African American's Unique Chances

Colleges and Universities A-Z Emory University
1

<p>Hey guys,
I wanted to know what my chances are for these schools. Feel free to post any advice and stuff like that, I could really use the help. If you could chance with things like "match" "reach" and "safety" too, I'd also appreciate that. Thanks!
Here are the schools:
Lehigh University
Georgetown University
University of Miami
Penn State UP
Uconn
UMaryland CP
University of Notre Dame
University of Texas at Austin
Emory University
University of Southern California</p>

<p>I would say my top choices are USoCal especially, Emory, and Georgetown, and Im interested in Business.</p>

<p>Stats/Info
Junior, African American Male
GPA: 3.85 UW (no weighted at my school)
PSAT:191
SAT: (Ive only taken the practice so far) but 1850 ___ 640 CR, 620 W, 580 M</p>

<p>-Honors Geometry, Honors English 9, Honors Global History, Honors Biology</p>

<p>EC's:
-Chess Club
-Varsity Soccer Captain and also on a Nationally ranked and globally rcognized soccer team
-Future Business Leaders Treasurer
-Model UN
-National Junior Honor Society (does this count?)
-Volunteered at an African village of Azope in Ivory Coast to help reconstruct homes (around 30-50 volunteer hours)
-Made a Tutoring business and made an organization out of it
-Honor Roll for all years
-Will participate in Emory precollege program
-I work on my father's rubber tree plantation and will soon take complete ownership of it
-Won First Place award and a second place award in the schoolwide science fairs
-I taught myself to speak fluent French in about a year
-Taught myself to play cello, clarinet, xylophone and african djembe, member of the Orchestra</p>

<p>Background: Well I'm a US citizen from NY and lived there until 15 (end of freshman year), but then we moved to the Ivory Coast in West Africa (where I have nationality) and that's where I live now it's a rather poor and underdeveloped country, but it's our families home. (I'm planning on writing my essay on this experience.) At my old school I did honors classes and stuff but here at my new school they don't offer such courses. There's also a lack of clubs and activities here. Im also coaching myself to take the AP Physics and English exams, since there are no AP classes here.
Thanks for reading this, and any of your messages will be appreciated!</p>

2

<p>Btw, I’d say Emory and USoCal are my number one choices so far.</p>

3

<p>70 views??? bump…</p>

4

<p>After what happened in the last admission cycle, we’ve all given up on chancing people. Nobody understands the process.</p>

5

<p>@aluminum_boat‌ true stuff right there haha</p>

6

<p>@IVUSA11 and @aluminum_boat: Yeah, I think I’ll be damned before I make any estimations about this again…I used to not do it, and I should have never started. </p>

7

<p>SAT 1850 but your PSAT is 191 so we will just assume your SAT will be about 1900 when you take the actual test</p>

<p>BUT your African American with a GPA 3.85?</p>

<p>YOUR GET INTO ALL OF THEM</p>

8

<p>I believe you will get into Penn State. Your GPA is great.</p>

9

<p>Thanks so much guys! Is there any info someone can give me about the reach schools though as well?</p>

10

<p>What do you mean info? They’re a reach for you. Assume you won’t get admitted although if you do, fantastic. </p>

11

<p>Will you need financial aid? You might want to get family income and asset info, run some NCPs for the schools and look at what you and your family will be expected to pay at each school. Then find out what your parents will pay for you.</p>

<p>If money is no object, I think you have a pretty good list already, especially if you get your PSU app in early. I think you will get in there, and that means you can then focus on those schools you like better than that, once you have that bird in hand. If you need fin aid, especially a lot of it, that’s a whole other story because PSU does not tend to give out much money, and you would be OOS. </p>

<p>For admissions purposes, if you need extensive aid, none of the schools are safeties for you, and some are true lottery tickets and highly unlikely to give a lot of money as they simply do not tend to do so. </p>

