD program

Still waiting on Wake Forest.

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): n/a
ACT (breakdown): 31
SAT II: n/a
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.8ish
Weighted GPA: 4.666? SC weights funny
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 29/371
AP (place score in parenthesis): Human Geo: 4, APUSH: 4, AP Lang: 3
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: Physics 201 & 202, Genetics, AP Bio, Spanish 3, Gov/Econ, AP Stats, AP Psych
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

3 publications about racial injustices, piano competitions, highly ranked music camps, visual arts awards, minor school awards, NHS, Beta Club

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Music Conservatory, Psych Club (President and Chairman of the Volunteer Services), NHS (SGA rep), Mock Trial, Spanish Club, Choir

Job/Work Experience: Babysitting?

Volunteer/Community service: About 150-200 hours total. Not much. Mainly from NHS/Beta Club/Psych related stuff plus I was ny church’s pianist while they were looking for a new one.
Summer Activities: Music camps, Cheerleading coach

Essays (rating 1-10, details): 10, my common app essay was actually an essay I had published(it pays to recycle writing haha).

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 9, from my APUSH teacher who really knows me
Teacher Rec #2: 7 my AP Lang teacher who could barely remember my name during her class but now knows it
Teacher Rec #3: Spanish 1-2 teacher who has read my writing and encouraged me to look for contests/publication deals.
Teacher #4: Ap Human Geo teacher/psych club sponsor who basically helped plan out my high school schedule and gave me several opportunities for volunteer hours
Counselor Rec: eh avg she literally told me I shouldn’t apply to more than 3 colleges because I wouldn’t get in.
Additional Rec:
Interview:

I didn’t interview for any of my colleges. I had my Cofc scholarship weekend which went really well.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: biology or neuroscience depending on the college, will double major in public health either way
State (if domestic applicant): SC
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public < 2,000
Ethnicity: Black haha
Gender: F
Income Bracket: 65,000-80,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, 1st Gen to some colleges?,

Reflection:

I wish I would’ve applied to Vandy, Northeastern, Barnard, and UNC-CH. Don’t let anyone tell you you can’t do it especially when you have realistic chances(middle 50% for at least the gpa OR test score for the colleges).

Strengths: Essays

Weaknesses: Test score maybe? Idk. I haven’t had any rejections/deferrals yet for any of the colleges/programs I applied to. It may change with UofSC Honors College and Wake Forest. I feel like me EC’s were ordinary though

General Comments:

Work on your essays as early as the end of your junior year of high school. It will be easier to manage all of your classes+college apps/scholarship apps that way. Do NOT way until the last minute like I did with some of them.

11

Decision: Accepted

These are Regular Decision.

  • Washington State University
  • Biola University
  • San Francisco State University

Still waiting on University of San Francisco, CSU Fullerton, UCI, UCB, UCLA, USC, Stanford, Tulane, NYU, FSU, Rutgers (Camden and Newark), and University of Washington-Seattle.

Waitlisted: Point Loma :frowning:

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1310 (I know, really bad!)
ACT (breakdown): 20 (I know, really bad!)
SAT II: n/a
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.37
Weighted GPA: 3.37 (My school doesn’t do both weighted/unweighted)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): N/A
AP (place score in parenthesis): N/A
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: Chemistry, Personal Finance, Early Childhood Education, Intro to Culinary Arts, Algebra 2A,Drivers ED, Psychology, Government, Economics, English, Theatre both Part A and Part B.

Major Awards:
Principals Honor Roll, NHS

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): NHS French Club, Choir, Pep Squad, Track and Field

Job/Work Experience: Babysitting, and Tutoring

Volunteer/Community service: About 100 hours total. Mostly from NHS and being a Youth Ministry Leader at my church.
Summer Activities: Cheer Camp?

Essays (rating 1-10, details): 7-8

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 8, from my English teacher
Teacher Rec #2: 6, from my government teacher, I have a feeling he did a generic one.
Counselor Rec: 10, She’s also my chemistry, psychology and National honor society teacher/instructor

Interview: I only interviewed for Point Loma

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: biology/Biological sciences/ Pre-health studies (depends on where I go)
State (if domestic applicant): CA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public < 1,000
Ethnicity: Black
Gender: F
Income Bracket: <30,000
Hooks (first generation college, URM, Low income, interested in STEM):

Reflection:

I wish I would’ve applied to more safeties instead of more reaches because I would’ve had more to choose from and less anxiety haha.

