Chance me for Brown!

Chance Me / Match Me!
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I applied Early Decision to Brown this year and although decisions will be coming out very soon, I still wanted someone (or a few people) to chance me.

Demographics
US dual citizen (American and Australian)
Idaho resident
Female/White
Father: bachelor’s degree
Mother: No degrees

Intended Major(s): Literary arts or English

STATS
4.18 weighted GPA
Unweighted HS GPA: unknown
Weighted HS GPA (incl. weighting system): 4.18/4
Class Rank: none given at my high school
SAT Scores: 1320 (690 English 630 Math) NOT SUBMITTED
AP Lang: score 4 (SUBMITTED)

Coursework
2 honors classes freshman year (max) in English and History
4-5 honors classes sophomore year in Chemistry, English, History, Elective, Spanish
5 honors classes junior year in Environmental science, English, History, Elective, Spanish, Ornithology
5 honors classes senior year (so far) in Advanced Biology, English, History, Elective, Spanish
MY SCHOOL DOES NOT OFFER AP CLASSES.

Awards
Alliance of Idaho Writing Competition - honorable mention (state/regional)
The ASCAP Foundation Jerry Herman Broadway Legacy Prize (national)
Upper School Faculty scholarship (school)
Excellence in Creative Arts (9,11), English (10), and World Language (11) (school)

Extracurriculars
Theater/drama - all years of HS, in and outside of school, lead roles.
Founder/president of body positivity club
DEIJ Club (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice): member, all years of HS, leadership role
Volleyball: JV 9th, Varsity 10-12
Oxbridge Academics summer program: major: creative writing, minor: art history
Summer camp counselor at a local performing arts camp - 9th, 10th, 12th (no 11th due to covid)
(I HAVE MORE EXTRACURRICULARS BUT IN THE INTEREST OF TIME AND SPACE I AM STOPPING HERE)

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Congratulations on all you have achieved and good luck. No one can accurately chance you based on what you have provided.

I gather from what you have offered that you are an excellent writer. Hopefully that skill and passion come through in your essays because I think they will be given close scrutiny along with your LOCs.

I know this is a stressful time and I wish I could provide words to ease that anxiety. What I can offer is that Brown is a great place. So much so that decades ago it was my dream school. Ultimately they wouldn’t have me and I had to “settle” for the relatively “similar” but “inferior” Vassar. Best time of my life in hindsight and I couldn’t have had a better college experience.

My kid is a senior at Brown and I think he shares a view that his college experience was all that he could have hoped for.

My point being either way you will be fine, and that while the journey can seem daunting it will work out. Stay positive and confident please!!

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In addition to Brown (which I hope admits you), you would be a great candidate for schools such as Kenyon, Hamilton, Vassar, Skidmore and Connecticut College.

These sites include lively descriptions of some colleges with especially notable literary characteristics:

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Since you asked for a chance me, based on what you provided I would say your chances are unlikely. That said while we don’t know your unweighted GPA, you could figure it out by giving yourself 4 for an A, 3 for a B, etc.

You may have straight As or you may have many Bs. Your rating system likely gives a .5 for Honors so a 4.18 may be fine. How did you get a 4 on AP Lang if not offered…did you self study ??

That your school offered no AP likely helps.

Idaho is good too…geographic diversity.

The reason for my unlikely assessment is your SAT. Both math and English are low. For English 8% of admitted students are in your range while only 3% of admitted students had a math score below 650. For Brown, TO would have been better. I point this out because if you are still applying RD elsewhere you should investigate whether to submit.

The 25/75 for Brown was 1480/1560. 25% had below a 1480 but you are far below.

This is just my opinion as a chance me.

Other colleges with an open curriculum that may work:

Rochester, Grinnell, St Olaf - the first two are likely reaches as well.

Where have you applied RD? You may look at Oberlin and Sarah Lawrence. Also Iowa. Yes Iowa. If you went for a Wesleyan or Vassar, certainly look at the TO option.

