<p>Hey guys,</p>
<p>Just wondering about my chances (currently a junior):</p>
<p>GPA (UW): 3.5 I know how my GPA might be low but I go to one of the best private high schools in the nation with average SAT scores of 2150 and very competitive students but my school also doesn't rank. Half of my course load has been with honors/AP courses with the other half in regular course
Probably will be higher in the end with my junior/senior year GPA
SAT Score: 2250
Possible Majors: Political Science, International Relations, Business</p>
<p>AP Scores:
AP Chinese Language (9th grade): 5
AP Microeconomics (10th grade): 5
AP Macroeconomics (10th grade): 5</p>
<p>Junior Year Courses:
AP US History
AP Physics B
AP Calculus AB
AP Comparative Government (Self-Study)
Honors Biology
Spanish 4
English III</p>
<p>Senior Year Courses:
AP Statistics
AP Environmental Science
AP Spanish Language
AP Psychology
AP US Government (Semester Course)
Modern International Affairs (Semester Course)
2 English Electives </p>
<p>Extra Curricular Activities:
Speech and Debate Captain (Attended/Successfully competed at around 30 tournaments to date/won many awards)
DECA (Business Competitions)
Star Scout - Boy Scouts (Various Leadership Positions)
Varsity Swimming Captain
Officer of Spirit Club
SOAR Volunteer (Charity which helps underprivileged rural Chinese students attend college in China) </p>
<p>Summer Activities:
9th - Summer Courses for High School Credit (Economics/Advanced Programming)
10th - Harvard Debate Institute and University of Washington at Seattle Research Assistant (Hutchinson Cancer Institute)
11th -
For sure: Teach English to Underprivileged Chinese students
Possibilities:
UPenn Leadership in the Business World Summer Program
Columbia Summer Program: Debating the Ethics of War/ Globalization of Economy
USC International Relations Summer Institute
Stanford International Relations Summer Institute</p>
<p>Thanks for your help!</p>
<p>I am also a junior student and I am probably not qualified for chancing you, but here are my opinions:</p>
<p>I think you look pretty good.</p>
<p>So far, these really grabs my attention:
Speech and Debate Captain (Attended/Successfully competed at around 30 tournaments to date/won many awards)
SOAR Volunteer (Charity which helps underprivileged rural Chinese students attend college in China
10th - Harvard Debate Institute and University of Washington at Seattle Research Assistant (Hutchinson Cancer Institute)
11th -
For sure: Teach English to Underprivileged Chinese students</p>
<p>I can see that you know what you are doing and that you truly are passionate about political science and international relationship(I personally consider this to be your biggest advantage). By your course selection, I can see that you are doing great in your school work so don’t stress out too much about GPA. I think you are on the right track, however Stanford is a reach for everyone, therefore, it is still necessary to have back-up plans. You should start considering how to make your essay stand out by thinking about the following question: Why are you so devoted to international relationship and political science (be personal and sincere when you write about it in your essay) ? What changes are you hoping to make?</p>
<p>I am an international student from China, I hope we can be friends.</p>
<p>KatyHWQ, thank you so much for your help! i really appreciate it. </p>
<p>Your GPA and SAT scores are both weak for top schools. You do have a few match to high match schools on the list. Try to bring up your GPA as much as you can.</p>
<p>Does your schools have a grading distribution somewhere? If your school grades harshly, it’d make sense for them to provide some type of chart telling approximately where a 3.5 is. The thing is, a 3.5 GPA sounds bad for top schools. But if your school never has anyone with a 4.0 and has like 4 people with a 3.9, and regularly sends 40% of the class to a top-30 college, then a 3.5 seems alright. But if half the class gets 4.0s, you’re not in the best situation. The point is, you need some context, be it from a Naviance or your HS profile.</p>
<p>With that being said, your SAT is high enough for any school in the nation. Your choice of summer ECs do scream “privileged,” but in general, colleges are ok with that. Your other ECs are fine enough to justify you a chance. </p>
<p>I’m pretty sure you can get into UCSD and Northeastern, and if the GPA gets up, NYU and UCLA can be match schools. For nearly everyone who hasn’t won Siemens, Columbia, Tufts, and Stanford are reaches. </p>
<p>Predict back? <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1628065-the-ultimate-chancing-thread-with-real-life-incentive-p1.html”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1628065-the-ultimate-chancing-thread-with-real-life-incentive-p1.html</a></p>
<p>nhdmaniac, my school’s average uw gap is probably 3.5. Do you think your predictions would still be in line with this information?</p>
<p>It certainly doesn’t help your case too much. Because yo’re in such a specialized situation, it’s probably better to see where the average person in your school gets into, and then maybe aim a smidge higher because your SAT is above average. Again, Naviance and school profiles will be your best help at this point. </p>