Average Student, Chances for East Coast Schools?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Female
White</p>

<p>Public school in NJ
~1200 kids?
mildly competitive</p>

<p>GPA: 3.5 (uw)
SAT: CR:550, W: 590, M:590, 1760
ridiculously average right? I plan on retaking I'm hoping to just break the 2000 mark. I may also take the ACT.</p>

<p>I'm taking my SATII's in the fall, I expect at least 700s in Biology and US History (I've been prepping hard)</p>

<p>APs:
History: 4
Psychology: 4
Gov: 5
Bio: 3
I don't even know if I should report these.</p>

<p>EC's ... which kinda suck.
Model Congress, 3 years
French Club, 3 years, shoo in for president next year
Student Council, 3 years
NHS, more like a filler really
French Honor Society
100+ community service hours, no depth whatsoever, just did it as a requirement.</p>

<p>Next year (senior year), I'm taking the most rigorous schedule available. I know my GPA kinda sucks, but it's been an upward trend, so isn't that all that matters? I know my grades aren't cut out like most people on this forum, but I'm not really applying to the most "prestigious" colleges anyway. So what are my chances?</p>

<p>So here's my list. It's rather long, and I have no idea what would be considered my match/read/safety or whatever. BTW, I plan to major in Political Science. It's rather scattered, so maybe you guys can help me out and tell me which to eliminate or maybe even add?</p>

<p>American U
Bucknell U
C Holy Cross
Fairfield U
Penn State U Park
Providence C
Quinnipiac U
Rutgers NB
Syracuse U
Temple U
TCNJ
Trinity C (CT)
U Hartford
Villanova</p>

<p>No real order preference, but Trinity, Holy Cross, and Fairfield are pretty much my top choices.</p>

<p>I think I've covered the basics, any questions feel free to ask.</p>

2

<p>American U No
Bucknell U No
C Holy Cross No
Fairfield U Yes
Penn State U Park No
Providence C No
Quinnipiac U Yes
Rutgers NB Yes
Syracuse U Yes
Temple U Yes
TCNJ No idea about TCNJ
Trinity C (CT) No
U Hartford Yes
Villanova No</p>

3

<p>^ Thanks. BTW, you think if I break the 2000 mark on my SATs (taking in October) I’ll at least have a shot at Holy Cross and Trinity? Or are my EC’s and GPA too weak?</p>

<p>Anyone else, please?</p>

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<p>I think you’d have a chance, but your GPA is holding you back.</p>

5

<p>Very high reach:
Bucknell U
C Holy Cross
Trinity College
Villanova U</p>

<p>Reach:
American U
TCNJ</p>

<p>Match:
Fairfield U
Penn State U Park
Providence C (slight reach)
Quinnipiac U (slight reach)
Rutgers NB
Syracuse U</p>

<p>Safety:
Temple U
U Hartford</p>

<p>You have a good number of matches. Unless your SAT scores improve, it’s probably not worth applying to more than one of the very high reaches. What you seem to lack is confidence! Of course, comparing yourself to CC students can be disheartening, but you’re putting a lot of work into the college search and in the end it’s going to pay off. It’s absolutely worth reporting your AP scores, especially to schools that accept them as college credit (you can graduate a semester early!).</p>

<p>I recommend visiting at least one of the safety schools, several of your matches, and one or two of the reaches. Hopefully that will help you narrow it down and will aid you in the final choice.</p>

6

<p>Two kids with a GPA of less than 3.0 and only 4 years of sports got into Trinity.</p>

7

<p>Thanks for you input everyone. I guess I really do need to pull up my SAT scores, I’m been prepping like crazy I think I’m confident I’ll just barely break 2000. I know essays, and teachers rec’s don’t really count that much but I’m really hoping those can pull me in, even slightly. Maybe even the interview? I’m definitely going to schedule one whether it be on or off campus, even if it’ll help me ever so slightly, I have been told I have a bright and bubbly personality so hopefully that’ll shine through.</p>

