<p>First, I live in North Carolina and I am an African-American. I go to a school based on engineering and biotechnology and have taken four engineering classes (Digital Electronics, Civil Engineering and Architecture, Computer Integrated Manufacturing, Principles of Engineering) and they are all AP weighted and I got B's in all of them if this means anything. </p>
<p>Currently a Junior
Played 2 years of Varsity football
Member of the key club (Community Service Club)
Taking dual enrollment (community college) course in high school (Junior & Senior Year)
I will be the SGA Senior Class President
Taken 2 AP classes, but I plan to take 3 more my senior year </p>
<p>SAT Scores:
Reading: 480
Math: 560
Writing: 530
Overall: 1570 </p>
<p>Unweighted GPA: 3.17
Weighted GPA: 3.94 </p>
<p>ACT Score: 24 </p>
<p>Class rank is in the top 30%</p>
<p>Well you have a chance, but your SAT and ACT scores are below the 25th percentile for UW (meaning you scored lower than the lowest-scoring 25% of students admitted to the UW). <a href=“University of Washington: Acceptance Rate, SAT/ACT Scores, GPA”>http://collegeapps.about.com/od/collegeprofiles/p/U-Washington.htm</a></p>
<p>If you have a really compelling story to tell in your essay, that will boost your chances quite a bit, but I suggest you retake either the SAT or the ACT, depending on which test you preferred. If you do really well at your community college, that will help boost your chances as well. </p>
<p>I have gotten A & B’s in the four community college classes (Precalculus, Trigonometry, Argument-Based Research Writing, Expository Writing) I have taken. I will being taken 2 more my Senior year along with 3 more AP classes.</p>
<p>Well the major you want to enter will also have a bearing on your admission chances…based on the subjects you’ve taken, I suspect you want a Computer Science or Engineering major. These majors are very competitive at the UW. I’d say UW Seattle is a reach for you. Not an impossible reach by any means, but still a reach. </p>
<p>Honestly, I think your chances are good provided you retake the SAT and/or ACT this fall before you apply. People tend to do better the second time around, and based on your course load and GPA there is absolutely no reason why this shouldn’t apply to you 
You can get study books and/or a tutor to prepare for the test (going in unprepared isn’t a great idea, even the second time around). If you get those scores up closer to the UW average, I see no reason why you shouldn’t be able to get into UW with a good application. </p>
<p>To bolster your chances, I would highly recommend taking it upon yourself to reach out and do some community service on your own (beyond your Key Club commitments and duties). UW puts a HUGE emphasis on community contribution; they want to you know that you will be someone that really wants to make a difference in the world, and not just someone trying to pad their resume. In your personal statement, make sure you clearly define your life goals and how they can be best achieved at the UW (as opposed to anywhere else in the country). They want to know that you are someone that is worth investing in; they are not looking to just improve their demographics. They do emphasize diversity on an individual contribution basis; i.e. what can YOU as an individual (of any ethnicity) contribute to the UW with your personal experiences in diversity and cultural awareness. </p>
<p>Even if you don’t make it in the first time you apply, don’t despair! Community colleges are a great way to spend your first 2 years of college. You will also have more time to figure out how to make yourself more competitive by giving back to your community in creative and genuine ways. Even people with stellar GPAs and test scores will struggle to compete against those who apply that have years of community and cultural contribution under their belts with well defined educational and career goals. Give yourself plenty of time to figure these things out; even if you think you know without a shadow of a doubt what you want to be when you grow up, I can guarantee that your perspectives and plans will change once you get out and experience the world outside of high school and immerse yourself amongst those in the community that could really gain from your time. Key Club is a great way to start and I’m sure you have a really good idea of what it means to contribute, but dig deeper and step out of the box! Keep in mind every high school in America has a Key Club, and you are competing with the +/-30,000 people who apply. Check out <a href=“https://admit.washington.edu/Admission/Freshmen/Review”>https://admit.washington.edu/Admission/Freshmen/Review</a> if you haven’t already; this more or less corroborates the cultural/community thing. </p>
<p>Hope this helps!</p>