Chance me for CMC! (PLEASE)

Colleges and Universities A-Z Claremont McKenna College
1

<p>Hey. So I'm super sure that CMC is the one I want to go to, and I would apply ED in a heartbeat... if I could. The finances aren't completely set in stone so I'm forced to go RD as my family has a set amount of financial aid we need to get for me to be able to attend. So yeah, what I wanna figure out is do I even have a chance? And if so, what else can I do at this point to raise my chances?</p>

<p>I visited the campus and attended one of those tour/campus show off days. I plan to be an IR major, hence why I'm so drawn to CMC ;)</p>

<p>GPA: 3.98 UW/4.08W</p>

<p>5 AP courses (school only offers around 10):
AP Euro: 4
AP French: 4
AP Lang: 5
AP Gov: Will take
AP Bio: Will take</p>

<p>Class rank: 13/339 (will go up if I keep my 4.0 through the first semester)
School is a among the best high schools in Oregon, sending kids to Ivy League and top LAC's each year</p>

<p>ACT: 29 (Yeah I know, I retook it a few weeks ago, dunno if I'll do better overall, but I'm pretty sure I'll have raised my english and math score)
English: 29
Math: 27
Science: 28
Reading: 31
Essay: 9</p>

<p>EC's:
Cross-country (XC) - 4 years varsity, team captain, went to state, team placed 5th, went to regionals.
Track - 3 years JV, long distance runner and 300M hurdler, competed at a bunch of varsity races.
Winter Track - through the months of Nov. - March, we trained every day to get ready for the track season.
Ben & Jerry's - worked there 10-15 hrs a week for a year and a half, had to quit due to XC
Challenge Day- featured on MTV's reality show "If You Really Knew Me" focused on breaking down barriers formed by cliques and bullying. Junior and senior year
Challenge Day club- focused on continuing the message of CDay long after the event and to those who didn't attend. Junior and senior year.
State Band Competition - I was part of the top band, we went to state and got 5th. Sophomore year
Saxophone lessons - helping me get into the top band at school. Freshman year
Local film festival - theater escort. Freshman and sophomore year
Link Crew - leader for freshman orientation day at my high school. Led a group of 6 freshies through their first day!</p>

<p>Honors- AP Scholar...
School doesn't give out any awards. Is putting this on my app even worth it?</p>

<p>Common App Essay: 8/10, very interesting subject that I'm sure no one has touched on. It's just a matter if I can make it work in 500ish words.
Supplemet: Haven't started, gonna put some time and effort. After all, I've got till Dec. 1
Recs: I will have one that will be amazing, from my french teacher who I spent every single day with from second semester freshman year to the end of junior year when she retired. I had French 2,3,4,5, and Ap with her. I also traveled to France with her. She'll write me a good one.
I haven't gotten the second one yet. I'm debating between my forensics/AP Bio teacher of my AP lang teacher. I wouldn't expect anything great out of either, but both like me a lot.</p>

<p>So yea, be honest, tell me what ya think. Thanks so much!</p>

2

<p>It’s hard to say, but I think you have a shot. If you really have your heart set on CMC, I would recommend you apply ED. I know it may be a gamble financially, but CMC is very generous and is fully committed to meeting 100% of demonstrated need. If the financial aid isn’t satisfactory, they will understand if you decide not to accept their offer. CMC is a very hard school to get into, which is why I am suggesting ED.</p>

3

<p>Thank you for the reply. The issue with ED is I need more than 100% of demonstrated need, which I know CMC does, but it’s not something I can guarantee. And isn’t backing out of ED bad?</p>

4

<p>If you need more than 100% of demonstrated need (not sure why that would be the case), then I think you might have a problem attending any private college. My understanding with ED is that you are allowed to back out if the financial aid is insufficient. Not sure about the situation you describe.</p>

5

<p>Okay, well my parents EFC is around 35K, which they can’t meet. I have ways to cover the rest, but like I said before, nothing is set in stone. My only issue is backing out of ED, doesn’t it look bad? If I were a admissions officer from another college and saw that the applicant backed out of ED from a different school and yet was still applying to mine, I’d be less inclined to accept them, knowing that my school wasn’t their number one, or one they seriously wanted for that matter. I always knew ED as a binding decision in which you revoked your application to all other colleges. But maybe I’m wrong.</p>

6

<p>Are you sure your EFC is around 35K for CMC. I think they have a calculator on their website where you can get a preliminary reading. Some schools seem to be more generous than others. </p>

<p>You are right that you have to revoke your applications to all other colleges, but only after you are accepted and you send in your deposit. So, if you apply ED and if the aid isn’t sufficient, I don’t think there are any adverse consequences. However, if you are fairly certain that CMC’s financial aid package would not work for you, then I would not apply ED. No reason to got through the process, if you can’t take advantage of it.</p>

7

<p>You sound like a really interesting, dynamic person and I’d think you have a decent shot although as you’ve already admitted, CMC is such a tough school to get in to that it’s always a crap shoot. </p>

<p>A couple of questions: </p>

<p>1) Which state do you live in? If you’re from So Cal, it’s significantly more difficult to get in than if you’re from, for example, Mississippi. </p>

<p>2) Have you gone for an overnight or had an interview? I don’t know if either of these activities give you any “points” towards admissions, but they show your interest. It might not be financially feasible for you to travel back to the school for an overnight, but you could at least request an interview in your area if they offer them. </p>

<p>Bottom line is that you should just keep showing that you are crazy about CMC and it’s your top choice. </p>

<p>All the best to you.</p>

8

<p>Thank you carsch for your reply. I’m in Oregon, which isn’t So Cal… but it’s no Mississippi either. I noticed that Oregon is the 3rd most ‘admitted’ state, after Cali and Washington… which I feel like is a tiny disadvantage. </p>

<p>I haven’t stayed overnight. Like I said I’ve visited the campus, and I’ll be looking for an interview.</p>

9

<p>Many applicants don’t get their first choice and are admitted by other schools. An RD college will evaluate your application according to it’s priorities, not the ED school’s. Each school will independently determine how much it wants you, and likely won’t even know you applied somewhere ED. Forget this concern. :)</p>

<p>Since CMC is your number one choice, I don’t see any downside to applying ED, unless the CMC financial aid office tells you you’re unlikely to be offered enough aid to enable attendance; then you are wasting your application fee.</p>

<p>There’s another issue: if you turn down an ED offer from CMC, you might not get an RD offer from an affiliated school like, e.g., Pitzer, if they use the same financial aid calculation.</p>