<p>Thanks. I hope Cornell and Yale admissions officers are smart enough to figure that out. Then again, they do want to uphold their reputation as Ivy league institutions, and if they accept a bunch of people with low SAT scores(though they are not a measurement of ones intellectual ability) their ranks will indeed drop.</p>
<p>retake the test.</p>
<p>It’s too late AnbuItachi.</p>
<p>A quick google search shows me that a 1470 is about equivalent to a 20 or 21 on the ACT. Another one shows that 0% got in with a 12-17 on the ACT, while 3% of the entering class had a 19-23 on the ACT, so I guess it’s technically possible. But you have to remember that those are probably for colleges other than the Arts and Sciences (is that the one you are applying for?), and they probably had other hooks like a sport. In addition, this is past data, and I assume the applicant pool has increased, so the chances are slightly lower. I guess what I’m saying is that the chances aren’t looking so good, but it’s within the realm of possibility if you’re not applying to the College of Arts and Sciences.</p>
<p>don’t chance now. keep your fingers crossed. If you manage to do that for 5 days and 5 nights straight I’m sure you can get in. That kind of willpower is beyond imagination.</p>
<p>but seriously, it’s kinda late for chancing now. You knew what the answer from us would be. It wouldn’t make any difference. Just wait and see.</p>
<p>How does a 1470 indicate you can’t handle the coursework at Cornell? That sounds like absolute ********.</p>
<p>Yea, ishanz. Scores don’t determine who you are.</p>
<p>and, if you do not get in, remember you can try transferring. If you do well at Syracuse and show you can handle college level work with a solid GPA, you may well get accepted as a transfer if it does not work out right now.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>I agree that the intelligence/academic potential of a person cannot be boiled down to a number, but if AOs didn’t think that SAT score was at least somewhat representative of a student’s academic abilities, then no college would require standardized tests. That being said, a 1470 doesn’t necessarily mean that you won’t be able to handle the course work at Cornell. Cornell is considered to be the “easiest” Ivy to get into and the “hardest” to succeed in while you’re there. So it’s hard for a lot of people to transition. While I’m sure the OP would work extremely hard if admitted, I can only imagine that someone who falls in the bottom 1% of the incoming class would have a harder time than someone in the 90th percentile. These are extremely objective statements–I don’t know the OP and am just making observations. Honestly though, you’ll have your answer in 2 days.</p>
<p>The naviance scattergram from my kids high school (an excellent public HS) for Cornell looks like this (estimating from the dots on the graph) …</p>
<ul>
<li>About 20 acceptances from about 125 applicants </li>
<li>Below 2100 it is 6 of 50 acceptances</li>
<li>There are 4 acceptances in the 1700-1800 range … these guys are outliers … look they might be hooked applicants</li>
<li>There are no acceptances below 1700</li>
<li>In fact there are only 3 applicants below 1700 </li>
</ul>
<p>I’m all for swinging for the fences with applications but without a hook it looks very-very unlikely with this low a SAT</p>
<p>It’s not all about score. Sometimes schools admit applicants with low SAT scores and low GPA’s. Even if you just have a low SAT score, what rule says that you can’t be THAT student that they admit? </p>
<p>Go for it.</p>
<p>I love you, finishmydrink!!</p>
<p>
Generally, the low SAT score would either 1) have a valid reason, or 2) be so overshadowed by the rest of the application that it becomes a minimal factor. And to do that you’d need AMAZING essays, ECAs, and stuff like that. Something ‘special’. By all means, apply, but know that it’s rare. Like, really really rare, unless you have something hugely redeeming.
