Demographics
White male, South Jersey resident, public school, first-generation college student
Intended Major(s)
Undecided
GPA, Rank, and Test Scores
3.86 unweighted GPA
4.988 weighted GPA
Test-Optional
Scored 3-5 on all AP tests
Coursework
14 AP classes (3 sophomore, 4 junior + 2 self-study, 5 senior)
All other core classes are Honors
Awards
AP Scholar with Honors
National Honor Society
Extracurriculars
Student Council
(general member freshman year, an officer from sophomore to senior year)
Tutoring
(14 families from elementary to high school level)
(freshman to senior year, set up tutoring sessions through interact club, student council, and my own initiative)
Model UN
(active member freshman and sophomore year)(secretary from junior to senior year)
Interact Club
(active member freshman and sophomore year)(secretary from junior to senior year)
Shift Supervisor
(45+ hours a week April - October working as Shift Supervisor for a restaraunt)
Book Club
(Founder and President of a 25+ member book club which focuses on social justice)
Community Service
(volunteer leader who helped direct new volunteers and donors during project to help local food banks)
Medical Explorers
(general member for 4 years, historian for 2 years)
Latin Club
(general member for 4 years, but volunteered and was very active within the club)
Tennis
(been playing for 6 years)
(JV freshman and sophomore year)
Essays/LORs/Other
Essay: 9/10
Letters of Rec:
APUSH (soph yr) and Honors Philosophy (snr yr) teacher who is also a family friend and was my swim coach when I was younger. Performed very well in APUSH
Latin teacher all four years of HS with who I have a great relationship!
AP Chemistry (jr yr) teacher who is known for writing awesome letters of rec
AP Gov (jr yr) teacher – I performed very well in his class and put much effort into all assignments!
Schools
definitely applying:
Boston College ED (visited in-person)
University of Michigan EA
Fordham University EA (visited in-person)
Georgetown EA (visited in-person)
Colby College RD (visited in-person)
Tufts University RD
New York University RD
Boston University RD (visited in-person)
American University RD
UCLA, UCSD, UC Berkeley RD
Loyola University Chicago - Rolling
considering:
University of Maryland College Park EA
Drexel University EA (visited in-person)
Johns Hopkins RD
What is your weighting system? meaning is it 1 for AP and .5 for Honors because your weighted GPA seems awfully high.
Any test score?
I’d say a shot everywhere including in at BC.
Tufts and Gtown may be difficult and with American, you need to demonstrate interest to get their best merit, etc. Hopkins may be a no too. But being first gen helps.
So - I think you have too many schools - and too many different types. Why UMD and Michigan - they don’t fit the rest.
Anyway, I’m a fan of applying to more schools - but I feel like your list is a bit heavy and note that the UCs and Gtown have their own apps so they are not on Common and it’s a ton of work.
What is the money situation? Will you receive need based aid? Fill out the net price calculator for tufts to see? If yes, it’s a solid list but you could prune it - American isn’t good for need based aid, for example.
If you don’t qualify, do you want to spend $80K a year? Because you’d have fantastic options for $30-40K, etc.
Since you have some smaller schools, would you consider a LAC like Wesleyan?
My school’s formula for weighted GPAs is 1.0 Honors // 1.25 Honors A // 1.5 AP
I would like to note that my GPA has had a major upward trend, being pulled down by my freshman year grades as I was dealing with undiagnosed medical issues resulting in several hospitalizations (my guidance counselor will highlight this in her LOR)
I did take the SAT once (never took PSAT or ACT) but did not perform well on it, meaning it does not match my GPA at all.
I am comfortable with the amount of schools I am applying to as I have an application pending through my school for a fee waiver (will most likely be eligible)
I wanted to have a range of schools as I am not sure what I want to major in and I would like to have options.
My financial situation is very complicated (as is my familial situation) so I have yet to do a net price calculator for any school, but I am hoping to receive need-based aid.
Do you think I have a shot at competitive LACs like Colby, Wesleyan, etc?
Do you think ED at BC is a good idea or do I have a good enough shot if I just do RD?
Have your run the NPC on every university on your list?
Are you intending to also apply to Rutgers? When I was in graduate school (at Stanford) there were multiple Rutgers graduates in the same program. Since then I have worked with a few Rutgers graduates. They have all made Rutgers look very good. You could easily spend two or three times as much to attend a university that is just as good.
