This:
Thanks, @HRSMom: that point can’t be made often enough, loudly enough or clearly enough.
Just bear in mind it’s a 3.5 unweighted, he/she is aiming for 17 AP, so could have 10 done or half-way-and we have no idea what those grades are. But I’m guessing not A’s or the weighted GPA would be higher.
On another thread, it was “top 12%” and the December ACT was 24.
At best, this thread is speculation.
I wouldn’t know when those C’s occurred. I haven’t seen the report card/transcript. I just know the C’s have to exist between “will have taken 17 AP classes” and a weighted GPA of 3.5. I have a child who was very similar to the OP. She had a weighted GPA of 3.7x and 10 AP classes. Although her ACT wasn’t as high (31 versus OP’s 35), there was no way I counseled her to aim for Stanford, CMU or any top 20, 30 schools. Her list reflected her unweighted GPA more than weighted GPA. Yes, D had an upward trend in her GPA (reaching a weighted 4.0+ her senior year) and I would say most of her C’s occurred in her freshman year but they still existed. btw, I don’t see the problem with telling the OP s/he is unlikely to get accepted to schools with single digit acceptance rates.
FWIW, D’s weighted GPA was always above a 3.5 even while getting those C’s. Trust me, she struggled. Maybe you don’t have such a child because your son always had a 4.0?
There is another possibility. The OP attends a magnet high school with a lopsided population of students. The magnet students take a large number of AP and honors courses getting a big bump in the GPA and class rank and the rest of the student population are indeed truly struggling.
Sorry, I got my terms mixed up in #21 and only caught one- that 3.5 is already weighted.
The December ACT was 24, not 35. Mayyybe top 12% (that thread asked about getting into UT Austin.) And the GPA is what it is. I do think he or she is dreaming that everything will turn around. And has stars in his eyes re: prestige.
And 17 AP, even if allowed, even if OP got A’s in some of those, isn’t going to make up for the lukewarm results in actual class performance, over time. None of this makes the kind of sense, serves as the sort of evidence of thinking, that that level of adcom will look for. And, ya know, the user name is “no effort.”
OP also hasn’t reported AP scores, so I’m wondering how many are truly behind his/her belt. And guessing some will be self study.
OP should be looking at what those schools really look for. Eyes wide open.
It is depressing that no matter how many times we say it isn’t a question of “who takes the most APs wins”, that belief persists. Too little information here to make any predictions. I hope the OP has some good safeties in mind if for no reason than their idea of “low tier” is really distorted.
What state do you live in?
What is your unweighted GPA? If your school doesn’t provide it, figure it out yourself - add up your grades from your academic courses and then divide by number of courses.
As you are currently a junior, I would advise you to scale back your AP plans. 17 is way too many. 10 is more than enough.
With some more specific data, you will get more useful advice.
As others have said, you need to be realistic and look beyond the super elite schools. Does your HS have naviance? How do your stats stack up to those that got into top schools in the past? What are the 74 kids ranked ahead of you aiming for? How heavily does your school weight (1 for an AP or 0.5)? And what is your HS’s reputation?
I know you probably have a more realistic idea of your chances than you are letting on, and probably were looking for some parents to say you will be great. But unless you are at a super competitive HS and have all As this year, with some good ECs, you chances may not be great even for a school like U Rochester or Northeaster, which are not easy for a 3.5 kid.
There are many great colleges. Don’t be discouraged and do the best you can so you will have good choices in Apirl 2107. But expand your mind and your list so you won’t be disappointed.
According to Noeffort’s previous posts the most current ACT is a 24 (from Dec '15) - the 35 must be what is hoped for.
Naviance is your friend. At the HS my kids attended which had zero grade inflation (and only allowed 1 AP class sophomore year, 2 junior year, and 4 senior year- so the top kids had 4-6 AP’s, not 8+) being in the top 10% was sufficient for admission to top tier schools. At a HS down the street from me with rampant grade inflation, you’d better be in the top 5 (not percentage- but one of the top five kids) to be considered for the top tier schools.
Finding out where kids from your HS go who have stats like your is the only relevant factor here. Adcoms generally know what they are looking at when they see a transcript.
Thanks for all your responses everyone, I appreciate it!
@lookingforward @OHMomof2 I did get a low score in the Dec. ACT. I made this thread in order to see if it was possible to make it into a good school if somehow I managed to pull of a 35 in the next few months. I changed schools last summer and my guidance counselor told me I would be around top 12%. I received my transcript last week and I am top 10% (75/754). As for AP classes:
Freshman Year - 2 APs (3 & 2)
Sophmore Year - 2 APs (4 & 5)
Junior Year - 6 APs
Senior Year - Going to take 7 APs
As some of you all mentioned, I did receive C’s in high school (2 of them), freshman year. I have a good reason for this (probably going to sound like an excuse so I’m not going to explain it).
Yes I have a saftey school. I get auto admit to UT Dallas if I maintain my top 10% rank.
I knew Cornell and CMU are HIGH reaches for me. I just wanted to make sure my assumptions were true. There was a side of me that hoped that there were students with the same stats as me getting accepted into the Top 15 schools but I guess not
Better have the Cs frosh year than later, so that’s good. Did you try the SAT? Or take the PSAT this year? Possibly you’d be more suited to that test than the ACT, some kids are better at one or the other.
There are dozens and dozens of fantastic colleges in the US.
@OHMomof2 I did take the PSAT and got a 1320. Not going to be NMS… :((
@mathmom “It is depressing that no matter how many times we say it isn’t a question of “who takes the most APs wins”, that belief persists.”
Why do you say that?
Ivies and other top schools specifically say they expect applicants to take the most rigorous course load available at your school.
I quote from a Yale coach:
We’re looking for “a gpa as close to possible to an unweighted 4.0 while taking the most challenging classes the high school has to offer.”
Have you seen the counselor’s report that gets submitted to admissions? Counselors rank the applicant’s course load rigor, from easy to most rigorous.
Not having “most rigorous” checked is a big negative and can sink your ship at the top schools.
NoEffort, your original post was very misleading. We put time and effort into answering your question, which was not, in reality, based on a real situation. I think you should apologize.
If you remember, my first response to you mentioned that in college admissions, “character” is important.
Yes, I have seen the counselor’s report. There are very, very few schools (if any) where taking 17 APs would be required to get the “most rigorous” checkmark. I have also heard admissions counselors from Yale, Harvard, Dartmouth, Vassar and a few others say that they don’t want you to take every AP your high school offers. They are much more interested in students who do something besides take as many APs as possible. If you want to take more advanced courses, you’d be better off taking Linear Algebra or Discrete Math, or extra history courses at the local college, or go beyond the AP Comp Sci offerings and teach yourself Linux and Scheme and SQR. Do Science Research. Or as one student I know - make up a program like the Intel program in history. Racking up AP courses in subjects that many colleges don’t even offer is counterproductive.
"We’re looking for “a gpa as close to possible to an unweighted 4.0 while taking the most challenging classes the high school has to offer.” only really works if your unweighted is close to 4.0. With a weighted GPA of 3.5, OP would be better off taking fewer APs and focusing on improving his GPA.
If you were able to get into Cornell, would you be able to afford to attend? Your stats are unlikely to get merit aid. I’ve advised my son against applying to prestigious school because despite his weighted GPA of 4.8, I could never afford the price tag.
With a weighted GPA of 3.5, OP would be better off focusing on colleges he has a snowball’s chance of getting into.
Rigor doesn’t mean a lemmings rush to take every AP. Mathmom is right about other options. They need kids who can think and stretch in the right ways.
The actual ACT score is a 24! Can we stop talking about Cornell?