<p>Amherst College
Class of 2015 Early Decision
Notifications and Stats</p>
<p>Well, folks, the fateful day is nearly here. Please refrain from posting in this thread until decisions are emailed, but once they are, this’ll be the place to post decisions, stats, etc. It’ll be good to see and discuss how this year’s admissions panned out and leave our data for prospective Class of '16 ED applicants to see. </p>
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<p>Best of luck to all!</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Here’s what everything should look like Decision: Accepted Decision: Rejected Decision: Deferred</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>] SAT:
[</em>] SAT IIs:
[<em>] ACT:
[</em>] GPA:
[<em>] Rank:
[</em>] Rigor of course load:
[<em>] Other stats(AP, IB, etc.):
[/ul]Subjective:[ul]
[</em>] Essays:
[<em>] ECs:
[</em>] Teacher Recs:
[<em>] Counselor Rec:
[</em>] Hook (if any):
[/ul]Location/Person:[ul]
[<em>] State or Country:
[</em>] School Type:
[<em>] Ethnicity:
[</em>] Gender:
[/ul]Other Factors: General Comments:</p>
<p>SAT: 2260
SAT IIs: U.S. History 800 and Literature 710
GPA: 3.92
Rank: 11/370
Rigor of course load: 7 AP’s in two years
Other stats(AP, IB, etc.): 5 U.S. History 5 Language and Composition 4 Environmental Science
Essays: Very Good
Hook (if any):
Location/Person:
State or Country: CA
School Type: Public
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Male</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
SAT: 2060 ; 680 CR 620 M 760 W 11 ESSAY
SAT IIs: never took
ACT: 30 35 E 34 M 24 R 26 S
GPA: 92.754/100.00 UW
Rank: 32/143 W competitive public HS
Other stats: can’t think of any
[/ul]Subjective:[ul]
Essays: Common App was among my best essays written, Supplement was great too
[li] ECs: [/li]President of Human Rights Club
President of Youth Against Racism
National Honor Society
Accepted to Vassar College Summer Scholars Program
Varsity field hockey starter and Captain
Mock Trial Captain
Model UN 3x Honorable Mention Winner
Summer Camp Counselor
500+ hours as a Hospital Volunteer
SADD club, Leo Club
County Recognized Scholar Athlete</p>
<p>Teacher Recs: Social studies teacher for 3 years thinks I’m great, Math teacher for 2 years in love with me hahaa
Counselor Rec: She was a counselor for 20+ years so I think she wrote a good one. I wasn’t particularly fond of her though so idk how personal it was…
Hook (if any): Athlete? essays?
[/ul]Location/Person:[ul]
State or Country: NY, USA
School Type: Competitive public high school
Ethnicity: East African 1st generation
Gender: Female
[/ul]Other Factors: I was accepted to, and attended, DivOH General Comments: I am so so so so so so happy to be a Lord Jeff =D</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>] SAT: 2240 (CR: 720, M: 760 W: 760)
[</em>] SAT IIs: USH 800, Math II 800, Bio 760
[<em>] GPA: 4.0 UW, 4.31 Weighted on 4.6 Scale
[</em>] Rank: Top 10% (Don’t know exact rank, 193 kids in class)
[<em>] Rigor of course load: Very? 6 APs this year, 2 last year
[</em>] Other stats (AP, IB, etc.): Bio 5, APUSH 5.<br>
[/ul] Subjective:[ul]
[<em>] Essays: Good, Common Application essay was on Nicolas Cage
[</em>] ECs: Strong, Independent Research, Varsity Sports, etc.
