Since you mentioned Dalton and have an interest in Wesleyan, you might find it interesting that Wesleyan represents the most popular LAC destination for Dalton graduates: The Dalton School | College Counseling. Of general interest, the majority of Dalton graduates matriculated at just 14 colleges.
As did the vast majority of their parents.
Tends to be the case at most elite/expensive prep schools (but particularly in NYC) the ED round is heavily skewed and distorted by legacy status.
RD rounds tend to be much more ânormalizedâ and sometimes trend worse if ED acceptances for a particular school are high.
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Wesleyan is, well, not my cup of tea. Subpar neighborhood, ultra progressive (Iâm a moderate) and very urban.
I keep telling you, man - HAMILTON.
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Iâm going to suggest Tufts for ED. They place very high value on the supplemental essays, so much so that those can offsets minor gaps in the rest of the application
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If youâre interested in writing, Kenyon is great.
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I am trying to test for understanding:
Did you attend an NYC DOE school before you attended your current high school?
Did you attend a private school specifically geared for students with disabilities ex: Mary McDowell?
LD is a classification of your IEP.
It sounds like you moved from a more restrictive (ICT/SC)environment to a lesser restrictive environment (SETSS) in a school with smaller class sizes, as evidenced by the fact that there are only 70 students on grade level.
you wrote:
This is true, but not by choice. I was placed on the low track because of my previous school, but by earning top grades still took the hardest courses available to me.
You were placed on the âlower trackâ based on your academic performance at your previous school. You stated in your reverse chances thread of the B/C grades you received in your [previous school. When you came to your current school sophomore year, your grades provided evidence to them that at the time, you were not ready for more rigorous coursework.
Yes, your situation is proof that some students really benefit from having small class sizes. This along with the accommodations that you received has really worked with you becoming academically successful.
However, make no mistake, there are students with disabilities who are receiving accommodations that still pull off an overall 4.0 GPA while taking the most rigorous coursework their school offers.
Getting a recommendation from your SETSS teacher (who is a related provider), not the best use of a recommendation (again for the people in the back, this is a bad move). You should get a recommendation from your Gen Ed teacher, not your related services provider.
As someone upstream mentioned all 4.0s are not created. You currently have a 90 average (3.7) GPA at your current school but it is as you stated, taking the lesser track.
You wrote:
If it werenât for my 9th grade, my class rank (which is also weighted, just my luck) would be much better too.
You wrote:
wonder if schools like Princeton, Stanford, Emory, Carnegie Mellon, etc., which all donât look at freshman year, would give me a shot. To them, I donât know that my admission would be that risky. Iâm still a 4.0 by their evaluations, and with some of those LORs/essays, I may be able to prove my capability. It remains a long shot.
Keep in mind, whether or not a school looks at freshman grades, there are only a few that do not consider freshman grades- you will have to submit your transcript from your previous school along with your current transcript.
You still be evaluated in the context of what your school offers and how you performed in taking the most rigorous course work possible.
Also, keep in mind the more selective the school is the more likely they will be to look at your unweighted GPA because there is already an expectation that you are taking the most rigorous course work your school offers and you are doing well (this is where your schoolâs profile is going to come into play).
Many of the schools that you are looking at are reach schools for most students. The fact that you are not presenting academic rigor is probably placing you at a disadvantage.
Also when you are checking out schools, look at the office of abilities, accessibilities services in the event that you will continue to need accommodations in college.
When you talk to your GC, you want to know schools do students with profiles similar to yours stand a good chance of admissions. You cannot compare yourself to your friends who have LDs, because you are not privy to their management needs, learning goals or accommodations (outside of extended time or if they are in your SETSS class).
You have been given a lot of good advice. Unfortunately, you seem reluctant to take any advice which is contrary to what you want to hear or is not aligned to the narrative that you see yourself.
I get that if you donât apply that you have no chance of getting admitted. However, if you are going to apply, then do so with the knowledge that you have match and sure bet schools that you are happy to attend in the even that the T20 does not work out.
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Iâm going to suggest Tufts for ED
I thought about this, but the difference in admit rate between ED and RD seems very insignificant. Maybe itâs worth the shot, though. Iâve more or less identified Tufts as a really good fit for me, both in a disciplinary and environmental sense.
Unfortunately, you seem reluctant
Itâs not hesitancy as much as it is confusion.
But to break this down, I donât think any college will be looking at my middle school transcript. Even if they did, theyâd see I performed decently well there (mix of Aâs and Bâs). The thing is that none of this means anything. It was my current school that placed me in their lowest trackânot because of my intermediate school grades, but because of the simple curriculum. They did not feel I showed preparedness, and they were right.