<p>You have an unusual back drop, and you are in striking range of any of these schools for admissions, so it’s a matter of making sure you have a safety in hand, and you’ll be good. </p>

12

<p>Thanks @cptofthehouse‌ </p>

13

<p>You have great chances for all of them. I wish I applied to Goergetown alot of my friends were accepted with lower stats than me.</p>

14

<p>All of these schools look like reaches, and costly ones to most applicants. They are selective so it is hard to predict admissions, and for an out of state applicant, the in state colleges are going to be expensive. Not all of them meet full financial need.
OP- one of the most interesting aspects of your background is running a rubber tree plantation. That is certainly a unique EC and although I am not an admissions counselor, it stands out as well as any club, especially if you have a responsible role in it.
I would say you have a chance at all of these schools, but none are a likely admission for anyone. I would like to see you add some less selective, and possibly less costly- if this is important to you and you wish to look at schools that might offer you merit aid. You can also consider applying to more colleges that meet full need if you qualify and this is a concern for your family.
<a href=“http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2013/09/18/colleges-that-claim-to-meet-full-financial-need-2014”>http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2013/09/18/colleges-that-claim-to-meet-full-financial-need-2014&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

15

<p>ok, I’ll gladly take that into consideration. thanks @Pennylane2011‌ </p>

16

<p>Well this is an Emory forum, and it is a good choice, in a great location, and I think you have a chance at admission, but I could not predict it. </p>

<p>As to choosing a college- If a student asks me about colleges,I think about what makes this student interesting and unique, and if they are a minority then that is part of their background, but it doesn’t tell me about the student as an individual- what they like or dislike, what they are interested in. I also look at particular strengths- and your GPA is certainly one of them, as well as a very interesting background as a US citizen living in Africa and working on a rubber plant and your other EC’s. </p>

<p>Then I consider preferences and what school might fit, and these are completely individual and includes college size, culture, location, cost. If you were female, I would ask if you are interested in women’s colleges, and since you are African American, would you consider an HBCU? Some kids I know are very interested in them, and some are not at all. It’s really a matter of individual preference. Do you want a college where you add to the diversity- a college that might not have a large percentage of African American students, or do you prefer to be part of a larger group? How about religion, political views? Some colleges are more politically liberal or conservative than others, as are regions in the US. Do you belong to a religious group and want a college where that group has a presence?</p>

<p>You don’t need to answer these questions on a public thread, but they are things to think about. Some students tend to focus on the well known colleges- the reaches- and for a good reason. They are well known because they are good schools. But these schools also receive applications from many more qualified applicants than they can accept- so no one factor or “hook” as they are called is a guarantee for anyone. Still, you have a good list so far. </p>

<p>When adding a “safety”- a term I don’t like because there are so many great schools out there that are not as well recognized, but may be known regionally, or have good programs in certain areas, think about fit, who you are, where you wish to be, what kind of school you like, what you will study. Then- do your best- as you seem to be doing. Show who you are on your application, and hopefully you will end up in a good place. Keep your list of great schools, and consider adding colleges that meet these requirements: You have a good chance of admission ( you are at the top of the applicant pool), you would be happy to attend, and you can afford it. </p>

<p>I’m not a professional, but I am a mom who knows a lot of different kids and sees that each of them has a unique profile and so do many colleges. What is perfect for one isn’t for another, so it is important to think about what fits you. </p>

17

<p>Thanks so much @Pennylane2011‌ ! You have no idea how helpful that was to me. I have a lot of new things to think about now, thanks again :)</p>

18

<p>Don’t go believing being AA will get you into every school like some people will lead you to believe. It’s harmful to you and a lot of other AA students. Focus on getting your SAT/ACT scores in the 50% for all those schools. Then I’d say you’d have a good chance of getting. TL;DR: Don’t believe the Affirmative Action hype</p>

19

<p>Aight, thanks @lilbbased‌ </p>

20

<p>…bump</p>