And to those saying that one score is not everything - sure, but I’m sure colleges base their acceptances on STATISTICS, they don’t randomly say ‘oh, okay, student A can’t survive here because he/she has a 1500 SAT’, no - they have data of 1500-scoring students admitted and enrolled and how they fared at the college. Guess what. Had these students been successful with few exceptions, they would be admitting 1500-scorers by the handful. But at a top-tier school like Cornell, why exactly would you choose someone likely to fail, over someone who has a lot less likelihood to fail, considering they’re both otherwise outstanding applicants? </p>
<p>The decision process is very subjective, which gives the applicant a chance no matter what. But if there isn’t anything wow-worthy on other parts of the application, there’s a slim chance, if any. And even if their is some unique feature on the application, the odds are still against you, though at that point you may be back up to the chances of similar students. Colleges don’t like to admit kids likely to drop out. It’s not smart. Unless the rest of the application negates this score (this is why top schools look at applicants holistically, they know not everything is in your scores), or there’s something so compelling that it just overshadows it, chances are close to nil. (By the way, even if applications are read holistically, there’s a point below which there’s very very low chance of acceptance no matter the strength of the application as a whole - sometimes it just is a deal-breaker no matter what.)</p>
<p>Go for it, definitely. Hope? Not so much.</p>
<p>The SAT isn’t an indication of how well you can do in college. It’s an indication of how well you can take a test. What stops someone who gets 500’s in Math, Reading, and Writing as SAT sectional scores from acing History, Economics, Geography, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Chemistry, and the myriad of other topics that are offered in college?</p>
<p>The SAT is overrated. That is why ivies stress that this is a holistic process. Therefore, you have no right to tell him his chances are “slim” or that he shouldn’t hope for it much. None of us know what his chances will be, so let him hope as much as he wants. </p>
<p>Additionally, lets remember that we are all humans. Failure (or doing bad) in anything can cause motivation, which can be a catalyst for success.</p>
<p>SATs is still one of the biggest factors. Really, they don’t look at each student so deeply. When this is the only statistic that they can see in some way related to intelligence / academic capability, they are going to go by it. Cornell may accept students more based on fit, but SATs still matter a lot. A poor test taker excuse doesn’t always work. Anybody can use that as an argument for doing bad in tests, which is what school grades are largely based on. Since they can’t use gpa to compare students (difference in quality of school, difficulty, of courses, etc.) This is what they have to rely on, SATs.</p>
<p>Is it perfect? No, not even close. They cannot see your strengths definitively in other fields. But it’s the only way they can compare students in academic potential across different schools. Remember, you are competing for a spot.</p>
<p>Comparative data: 2010 fall freshman university totals</p>
<p>SAT I CRITICAL READING
Score Range /% of Applicants /Admit %
750 ‐ 800 /14% /27%
700 ‐ 749 /20% /28%
650 ‐ 699 /24% /23%
600 ‐ 649 /20% /15%
550 ‐ 599 /11% /5%
500 ‐ 549 /6% /2%
Below 500 /4% /1% </p>
<p>SAT I MATH
Score Range /% of Applicants /Admit %
750 ‐ 800 /37% /49%
700 ‐ 749 /21% /23%
650 ‐ 699 /20% /17%
600 ‐ 649 /11% /8%
550 ‐ 599 /6% /3%
500 ‐ 549 /3% /1%
Below 500 /2% /0%</p>
<p>Assuming you’re talking about 1470 out of 2400, objectively I think your SATs are below what Cornell is looking for.</p>
<p>However, from what you say, your grades, course difficulty, APs, are inconsistent with the SAT scores. A human being reading reading an application is immediately going to realize that there’s something out of the ordinary with this application. Now, if you’d had very low grades and high SATs, they’d probably get suspicious as to who took the SATs and toss it. However, High Grades over 4 years really can’t be faked. You also say you’ve taken a bunch of APs, but didn’t say how you did on them. 4s and 5s would be helpful.</p>
<p>So, the question is what does a school do when it sees an application like this. Overall, top 20% (as opposed to top 10%) is a little low, but you have a bunch of hooks – first generation, urm, etc. So, I don’t see how any of us here really know what an admissions committee does with an app like yours. You just don’t fall in any of the neat classifications.</p>
<p>If I were to guess, based on nothing, I’d say your chances aren’t great, but as I say, it’s based on nothing.</p>
<p>I do know that your chances are infinitely better than if you hadn’t applied at all. Given that you seem to have a realistic assessment that your chances are slim, in many ways, taking a shot and getting rejected is better than never knowing for sure what the answer would have been.</p>
<p>Good luck.</p>
<p>gomestar, that post just made my day! i got a 600 on the cr but an 800 on the math</p>
<p>I’m in the same boat. I’m applying with a 21 ACT score so yea I’m expecting the worse as well. But I still have some hope left. My subject tests are still strong 600+ hopefully that will help.</p>
<p>columbia 600+ subject scores are really just average but good luck!</p>