Chance for UCs (CAL, Davis, LA), Stanford, or other privates?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Hi, I’d really appreciate some feedback on my chances of getting into the schools above, and which other colleges I should apply to for a reasonable chance of getting in.

Ethnicity: Asian American
Gender: female

I go to James Logan in the Bay Area, so, although my school is pretty average academic- and competition-wise, being surrounded by Mission San Jose and tons of other college-crazy Asians is probably not going to help. :confused:

GPA: 3.833 (unweighted), 4.5 - 4.6 (weighted)
Rank: 31/981 (unweighted), 5/981 (weighted)
Grades: All As (except that one B from my cursed chem class >_< )

SAT:
720 CR, 720 M, 760 W (2200 Composite)
or
720 CR, 780 M, 760 W (2260 superscore)
Is it worth it to retake for a higher score? I only took it twice (Oct. and Dec. this year), and Jan. is the last chance for the old SAT…

SAT Subject:
Chinese - 740 (only because I messed up the CD for the listening portion and had to skip 10+ questions -_-" )
I plan on taking Math 2 and Physics during June or October next year, depending on how ready I am.

APs:
10th grade - World history(4), Chinese(5)
11th grade (rn) - Lang, Calc BC, Physics 1, Environmental, Compsci
12th grade (projected) - Lit (tho not going to take AP test), Physics 2 (if enough people sign up for the class at my school), Econ/Political systems, also going to take Multivariable Calc., which is offered at my school but not as an AP

tbh what I’m really worried about are my ECs. I don’t have much at all:

  • JV swim team (9-10, no awards)
  • Violin (got into a local Bach festival in 10th grade, but that’s it; participated in a couple local orchestras, but didn’t get much out of either of them)
  • Forensics (11 and hopefully 12; focusing mainly on debate, but I doubt I’d get any notable awards anytime soon)
  • School choir (6-8)
  • 50+ hrs, and hopefully more, of peer math tutoring (10, 11, prob 12)
  • ~40 hrs of volunteer at school district office (9), mainly helped out the clerks there with filing, labeling, typical desk work
  • ~30 hrs of summer camp volunteer/counselor at local shoreline camp (10)
  • Several volunteer trips at local shoreline to drive out invasive species (9)
  • 10 hrs of volunteer at library (9), shelving books
  • no clubs positions, unfortunately, but possibly one in 12th grade
  • and no work positions either…
  • applying for several summer internships (hopefully in environment field)

Awards: none in particular either. I guess Principal’s Honor Roll counts? and PSAT scores haven’t been released yet…

Essays: I haven’t written them yet, ofc, since I’m still a junior, but I plan on writing about my passion for environmental conservation. I’ve been really quiet as a kid, so I worried that I wouldn’t be able to convince people that the environment is deteriorating because of humans (4 out of 10 ppl–in the US, I think?–don’t believe in global warming!), which is why I decided to join forensics to help me get over my stage fright and advocate for environmental conservation.

I also am not completely sure which colleges to apply to, tho I’m definitely applying to the ones above. I plan on casting a wide net, so could you guys please chance me for the above colleges, give me a few that you guys think is about right for me, and provide some advice/feedback? Thanks!

2

Being really honest here:
1). The UC’s don’t superscore.
2). Don’t include anything before high school. It doesn’t really count unless it was high school coursework like Foreign Language or HS math.
3). Your activities are all over the place. Stick to less than 5 that mean something to you. The top universities are looking for passion. One or two activities wont be effective for your ECs: 30/40 hours, here and there tells them you can’t make up your mind and are filling time.

I don’t think you have the leadership activities, GPA and SAT for UCLA, Berkeley nor Stanford.

.I think you may can get into UCSC, Riverside, Merced, based on your stats and activities. Go to your guidance counselor at your school. Ask for information on local area colleges that will fit your stats. Good Luck!

3

I searched up Berkeley’s GPA and SAT range, and it seemed like I kind of fit in, but I guess with my bad extracurriculars I need to have even better academics? Anyways, thanks for replying and being honest!

4

Your GPA (3.833 unweighted, 4.5/4.6 weighted; rank 31/981 (unweighted), 5/981 (weighted)) and SAT (2200) are fine for all of the UCs, including UCLA and UCB. Continue to focus your ECs on your passion for environmental conservation, and you should have a very good chance.

(She “may can [sic] get into UCSC, Riverside, Merced”? She’s ranked 5th in her class of 981 and a California resident, Bea!)

5

Great GPA and great SAT scores. I think you have a very good chance at all of these UC’s assuming your junior year goes as expected. I don’t know why you are worried about Mission San Jose with those kinds of test scores, they significantly above the Mission average (http://www.msjhs.org/cms/lib04/CA01000848/Centricity/Domain/2858/MSJHS-2015-2016_School_Profile.pdf). I go to Mission San Jose and trust me your gonna get into at least a mid-tier UC. Stanford will be a reach for everyone.

6

At the end of Junior year, calculate your UC GPA: http://rogerhub.com/gpa-calculator-uc/

You can look at the average UC Freshman Profile stats to give you an idea of your competitiveness for each UC.
You look like you have a good chance at the majority of the UC’s. Keep up your grades, focus only on a few EC’s (quality not quantity) and write some great essays. Stanford is a Reach for everyone, but there is no reason not to apply.

http://admission.universityofcalifornia.edu/freshman/profiles/index.html

Good Luck.