Strengths: Extracurriculars, Volunteer Work

Weaknesses: Test scores, and Essays

12

Decision: Accepted

(These are all EA)

  • Tulane University ($27k/year)
  • UAlabama + Honors College ($17,300/year)
  • Ohio State + Morrill Program + Scholars Program (full tuition)
  • College of Charleston + Honors College +William Aiken Fellows Society ($5500/year and will attend)
  • UofSouthCarolina Honors College ($3,000/year)
  • Howard University + Invite to apply to BS/MD program ($24,000/year)

RD

Wake Forest

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): n/a
ACT (breakdown): 31
SAT II: n/a
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.8ish
Weighted GPA: 4.666? SC weights funny
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 29/371
AP (place score in parenthesis): Human Geo: 4, APUSH: 4, AP Lang: 3
IB (place score in parenthesis):
Senior Year Course Load: Physics 201 & 202, Genetics, AP Bio, Spanish 3, Gov/Econ, AP Stats, AP Psych
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):

3 publications about racial injustices, piano competitions, highly ranked music camps, visual arts awards, minor school awards, NHS, Beta Club

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Music Conservatory, Psych Club (President and Chairman of the Volunteer Services), NHS (SGA rep), Mock Trial, Spanish Club, Choir

Job/Work Experience: Babysitting?

Volunteer/Community service: About 150-200 hours total. Not much. Mainly from NHS/Beta Club/Psych related stuff plus I was ny church’s pianist while they were looking for a new one.
Summer Activities: Music camps, Cheerleading coach

Essays (rating 1-10, details): 10, my common app essay was actually an essay I had published(it pays to recycle writing haha).

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 9, from my APUSH teacher who really knows me
Teacher Rec #2: 7 my AP Lang teacher who could barely remember my name during her class but now knows it
Teacher Rec #3: Spanish 1-2 teacher who has read my writing and encouraged me to look for contests/publication deals.
Teacher #4: Ap Human Geo teacher/psych club sponsor who basically helped plan out my high school schedule and gave me several opportunities for volunteer hours
Counselor Rec: eh avg she literally told me I shouldn’t apply to more than 3 colleges because I wouldn’t get in but jokes on her because I’ve gotten into all of them. :slight_smile:
Additional Rec:
Interview:

I didn’t interview for any of my colleges and yes I did not interview for Wake. I had my Cofc scholarship weekend which went really well.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: yes
Intended Major: Biology and Public Health
State (if domestic applicant): SC
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Public < 2,000
Ethnicity: Black haha
Gender: F
Income Bracket: 65,000-80,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, 1st Gen to some colleges?,

Reflection:

I wish I would’ve applied to Vandy, Northeastern, Barnard, and UNC-CH. Don’t let anyone tell you you can’t do it especially when you have realistic chances(middle 50% for at least the gpa OR test score for the colleges).

Strengths: Essays

Weaknesses: Test score maybe? Idk. I haven’t had any rejections/deferrals yet for any of the colleges/programs I applied to. It may change with UofSC Honors College and Wake Forest. I feel like me EC’s were ordinary though

General Comments:

Work on your essays as early as the end of your junior year of high school. It will be easier to manage all of your classes+college apps/scholarship apps that way. Do NOT way until the last minute like I did with some of them.

Also can the mod delete my previous post?

13

Where were you… Decision: Accepted

  • Spelman College (Honors Program and Academic Scholar)
  • Howard University (Capstone Scholarship)
  • UCLA
  • UC Berkeley (Regents)
  • University of Washington (Purple & Gold Scholarship
  • SF State
  • Barnard

Waiting for:
Harvard (but not really lol)

Decision: Attending
80% chance I’ll be at Barnard. (Waiting for Financial Aid to come through)

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 1860 (620M, 600W, 640R)
ACT (breakdown): 29
SAT II: 650ish on US History
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.9
Weighted GPA: 4.33
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1/117
AP (place score in parenthesis): APWH(4), APUSH (4), AP Lang (4), AP Psych (4), AP Physics 1 (2) lol.
Senior Year Course Load: AP Literature, Gov/Econ, Biology, AP Physics 2, Spanish 2, AP Calc AB
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): nopes

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):
– Created and lead 100% student-ran tutoring program at school (Director for 12th and 11th, Coordinator for 10th, Tutor for 9th)
– Member of my city’s youth council/commission for 2 years
– GSA (Officer for 11th and 10th, member for 9th)
– Alto singer in Church Choir (6th grade to 11th grade)

