Chance an extremely variable applicant with strange ECs. Also help find a better list of unis to apply to [CA resident, 3.42 GPA (3.76/4.03/4.52 for UC); math + ? major]

Chance Me / Match Me!
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1

Demographics

  • US Citizen
  • State/Location of residency: California
  • Type of high school: Public IB High School. No clue how competetive it is but I think it’s moderately competetive?
  • Gender/Race/Ethnicity (optional): Non-binary (agender); Asian-African; Filipino, Nubian-Arab (I have no idea what the ratio of Nubian to Arab I have. I’ll simply just say African lol)
  • Other special factors (first generation to college, legacy, athlete, etc.): Extenuating circumstances:
    1: Freshman year of school a lot of my closest friends OD’d or had alcohol poisoning. It’s hard to get good grades when you have to drive to the hospital every other week lol. Also more weirdness related to a girl but I am probably not going to bring that up
    2: First semester of Sophomore year I moved across the country and lived in an Air BnB with really unreliable electricity and internet.

Intended Major(s)
Mathematics + Something else (Currently thinking of either physics, engineering physics, comp sci, bioinformatics, or whatever else I may end up finding fun)

GPA, Rank, and Test Scores

  • Unweighted HS GPA: 4 Different ones that appear on my transcripts. Acad 9-12 = 3.42, Total 9-12 = 3.45, Total 10-12 = 3.69. UC So far is 3.76
  • Weighted HS GPA (incl. weighting system): Acad 9-12 = 3.69, Total 9-12 = 3.69, Total 10-12= 4.23. UC Uncapped Max = 4.52, Capped Max = 4.03
    School weighs GPA by adding a +1 to all AP, IB, and DE classes we exclude honors courses in our calculations
  • College GPA (for transfers): 3.94 (DEs)
  • Class Rank: Last I checked 123/481 for total and 51/481 for 10-12
  • ACT/SAT Scores: Have not taken yet. For now assume TO at all places lol. If TO unavailable I’m currently predicted for a 1450 so use that score instead

Coursework
(AP/IB/Dual Enrollment classes, AP/IB scores for high school; also include level of math and foreign language reached and any unusual academic electives; for transfers, describe your college courses and preparation for your intended major(s))
3-4 AP classes. World History [4], Biology [4], Gov [?], Macro [?] I am currently trying to get out of this course by DEing in econ
Self-studying 3 AP classes (it lets me take DE courses I really want to take). Calc BC[?], Physics C: Mech [?], Physics C: E + M [?].
IB Diploma Candidate. HLs in Math AA, English Lit (required), History. SLs in Physics, Spanish, and Sports Medicine
18 Dual Enrollment courses (they’re free so I’m abusing them). Math courses I’m taking are Linear Algebra, Calculus III, and Differential Equations (highest level my local CC offers them at). Taking Optics at my local CC (highest level physics course offered)

Awards
Nope

Extracurriculars
(Include leadership, summer activities, competitions, volunteering, and work experience)
1: Math Edutainment channel: I make math edutainment videos related to giving simplish explenations of proofs and the likes
2: Math-related book: I am writing a book that serves to introduce people from grades 4-6 ideas related to higher level (graduates maybe?) math and introduce them to what people from those higher-levels do.
3: Model United Nations: President of MUN club at my school
4: Live Streamer: I use this mostly to hold myself accountable and to do things that I think I need to have someone breathing down my neck to do. Most of my streams focus on me writing, giving political ideas, explaining solutions to math problems, and addressing issues related to the VTuber community as that’s what I specifically am.
5: Rapper/Ghost Writer: I used to write other people’s barzzzz but now I write my own. Will most likely release an album as it relates with my VTubing
6: Writer: I write regular novels. Just as before will most likely publish one in the future as it relates to VTubing

Essays/LORs/Other
I’m a Junior I haven’t thought up of things

Cost Constraints / Budget
(High school students: please get a budget from your parents and use the Net Price Calculators on the web sites of colleges of interest.)
I have tried to ask my family for years now. They are refusing to give me an exact number which is very frustrating. Here’s all I know: My mother makes like 15,000 USD per year as my gramps is the breadmaker and makes 120k per year.
My budget is probably something like less than 15-20k per year? I have no clue tbh it’s hard to tell, especially as most of gramp’s money comes from stocks which can occasionally die like they are now. However, my family is willing to cough up more dough and my mother is willing to get an actual job if I get accepted to any of the reaches I have listed out which would greatily improve the pool of money available for me

