<p>This will be my last attempt at getting this question answered. The replies in my last two threads failed to answer the question I'm most concerned with: what should my reaches and matches be with a 2150 SAT and very bad high school GPA?</p>
<p>I will very briefly list my stats:</p>
<p>2150 SAT
Few EC's (baseball, member of three clubs)
3.00 weighted (public) high school GPA
A+ in honors philosophy class at state school
B in calculus at state school
(I took both college courses this semester.)</p>
<p>So, could you guys please give me an idea of (realistic) low reaches/high matches and regular matches with the above stats?</p>
<p>I know it can be frustrating to not have your questions answered. We have the same GPA and EC’s. Anyways, it would help to know where your home state is and also where you took the college courses you listed. Assuming we are similar and have similar interests, I will list a few schools that I applied to when I was a freshman</p>
<p>Low Reach-
[ul]
[<em>] Penn State-U Park
[</em>] Butler U
[<em>] UIUC
[</em>] Northeastern
[li] Illinois Weslyan[/li][/ul]</p>
<p>Good Match-
[ul]
[<em>] Miami U (OH)
[</em>] Michigan State U
[<em>] Loyola U-Chicago
[</em>] Dayton U (with a great scholarship)
[li] Marquette[/li][/ul]</p>
<p>I could go on and on but you could get the same information on princeton review. Take the best fit college search. Put in your stats and preferences and it will spit out some schools that they think will be a fit for you.</p>
<p>The college classes are at the University of Arkansas.</p>
<p>“Take the best fit college search. Put in your stats and preferences and it will spit out some schools that they think will be a fit for you.”</p>
<p>I would do that, but because my stats are so strange I’m not sure the results would be accurate.</p>
<p>Thanks for the replies.</p>
<p>(Also, just a side note, I’m not really concerned with specific colleges at the moment… I’d just like a general idea of the caliber of the schools I should I apply to.)</p>
<p>I would focus on the USNWR LACs ranked between 30-75. In the top 30, and obviously closer to the top, you will find students who have 2150 - 2300 SAT combined with 3.6-4.0 unweighted throughout the entire high school career.</p>
<p>30-50 would be reaches, 50-75 are matches, and 75-100 would be match/safety, 100+ are safeties. If I had to pick a single rank where you would have over/under your qualifications it would be about 60.</p>
<p>Try to get your unweighted above 3.0 – under 3.0 just draws a lot of the wrong kind of attention to itself.</p>
<p>On a side note, you seem frustrated by posters’ inability to spoon feed you. I infer from that an attitude “issue” with you. Are you entitled?</p>
<p>My condolences on that GPA. A LOT of colleges care about the GPA over SAT scores, unbelievably. I would look below I guess #50 rank to see what colleges are available to you.</p>
<p>Your very best bet is to start working NOW. YOu pretty much blew it in high school, but if you can develop a work ethic in your very last year in high school (which is what a relative of mine did who had similar stats to yours), and then work consistently hard in college, you can transfer out after the first year into a way better college. With your ability, this should not be hard, you just have to form great work habits, like studying 2 hours for every hour of college lecture, studying right after class so try to organize your college schedule so you have 2 hours free right after each class if you can, and study in the classroom where you will take the college exams.</p>
<p>Remember that selectivity is just part of the picture. Based on what you’ve said, it’s hard to know what kind of place might interest you.</p>
<p>I can think of a few places that are good for late bloomers, and that might be interested in somebody with your SATs. Earlham College and Guilford College are two small schools that come to mind. They both have accepted quite a few students from my kid’s school who have stats similar to yours, or not as good. Yet they both are among the top schools in the country for the percentage of graduates who go on to earn Ph.D.s That’s an indication of academic quality, even if you have no interest in doing that yourself.</p>
<p>If that A+ in a college philosophy course is an indication that you are really motivated to buckle down, you might have a shot at Reed, which is one of the very best small colleges in the country. In the past they have been known for taking a chance on bright kids with less than perfect grades. It’s also a very demanding school.</p>
<p>Studying two hours for every hour of college lecture right after class sounds like a great idea. It prevents any and all forms of procrastination. I’m not sure how it would be possible for me not to have a 3.33 or higher GPA doing that.</p>
<p>tk21769</p>
<p>Although I suppose an A+ is decent, remember that it’s at the University of Arkansas. Sure, it’s an honors course, but it’s still the U of A. (Just in case any one is unaware, the U of A is absolutely terrible at everything besides perhaps business.)</p>
<p>My reason for getting a B in Calculus is simply that it’s Calculus. It’s unfairly hard, especially with bad teachers (which I have).</p>
<p>Also, I haven’t really buckled down at all in either college class. It’s just that, instead of giving literally zero effort like in high school, I’m giving some effort in college. So instead of never studying, I study the night and morning before each test… and, um, that’s about it. (I realize what I’ve just said sounds laughably immature, but I will give effort when I go to college for real, trust me.)</p>
<p>About Reed, though, are you sure? Their 28-32 ACT range and 3.9 average GPA seems a bit out of reach for me… even if they’re mildly impressed with an A+ in an honors philosophy course (albeit at the U of A).</p>
<p>“On a side note, you seem frustrated by posters’ inability to spoon feed you. I infer from that an attitude “issue” with you. Are you entitled?”</p>
<p>Sorry, I just noticed your edit… but I’m really not sure why you think this. I’m just asking questions that I haven’t been able to answer on my own.</p>
<p>lllklll, I went through a similar situation as you. I got a 34 on the ACT (which is in the 98th percentile of ACT test takers in the country) but had a 3.06 GPA out of 4.0. Applying to engineering schools, I applied to NC State, UMass (my home state), Virginia Tech, Clemson, Pittsburgh, Purdue, and Northeastern. I got accepted to all of the schools except for NC State which takes very few out of state students. I even got a $14,000 scholarship to Northeastern. Pittsburgh is the highest ranked out of all of my schools so you should at least get into a school ranked about the same. If I had to do it again, I’d probably aim a little higher, look at Maryland, Penn State, Washington, UC-Santa Barbara, apply to 2-3 schools in the lower top 50 schools and see how you do. Good Luck!</p>
<p>A 32 on the ACT is 99th percentile, pierre. So your score is actually in about the 99.7% percentile. </p>
<p>I just searched “act score percentile chart” on google, because a 34 ACT being only in the 98% percentile just didn’t seem right to me, and found this out from two different sources.</p>
<p>Anyways, thanks for the input. The consensus seems to be that I should I apply to 2-3, maybe 4, schools in the 40-50 range (and maybe one school in the 30-40 range), and the rest in the 50-75 range…with a safety or two. I’ll also look into the specific schools you guys have mentioned.</p>
<p>Well, no, I’m not sure. Few things in life are certain. It’s certainly not certain that having a weighted 3.0 average in high school has forever closed the door on any serious academic ambitions for you. </p>
<p>I am surprised that Reed’s average GPA is that high now. They may have become more selective in a mainstream way. But if the school has some appeal to you, it may be worth exploring. Check out other “Colleges That Change Peoples Lives”, too. Earlham, Guilford and Reed all are on that list.</p>
<p>The flagship state university may well be a good fit for you, but then again maybe not. There are many other options, including excellent schools that are not among the USNWR top 50. You sound like an interesting under-achiever who would benefit from a small college environment, at a school that has a bit of an edge to it (a clear commitment to academics, not a country club for slackers).</p>
<p>Just make sure the safety schools you choose are schools you will be happy to attend. Because of the economy, this year’s admissions process seemed so random. I’m not saying you won’t get into your reach or target schools…but you have to be happy with your safety schools.</p>