<p>I have a very...negatively interesting application. I'm considering an early decision to Williams but that's only if I feel like I have a decent shot at it.</p>
<p>GPA: overall GPA is 3.65 weighted, yes pretty bad however
Freshman year: 3.1
Sophomore year: 3.8
Junior year: 4.2</p>
<p>I'm hoping that this upward trend will count for somthing.</p>
<p>SAT I: Math: 800, Writing: 760, Reading: 740
combined score 2300
SAT II: Math II: 800, Chemistry: 760, Biology: 800
AP's: Calc AB: 5, Statistics: 4, US History: 5, Biology: 5
Senior schedule: AP Econ, AP Chem, AP psych, AP physics, English 12 Honors</p>
<p>Extracurricular activities:
Class treasurer (junior year)
School president (senior year)
Emergency Medical Technician - Basic
3 years of math team and science team - 1st place in the schools division for math team
5 years of Boy Scout
3 Years of jazz band
3 Years of marching band (drums captain)</p>
<p>Letters of recommendation:
1 from my Biology teacher, 1 from my history teacher, and 1 from my school's superintendent
Is it worth it for me to apply to Williams early decision?</p>
<p>Your test scores are good enough, no need to retake anything. Your EC’s are solid. As for you GPA it is low, but the admissions office will most likely take that trend into account. Showcase how you have matured as a person in your personal statement (but don’t mention your grades), and they shouldn’t hold your GPA against you too much. I think you have a decent/good shot ED.</p>
<p>Thank you for your input, I will try ED and hope for the best. As for the college essays, I was thinking about focussing on perservearance because all three of my recommendation letters provider told me that they’ll write about that characteristic, so I thought it’d be wise for me to back that up. Does a college essay about baking and how perservearance is the key to improvements and better cookies sound suiting?</p>
<p>I guess it all depends on how well you pull it off. Sometimes I feel such essays can turn out really gimmicky and contrived, but if you have a clear direction and are a good writer who wants to add the nice rhetorical flourish, then I could see it turning out well.</p>
<p>You might also want to consider a more serious, reflective essay for the personal statement and then be really creative (like the cookies topic) in the Williams supplement. “Looking out of a window” (this was the supplement when I applied, but it may have changed) just invites a myriad of creative responses, but in the end it’s all up to you and what you think will produce the best essay.</p>
<p>I don’t think you have a good shot(to me, that is greater than 50-50), but you have a shot.I’d say the same as the general applicant pool, about 14%.</p>
<p>Cookies sound silly to me. But if you can make it really about how you matured and have it as a side note, go for it.</p>
<p>You might want to be looking at a few ED2 or EA schools now, so you’ll be ready to apply if you get a rejection. Why do you want to go to Williams? Just because it is there?</p>
<p>Cookies isn’t the topic that I am tihnking of. I’m trying to link the process and idea of baking to how I matured and what I’m trying to gain in my life. Thank you for being honest with me. I have a list of other schools that I am applying to. I know that Williams is my high reach school which is why I decided to post in this website. So far, I have been getting all A’s in my senior year which in the end will bring my GPA up to about 3.8, would it be wiser for me to apply regular so that I can have that little bit of GPA boost on my side or is Williams one of those schools that automatically defer ed applications to regular decision when rejected? I want to go to Williams for a few reasons. I can’t deny the fact that it is because of the educational opportunity that they can provide for me as the number 1 LAC school in the nation but there is more. I can’t stand living in the cities, but I do like to go to a city once or twice occasionally. Williams is perfect in that aspect because it is in Williamstown where there aren’t too many people and it’s not very far away from a major city. Also, I want to go to a school in northeast coast because it is close to my home and because I have very close relationships with my family members, I want to be in a driving distance. So to be clear, is it just the GPA that is proving to be a bain in my application or are there other factors?</p>
<p>There seems to be nothing to make you stand out from all the other HS grads from the NE with great SATs, grades, and ECs.</p>
<p>Your reasons for Williams in particular seem trivial and not very compelling.</p>
<p>Your chances drop in half with RD, so by all means go ED. Just be prepared and have a back up plan. There will be literally thousands of applicants with stats as good or better than yours.</p>
<p>You do have a very good point. It is true that I don’t have anything really that special on paper which is why I am trying my best to make my essay interesting and send in a video of me (I’ve noticed that Williams gives an opportunity to submit a video of a musical act through slideroom which I will exploit)…it’s too hard to stand out…well, I often find it hard to describe the reason why I like something because the feeling is intangible and the words are not. The reasons I gave before are indeed trivial;however, there is definitely more to my interest and my ineffable zeal to attend Williams is undeniably present. I sincerely appreciate your input; you provided me with a clear understanding of where I stand. would it be a smart idea for me to start something now to help me possibly stand out or would look forced to the eyes of the admissions officer if I started something now?</p>
<p>Have you visited the school before? I had assumed that you had because you were thinking about ED, but the reasons for wanting to attend make me wonder.</p>
<p>Yes, few of my friends attend Williams so I visited the campus on my own a few times and visited it once through a college visit that I signed up for with a guide and I just felt…comfortable there which is something that no other college campus provided for me. I’ve played in every musical event that my school offers since my freshman year, and played in numerous benefits concerts and local shows either solo or with my band…if that counts for something. The problem with that however, is that it’s not affilated with anything really and there is no recognition for it =/. Oh and to include a few things, I volunteered at a hospital all summer long in my summer going into junior year. 6~8 hours a day, 5 days a week for 2 months so in total that’d be about 280 hours and that mixed in with my ambulance corps hour will total out to about 350 hours by deadline time and of course I’d be able to get many hours from playing at shows and my boy scout and National Honor Society activites. Is it possible to send in an unofficial transcript of 1st quater of senior year for ED? If I keep my grades as they are now, I’d had 4.0 unweights, 4.5 weighted gpa for the 1st quater which I hope will back me up even more on my idea of persevearance.</p>
<p>Absolutely send the unofficial transcript-your guidance office should do it for you. Your community service looks good.
I still can’t chance you higher than the regular non-athlete etc ED pool.</p>