Job/Work Experience: N/a
Volunteer/Community service: Summer tutoring for two years/miscellaneous helping out the community. Tutoring program +HYC also count for community service.
Summer Activities: Summer classes @ UC Berkeley, SAT Prep lol
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 11, best essay I’ve ever written in my life.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details): 9

Teacher Rec #1: On fleeeek.
Teacher Rec #2: Hella on fleek.
Counselor Rec: n/a
Additional Rec: Probably an 8, it was by my Physics teacher who I’ve known for 3 years, but writing isn’t his strong suit. :slight_smile:
Interview: My interview for Harvard was amazing, good conversation and all. My interview for Barnard seemed rushed, but I did show my love for education/passions/goals so.

Other:

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes!
Intended Major:Physics, hopeful minor in Spanish and/or Philosophy.
State (if domestic applicant): California
School Type: Small Public Charter
Ethnicity: Black, obvs.
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: Between 75,000 and 100,000
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM

Reflection:

Strengths: My essays and teacher recommendations! All of those english classes definitely paid off, I poured my heart and soul and then some into those essays.
Weaknesses: My test scores are quite low–wasn’t expecting to get into any of my reach schools tbh.

General Comments:
Sososososooooo excited and looking forward to college. This is going to be great. :slight_smile:

14

RESULTS:
Decision: Accepted

  • University of Georgia (Zell Miller Scholarship)
  • Howard University (Founders Full Ride 54K)
  • Tulane University (Premier Scholarship - 30K)
  • American University (Frederick Douglass Scholarship - 13K)
  • Emory University
  • Georgetown University
  • Vanderbilt University (Chancellor’s Full Tuition Scholarship)

Decision: Attending Vanderbilt University

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2160 (700-690-770)
ACT (breakdown): 32 (36R - 32E - 30M - 32S | 36W)
SAT II: 770 US, 700 Lit
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4
Weighted GPA: 4.22
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 3/303
AP (place score in parenthesis): World (5), Psych (5), USH (5), Stat (4), Lit, Calc BC, Gov
Senior Year Course Load: APLit, AP Calc, AP Gov, Anatomy + Electives
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):Governor’s Honors Program, various debate honor, various academic team honors

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Academic Team (Captain), Debate Team (Captain), WorldQuest (Captain), Beta Club (VP), Yearbook, Campaign Volunteer, Various Tutoring Events, etc.

Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community service: ~200 hours through HS
Summer Activities: GHP, Debate Camp,
Essays (rating 1-10, details): 10, I honestly think they were unique and showcased something different.
Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: 7, generic but got the point across
Teacher Rec #2: 8, likely very funny, a teacher I really loved
Counselor Rec: 10, amazing counselor without anything bad to say
Additional Rec:
Interview: N/A

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Public Policy (Political Science / Econ)
State (if domestic applicant): GA
School Type: Diverse Public
Ethnicity: Black
Gender: M
Income Bracket: ~80K
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM

Reflection:

I kinda underestimated myself during the process, so I was very wary of applying to many reaches. Ironically, my biggest reach was the one that gave me the most money. If I could do the process again, I’d try to be less scared of rejection and choose more schools that I definitely saw myself at.

Strengths: Essays, leadership, test scores were all in decent range
Weaknesses: Could have had a stronger schedule

General Comments:

15

when did you guys hear back from Howard?

16

@3idek3 I heard back like a couple weeks ago…it seems to be fairly random.

17

@3idek3 I heard back in December. Honestly idk how they release decisions.

18

Here is Everything

Accepted: Rutgers Honors with 13k a year, Howard (with Founders Scholarship Full Ride!!!) , Princeton, Cornell,
Rejected: Dartmouth and Yale
Waitlisted: Harvard, Brown, Columbia

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2220 superscore (750M/700CR/770W) 2130 single sitting (750M/700CR/680W )
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: 790 Bio-M 770 M2
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.87/94.1 (VERY strong upward trend. I had a 3.6/92 average freshman year)
Weighted GPA: (No weighted gpa since all of my courses are either Honors or AP)
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): School doesn’t rank THANK GOD
AP (place score in parenthesis): 3 (Only 5 available. The people who have gotten into ives from my school so far averaged only about 3 )
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: EMT, APUSH, Fitness/Health, AP Chem, Senior Internship, English IV, Medical Mathematics, Intro to Clinical Research, AP Calc, Forensic Medicine
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.):
1st for HOSA in Northern NJ
3rd in States for HOSA
National Qualifier

