<p>Hey guys, </p>
<p>I'm an OOS applicant from New Jersey whose first choice college is UIUC for either Computer Engineering or Computer Science. I was born in Illinois and moved to New Jersey in 2006, when I was 11. My dream is to go back to Illinois where my life began.
Here are my stats:</p>
<p>I took the ACT twice so far (going to take it again in December). </p>
<p>31 Composite (35 English, 29 Math, 34 Reading, 26 Science)
31 Composite (33 English, 31 Math, 33 Reading, 26 Science)
32 Superscore(35 English, 31 Math, 34 Reading, 26 Science)</p>
<p>Although UIllinois doesn't superscore, they do take the highest subscore from each ACT Test if you have taken more than one, so although they don't compute a superscore composite number, they have a review process almost to that degree. </p>
<p>GPA Weighted: 4.42
GPA Unweighted: 3.88</p>
<p>Extracurriculars are nothing special:
Newspaper Editor/Staff Writer
Yearbook Club
Science National Honor Society
Math League
Business Club
Reading Buddy Volunteer @ Local Library
Summer Reading Volunteer @ Local Library</p>
<p>Thanks for reading guys.</p>
<p>SMGcrossfire, My son was born in Urbana and we lived there for 10 years, then moved OOS, too. My son applied to UIUC during the priority application period last year (November 1st deadline). He applied to Mechanical Engineering and was admitted for Fall 2012 (he is a freshman now). He took both the ACT and SAT tests. He found that the tests were very different and he thought the SAT was easier than the ACT. He only submitted one set of SAT scores to UIUC. He didn’t submit his ACT scores. You might want to try the SAT just to see how you do (if you have a chance).
Also, be sure to write strong essays. Many people say that the essays aren’t that important, however, I believe that given the number of qualified students who apply and are turned away, if you have an outstanding essay, it might be the factor that gets you in over another applicant with similar grades and test scores but a weaker essay. (UIUC was the only school that my son applied to…and because of that, he put alot of effort into making his application stand out by writing quality essays. You have to remember that all of the applicants have good grades and good test scores. I think writing a good essay is what got my son admitted. I also think that moving OOS gave him an edge on his essays because he could write about unique experiences that he had from living OOS that he never would have had if he had stayed in Illinois. His experiences helped him stand out from among the crowd to get noticed.)
There are many books with examples of essays that have gotten students into top colleges. Go to your local bookstore and read a couple of these essays to see what an interesting essay looks like. Please don’t put down your extracurriculars. Just by looking at your list of extracurriculars, I can easily see one that I am sure you could use to write an interesting essay for Essay #2 (line 27 on the application). The admission people want to know who you are. They will not accept references, so the only opportunity you have to show them is thru your essay.
Good luck to you !!</p>
<p>Well, your ACT is a mix. Overall is good, but they do look at math and science sub scores more, which I don’t know why your did worse on those when that’s what your interested in, besides the fact that the ACT is horse crap 
GPA is great if on 4 point scale. EC better than mine and I got into ChemE. Here is my post and I feel I am borderline so it is a good comparison <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-illinois-urbana-champaign/1214064-uiversity-illinois-chemical-engineering-chances.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/university-illinois-urbana-champaign/1214064-uiversity-illinois-chemical-engineering-chances.html</a> Write a good pair of essays like mine, get them checked over, and you should be set for admission.</p>
<p>Thanks for the replies momgrad76 and ChemGuy13. @ChemGuy, Do you think I have a fair chance at being admitted from where I stand right now? I think the admissions officers will find my essay compelling due to my intense desire to return to Illinois - my birthplace. It is my dream to return to the place where my life started, and Im making that known very much so to the Admissions Office at UIUC. Also note that I have one more shot to bolster my ACT Score with the December Test.</p>
<p>Anyone else? Keep the opinions coming!</p>
<p>Crossfire,
I couldn’t reply privately because I haven’t been on CC long enough.
My son really wanted to go back to Illinois, too. (He was born in Urbana and left after 3rd grade. We moved to the state of Oregon.) He was not at all excited about looking at colleges until the topic of UIUC having an excellent Engineering school came up. He visited the school and he decided that was definitely where he wanted to go. He is so happy to be back home and is doing very well this year.
