Amherst College- ED??

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

I can’t decide whether or not to apply to Amherst ED

I went to their DIVOH program and totally fell in love, but I never thought I’d apply ED anywhere so it’s very daunting

School: Public. Ranked in the top 100 schools in the US.
Race: Native American (belong to actual tribe) and Hispanic
Family status: Not the first, my dad went to college too but other than that no one did
My dad’s also a veteran (of the gulf war) and both of my Grandfathers are as well
GPA: 3.4 unweighted, 4.something weighted. I only took AP and Honors
Classes senior year: Art, AP Psychology, H Stats, AP Environmental Science, AP English
*was going to take AP Stats and AP Music theory too but currently have a concussion
Senior grades are:
Art- A
Ap Psych- A
H Stats- A+
APES- B+
AP English- B+

AP scores: Euro- 5, US History- 5
ACT Scores: Composite 33, Science 36, Reading 36, English 30, Math 29 (Only took once)
Also a very accomplished upright bassist with 4 state festival awards and State Festival first chair 2013.
After school activities: Orchestra (section leader), Chamber Orchestra (section leader), Jazz Band (VP), Jazz Combo (president), Theater (Head of costumes), Marching Band (Section Leader), Pep band, Girl Scouts (troop leader)
-overall I put about 20+ hours into Music a week

I want to get probably a Poli-Sci degree then go to Law School

Was accepted into College Horizons but did not go because of a Concussion from a crazy accident

Also to add: I have very strong cultural ties to my tribe and it’s not just a way to get into college. I’m the only one (including my brother and father) who didn’t grow up on the reservation and the rest of our family is very typically American Indian (job insecurity, addiction, the forced boarding schools). Most of my family (aka everyone but me and my brother) lives on the Rez and no one has gone to college (that I know of)

I’m writing my essay about what my culture means to me, as a Native with a strong culture but growing up in a white world.

2

I think you have a good chance. You have a great ACT score. Your unweighted gpa is low, but hopefully the Native American hook can push you over. Your music ECs are great. With good recommendations and essays, I think it could work. You were accepted to DIVOH and that is a good sign.

3

I have an impression that the Native American hook is extremely strong, as long as your other stats establish that you are capable enough to succeed academically at Amherst (and I think that looks pretty apparent that you are, based on your other stats). My guess is you are an easy admit no matter which way you go.

4

Run the NPC to make reasonably sure that Amherst would be affordable. If it is, and if Amherst is your clear #1, then go for it.

Just in case your ED app doesn’t work out, make sure you form a list of schools to apply to in the RD round. If you are interested in ED2 – UChicago and some other strong schools offer it – you may pursue that route also.

5

I think you have a good shot but ultimately it’s your decision. If it’s definitely your top choice than go for it!

6

I got in!!!