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):

HOSA member and competitor 10-12
Student Movement Against Cancer 9 -11
Relay for Life (Team Captain for 11-12)

Job/Work Experience:
Babysitting my severely autistic cousin after school 10 weeks a year (she would sleepover a few weeks at a time throughout the year and stay with me in my room, took up the bulk of my time, did it for free though)

Volunteer/Community service:
Pre-Calculus Tutor 11

Summer Activities:
Internship/Volunteer at a Physician’s office 9-10
Kean Group Summer Scholars Research Program (Paid) 11

Essays (rating 1-10, details): Loved my Common App, talked about how I attempted to cook and made a borderline vomit inducing treat and how I became a much better cook after the incident. Most people laughed as they read it and loved it, very lighthearted. Supplements were ehh but it depends. At the end of the day it is really subjective. I have read essays where the owners would give it a 20/10 but most people would be like so I don’t really trust essay ratings.

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):
Teacher Rec #1: My english teacher, my favorite teacher, but also the reason my gpa is low lol. Talked about how I dramatically improved not only grade-wise but as a writer from freshman year. Said she would fight anyone who rejects me because she wrote such a great rec, also a New York Times writer so I know it is well written. 10/10
Teacher Rec #2: My math teacher: Did great in her class but couldn’t really stand out too much since my school has mostly people who are very good at math and science. 7/10
Counselor Rec: Also talked about how I improved grade wise and how I can adjust to different pressures etc I don’t remember everything but she takes it VERY seriously and tries to write the best rec possible for every student 9/10
Additional Rec: None
Interview: Will update laterz

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Heck ya
Intended Major: Accounting or Biology depending on where I decide to go
State (if domestic applicant): NJ
Country (if international applicant): Mei-Guo
School Type: Very Competitive Magnet, top 15 in the country based on stats (SAT, ACT avg AP Score etc) alone.
Ethnicity:African American
Gender: Girlz Rule
Income Bracket: 150k?
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Black Female interested in Math and Science, 1st gen

Reflection:
Glad it is over official have full blown Senioritis
Strengths: maybe Common App essay, subject test scores are A-OK, strong upwards trend in grades,
Weaknesses: Wish I had more ec’s and leadership roles, being from NJ probably, most likely had some hole in my app which is why I got waitlisted by a few but overall successful!

General Comments:
Most likely attending Howard

19

Decision: Accepted
-Cornell University
-Dartmouth College
-New York University(Full Tuition)
-Case Western University
-University of Florida
-Oxford at Emory University

Decision: Waitlisted
-University of Virginia
-Emory University

Decision: Rejected
-Northwestern University
-University of Pennsylvania
-Washington & Lee University

SAT I (breakdown): N/A
ACT (breakdown): 28C(30E/31R/26,/25S/30W or 11 on old chart) 29 superscore (32E/31R/26M/25S/30W)
SAT II: HumEc doesn’t require them
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.52 UW / 4.44 W
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable):Top 7% of 700+
AP (place score in parenthesis): Didn’t submit my AP scores
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Microeconomics/AP Gov’t & Politics, AP Calculus AB, AP Biology, AP European History, AP Art History, Dual enrollment Child Development and French Language
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): District FBLA/HOSA awards made it to State competitions

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Human dev. infant lab internship , marching band, non profit board member, FBLA (VP), hosa, calculus club, honor societies(didn’t include in application)
Job/Work Experience: Worked at elementary school 11th grade summer
Volunteer/Community service: 200 hours at hospital
Summer Activities: Did my internship and worked part-time
Essays: Common App:(9) Really liked this one and it told my story really well
Supplement(8/9) Really liked this one too, it got personal and also answered the question fully
Teacher Recommendation: 6/7 got one from ap physics 1 and one from ap psychology. they liked me but probably nothing extraordinary
Counselor Rec: 7 or 8 She knows me well but not enough about what I do outside of school
Additional Rec:
Interview: Had interview w/ the head of my region, went really well!
Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Human Development
State (if domestic applicant): FL
Country (if international applicant): USA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: Black
Sex: Male
Income Bracket: 60k-70k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM

Reflection

Strengths:
What you tried to focus on in your application - any hooks you tried to make for yourself: mainly my fit for the major
Weaknesses: GPA / ACT scores
Why you think you were accepted/deferred/rejected: my essays, I made sure that I fit in the major and school and needed to go here
Where else were you accepted/deferred/rejected:
Accepted: Cornell, UF, Case Western, Dartmouth, Oxford College at Emory
Waitlisted: Emory
Rejected: Northwestern, UPenn, Washington & Lee
i’m lost for words… wow this is such a blessing

Advice to 2021 applicants: Please PM me w/ any questions you may have! You guys got this and remember, even if you don’t get in, you’re not defined by this school at all by any means.

