Hi y’all. Class of 2021 where you at? I can’t believe I’m doing this… I would appreciate any advice because although these schools aren’t the be-all end-all, I want to be realistic. I don’t wanna waste application money if there’s no hope lmao
I am Asian American (female), TX
SAT: 1480
GPA: 3.7
No ranks at my school
No Subject Tests
APs: Computer Science (4), European History (5), APUSH (5), Chemistry (TBD), Lang (TBD), 2D Art and Design (TBD), Bio, Calc BC, Lit, French (Do APs even matter?)
ECs:
Mental health club (4 years, Pres), feminist club (2 years, founder/pres), NHS (2 years, pres), Art (9+ years), boxing (not varsity, just club), internship with feminist nonprofit, got a job as customer service for a small local warehouse (summer)
Awards:
national Silver Medal for scholastic (painting), American Visions Nominee, some regional art awards, best delegate for a model UN conference
My essay is about art lmao that’s all I can say so people don’t discover who I am
Be real with me yall. It’s a reach for anyone but idk if I’m wasting my time
My job is 30 hours a week for the summer just to add on, and my internship was during the school year (it wasn’t anything crazy like kids who went to Stanford for research lol). I have safeties so no worries!!
Your academics and SAT are good enough to where they won’t hurt you. I think your ECs are also solid, but not wow-worthy. However, with a strong essay about your art (and maybe consider discussing your feminism and possible connections to your art to synthesize your application even more) and equally strong supplements you have a shot. They would have to be top notch, and of course acceptances are pretty arbitrary, but hope this helps.
While it is possible, with a GPA of 3.7, Brown will be a very high reach, even for ED. They don’t provide information of the GPAs of admitted students, but unofficial estimates have it at above 3.9. So the chances of an unhooked applicant with a 3.7 GPA, and solid ECs are pretty low.
I also would not apply ED, since, if you are not a legacy or an athlete, they are more likely to defer or reject you, since they do not know what the RD application pool looks like. In any case, you very well may not benefit from the increased acceptance rate of ED at Brown.
Is it possible that you will be accepted? Yes. But even even applicants with 3.95+ GPAs and stellar ECS are more likely than not to be rejected from Brown.
You are great, and your profile is far above average, but Brown gets tens of thousands of applicants, and only accepts about 6% of them.
Look at you high school’s Naviance to get an idea of your chances (though remember that some of the applicants there are athletes or legacies).
In any case, apply, but I don’t think that your should “waste” your ED application on Brown. Other posters, though, may have a different opinion.
I largely agree with MWolf, and so will just mention the slight differences.
Legacy doesn’t count for much at Brown as far as I can tell, esp relative to some other Ivys. I’ve had plenty turned down, including double legacies with good EC tie-in’s to their intended concentration (seemingly more important than “random” EC’s, of whatever achievement level). IMO much of the admit rate delta for Legacies is simple correlation with the advantages of having intelligent and often well-off parents (e.g. better schools, more EC opportunities, born with better brain cells?) vs the Legacy circumstance per se. But it can’t hurt.
Assuming for talking purposes 3.9 is the actual average, there will still be plenty accepted below that, though of course the percentages drop steadily with GPA. It is however, a very holistic selection process, so if there are special things about you which come through in the app, you are in the running at least. But I agree it’s not a good use of your one ED shot.
I’m an incoming First-Year at Brown who applied ED, was deferred, but accepted RD (YAY!!) I HIGHLY recommend that you apply ED if ALL OF THE FOLLOWING ARE TRUE:
YOU LOVE BROWN and would 110% attend if admitted.
You're extremely confident that you can present a well thought out and crafted application by the ED deadline of November 1st.
You and your family can afford Brown if admitted (run the financial aid calculators if applicable.)
Multiple students applied to Brown from my high school ED & RD, however, only me and another student admitted ED got in. Particularly this year (from watching YouTube decision videos,) Brown admitted quite a few deferred students, likely because [by applying ED] we had shown we LOVED Brown and would probably attend if admitted RD (look up what a letter of continued interest is for deferred/wait listed students.)
Your test scores are within Brown’s ranges, and more importantly, I’ve learned throughout this admissions process that while test scores/GPA/courses will open the door, it’s up to the rest of your application (write amazing essays, interview, letters) to get you through it. After Admissions is confident that you can handle Brown’s curriculum, they’re looking to see how you’ve taken advantage of your school’s resources and would take advantage of Brown and the Open Curriculum, and most importantly, to make Brown proud as a future alumni.
Given your interests in art, it’s important to note that undergraduates (even if you’re not in the Brown/RISD dual-degree program) can take classes (included w/ your tuition) at RISD, so definitely weave that into your essay if you’re interested in delving deep into another field but still want to explore your other passions that you’ve found throughout high school.
Hope that helps! Good luck with college admissions!
GOSH your reply was so heart warming! Really made my day <3 seeing your passion got me fired up lol. I’ll take your advice. I ran the financial aid calculator, and the number we saw was great. I’m so happy you got in but I’m sure your personality itself will land you success
I’m a current junior at Brown and would be happy to help! What are you hoping to study at Brown? I think this factor could definitely affect your chances. Are you hoping to study art? Lmk me because I could take a look at your portfolio and give you chances/advice for improvement.
Thanks @chickenwings12 ! At the end of the day, this process is difficult, but if you LOVE Brown like I did, you should definitely give it a shot by applying, if for nothing else but to never wonder “what if?” at the end of this process.
Hope that helps! Good luck with applying to Brown!
I definitely agree with what @jyrq525600 says about the major you’re applying to affects your chances, but more so in that it should FIT with the “story” your application is trying to tell: what do your essays, letters of recommendation, extracurricular activities etc. demonstrate you’re interested in and want to pursue in college? Don’t apply to a “less-competitive” major (or concentration at Brown,) just because it might give you a higher Admissions chance, at the end of the day, students CAN AND DO change their intended concentrations, so it’s up to you to convince Admissions of your interest in a specific field.
I’m applying for political science, but I plan to submit an art supplement. Could I possibly have your ig or any contact so I could send you a link to my portfolio? I don’t want to send it on a public forum, but I would appreciate your help so much!! ?
Hi everyone, this is an update on my application (currently Dec. 26). Since there’s been 700 views since, I wanted to share some thoughts. I applied REA to Stanford and got in. Although this is about Brown, I still wanted to share some helpful advice as I reflect on my application. I thought I had all the odds against me. I didn’t donate money, wasn’t a legacy, not a URM, and I’m personally not academically gifted. I think everyone has something beautiful and amazing about themselves, and it’s important to showcase as much of that beauty in your essays. I didn’t send AP scores, and I didn’t even get a 1500+ on my SAT. Ethnicity isn’t everything. If you are applying to college, things will turn out! <3
hey im a current high school sophomore and im super interested in brown! id love to talk to you about my current stats/ecs and ask some questions! let me know if you would be down to that (not sure how we would talk, do you have discord?) thanks!