[<em>] Teacher Recs: Good
[</em>] Counselor Rec: Good
[<em>] Hook (if any): None
[/ul] Location/Person:[ul]
[</em>] State or Country: CT
[<em>] School Type: Public & Public Magnet (Half day program at a magnet school)
[</em>] Ethnicity: White
[li] Gender: Male [/li][/ul] Other Factors: None really I guess General Comments: Aaaah I am really excited! Congratulations to everyone accepted, can’t wait to see you guys next year!</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>] SAT (CR/M/W):610/660/620 (Didn’t submit SAT though)
[</em>] SAT IIs: 710/710
[<em>] ACT: 33
[</em>] GPA:4.0/5.12
[<em>] Rank:1/300-400
[</em>] Rigor of course load:14 APs
[<em>] Other stats (AP, IB, etc.):four 5s, two 4s, two 3s
[/ul] Subjective:[ul]
[</em>] Essays:Pretty good, very story-like; not boring at all
[<em>] ECs: President of Mu Alpha Theta, Treasurer of NHS, Outward Bound, Key Club, Spanish NHS, Varsity Swimming, volunteer at Wildlife Center
[</em>] Teacher Recs: one from AP teacher I had twice, one from MAO sponsor+math teacher
[<em>] Counselor Rec:had her for a teacher as well
[</em>] Hook (if any): none
[/ul] Location/Person:[ul]
[<em>] State or Country:Florida
[</em>] School Type:Public
[<em>] Ethnicity:White
[</em>] Gender:Female
[/ul] Other Factors: I had a LOT of awards, that prob. helped General Comments: Yipeee!!</p>
<p>My friend got into Amherst and these are his stats. He’s typing this though; don’t hate me.</p>
<p>Decision: Accepted</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[li] SAT (CR/M/W): 740/680/690</p>[/li]
<p>[li] SAT IIs: 760 Literature 770 US History 640 Spanish w/ Listening</p>[/li]
<p>[<em>] GPA: 92.509 (Straight A student in every class but gym, which I nearly failed every year. That is why my GPA is so extremely low)
[</em>] Rank: 62 of 458 (^)
[li] Rigor of course load: Not the highest. Moved into advanced classes in senior year after honors English and college-level History. </p>[/li]
<p>[<em>] Other stats (AP, IB, etc.): No APs. No IBs. 3 APs senior year.
[/ul] Subjective:[ul]
[</em>] Essays: Very personal, poignant. They were very well-written. Excellent.
[<em>] ECs: Virtually none until Junior year. Six years of band playing the Baritone Horn. Then, in Junior year I joined Mock Trial, the Multi-Cultural and Diversity Club (of which I became Vice-President), National Honor Society. Additionally, I learned trombone and joined Jazz Band in Senior year, as well as Student Senate.<br>
[</em>] Teacher Recs: One was great and spoke of my potential. The other was very, very good and cast my personality in a very good light. Additionally, I sent a supplemental recommendation from my English teacher Junior year. It was excellent.
[<em>] Counselor Rec: Decent. She didn’t know me very well.
[</em>] Hook (if any): URM.<br>
[/ul] Location/Person: Upstate New York[ul]
[li] State or Country: New York</p>[/li]
<p>[li] School Type: Public high school. Not really accoladed.</p>[/li]
<p>[<em>] Ethnicity: Puerto Rican
[</em>] Gender: Male
[/ul] Other Factors: My first quarter report card was stellar. I earned a 97.075 GPA even with a 75 in gym. General Comments: I honestly can’t believe it. I have spent these last few weeks completely apathetic; I was convinced I would not get in. Also, I am applying as an English major. That is why I think my SAT didn’t hinder me so horribly: I did great on the Literature SAT II and the CR section wasn’t horrible.</p>
<p>Stats:
ACT: 32 (E35, M34, R30, S30)
SAT IIs: 730 Math I
GPA: 4.88 W (school only does weighted)
Rank: school does not rank
Rigor of course load: All Honors and APs
Other stats (AP, IB, etc.): </p>
<p>Subjective:
Essays: Great. I don’t know if the acceptance emails were personalized, but mine mentioned how great my essays were.
ECs: 4 years varsity soccer and lacrosse, 100 hours of community service, NHS, and more…
Teacher Recs: I guess they were good. How am I supposed to know?
