White Male
Major: Business, do not intend to be a direct admit to FSB but possibly after a year, if I get accepted.
OOS but my dad lives in state
GPA:3.5
ACT:23 first time taking, if deferred I plan to take again
Rank: 35/110(also rough, a couple students sneaked into the top 20 without taking any AP or honors classes)
I have taken 2 AP’s and 8 honors classes.(My school also offers dual credit classes from a local college, I took two and got an A in both)
Upward Trend
Letters of Recommendation: All great, one from a teacher who is an alumni 9/10
Hooks: I have 7 alumni that are in my immediate family as well as my grandfather retiring with emeritus status.
EC: Varsity soccer all 4 years, recruited by a decent amount of division three schools. I have gotten all conference for 3 years and all county for 2, school record for goals and assists(I also played travel and took a lot of my time). I have a job at a local pizza place where I work 30 hours a week,and will soon become a manager for the remainder of the school year. I have some other great ecs that include volunteer hours through my church as well as some other programs and groups.
Essay: Good, spent a lot of time on it and talked about how I support myself through my job, I pay for insurance, gas, my car, food, with little to no help, excluding my house of course.
Income bracket: 100k+ will get zero financial aid
I am an awful test taker and it is obvious my bad act score will hurt my chances… Is there still hope?
@cspence101 - Your ACT score is problematic. According to USNews, only 5% of admitted students had ACTs in the range of 18 to 23. I am not certain about Miami, but Early Decision admissions tend to be more selective at most colleges.
If you are not accepted ED, then you will roll over into the regular applicant pool. The next ACT is given on February 11, which is after the February 1 RD deadline. I don’t know if Miami would allow you to supplement your application with the 2/11 test. You should contact admissions.
Good luck to you! The rest of your application looks strong.
@Beaudreau Thank you for your input, I have already taken the SAT and have gotten a comparable result… so I might have to retake that test instead. I will take your advice and call admissions as well.
@cspence101 For a frame of reference, the stats for the incoming Miami class of fall 2016 were an average GPA of 3.77 and ACT of 28.5, and both stats have been trending up annually since 2009. That means both your GPA and ACT are low. The good news is that alumni connections are closely considered by admissions (increases the probability of you choosing Miami, which they like), and admissions seem to factor in a several year, consistent upward trend in grades. Is your high school highly ranked in your state? This is something admissions looks at as well. Make sure you consistently reach out to admissions and state your desire to go to Miami. Keep in mind you will need a 3.5 GPA your first year to transfer into FSB; and getting a 3.5 in college is harder than doing so in high school. Given the required courses, this is not easy at all. You will likely need to make sacrifices to make this happen (less social time than your friends), so be aware of this up front. Best of luck!
@LoveandHonor My high school is highly ranked which will help me, and I have also reached out to admissions about my interest. I am also fully aware of the sacrifices I will have to make if given the opportunity. Thank you for your thoughts
From what I have heard, ED generally gives students a better chance at getting into a college. You still have a chance, but as someone else has said your ACT is a bit low for Miami. There is a group of students that are still admitted with lower ACT scores but that is usually backed with a higher GPA and a good essay to help you stand out. Keep us updated as the decisions for ED come out soon!