Areas in Need of Improvement (Chances)

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill
1

<p>Applying to the College of Arts and Sciences; OOS applicant :( lol. I will have 9 APs by graduation in 2008. I have taken all of the honors / AP courses I could possibly fit in my schedule (definitely have one the most rigorous schedules for senior year). I really think (hope) my essays and recommendations will be excellent.</p>

<p>RACE: African American / Black</p>

<p>GENDER: Male</p>

<p>LOCATION: South Carolina</p>

<p>MAJOR: Political Science</p>

<p>GPA: 3.8 Un-Weighted / 4.7 Weighted</p>

<p>RANK: 3 / 337</p>

<p>SAT:
Critical Reading - 660
Math - 600
Writing - 610 (7 Essay; 63 MC)</p>

<p>SAT II: Taking Literature and US History in November (maybe 650+)</p>

<p>GRADES:
FRESHMAN YEAR
Algebra 1 CP - 97
French 1 CP -99
Algebra 2 Honors - 91
Physical Science Honors - 88
English 1 Honors - 98
World History Honors - 95
Honors Seminar - 99
French 2 CP - 96
Physical Education (CP) - 100
Computer Applications (CP) - 96</p>

<p>SOPHOMORE YEAR:
Geometry Honors - 94
Biology 1 Honors - 90
English 2 Honors - 95
AP European History - 89
French 3 Honors - 97
Visions of the Future Seminar (Honors) - 95
Art 1 (CP) - 96
Health (CP) - 96</p>

<p>JUNIOR YEAR:
Algebra 3 Honors - 97
Chemistry 1 Honors - 93
AP English Language & Composition - 99
AP United States History - 96
AP Art History - 97
Introduction to Philosophy Seminar (Honors) - 97
Global Issues Seminar (Honors) - 96
French 4 Honors - 97</p>

<p>SENIOR YEAR:
Pre-Calculus Honors
Physics Honors
AP English Literature & Composition
AP United States Government & Politics
AP French Language & Composition (Independent Study)
Talented & Gifted Art (Honors)
AP Studio Art
AP Human Geography (Independent Study)
Twentieth Century Seminar (Honors) (Independent Study)
Economics CP (could not fit AP)</p>

<p>EXTRACURRIULAR ACTIVITIES:
Youth Action Council: Co-Chair / President; Finalist in the Project Ignition National Seat Belt Campaign; presented multi-media campaign at the National Youth Leadership Council's (NYLC) National Service-Learning Conference; recipient of the Best Grassroots Impact Award for working with South Carolina legislators to enact stronger seat belt safety laws; recipient of the $25,000 State Farm Good Neighbor Service-Learning Grant; distributed over $45,000 in mini-grants to district teachers and students since inception year to support service-learning and civic-engagement projects</p>

<p>Student Government
Senate; House of Representatives; Representative-at-Large; National Association of Student Councils (NASC) Council of Excellence Award; Certificate of Excellence and Varsity Letter for 300+ Hours of Service; South Carolina Association of Student Councils (SCASC) Gold Honor Council Award; Junior Class Leadership Council Secretary; Certificate of Excellence for 200+ Hours of Service; Sophomore Class Leadership Council Secretary; Outstanding Freshman Class Service Award for 100+ Hours of Servce; South Carolina Association of Student Councils (SCASC) District Conference; School Improvement Council (SIC)</p>

<p>Scholars Symposium / Honors Forum
Senior Class Advisory Council Representative; Junior Class Advisory Council Representative; Sophomore Class Advisory Council Representative; Freshman Class Advisory Council Representative; Representative at District Education Forum; Peer Mentor / Tutor</p>

<p>National Art Honor Society (NAHS)
Awards and Ceremony Coordinator; Scholastic Art and Writings Award Competition; South Carolina State Fair Student Art Show; Spring Visual Arts Show; Photography Club</p>

<p>National French Honor Society (NFHS)
President / Awards and Ceremony Coordinator; Darfur Advocacy Campaign (Co-Chair); Peer Mentor / Tutor</p>

<p>National Honor Society (NHS)
Peer Mentor / Tutor</p>

<p>National Senior Beta Club
Peer Mentor / Tutor</p>

<p>COMMUNITY SERVICE PROJECTS:
Amnesty International USA
"Malaria No More" Campaign (Duke University Medical Center)
STAND: A Student Anti-Genocide Coalition
Genocide Intervention Network
Andy Thomas Radio Network Teen Forum Show
National Service-Learning Partnership
Service-Learning and Civic-Engagement Collaborative Workshop (Instructor)
Good Neighbor Home Works Renovation Project
Winter Holidays Service Project
Board Election (Co-Manager for Gregory Branch)</p>

<p>SUMMER EXPERIENCES:
The Governor's School of South Carolina at the College of Charleston (Collective Memory of World War II; The Holocaust in Film)
South Carolina Business Week at Presbyterian College
Clemson University Program for Academically Talented Students</p>