20

I finally received all my decisions today so I’ll post everything:

Decision: Accepted : University of Virginia (EA), University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (EA), The College of William and Mary (RD) (w/ full tuition scholarship), Tufts University (RD), Cornell University (RD), Brown University (RD), Duke University (RD), Johns Hopkins University (RD) (w/ Bloomberg scholarship), Columbia University (RD)

Decision: Waitlisted : Lehigh University (RD)

Decision: Rejected: Dartmouth University (RD), Harvard University (RD)

Decision: Attending: I’m still deciding, but I’ll update everyone once I reach a decision

Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): Didn’t send
ACT (breakdown): 33 C (34 W, 33 S, 35 R, 34 M, 8 Essay Score)
SAT II: 700 Math level 2, 640 Chemistry (I only sent these scores to the colleges that required them and UVA/UNC/William and Mary)
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 4.0
Weighted GPA: 4.25
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 1 / 239
AP (place score in parenthesis): English Language (5) Calculus AB (5) World History (4) Chemistry (3)
IB (place score in parenthesis): N/A
Senior Year Course Load: AP Psychology (took over the summer) Dual Government, AP Calculus BC, AP Biology, AP English Lit, Physics, AP French
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): None

Subjective:

Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis):

Voted Secretary of Senior Class
French Club (president) - (Grades 8-12)
Prevention Club (secretary) - (Grades 10-12) ( Most active extracurricular activity; work alongside local chartered Prevention Council)
Green Club - (Grades 11-12)
Key Club- (Grades 10-12)
Concert/Symphonic Band (6-10)
Debate Team (8-9)
Beta Club (only available to 12th graders)
Pep Club (10)

Job/Work Experience: None

Volunteer/Community service:
Volunteered 115+ hours at local VA Hospital
Volunteered at local library 8-9th grade
Do the majority of volunteer work through school clubs (Key Club, Beta Club,etc.)
Summer Activities:
Essays (rating 1-10, details):

Recommendations (rating 1-10, details):

Teacher Rec #1: I had one recommendation from my English Lang teacher that I think was pretty good. He writes very formally and I think he is the best writer out of all of my recs. (9/10)
Teacher Rec #2: I had the other from my chem teacher. I know my chemistry teacher on a personal level so I think her rec will be pretty good too. (8/10)
Counselor Rec: I’ve had my counselor write me a rec before for another thing and it was good but not anything exceptional. (7/10)
Additional Rec: I also had a rec from the head of the Prevention Council who I know personally. I think her rec was good and gave insight about me outside of the classroom (9/10)
Interview:

I had interviews with Duke, Cornell, Dartmouth, Brown, and Harvard. I really loved my Duke and Brown interviews, my Cornell and Harvard interviews were okay, and my Dartmouth interview could have gone better.

Other

Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
Intended Major: Neuroscience (although I might double major w/ Public Health to…depends on where I’m going…will officially update later)
State (if domestic applicant): VA
Country (if international applicant):
School Type: Small, rural (<1000 total students)
Ethnicity: Black (Ethiopian)
Gender: Female
Income Bracket: ~100k
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): URM, First generation immigrant, Female going into STEM

Reflection:

Strengths: To be honest, I really didn’t expect to be this successful in my college app process. Of course I had good stats, but I think the most important thing was my essays? I really can’t tell you for a fact what set me apart, but I’m excited nonetheless!
Weaknesses: Definitely my ECs and even some of my stats. I mean they were good but I don’t think they were overly exceptional. Applying to 12 schools also means I rushed on some applications.

General Comments:

Honestly where I was at the beginning of my college application process versus now couldn’t have been night and day. I never thought in a MILLION years I would be getting into the places I’ve gotten into. I was literally considering not even applying to these top tier schools and Ivys because I never thought I would get in. If you’re someone who doesn’t think you’re good enough, the advice I would give you is just to try, because you never know what can happen! Please please please don’t think you’re not good enough to try!

Good luck to everyone in their college application process for not only this year but years to come. It sure is a pain in the butt, but nonetheless, it’s definitely worth it in the end!