Hi! I’m a junior currently (second semester). I was hoping y’all could take a look at my stats and resume and let me know what my chances are of getting into Vandy.
Here goes:
GPA UW: 3.72
GPA Weighted: 4.42/5.0 or 5.19/6.0
SAT: 1560
Rank: not in top 10% (school is VERYYYY competitive)
I took 4 APs my freshman and sophomore years combined and 6 IBs and 1 AP my junior year and will be taking 5 IBs my senior year
I know my GPA is low for Vandy but I struggled with confidence issues and motivation sophomore year so I got a couple of B’s but my grades have gotten way better my junior year.
AP Exam Scores:
AP Psych Exam (5), AP Word Hist Exam (4), AP Environmental (4), AP Hug (4)
Extracurriculars:
-Varsity Debate 3 years
-Tutored Bhutanese Refugees
-HOSA Member 4 Years; Made it to HOSA Regionals 2018
-Made it to Intel Science Fair Regionals 2017
-Volunteered at Baylor Scott and White Hospital Car.
-Year Round Volunteer BSW Hospital Irv.
-Intern at Orphanage in India (Got elected as Section Leader)
-Helped Organize Annual Cancer Walkathons 2016-Current
-Helped Set Up Annual Fundraising Event for Blind People 2016-Current
-Volunteer at Scottish Rite Hospital
-Class Leader of religious class every sunday to further understanding of hinduism
-NHS member
Leadership:
-Youth Advisory Board Member of an Organization
-Student Emergency Response Team 4 Years Secretary (2018-19)
-STIR Club Secretary
-Young Adult Action Council of my region
-Dallas Human Rights and Justice Board
Research at Local University*
I started a mental health club through a foundation that is locally based, this is what my essay will most likely be about since this foundation helped me overcome my mental funk in sophomore year and I made this club to help other people like me and it means a lot to me
Work Experience:
Tutored at Gideon Math and Reading
Awards:
AP Scholar with Honor
National Merit Commended
Vanderbilt is my ABSOLUTE dream school and I know my stats are kind of low but I’m hoping I can get in!
Also, what are my chances at the Chancellor’s scholarship?
Very impressive, but you’re more likely to be rejected than admitted. That’s simply the nature of selective schools.
But you could also be admitted AND get a scholarship. CC is full of people that will attest to the random nature of admissions, so make sure you have many safeties.
Also, not sure I’ve seen this addressed on CC. Does anyone know if Admissions care whether a high school is competitive?
This might be weird to ask but do y’all mind chancing me for Emory + Woodruff as well because I’m interested in Emory too (not as much I am for Vandy tho).
Don’t want to sound too negative, but it is usually a bad idea to have a dream school with a single digit admission rate. For one thing, it is very likely that you are going to end up disappointed. Also, it can distract you from the absolutely essential task of coming up with a list of schools that are a good fit, affordable, and which you have a decent shot of getting into. By all means, take a shot at Vandy. Maybe you will get lucky. But focus on coming up with a list of likely and match schools.
But your SAT is essentially perfect, and plenty of EC’s.
Perfect stats and a single outstanding EC seem to help one’s application. Note the “Percent of students who received one or more significant honors or held major leadership positions:” in Vandy’s press release. I interpret this as them searching for excellence, not an entire array of EC’s for which no one could possibly have time to devote themselves to.
Also, official campus visits have been known to help (not necessarily at Vandy).
As a parent, I would absolutely encourage you to chase Vandy if it is your dream. Adults like to see passion in kids, not phoniness desperation, entitlement, or excuses.
But, you must consider the possibility of being rejected, or being admitted with no scholarship.
Also, take advice on CC with a grain of salt, including my own advice. Your parents, teachers, counselors, and Vandy personnel are going to have the best advice.
Thanks for the replies! I have heard about the preference for someone who focuses on one EC and takes it to the next level rather than someone who takes a lot of EC’s and is average at them.
I would say most if not all my EC’s are community service and such so I was going to make my essay about how my interests in community service evolved as I went through my own life experiences. Could this be seen as just one EC?
However, I do understand Vanderbilt just like any other top tier school is unpredictable and I should have other match and safety schools in mind.