<p>ACADEMIC HONORS:
Principal's Scholar Honor (Top 10 students)
National Ventures Scholar Program
National French Contest Level 4 Honorable Mention Award
Junior Marshal at Senior Graduation (Top 10%)
Coker College Scholar Award
Lander University Junior Fellow Award
Newberry College Scholar Award
University of South Carolina Aiken Scholar Award
University of South Carolina Upstate Scholar Award
AP English Language & Composition Award of Excellence
Outstanding Academic Achievement in Junior English Award (AP Eng.)
South Carolina Governor's Scholar Award
Golden Palmetto Leadership & Service Merit Award
Outstanding Academic Achievement in Sophomore History Award (AP Euro.)
National History Day Certificate of Achievement
Outstanding Academic Achievement in Freshman Social Studies Award (WH)
Academic Honor Roll
Duke Univeristy Talent Identification Program Scholar
Scholars Academy / Honors School</p>

2

<p>everything looks good except for you SATs, as an out of state applicant you really need to get those up</p>

3

<p>Yeah that was my first try at taking them. I'll take them again this October. The valedictorian from my school last year got into UNC - Chapel Hill but I don't know what her stats were outside of her GPA lol (more than likely very good). Does UNC weight SAT's very heavily compared to everything else? Also, someone told me that UVA, UNC, and Cornell are very big on affirmative action; I'm not trying to stir any debate but I'm just wondering if this is true :).</p>

4

<p>I agree with kkeefe- try to get that SAT score up, and you should be fine. The SAT isn't everything, though. Just take it again to show UNC you are trying to improve your score. As far as your affirmative action question goes, let me put it this way: Being African American is not going to hurt you. LOL.</p>

5

<p>I would be really surprised if you didn't get in, maybe even with some scholarship money. It will not hurt to retake your SAT, but I'd call the office and ask them about it. They'll probably say what I'm about to say:</p>

<p>Carolina is REALLY big into considering the entire applicant. A lot of schools claim that they do that, but I never got that feeling from anywhere else. If I were you, I'd ask them if I could send in a few documents (did you receive letters that prove the money you distributed?). I sent in a letter I received from Greensboro Urban Ministries thanking me for all the work I had done with them, and I really feel like that was useful to me. Write a strong essay that shows who you are and brings your personality to life.</p>

<p>Your extracurriculars are very strong, which is a huge asset. Think of how many kids have nothing but a high SAT score. Extracurriculars like yours are unique and are what help set people apart.</p>

<p>BTW - make sure you study hard for your SAT IIs. I found that they were much more difficult than the SAT and required a lot of extra studying.</p>

6

<p>from OKeefe: "everything looks good except for you SATs, as an out of state applicant you really need to get those up"....
Disagree. My D's scores were not as high as yours, and she got in. She also brings diversity to the campus, as you do.... I honestly believe Admissions looks at you as a whole person.... they'll love you! Gotta have great essays, though. Let your personality show through them... no stiff writing.
Good luck!</p>

7

<p>Thanks for the replies! RioMom, was your daughter a strong applicant in other areas (GPA, rank, ECs, etc.)? I also tested well on my AP exams (just in case the rigor of my classes is called into question lol): AP European History - 3, AP United States History - 5, AP Art History - 3, AP English Language and Composition - 5.</p>

8

<p>A 3 won't get you any college credit at UNC.</p>

9

<p>That's not true. Spanish, stat, calc, and probably more give credit for 3's. Oh and don't worry about art history, unc doesn't give credit for that at all.</p>

10

<p>ummm...yeah...unc gives a lot of credit for 3's...considering the fact that it's a public school, it accepts 3's and 4's.</p>

11

<p>Wrong. <a href="http://admissions.unc.edu/pdf/2006_APIB_sheet.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://admissions.unc.edu/pdf/2006_APIB_sheet.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>For European History, you need a 4. For Art History, you need a 4 for 3 credit hours and a 5 for 6 credit hours. Next time, know what you're talking about before completely making up stuff. </p>

<p>ready2boutofhs is correct in that for spanish, stat, and calc, a 3 will give you credit. But, he didn't takes those tests so that's irrelevant. For most tests, you need a 4 or 5.</p>

12

<p>im sayign that minimum ap credit is given if you get a 3 or 4. of course, if you want additional credit, you'd have to get a 4 or 5...</p>

<p>perhaps i misunderstood you, when you said "A 3 won't get you any college credit at UNC" i thought you meant in general, not specifically for this thread</p>

13

<p>Oh, I see the confusion; my wording was too vague.</p>

14

<p>You really do need to get your SATs up. Riomom, your daughter may have gotten in with lower scores, but she is probably a rare exception. Being black will definitely help you (as far as the affirmative action thing goes). You will have a significant advantage at most schools with that ethnicity status. good luck!</p>

15

<p>if you look in the 2007 first year guide art history isn't listed in the AP chart. In fact at my CTOPS session there was a discussion with an academic advisor about how unc wasn't giving credit for the AP class and he just said to petition the department. I wasn't making it up.</p>

<p><a href="http://advising.unc.edu/newstudents/2007FirstYearGuide.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://advising.unc.edu/newstudents/2007FirstYearGuide.pdf&lt;/a> </p>

<p>page 37</p>