Hook (if any): Recruited athlete!</p>
<p>Location/Person:
State or Country: PA
School Type: Good public high school
Ethnicity: White
Gender: Female</p>
<p>General Comments: CAN’T WAIT TIL SEPTEMBER!</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>] ACT (Composite: M/W/CR/SCI): 35: 36/36/34/35
[</em>] SAT IIs: 790 Math II, 760 Bio E, 730 US History
[<em>] GPA: 4.409
[</em>] Rank: 6/653
[<em>] Rigor of course load: 13 APs + 1 College accredited writing class
[</em>] Other stats (AP, IB, etc.): 5 fives, 6 fours
[/ul] Subjective:[ul]
[<em>] Essays: Strong Common App and short essay (?), weak/average supplement, in my opinion.
[</em>] ECs: MUN Board, literary magazine Editor-in-Chief, news paper editor, state finalist in Speech/Debate, 2 humanitarian clubs, NHS, ~40 volunteer hours
[<em>] Teacher Recs: 1 strong, 1 average/good
[</em>] Counselor Rec: No idea
[<em>] Hook (if any): None
[/ul] Location/Person:[ul]
[</em>] State or Country: Oregon
[<em>] School Type: Large public
[</em>] Ethnicity: Chinese
[li] Gender: Male[/li][/ul] Other Factors: National Merit Semifinalist, National AP Scholar General Comments: So excited. Also, to those deferred or rejected, knowing that you’ve applied to one of the most competitive, intellectual schools leads me to believe that you are all highly gifted, motivated students that will succeed anywhere. Best of luck!</p>
<p>@Anon6: My email mentioned my essays as well, so I don’t think they were personalized.</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>] SAT (CR/M/W): 2340 (800/750/790)
[</em>] SAT IIs: 770 Lit, 760 U.S. Hist.
[<em>] GPA: 3.73 UW, 5.01 W
[</em>] Rank: 34/1017 (Not officially reported, but made it into counselor rec)
[<em>] Rigor of course load: Most rigorous available
[</em>] Other stats (AP, IB, etc.): 5 AP Lang & Comp, 5 APUSH, will take 6 more AP Tests this year
[/ul] Subjective:[ul]
[<em>] Essays: Solid. Very solid. I come from a long line of writers, and would like to think I write pretty well myself. I put a lot of thought into the essays, and would guess that they ended up being fairly unique.
[</em>] ECs:
[<em>] Freelance photojournalism for national newspapers, major publishing houses, and a high-traffic news & politics website
[</em>] Campaign photographer for 3 U.S. Congressional campaigns (also founded student volunteer group for one of the campaigns)
[<em>] Media/communications intern for local Democratic Party
[</em>] Orchestral double bassist–have played 8 years and played in my school’s top orchestra (which won a Grammy a few years ago) since sophomore year
[<em>] Varsity Crew. Only started rowing junior year, but I’ve worked my ass off and was having pretty serious talks with a few Ivy League coaches up until the ED deadline
[</em>]President of Young Democrats club at school, junior year (member since freshman year)
[<em>]Won a lot of state & national awards for Latin; was captain of Certamen (dorky Latin quiz bowl) team
[/ul]
[li] Teacher Recs: Very strong.[/li][</em>] Counselor Rec: Glowing
[<em>] Hook (if any): Legacy
Location/Person:[ul]
[</em>] State or Country: IL
[<em>] School Type: Very prestigious suburban public
[</em>] Ethnicity: White
[li] Gender: Male[/li][/ul] Other Factors: A very well-regarded faculty member, whom I’ve gotten to know well, wrote me a very nice rec without my asking for one. The fact that I’m interested in Russian Lit, which is a little obscure, also might’ve helped. General Comments: Relieved to be done applying to college. Truly sorry to those who didn’t get in, and to those who did, see you on campus this spring or next fall!</p>
<p>Objective:[ul]
[<em>] SAT I (breakdown):770 CR, 700 M, 750 W
[</em>] ACT: 32
[<em>] SAT II: 700 Literature, 760 Math I, 680 US History
[</em>] Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.92, 5.04 weighted
[<em>] Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 6/400
[</em>] AP (place score in parenthesis):Human Geo (5), Psych (5), Biology (4), World History (4), Stats (4), Lang & Comp (4), US History (3), Environmental (3), Chemistry (1, haha)
[<em>] Senior Year Course Load: AP Calc AB, Debate 4 Honors, AP Macro, AP Spanish Language, AP Physics B, AP English Literature
[</em>] Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Achievement Semifinalist, AP Scholar w/ Distinction, National Merit Commended. Not sure if any of those qualify as “major”.