You’d be competitive at Elon and Dickinson and both are strong in your interested area.

You’ve done well and I wish great things for you.

The good news is if you’re a great writer, you’ll be a great writer no matter which school you attend. And you’ll likely have a wonderful opportunity whether you are at Brown or elsewhere.

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Note that while the OP posted her SAT scores above, she did not submit them to Brown.

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Yep. I wouldn’t be an English major as I can’t read. Not Submitted. Duh. Thx for correcting me.

The good news is no matter what anyone says, she’ll have the real answer soon.

I see 70% submitted test scores. I don’t see in the CDS an acceptance rate of submitted vs not.

OP I wish you luck and sorry for my big oops!!

Brown is tough even for the best and brightest. Whether or not you get in there, you will excel because of your abilities. Best of luck.

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OP please take comfort knowing that the actual people who will be rendering an admissions decision at Brown won’t be focused on one element or score in isolation, comparing you to averages and will be paying attention to details. The Brown admissions staff will evaluate your application holistically and juxtaposed not just against other students and stats but relative to what you specifically could bring to the Brown community and conversely how the Brown experience could benefit you.

Given your focus on writing your essays will likely be important not just in the story they tell but how it is told. Additionally the lack of APs at your school will likely center some attention on LORs so that your relative performance amongst peers in the eyes of teachers will be of interest.

Once again almost impossible for anyone without that perspective to meaningfully chance you. Hang in there you have achieved a lot!

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Brown admissions is kind of quirky. It is really hard to chance anyone for that reason, but it looks like you would fit in well with the Brown vibe.

There are many other schools you might like as well: Kenyon, Iowa, Sarah Lawrence, Bennington, Vassar, Skidmore, Hobard Willam Smith, Clark…

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Hi. Thank you so much for your feedback. Just wanted to say that I have received all A’s but three B+’s in Geometry each term of freshman year. My school does trimesters so I earned a B+ each trimester of geometry freshman year. However, I have not received anything below an A since. Also yes I self studied for the AP Lang test.

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If you would like to use this interval before you hear from Brown to research additional colleges, this site may be helpful:

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Update: I was rejected :frowning:
I have applied to a few other schools however and have been accepted to Emerson College EA. Hoping things will work out! For those who are curious, I applied EA to Northeastern and RD to Wesleyan, Tufts, Boston College, Fordham and Barnard. I decided against applying ED2 anywhere as I didn’t have a clear top choice.

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Emerson is fantastic - so congrats. Perhaps another will come through.

I personally think it’s good to get rejected. I know that seems crazy - but I had hoped my kids would be rejected somewhere and both were.

If you don’t get rejected, maybe you didn’t go upscale enough.

Anyway, Emerson and Brown are very different and hopefully Emerson meets your needs.

But you’re still in the 3rd inning with more to go - and even time to throw in a few more if you choose - lots of free apps schools out there with no additional essays. Not saying to apply just to apply but if any meet your needs.

You can google niche no application fee schools, load into common app, see if there’s an extra essay. You might find another or two of interest (but only if you wanted more choices).

good luck.

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Emerson is a wonderful school for your interests, Its location in downtown Boston is vibrant. I have worked with Emerson students on a film. MY brother and brother in law both went there and both have had creative careers in tv production and writing. Great to have that acceptance!

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Thank you! I also was accepted into their honors program and although it is more of a safety for me, I still really like Emerson and would be happy to go there if none of my other schools pan out.

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Thank you for the feedback! And yes, I agree, sometimes rejection can be good. I added Wesleyan to my list recently as they have an open curriculum like Brown and have no supplements + no application fee for those applying for financial aid (which I am). I feel good with the schools I have applied to so far and I feel that with my Emerson acceptance, I do not need to add any more schools.

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Wesleyan certainly overlaps with Brown in many ways. I hope you get in there.

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