<p>Hey guys, I figure Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute will be a bit of a reach school for myself, but I'd like your opinion on if you think I've got a shot. I'm a VERY tech savy 17 year old that can do literally almost anything and everything with a computer. Sadly I didn't apply myself as much as I probably should have in my earlier years of HS, college certainly wasn't on my mind.</p>
<p>Note that I applied under the first ED through the common app in attempt to hopefully somewhat boost my chances on getting in.</p>
<p>Intended Major: Game and Simulation Arts and Sciences (GSAS)</p>
<p>-Cumulative HS GPA Weighted: ~3.5 out of maybe 4.1-4.2
-Current Quarter GPA Weighted: 3.629 out of 4.287
-SAT: 1740/2400 - 1210/1600 (620M, 590CR, 530W) (Only took it once, last june)
-ACT: (Took Oct 23rd, Scores should be out tonight... Probably around 27-30)</p>
<p>-Current Senior Classes (Semester 1 atleast):</p>
<p>Grade|Class
-(C)-AP Calc AB
-(B)-AP World History
-(A)-Physics
-(A)-British Literature
-(A)-Literature in Film
-(A)-Weight Training</p>
<p>-Last year for AP's, I took AP Computer Science (4) and AP US History (3) maintaining an A or B throughout the year in both classes.
-I had my AP Computer Science teacher and Guidance Counselor write my letters of recommendation. Confident my Counselor wrote a very good letter, and I'm sure my APCS teacher wrote a pretty good one too. I was going to ask my physics teacher to write one, but I had only had him for about a month of classes at the time, so I didn't bother.
-I'm an ExPat that has lived internationally for the past 11+ years, so I wrote a pretty powerful and exciting essay in regard to my wild experiences traveling the globe(17+ countries spanning 5 continents!) and experiencing the world and its cultures first hand.
-Not too many EC's, A bit of Band/Choir early on. Otherwise I tried to throw more of my techy aspects in there. Leadership roll in an afterschool gaming club. Freelance and private programming. My role as a lead Administrator of a web based forum(much like this) for the past 3-4 years - which currently draws around a 6 figure annual revenue. (that's probably how I'll pay for RPI if I get accepted :P)
-White, Caucasian, nothing too special sadly.</p>
<p>I have a friend who's currently attending RPI, and he's the one that convinced me to give it a shot. I'm really banking on the internationally developed and globally aware mindset I presented in my application to give me any sort of chance of getting in. You know, like that unique individual that just pops out, even if their grades aren't stellar. I looked through the past year or two threads of RPI acceptances and I'm seeing people with 2200 SAT scores and 3.9 UW's getting denied, but then again they're applying for primary engineering degrees which are apparently pretty competitive at RPI. I'm guessing GSAS is one of the less competitive degrees there, but I'm not completely sure, so I'm hoping I have that going for me.</p>
<p>Also, I didn't apply for any sort of financial aid package - frankly I don't need it. Does that help my chances at all since I'm not begging the college for money? </p>
<p>I would really love to attend RPI, and I haven't really found a comparable school to pursue something along the lines of GSAS. So any other suggestions would be nice as I certainly need some fallback schools.</p>
<p>Thanks for any and all input, I really do appreciate it.</p>
<p>-Doom</p>