I do wonder about your weighting system. Where we live to have a 4.988 you would need to have only taken AP classes and nothing else, and to have an A+ (98 or higher, a 97 would still be an A+ but would not be sufficient) in all but one of them. The last one would need to be an A (or a 97).
“My financial situation is very complicated”
You need to apply to at least one and preferably two universities that you know that you will be able to afford. Right now you have what looks like a very expensive list. You would almost certainly be full pay at any of the Universities of California.
I was under the impression that Georgetown was test-optional, but thank you for this insight!
I am unable to determine my budget as of right now, but I am willing to take on loans if it means going to the right college. I am also hoping to receive need-based aid from schools that offer it.
I am unable to determine my budget as of right now, but I am willing to take on loans if it means going to the right college. I am also hoping to receive need-based aid from schools that offer it.
I do not intend on applying to Rutgers as I will no longer be a New Jersey resident (so I won’t get in-state tuition) when I am in college – as stated my familial situation is quite complicated.
My school’s formula for weighted GPAs is 1.0 Honors // 1.25 Honors A // 1.5 AP
When you say it’s complicated, that doesn’t mean much. You need to run a net price calculator. What you think is complicated and you’ll get a waiver - doesn’t mean that to be the case with the schools.
If you will, in fact, get aid, then focus on the schools that meet need.
You should not apply ED to anywhere unless you are 100% understanding of the cost - so run the net price calculator and make sure you are entering it right. Or ask the school for a pre-read.
You can get into the LACs but you still need match/safeties and you’ll see them on the list. Kenyon, Denison, Franklin & Marshall, etc.
You need to focus your list - it’s way all over the place. If you need money, eliminate the UCs and Maryland.
You need to figure out what your budget is. I do understand that this can be very difficult to do in some cases. It is at least somewhat difficult to do in most cases.
Loans are risky. They will significantly constrain what you can do after you graduate from university. As one example, my older daughter got a great job right after graduating university that was a great fit for her and that she loved. It also was a very good step towards getting the experience to get her where she is in fact right now (studying in a DVM program). However, the pay was lousy. The only reason that she could afford to take that first job was because she had no debt.
Hopefully at the time that you graduate high school you will be in-state somewhere. Hopefully it will be a state that has a university as good as Rutgers.
If in fact you will be able to become in-state in California, then you can ignore what I said earlier about being full pay at the various universities of California. California has many great in-state public universities and I do see them on your list. You have some other very good public universities on your list that might again become more affordable if you were in-state for them.
One thing that worries me a bit is that a very complicated family situation can make the NPCs less accurate. Other people here on CC will be far more knowledgeable than I about the impact of complicated family situations on financial aid (my situation is relatively simple).
Hmmm - no - loans are bad - and fortunately, the government has limited the amount you can take. $5500 the first year - it’s very low. Your parents would have to sign onto more.
Forty-five hours a week (did I read that right?) working outside of school is a lot of time. I think you’d be an attractive candidate for a selective LAC like Wesleyan; they want more FGLI kids. And, working to help support your family is as good as a EC as far as I’m concerned. One word of caution: before you get too excited, run the NPC numbers as best you can. Are your parents divorced? Is there a family-run business or a home with a lot of equity somewhere in the mix? All these things can be confounding factors when setting your sights on a private college.
As someone stated above, Georgetown is not test optional if you have taken tests. You are required to submit all SAT/ACT test scores that you have taken, see here:
Georgetown accepts both the SAT and ACT. Please note that we do not participate in Score Choice and require submission of an applicant’s entire testing record, if one is available. Students who are not able to submit scores from either test due to the COVID-19 pandemic are welcome to apply for admission to the Class of 2026 without the tests. https://uadmissions.georgetown.edu/flexible-testing-requirements/#college-admissions
Your list is reachy, and long. If you don’t know your budget, I would recommend you not apply ED anywhere. Do you have any idea what your parents can/will pay for college each year?
If you tell us the nature of the complications for budget, we can help you. Are your parents divorced? Remarried? Etc. If you run a net price calculator such as Colby or Tufts, that would be helpful as well. If need based only schools aren’t going to be affordable, then you will have to merit hunt.
For Rutgers in-state tuition, I encourage you to reach out to your AO and ask what the policy is. Some states allow students to continue with in-state tuition if they graduate from an in-state HS, even if the parents move sometime during the college years. It’s worth asking because you need affordable options.
Regarding loans, you can take out a max of $27K over the undergrad years, which doesn’t go very far. Any amount above that will be on your parents.