<p>It sucks that my top two happen to be high reaches. I think I’ll still apply to Trinity and Holy Cross, and just ditch Bucknell and Villanova most likely. Thankfully I’ve heard only great things from U Hartford and Temple (a ton of my friends go there). However, should I still add more safeties?</p>

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<p>You already have quite a list. I applied to 13 colleges, and I regret spreading myself so thin. Of course, it’s always better to apply to an extra safety rather than a high reach. But if your SATs improve and you keep a high GPA this year, the high reaches probably won’t be too high.</p>

<p>Your community service hours are a bit of a concern. “No depth whatsoever” isn’t going to fly. If you don’t have a passion for volunteering, hopefully you’ll still be able to portray your experience positively, and your other passions will show through.</p>

9

<p>These ** will be reaches. They might look at your SATs and stop there. Unless you’ve got a hook, it’s a stretch. If there’s a favorite, choose ED and def. do all those EA (V, HC, Ffld, Prov., PState) and see what happens.
*<em>American U
*</em>Bucknell U
*<em>Holy Cross
*</em>Villanova
**Trinity</p>

<p>Fairfield U
Penn State U Park (they just go by SAT scores)
Providence C
Quinnipiac U
Rutgers NB
Syracuse U
Temple U
TCNJ
U Hartford</p>

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<p>American isn’t that much of a reach.</p>

11

<p>I know someone with a 2.9 weighted that got into American. His only extracurricular was debate</p>

12

<p>Wow, thanks for all the replies everyone. </p>

<p>

Yeah, I was thinking of not even putting them on my transcript. I just helped out a bit at my local library. However starting this September I’m going to become a catechist for CCD. Maybe that’ll boost my chances at Holy Cross?</p>

<p>

Thanks a lot, I am am definitely going to do EA for all of those. ED is just too binding for me thanks for the input.</p>

<p>diontechristmas and AlwaysReaching, I’m going to be visiting American this weekend, so hopefully I’ll like the campus/atmosphere, if not I’ll cross it off my list. But it’s a match apparently?</p>

<hr>

<p>Two further questions

  1. I’ll also be visiting George Washington, while I am in DC. Is that a good match?
  2. My mother wants me to apply to schools as close as possible, hence the number of PA schools, so should I still consider Villanova? Maybe apply there EA?</p>
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<p>I’m not a fan of Nova, but that’s probably because I go to Temple. I do live a few minutes away from Nova, and it doesn’t have the reputation here that it has in other circles. Most people here just know about their basketball team. Honestly, though, I dont see how you could justify paying that much to attend Nova.</p>

<p>GW is a good school and my friend from Temple is transferring there to be closer to the political center of the world, but at $52,000 a year? Yeah, no thanks.</p>

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<p>^ Thanks, I’ll probably cut back on some PA schools, I was thinking about adding a few more (Muhlenburg, U Scranton, etc.) I guess I’ll just visit and see how they are for myself. And of course look up the costs.</p>

<p>Yea, you’re right GW is ridiculously expensive, most expensive on my list, I believe. I still don’t know if being closer to the political world is a good trade-off. I guess the campus visit will be the deal breaker.</p>

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<p>my dad went to U Scranton, and was accepted to Georgetown Med (3% acceptance), so I’m sure its not that bad of a school.</p>

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<p>I’m not a fan of schools like Muhl, F&M and Scranton. They’re fine for some people, but ultimately, I just dont think schools like that are worth so much more money over great options like Temple, Pitt, PSU, etc.
GW, dont get me started. I transferred from a $50,000 a year school to Temple. I couldn’t imagine spending $2K+ more a year for silly undergrad education.</p>

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<p>Sorry for so many questions, but, what made you decide to attend Temple over Pitt and PU?</p>

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<p>Over Pitt and Penn State?</p>

19

<p>Yea, sorry about that. Penn State and Pitt U.</p>

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<p>I didn’t apply to either. I have always hated Penn State, so I never considered it. I dont find cowtown USA very appealing. I have a lot of friends at Pitt, but I didn’t want to go there. I come from a Temple family, so it was an easy choice. Temple also has the best program for my major in PA by far, so that helps.</p>