Awful Freshman year...Can I still get in?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>I'm a white male who attends a top Northeastern public school. After a terrible freshmen year, I made great improvements over my sophomore and junior years. PLEASE tell me if I have a chance at these schools. Here are my stats:</p>

<p>CORE GPA UW (out of 4.0): Freshman-2.8/Sophomore-3.9/Junior-3.8
GPA w/electives UW (out of 4.0): Freshman-3.3/Sophomore-4.0/Junior-3.9
8th Grade: Earth Science Honors, Spanish I
Freshmen: 2 honors
Sophomore: 2 honors
Junior: 3 AP, 1 honors
Senior: 4 AP</p>

<p>Class Rank: 27 out of 176</p>

<p>ACT: 30
SAT: 1430/1600</p>

<p>Extracurricular:
Italian Club (President Senior yr.) (9,10,11,12)
Military History Club (9,10,11,12)
V Cross Country (9)
Spring Lacrosse (9,10,11,12)
TV Production Club (10,11,12)
Yearbook Club (10,11,12)
Guitar (3 hours per week)
Winter Squash (10,11,12)
School Newspaper (11,12)
School Play (9,10,11,12)
Contestant on "American Idol" (SERIOUSLY, eliminated in second round)-Although I am a talented singer, I have absolutely no aspirations to become a "professional singer", and find a college degree much more valuable. I also hope this will be the "it factor" that gets me in to my choices. </p>

<p>Volunteer Work: (Animal Shelter-30 hours total) (Tutor-3 hours per week throughout school year)</p>

<p>Schools:
1. University of Miami
2. University of Texas-Austin
3. University of Wisconsin-Madison
4. Boston College
5. University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign
6. Syracuse University
7. University of Colorado-Boulder
8. Indiana University-Bloomington
9. Michigan State University-East Lansing
10. University of Arizona-Tucson
11. Fordham University
12. Binghamton University (SUNY)</p>

<p>PS: I've heard that some schools don't include freshman year grades.
Which of the above schools are included in that category? Can anyone recommend any other schools I should consider applying to? Am I reaching too far? Safeties I should consider? Thanks in Advance.</p>

2

<p>BUMP..........Come on guys, I'm a complete newb when it comes to the admissions game and I need SOMEONE to chance me!</p>

3

<p>UW-Madison link to Freshman Admission Expectations 2009-2010
<a href="http://www.admissions.wisc.edu/images/UW_FreshmanExpectations.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.admissions.wisc.edu/images/UW_FreshmanExpectations.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>'Guidelines' indicate about a 70% chance. Use one of the essays to explain your grade trend.</p>

4

<p>Thanks Madison, anyone else???</p>

5

<p>In at Syracuse and Michigan State, I'd say. Good SAT scores, significant upward trend, ECs, etc.</p>

6

<p>UT-Austin is really hard to get into out of state.</p>

7

<p>Even if I apply early? Also, how much do you think my "American Idol" experience will help me in the process (even though I was eliminated early)?</p>

8

<p>University of Illinois would be a reach. In state people with tons of EC's and high GPA and test scores get rejected on a regular basis. Nice school though if you get in. A safety you might want to consider based on your schools of interest list could be University of Iowa, your right in the middle of the applicant pool. Best of luck.</p>

9

<p>"I also hope this will be the "it factor" that gets me in to my choices."</p>

<p>hahahahah</p>

10

<p>At least you improved over your 4 years. I don't think freshman year is actually a problem for you. Your other merits overcome that setback.</p>

11

<p>Thanks for your responses guys...any guesses on U-Miami and Boston College (legacy)?</p>

12

<p>I don't know about Miami, but BC might be a bit of a reach due to your GPA. If I were to guess, though, I'd say that you have a fairly decent shot at The U.</p>