Hello, I am a sophomore in high school looking to see what my college chances are. As a freshman, I took all cp classes, but I ended up with a 3.925 GPA. This year, I am taking honors geometry and honors English, which isn’t too difficult, so I think I will get a high GPA this year as well. Next year, I plan to take to 2AP and 2 honors classes, which I hope will show colleges that I am still able to handle a rigorous workload. However, I don’t know if junior year will be too late. Saying that I get decent SAT (1250) and ACT (27) scores, can someone please give me an idea if I can still make it to a good university (UCF, Penn St, USF, Texas A&M) with my current circumstances? By the way, I am also involved in multiple extracurriculars (Boy Scouts, tae kwon do, cross country, TSA club).
Which of those is/are in-state for you?
Which of those have you discussed with your own guidance counselor? That person can tell you if anyone from your school with your grades and projected test scores has been admitted recently.
The Pennsylvania and Florida colleges are in-state for me, but I haven’t discussed them with my guidance counselor yet.
You have a strong GPA. With a score of 1250, your stats put you right on target for USF, UCF and Penn State. Chances are about 50-60%. You’re also on target for Florida State too, and you have a decent shot for UF (45%), which is very good. You’ll want to include a couple safety schools. Texas A&M is a lot more competitive from out of state, and out of state tuition is triple what you’d pay in-state.
If you can score in the 1300 range on your SAT, most of those schools would be a lock. Plus, Florida has the cheapest tuition prices in the country.
@coolguy40, thank you for your response. Some safety schools I am considering are Auburn and Texas Tech because they have good architecture programs. Are these still safety schools even if they’re out-of-state?
Too early for you to be categorizing your schools until you have test scores.
Challenge yourself appropriately, do well in your classes, and prepare for your SAT/ACT. You’ll find the right fits!
To give yourself an idea if your stats are in the range for different colleges you are interested in, google “Name of College Common Data Set” and look at section C.
For example, at Penn State the 25th/75th percentile numbers for SAT were 1160/1360, ACT 25/30. 42% were in the top tenth of their HS class, 76% in the top quarter, and 96% in the top half.
So, at a school with >50% acceptance rate like Penn St an applicant with standardized test scores at around the 50% mark, and grades in the top tenth to quarter of their HS class probably has an average chance of admissions, which isn’t bad at a school with a >50% acceptance rate.
Although you may consider Auburn a safety school, my understanding is that getting into the Architecture program is quite difficult. You are competing with a limited number of seats and very smart students and an academic review board has to review your early academic courses before admitting you to the higher level classes. I’m not sure if the kids understand getting admitted to the university is not getting admitted the program. It’s similar to engineering, except I’m hearing it’s tougher to get into the architecture program.
thanks @tdy123 and all other responses!
Keep up the good work and do some test prep (load the Khan Academy SAT prep app on your phone and make a habit of doing 10 minute a day), and you should have good options.
If you’re thinking about architecture, the thing that would be good to look into relatively soon would be summer intensive programs that you could attend. (Here’s one example - https://dcp.ufl.edu/architecture/summer-design-exploration/ - but there are many.) There are three primary benefits to these programs:
- You can confirm your own interest in architecture and enjoyment of the studio process is at the core of any architecture program… or learn that it isn’t for you before you spend a semester or more in college finding that out.
- Your participation will assure programs you’re applying to that you’ve put your interest to the test in this way, which in their minds makes you a better candidate. And
- You will generate studio work that you can use in an application portfolio.
If you can’t manage a residential program, you may be able to find something local - my daughter took an excellent studio class one summer at a local community college - but it’s not something that all CC’s will have.
If you’re serious about architecture, start exploring that interest now. Not all programs require portfolios, but the ones that do will give you an additional opportunity to stand out even if your stats aren’t above-average for the school.
You might want to look into U of Cincinnati’s architecture program - you would likely qualify for one of their OOS National Outreach awards based on your stats and your PA residency.
Try to take 3 honors 2 AP’s junior year, and a combination of 5 again senior year.
You’ll need math through precalculus honors or calculus (honors or AB), physics (honors, AP 1, and/or AP2), and lots of art classes (AP 2D, AP 3D, technical drawing, art history, CAD, graphic design). AP CS Principles and AP Human Geography may help.
So, let’s say, your junior year schedule would be something like
English Honors
Algebra2 Honors or Precalculus Honors
AP Art 2D
AP Physics 1
Foreign Language 3
American History
Art/CAD/ Technical Drawing/Animation
Senior year
English Honors
Precalculus Honors or Calculus Honors
AP Art 3D
AP CS Principles
AP Human Geography
Art/Graphic Design/Art history(2)
Try to work as part of the set design team for theater (you can start now). It’ll give you great experience and things to add to your portfolio.
Develop a portfolio. Learn how to observe and draw: churches, cemetaries, single-house houses, townhalls, libraries, colleges, schools, social housing, high rises (good and bad)… Pay attention to urbanism, elements of public space (squares, benches, parks), the way streets are shared (pedestrians, bikes/scooters, cars, buses), the place of public transportation, the encroachments/progress of smart cities.
Try to find the BBC’s Art of Architecture as well as the book or series (old) Shock of the New. There are lots of documentaries about cities: London, Paris, Shanghai… Watch them. Take notes in a notebook (will come in handy for your interview or for college application questions).
Pennsylvania has lots of interesting places to visit: Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, Gettysburg and the small towns in Lancaster, plus you’re near the Frick Mansion in Pittsburgh as well as Falling Water. Florida has some great examples of what not to do with urban architecture (Miami) and some better examples (Miami Beach) plus distinctive neighborhoods (Little Havana, Little Haiti…)
If you can travel, do, and sketch whenever you go. Never leave a place without a quick sketch. Carry pencils everywhere you go. 