[/ul] Subjective:[ul]
[<em>] Extracurriculars (place leadership in parenthesis): Academic Team (Captain), Varsity Lacrosse, NHS, etc.
[</em>] Essays: I thought they were pretty decent. Main Common App was about my mom’s influence on me, 150 word was on being a lacrosse goalie and supplement was on how I like making things difficult for myself.
[<em>] Teacher Recommendations: The scariest part of my app. I chose two of my junior year teachers because I was originally set on Duke and they require that the recs come from Junior or Senior year teachers but they really didn’t know me too well.
[</em>] Counselor Rec: Was probably very good. She’s in love with me. I mean that literally.
[/ul] Other[ul]
[<em>] State (if domestic applicant): Florida
[</em>] School Type: Very competitive public school. Consistently highly ranked and sends kids to Ivies and comparable schools every year.
[<em>] Ethnicity: Cuban/African-American
[</em>] Gender: Male
[<em>] Income Bracket: <30,000
[</em>] Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): Double URM, first generation[/ul] Reflection[ul]
[<em>] Strengths: Hooks, rigor of schedule, test scores, DivOH
[</em>] Weaknesses: Leadership positions
[/ul] General Comments: Life is beautiful</p>
<p>Stats:[ul]
[<em>] ACT: C: 33; E: 36; R: 35; M: 31; S: 30
[</em>] SAT IIs: 770 USH, 770 Lit
[<em>] GPA: 3.94/4.0 (UW); 4.11 (W)
[</em>] Rank: 12/445
[<em>] Rigor of course load: Most rigorous available
[</em>] Other stats (AP, IB, etc.):
[/ul] Subjective:[ul]
[<em>] Essays: I thought they were good but they don’t seem too personal now that I’m looking back on them.
[</em>] ECs: 1st violinist in audition-only youth philharmonic; Co-founder in Peer Mentoring Club; Part-time Sales Advisor at H&M (25 hrs/wk); Senior Thesis on Judicial Restraint at the Supreme Court; Law Blog on Intermediary Federal Courts; Theatre; etc.
[<em>] Teacher Recs: Glowing
[</em>] Counselor Rec: Very good
[<em>] Hook (if any): None
[/ul] Location/Person:[ul]
[</em>] State or Country: OH
[<em>] School Type: Semi-public Charter
[</em>] Ethnicity: White
[li] Gender: Male[/li][/ul] Other Factors: I go to a high school with an accelerated curriculum. We take 18 high school credits in two years and then are free to be full-time students at the Ohio State University for our final years in high school. I’ve been full-time since junior year and started taking honors courses there this fall. My school does not offer APs. General Comments: Congrats to all who got in. Surprisingly, I was deferred because of my grades (one “B” in an OSU engineering course).</p>
<p>“Surprisingly, I was deferred because of my grades (one “B” in an OSU engineering course).”</p>
<p>By this I mean that I was surprised that I was deferred because of my grades; I thought my academics were the strongest part of my application. I don’t want to seem like a bitter, egotistical applicant :D</p>
<p>I think sometimes there may not really be an easily identifiable reason why a specific student gets deferred. If you call and ask, they may try to come up with something objective to hang it on, like a B, but I don’t think that’s probably the entirety of it.</p>
<p>It’s a complex thing doing admissions, because they’re putting together a class and trying to balance it in numerous ways. There’s bound to be an element of subjectivity. If a student applies who has some particular skills, aptitude, talents, background or life experience that they feel will contribute to the freshman class in a way they’d like to see, then having one B (especially in a college-level class) wouldn’t necessarily be their undoing. It’s easier to point to, though, and say… well, there’s that B.</p>
<p>I guess I’m just saying this because you sound like an excellent applicant and I bet you’ll have some great options when your RD applications come round in the spring. I wouldn’t hang too much on that B. ;)</p>