I would suggest that you use your essay for item #28 (“anything else we should be aware of when looking at your application”). Keep the essay very positive and don’t make it sound in any way like you are desperate or are begging or pleading to let you return to Illinois. There are numerous comments throughout College Confidential that give the advice to not sound desperate and not to beg (Look them up). Please follow this advise!!! Instead, use it as an add-on message (ie.,question #28). They will understand your message without you sounding desperate. Again, reread it to make sure that you are not begging. Also ask a teacher to read it for content and to check for spelling or grammar errors.
I strongly recommend that you go to the bookstore and look at the books with examples of college essays. Many of the essays are on topics completely unrelated to school and extracurriculars. The essay questions are pretty open ended so they lend themselves to any topic. Think about what you have done, choose a story from one of your experience and write an honest essay that speaks who you are. It could be as simple as one interaction that you had with a young kid while volunteering at the library. Let your writing show your personality.</p>
<p>One other thing. Are you applying for Fall 2013 or Fall 2014? If it is for Fall 2014, I would suggest that you apply priority admission (deadline Nov. 1st). There is an added edge in getting in with early application. I wish you well.</p>
<p>momgrad76, I really appreciate your advice. No, I’m not begging or pleading for admission. Im being positive and letting them know my background, my move to a different state, and my outlook on college. Its definitely a positive essay that I am confident in. In December Im taking my final ACT to try and get a higher math/science score, so Im confident in my chances of admission. I just want to hear everyone else’s thoughts on my chances.</p>
<p>SMG, I think you’re a match. They mainly consider your math subscore, and 31 is firmly in the mid 50% percentile and your GPA is outstanding. I’d be surprised to hear you were even waitlisted if you got your application in by the priority deadline.</p>
<p>Additionally, your English subscore gets you 4 hours of credit for RHET 105.</p>
<p>@Balthezar I’m actually applying Regular Decision, not Priority. Thank you for your comment! I really hope to be part of the Illini Engineering family come next fall.</p>
<p>SMG, you should be OK, but even if not you’ll have options. If you don’t qualify for the college of engineering, you’ll automatically be considered for general admission as an undeclared major. Intro classes are large enough that you should be able to get into any class you need with the professor’s permission. After one one or two semesters of proving yourself with high grades, you can initiate an internal transfer to the college of engineering.</p>
<p>I have an important question. Do you guys think that I can get in despite applying Regular Decision and not Priority? I really hope applying Regular doesn’t significantly lower my chances at admission.</p>
<p>Sorry, it is me again. If you really want to get in, you have to make sure to stand out. Everyone who is applying has great test scores. What makes you stand out is your essay. Take the time to look at some sample essays that students who applied to the Ivy schools submitted. There are books in the bookstore or at the public library that have Ivy quality essays you can read. My son’s test scores were lower than yours but he was admitted due to a spectacular essay (he would not have been admitted based on his ACT/SAT scores alone). Your essays have to be interesting! The essays that the IVY students write are amazingly simple but very interesting. A great essay will make you stand out. Not just a well written essay but something that is fun to read and grabs the readers attention. They are looking for smart students who have something interesting to add to the incoming class. You said that you wrote great essays and I believe you. I really want you to get in.</p>
<p>The following is cut and pasted from the UIUC application website (to give credit where due).
“Important factors considered by the review committee when evaluating the essays are:”
" How the applicant ties his or her academic interest to the desired major or, if applying to the Division of General Studies, how the applicant explains his or her varied interests and need for exploration. "
"How the applicant showcases his or her passion through chosen activities, work experience, research, or course selection in high school."
"How the essay reveals maturity and growth through past experiences, evidence of character development, cultural insight, community awareness, and/or leadership."
“Strength of writing is carefully considered throughout all the application essays.”</p>
<p>I interpret the last sentence as meaning, does the essay show your personality and is it interesting?..as opposed to does it just look like the other thousands of essays (all from qualified students) that were submitted? Look at some sample essays. It will be well worth your time !!</p>