Cha-cha-chances, please?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Barnard College
1

<p>public HS in New Jersey
African-American Female
GPA: 3.996
Class Rank: 40/363 (11%)
SAT Scores…erm, CR:480, M:560, W: 590 (yikes!) Hopefully I improved on the 10/6/07 SATs. Get to see my results next week, (wish me luck!)
SAT IIs…didn’t take them yet, so…</p>

<p>EC:
(Clarinet player!) Since 4th grade : )
Marching Band (9 10 11 12)
Concert Band (9 10 11 12)
Pit Orchestra (11 12)
Newspaper (10 12)
Volunteer Work (60+) (11 12)
Yearbook (12)</p>

<p>No awards :(, no leadership position :frowning: , only 2 AP classes this year, and 3 honors (spanish, english, physics).</p>

<p>For Regular Decision, not ED (Kinda wished that I did ED, but it’s too late now since students at my school were required to hand in all their materials by Today if applying for a Nov 1 deadline)</p>

<p>I know, I know, no one can really determine my chances and I pretty much suck in terms of my activities and SAT scores (Yes, I know they suck darn it!)I’ve been trying my best to answer the supplement questions as precise as possible. And my essay…I’m trying best to polish it up with some sort of originality and a bit of humor. For the WHY BARNARD question, I basically mentioned how it can help me grow as a person (I’m kinda shy, but feel comfortable in smaller groups) and mentioned about the activities I would participate in, and the traditions I can’t wait to be a part of if I get accepted. Of course I was more specific, but I really don’t feel like posting everything I said cause I feel lazy :)</p>

<p>But please, I’m begging all of you fellow prospective students and moms/dads of students to tell me that there is hope :(</p>

<p>(If not, there is always state university for me…if THEY accept me. By the way, if anyone wants to chance me for Rutgers U. too, assuming that my SAT score improves, feel free to do so :)</p>

<p>Sorry, a bit too long :)</p>

2

<p>I don't want to discourage you, but I think it's a bit of a reach.</p>

<p>Though you are very dedicated to your extracurriculars, which is always good! :]</p>

3

<p>::teardrop::</p>

<p>I know, it is a bit of a reach :(</p>

<p>That's why I'm trying to be more optimistic about my state university. I realize if I don't get into Barnard, it will hurt at first, but I will be ok if Rutgers University accepts me (and I'll get to continue marching band and not give it up. Oh yea!)</p>

<p>Thanks for the response. Anybody else care to "chance" me? :)</p>

4

<p>Hey, NONE of us can say for sure what will happen. Fact is, you, and only you, can put yourself in a position to be happy where ever you end up in school. That is up to you! But you will, hopefully, identify great "safety" schools and apply and fall in love with them as you have done with Barnard (Sorry I don't know anything about Rutgers).</p>

<p>As one clarinet player to another, you may end up being glad if you end up at a school with a more, ummm, traditional marching band experience than Barnard/Columbia has to offer. I know that (marching band...the Million Dollar Band!)was a huge part of my undergrad experience and I would not have traded it for anything!</p>

<p>Best to you! Let us know what happens....</p>

5

<p>Hey, not to discourage you from applying or anything, but maybe you could look into some schools that don't require SATs. If you think your essays will be strong, some liberal arts schools with optional SATs will probably be more receptive.</p>

<p>Regardless, good luck. And I hope your Oct SAT worked out. :)</p>

6

<p>Oh yea, I was looking into Sarah Lawrence College at one point, but then I decided that I'll just stick to my public State U (and I'll be saving my parents a lot of moolah)</p>

<p>Aaaaand my SAT scores didn't improve much. Just: CR: 530 Math:570 Reading:600. It's good enough to hopefully get me into my state University, which is alright with me.</p>

<p>I'm still appying to Barnard though, just because I love answering the supplement questions :)</p>

<p>If I get rejected, sure I'll be devastated, but I know it was a high reach. If I get waitlisted, wow! I'll feel honored :)</p>

<p>Thanks for the response "railoraine".</p>

7

<p>No problem. And seriously, don't let all the stuff on this site about "zomg, I MUST get above 700 in every section!" get to you. When you look at average scores, that average looks intimidating sometimes, but it should just make you realize that there's a good chuck of applicants that scored below. Yes, those applicants could have had something exceptional about them, but you still have time to make your essays that exceptional point. </p>

<p>Also, there is usually a big gap between most state schools and a top school like Barnard. You might get into, say, Dickinson or Drew or one of the other schools in between without worrying as much and still be in a GREAT school. I think one of the biggest mistakes people make is only applying at the extremes. Why apply to only Harvard and Colorado State when the stats fit some place like Wheaton perfectly?</p>

<p>If you want, send me over your essays before you submit them and I'll proofread. I'm a transfer applicant and I've already sent in my stuff (not to mention that your essays prompts probably aren't anything like mine), so I'm not your competition. And, despite my poorly written CC responses, I'm actually a good editor. =)</p>