Chance me Berkeley EECS, CMU SCS

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

I’m a rising senior (2020) that goes to an nationally ranked math and science school in Illinois. We don’t have traditional AP classes, but almost all of our classes are at that level or higher.

Stats:
SAT: 1590
GPA: 4.0 UW
EC’s: 2 years varsity on quiz bowl team (nationally-ranked)
12 years playing violin, 5 years in a symphony orchestra outside of school
Robotics team (programming head)
Helped fund, build, and maintain a computational cluster at my school
Community service: Started an organization for local seniors to learn about technology; I teach classes and make learning material, and have other students taking part as well.

APs:
AP CSP: 5
APWH: 5
AP CS A: 4 (will this hurt?)
AP Phys C: 5 and 5
AP Calc BC: 5
AP Spanish Lang: 5
AP Bio: 4
Will take AP Spanish Lit, AP Lit,

SAT Subject tests:
Math 2: 800
Chem: 780
Phys: 800
Bio M: 800
US History: 800

Research: 2 years of particle physics research. Involved a fair bit of programming.

Awards (Not much): USAPhO Semifinal qualifier
Quiz Bowl team got 24th at nationals, 3rd at state

I don’t really have any flashy math awards or anything, but I get good grades with hard classes. I also get that admissions can be a crapshoot, so I’m hoping to get on the good end of that randomness. Do I have a shot at these schools?

2

you should have a good shot at both schools.

For Berkeley make sure you have a well-rounded background. They especially value community service and volunteering, given the large numbers of non-silver spoon attendees. I’m pretty sure I know which school you go to, and historically, the admission rates for Berkeley from your school are around 20%, about the same as any top HS within California. You will to a large extent be compared with students from your school and all out-of-state students. So no slam dunk for admissions.

3

There is no financial aid for non-resident students for California public universities. Can your parents afford $65K per year for Berkeley?

4

@ProfessorPlum168 Yeah, Illinois only really has one STEM school.
@“aunt bea” Thankfully, yes. I am definitely strongly considering in-state UIUC (just as strong in CS) for undergrad, it’s just that my school sends a lot of people to UIUC, so I have a pretty good idea of my chances.

5

Your profile is really similar to mine so I think that the replies I got on my ChanceMe should also apply to you