Schools
(List of colleges by your initial chance estimate; designate if applying ED/EA/RD; if a scholarship is necessary for affordability, indicate that you are aiming for a scholarship and use the scholarship chance to estimate it into the appropriate group below)

  • Safety (certain admission and affordability)
    ASU
    Texas A&M
    Cal Poly Humboldt
    High Point (?, people say it’s not good so prolly not applying)
  • Likely (would be possible, but very unlikely or surprising, for it not to admit or be affordable)
    Southern Methodist University
  • Match
    I’m not particularly interested in any unis that are in this range rn
  • Reach
    ED1 NYU
    ED2 UChicago

When I innevitably get rejected from the 2 above I’ll apply to these unis even though I know damn well I’m probably not making it in
Brown University (my beloved)
CalTech (my beloved)
University of Southern California (my beloved)
MIT (? They invited me to attend something but I also am not particularly interested in them)
UCLA
UCSB (my beloved)
UCB
San Diego State

International Unis:
Oxford (I am aware admissions here is strange)
McGill
UToronto

Of the list below I am only going to apply to 1 of them. No clue which one yet
Yonsei
T.U Munich & ETH Zurich
University of Amsterdam

Only applying to one of them because 1: I don’t want to learn 3 languages at the same time and 2: I think T.U Munich, ETH Zurich, and UVA require you to take a funky test that’s hard to take in the U.S

2

You have the potential of qualifying for a full ride -0- tuition, -0- debt aid package, but you’re going to have to figure out the FAFSA form in order to have any chance at affording a private, American college. Does your grandfather have custody of you? Otherwise, I would keep his assets out of the equation. Almost everyone will want information on both parents regardless of whether they are living together. Putting that aside for a moment, your preferences seem pretty set and a tad reach-heavy. I get the NYU, Chicago, Brown attraction, but they seem like outliers geographically. If you’re serious about fit and maximizing your chances, I’d consider adding Wesleyan University and Vassar as ED2 possibilities.

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Since you are a junior, you really need to focus on your grades for this year – you’re going to need them to be as good as you’re hoping they will be. Please check and see if you are eligible for Questbridge and if you are, put your all into that application! That could give you an enormous leg up, and the match process is an amazing opportunity.

As you work through your list, you should focus on schools that are going to value your strengths AND give you access to classes in both higher level math as well as creative fields.

Please prep for the SAT. I suspect you can do well and include the score. It will help.

Right now, you have a decent list although it’s reach heavy. I like the idea of a LAC like Wesleyan or Vassar. Both would highly value your many talents. Tulsa might be another good safety.

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Why are you going test-optional? If you don’t want to prep, familiarize yourself with test strategies (whether to guess or skip a question for instance) and take it cold. None of my kids did an prep. You may do fine. Since you seem to thrive with math, you will probably do really well.

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My grandfather does not have legal custody over me, it is only my mother.

I’m not entirely certain how I would fill out information related to my father as he’s extremely difficult to find and get in contact with. + Even then I’m fairly confident he is not a legal guardian of mine cause he doesn’t live in the U.S and has never been to the U.S before.

I’ll look into those unis, tbh the only unis I’ve been interested in so far are the safeties I’ve mentioned and the reaches. My general rule of thumb is that if I’m not more interested in it than ASU then why bother applying?

So far from what I’ve researched about those 2 unis (which is very little) I don’t think I’m more interested in them than ASU so I’d rather just not apply ED there when I’m fairly confident I can get into ASU instead and believe I’ll enjoy it a lot better

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I am fairly confident that I can get a high score, I just don’t want to make any assumptions lol.

+I have no idea whether or not my school even offers these standardized tests. I know we offer the PSAT but when I ask around the Seniors for when they give out the SAT nobody actually managed to give me an answer, I asked the officials and I didn’t receive an answer so I’m guessing we don’t offer the SAT or ACT here. I’ll look more into taking it at other schools next year (I tend to do better on the DSAT rather than SAT) so we’ll see from there. But if for whatever reason I’m getting a poor score despite my predicts or if I just straight up can’t take the SAT then it’s best to account for that scenario

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There are 3000 colleges in this country. Surely some are matches for you. Are you saying you have explored all these options and you aren’t interested? If you are very happy with your sure things for admission and affordability, then fine. You don’t need matches. But to say you aren’t interest in perhaps thousands of colleges?