Still, Iâve always been told that, to get into a T20, one must take the most rigorous schedule available to them at school. I did this, even though there arenât many hard courses. My school is very, very conservative when it comes to enrolling kids in rigorous courses. I had to build my way up to even be eligible in an honors/AP course, and even then there werenât many available (4 honors, 1 AP). This is the reason honors are weighted at my school the same as APâs at most others. There just arenât many of them, and theyâre really tough courses.
I think a T20 will prefer the kid with a 34-36 ACT, 4.0 UW GPA w/ freshman year, and 15 AP courses. Though if a school can see my background here, perhaps it would be the equalizer, since I have truly tried, at any time they were available to me, to enroll in harder courses.
Of course, I still doubt it.
Edit:
Should I do well senior year, my UW GPA is a 3.75, W GPA a 4.3 (w/ freshman year). Without freshman year, itâs a 4.0 UW, 4.6 W.
if you went to a 6-9 school, you will still have to present your grades from 9th grade.
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I didnât go to a 6-9 school (hehe).
I went to a 6-8. My school is a 9-12.
It does not matter whether you went to 9th grade at a middle school or another high school, your school will have to submit a transcript from the school where you attended 9th grade.
you wrote in the reverse chances thread:
GPA, Rank, and Test Scores
*Unweighted HS GPA: 90/100
*Weighted HS GPA: 92/100
*Class Rank (WEIGHTED): Was last in top 25% but is now better (unknown)
*ACT/SAT Scores: N/A, test-optional
your unweighted GPA of 90 is a 3.7
93 is a 4.0 (again you will need a copy of your schoolâs profile to see what they consider a 4.0 to be.
You will have 2 sets of grades and transcripts for evaluation -1 from your current school and 1 from the school where you attended 9th grade.
again, the more selective the school, the less they are lookin at weighted GPAs
Reading that over, I wasnât very clear.
I went to my current school for 9th grade, but got in after going to a Sp-Ed school for 7th and 8th. I had also gone to two different public schools for 6th grade, and failed out of both.
Then you need to present your overall gpa based on what it is now for 9th 10th and 11th grade, not simply 10th and 11th grade.
Even in this thread you present yourself as someone who came to your current high school in 10th grade, not someone who has been there for 3 years.
You need to reframe this by staring you did not have a strong freshman year, but has since been on an upward trajectory.
You have stated your 10/11 grade gpa is 4.0
what is your gpa for 9th 10th and 11th. as this is what the colleges are going to see.
At schools that do not take 9th grade in to consideration, they will be recalculating. However, your recommendation, secondary school report will be complied by your school based on 9, th, and 11 grade courses and grades.
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My GPA freshman year was a 2.7. Grades 9, 10, and 11 are therefore a 3.7 UW. If I do well senior year, it will be a 3.75-3.8.
I think that your calculations may be off.
Even with all things being equal for the last 3 years:
2.7+4.0+4.0/3 does not come out to a 3.7
Do all courses (the core 4, PE, foreign language, electives( carry the same number of credits)
this is why you need a student copy of your transcript and a copy of your your schoolâs profile that they send to the colleges. This will provide you with more clarity to make an more informed decision.
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Colleges wonât consider senior grades except possibly for RD.
Many people believe middle school doesnât count. While the grades donât count, the performance sets you up for inclusion in advanced classes.
With an average grade of 90 including the 2.7 GPA as a freshman, youâve done very well in sophomore and junior classes (~95). My kids HS has kids consistently getting 97+ with top rigor, ECs with leadership and some hooks from time to time.
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Youâre 16 and failed 6th grade twice? So you would normally have started college at 15?
Academically, I failed - but the DoE pushed me through, to make matters worse. This was at the height of my LD.
81 + 95 + 95/3 = 90.33
This is a 3.7 on my schoolâs scale.
Colleges DO look at senior grades for RD. Thatâs what the mid year report is for. And I could easily see an applicant like OP to be one that could be deferred in the ED round because the AO wanted to see that upward trend sustained, especially in harder classes.
The CC at our school advised students on a strong upward trend to weigh that when deciding between ED and RD. For a student such as the OP, another semester of good performance could indeed help, particularly when senior slump could be settling in.
One other caveat, and not really of consequence now to OP, but just to tuck away⊠If you find yourself on a WL, finishing strong can work in your favor. Yet another reason to stay engaged for the year and not see grades merely as a means to getting into college.