I am a high school senior and wondering my chances for UW.
- I am from Illinois and I attend a reputable private, catholic school.
- our school reports grades on a 100% scale. My weighted average is a 93 and my unweighted average is an 88.3
- I have taken 5 AP’s and 5 Honors with some regular classes.
- I have a 31 ACT (32E, 32M, 30R, 28S) and an 11 on writing.
- I do 2 varsity sports and am captain of one.
- I wrote a book my freshman year and got it published by a mainstream publisher and got a deal with the largest and most prestigious distributor in the country. My book is sold in Barnes and Noble stores across the country, as well as various other retailers in many states. My book was a “Barnes and Noble Featured Hardcover” and won a national award (gold sticker and all that good stuff). It sold really, really well, and I was able to donate over 6000$ each to two different charities from its revenue. I got a really good Rec Letter from my publisher which highlighted these achievements, in addition to the letter I got from my AP Lit teacher. My general Essay focused on the book and how it has helped me live for others and extend myself into various communities. I genuinely believe that both my general essay and my UW Essay are fantastic.
- I am also a nationally recognized sculptor, and have had 4 jobs. I am a first generation college student, as my parents did not complete high school. My brother and sister also did not go past high school.
I am looking for an honest evaluation of my chances with the given facts above. Will my book and all that even help? I only mentioned it because I am hoping that it does help.
Thanks everyone.
I forgot to mention my heavy involvement and leadership in my school newspaper.
Translate your gpa into a 4.0 = A scale- unweighted. Ask your guidance office if you don’t know how. Have no clue if an 88 is an A or a B. If a B now that great a gpa.
So I guess that means I have a 3.9 W and a 3.35UW
92-100 is an A at our school, 90-91 an A-, 88-89 a B+
Can you help me in terms of chances? Thanks
OP, does your school use Naviance? If enough students get accepted to UW from your school then the scattergram should give you a decent threshold for school-specific GPA and ACT/SAT. Other OOS posters are saying that’s probably the best way to figure out a “chance-me” w/r/t stats.
Do you think everything else I’ve done is enough to overcome this?
OP, according to the UW-Madison CDS, GPA, class rank and course rigor are considered “very important” for an admission decision, standardized test scores, essay, recs and state residency are considered “important” and EC’s, volunteer or work experience, talent, first gen, etc. are “considered”. Your EC-related achievements are extraordinary and demonstrate considerable talent, and being a first generation student will likely help your cause more than the CDS acknowledges. The problem is that no one here on CC knows how UW-Madison is going to view your GPA. You are much better off discussing this with your counselor who is likely to be much more familiar with chances from your school than we are. I really hope you are admitted as you sound like a very bright and talented person!
Your academic record rightly supersedes your other accomplishments. You need to have a good knowledge base and good study habits to succeed at UW. These will be reflected in your gpa. Rising grades can offset a poor start, eg better grades as a junior than a freshman. Getting into college is just the beginning of your journey. UW wants you to be prepared to do the work. You have submitted your application and now need to ignore it. Enjoy your senior year and do not obsess about your chances.
@Shawnovan1532 This is a tough one! IMO you should get admitted - you are spectacular.
Your ACT is pretty decent, but on the low end of what they tend to accept from Illinois. Not a big pro, but does not put you out of the running. Your GPA may be slightly on the low end too. But UW will have a school report from your high school that deems a 93 is actually pretty darn good. a 93 at a reputable college-prep Catholic high school that is going to give you a little bump. Unfortunately UW will have lots of kids to pick from with 31s and solid GPAs.
But then (drum roll)… your accomplishments with your book, being a sculptor, work experience, solid recs, etc. bring you up quite a few notches. And being first gen is HUGE too. And you know what - it should be. Many kids with those stats are bright indeed, but have had their path plowed nicely to the road to success.
I really hope you are accepted. And if not - it’s definitely UW’s loss. UW is a great school but there would be a ton of schools that may value your accomplishments more and would even really try to woo you there with mucho dinero.
@Shawnovan1532 are you going to keep bumping till you receive the answer you want? :-w
@JBStillFlying lol to be honest kind of. not in a bad way but just because I was thinking maybe I’d get lucky and find someone who could put a good estimate on it.
But ill stop.
On its face, an 88 (since UW looks at unweighted gpa) and a 31 for OOS is likely deferral and could go either way in spring. The ECs are great, and 1st gen status will help since UW is focusing on improving diversity. What about affordability? I know that OOS UW can be close to instate Illinois prices, but UW is known for not being generous with need-based aid for OOS students, though it is improving.
Much as I love UW and hope you are admitted, do you have good match and safety schools? Have you looked at Iowa, Indiana or Minnesota? Iowa uses a formula for admission which, if you have all the elements included in the calculation, you can do online and see if you will be admitted to University of Iowa and whether, and how much, merit aid you will get as an OOS student.
Good luck, hang in there, this is a difficult time of year for seniors.
@Midwestmomofboys
We can pay full tuition without hesitation and did not apply for any type of loan or scholarship. I am not being arrogant, but these are the facts. Does this hep my cause any? Or being 15ish% native american?
^ @Shawnovan1532 that’s not going to hurt.
Not sure that UW-Madison cares about ability to pay in their admission decision. They do care about admitting a diverse student body. So being first gen. and identifying as Native American (assuming that you do the latter) will help your admission chances a bit.
Addendum: although you might want to double check that percentage as I’m not sure it’s correct :-?