You might qualify for a non-custodial parent waiver from some of these colleges for the Profile. You would need to contact the schools and ask how to do this. You non-custodial parent is not even listed on the FAFSA.

8

There are indeed 3,000 unis, it’s just that 1: it’s not practical to look into them all and 2: I’ve already looked into at least 3 dozen unis in that range. Sadly none of them I found any more interesting than ASU which just begs the question “Why apply here when I’m fairly likely to get accepted to ASU and have a better time while also not needing to add another application to my list?”

I’ll look into the non-custodial parent waiver. I never knew that existed I just thought that universities only considered whoever is considered your legal guardian so if you have 1 then it’s 1 or if you have 3 then it’s 3. It seems like unis don’t know that fatherless kids exist lol

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Actually…yes universities DO know this. And understand this, and that’s why the option of a non-custodial parent waiver exists.

@kelsmom can elaborate…but I believe now that only the income and assets of your custodial parent go on the FAFSA form.

Are you low income by any chance? I ask this because if you are, perhaps Questbridge would be an option. @Mwfan1921 might be able to provide more details.

And I agree with you. If you are happy with the ASU option, then you really don’t need anything else. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t keep looking. You have a year until you will be applying.

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OP’s GPA is on the low side right now for QB…OP what is your unweighted GPA on a 4 point scale for core courses only through sophomore year? Your 9-12 predicted GPAs aren’t all that helpful.

Do you have contact with your bio dad and/or does he provide any support for you?

11

My Custodial parent only makes 15000 USD per year so yes I think I do qualify for low income lol. As for my dad even if I were to consider him because he’s for whatever reason considered a custodial parent I think he doesn’t make any money at all.

12

Through sophomore year as in sophomore year and beyond or only in sophomore year?

Sophomore year and beyond I’m capable of getting a 3.9something UW GPA. Only sophomore year I believe the final GPA was a 3.8 UW and that includes only my core classes

I do not have any contact with my biological father nor does he provide any support and I know for absolute certain he is impoverished

13

If you have no contact with him…how do you know this!

14

He lives in Lebanon. It’s very rare for someone who lives in Lebanon (especially someone like him who is a very black african) to not be impoverished. I know some of my family on his side of the family and they all say he’s definitely poor even for a Lebanese person.

+I did contact him at some point in the past, I stopped doing so because I’m a bad son but it is what it is.

15

Texas A&M would be a reach, not a safety for engineering.

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Good thing I’m not applying for engineering. Plus they don’t even offer engineering physics so I’m not even interacting with that department at all lol

17

And not a safety for your other majors either. And unaffordable for OOS.

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Unweighted cumulative GPA for freshman and soph years. It’s much too early for anyone here to chance you.

I agree with the poster who said focus on getting good grades. Take the most rigorous courses you can at your HS, before you take DE (unless your HS doesn’t have much rigor in the curriculum). If your cumulative unweighted GPA (so 9 thru 11) is above 3.8 after junior year, you should consider applying to questbridge.

Going forward if you want to apply to schools that require CSS Profile, have your HS counselor help you complete a non-custodial parent waiver request for each school. Typically, a third party letter is required confirming the student’s circumstances in order for a college to grant said waiver.

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What happened to the “…and help me find a better list of unis to apply to” portion of your subject line? Cuz, what I’m hearing you say, is you would rather have your mother and grandfather on the hook for ASU’s out-of-state tuition (last reported as $34,000) than a full-ride at any highly respected private college not already on your list. :thinking:

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it’s still in affect, and ASU offers a bunch of OOS scholarships, + my mother only makes 15k per year right now because she wants to game FAFSA lol. Since we all live with my gramps she’s able to shoot her income in the foot and it won’t really affect her in the long term. Once I get accepted to an institution she’s probably going to get a job shortly afterwards and will divert a large portion of her income to me.

Lastly, I really can’t make tuition a reason to apply to a place. For whatever reason my gramps is a bit too prideful in being able to afford tuition which has made it so that any university where I mention tuition as a factor he refuses to pay for (This is a reason why most HYPSM isn’t here. I mentioned tuition for a large portion of these universities and now he refuses to talk about or even think about paying me to go to those unis).

I’m going to take this so far as get accepted to unis I want to go to and then sift through the acceptances to find the cheapest uni I’m in.

Lastly, even if tuition is really high (like NYU or the likes) it’s not going to be that big of a deal since I get to skip the first 2 years of uni meaning that while I might be bleeding money, it’s only going to be for 2 years which is pretty reasonable to recover from in a short period of time