Bad GPA, good SAT (chance me)?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Tufts University
1

Demographics: Asian male
Religion: None
Application: RD

SAT: 1500 (710 CR, 790 M)
SAT II’s: Chemistry (720), Math (740)

NOTE: My school has removed most AP courses (some of which are not even considered as “advanced” and do not give GPA bonuses such as AP psychology as they are considered trivial). Most of our courses are replaced by dual enrollment, which we received direct credit from the University of Connecticut. These courses, by our school, is considered just as good if not better (“advanced” gpa consideration) than some of our AP’s.

Classes: 6 college (taken directly at the University of Connecticut with college students, very rare for HS students), 8 honors, 8 dual enrollment, 3 AP
GPA UW/W:3.41/4.017 (not sure how people get 1400’s and somehow have 4.0 UW GPA’s (4.0 scale?). Perhaps our school is just harder?)
NOTE: College courses taken directly on campus does NOT weigh into our high school GPA. I also have a very high upward trend from sophomore to Junior year (3.33 W 1st semester soph year → 4.6 W 1st semester jun year)
Rank: N/A
I did do the interview

EC’s:
-1st place ACS/CVS team quiz (Chemistry Olympiad)
-2 seasons varsity swimming
-1 year novice, 1 year varsity Crew
-1 year Model U.N.
-1 year Debate club
-2 American Mathematics competition testings (no awards, almost made states in last one with ~97? score)
-1 year Drama
-15 hours community service
-National Math honors society
(Forgot to mention things like AP scholar/merit scholar and community service on college app. Oh well…)

NOTE: Since I have taken 6 college courses at UCONN (usually some time after school), I could not take many EC’s junior/senior year. This was mentioned on my college app.

Of course, my GPA is quite bad and it is a shame that our school does not have class ranking. How much will it impact me?

Thanks in advance!

2

To be honest, I am more worried about your lack of coherent extracurricular activities…
How did you approach your Tufts supplement essays?

3

I think its unfair to say “not sure how people get 1400’s and somehow have 4.0 UW GPA’s”. Some people are just not as good with tests and 1400s is still well above average. That said, you’re GPA puts you at a significant disadvantage and the 1500 is still within their middle 50%. Your EC’s are also generic and don’t really reflect any specific interests. Even with solid essays and recs, Tufts is still a high reach.

4

A 1400 and a 4.0 puts you in a better place than a 1500 and a 3.4 IMO. Your high school record always matters more than test scores, though test scores are still important. It is important to remember that there will be people applying with 1500+ with 3.8+ UW GPAs and many with 4.0 GPAs. Your GPA puts you at a significant disadvantage. That being said, you are looked at within the context of your school, so maybe your school is particularly difficult? What’s your class rank? Is your GPA considered to be very high your school? If you are not in the top 10% of your graduating class, then again you are at a significant disadvantage because the vast majority of people you who get into Tufts are at least in the top 10% of their class.