Hey y’all! I’m really looking forward to college and I was hoping y’all could share your thoughts on my app before I apply in the fall. Thanks so much, I’ll chance back! Also, please read the blurb at the bottom as it contains some important information. These are my intended schools:
New York University CAS or Stern
Georgetown University
Santa Clara University
Fordham University
University of Washington [In-State]
University of Michigan
University of Notre Dame
University of Vermont
Intended Major: Economics or Business with a minor in Mandarin Chinese
Race/Gender/State: White Male from WA State
GPA: 3.42 UW/3.82 W
11 AP and Honors classes freshman-junior year
SAT 1440 [720 Math, 720 Reading]
Final Course Load: AP English Lang, AP US History, Honors Biology, Honors Chemistry, Calculus, English III, Campus Ministry Leadership [carholic school]
Vice-President of Campus Political Organization
Vice-President/Director of Expansion of Outreach Club
Treasurer of Key Club
Congressional Debate [local awards]
WIBC Clarinetist x2 and All-State Violinist x2
Violinist in prestigious 5th Avenue Theatre Rising Star Project
Volunteer/Intern at Political Campaigns
Concertmaster of small orchestra group
Special Case: During my sophomore year, my personal life took a turn for the worst. I had a back to back spread Bronchitis, Pneumonia, and Mono, all whilst suffering from severe depression [failed suicide attempt] as my parents where going through the process of divorce. My grades suffered, which caused my GPA to fall. Will colleges take this into consideration?
ALSO - I am an early graduate. I have graduated high school in 3 years - but will walk and receive a diploma like every other student. I will graduate with:
4 Science Credits
4 English Credits
4 Religious Studies Credits
4 World Language Levels
3 Math Credits [Through Calculus]
3 Social Studies Credits
2 Arts Credits
2 PE/Health Credits
Santa Clara, Fordham, and UVT should be matches. Georgetown and ND are reach/high reach. NYU high match/low reach.
Your numbers should be good enough for SCU (this is coming from an SCU alum) for Leavey.
Be careful of how you mention what happened to you sophomore year. Depression and a suicide attempt could raise red flags with adcoms. Have your counselor write about this carefully in the supplemental information section. Also don’t make it into an essay topic if it is too personal.
Thank you for your input. Yes, I was careful how I mentioned it. Instead of mentioning the details, I just noted severe personal and family struggles that impacted my ability to achieve top grades and urged the admissions staff to refer to my SAT as a more accurate depiction of my potential. I then went on to write about the lessons I learned from the experience and how it has made me a better student. This was in the additional info section. My essay was about my violin and how it has given me world perspective - so totally different.
And yes, Georgetown and ND are definitely long shots, but I figured there is little harm in applying. NYU I worry about just because stern is so competitive. If I got in to NYU, especially for Business and Political Economy or something along the lines of international business, I would be ecstatic, but I think it is a long shot. Time will tell!
I think NYU is a match with Georgetown and Notre Dame as reache sand he rest matches. I think they’ll definitely take your personal situation sophomore year into account. Good luck!! Chance me back please!!
Georgetown and Notre Dame are big reaches. That being said, the rest seem very achievable. I have a bunch of friends who go to Stern, and they all love it; NYU would be a great fit for you!
Michigan, Georgetown, and ND may be a bit of a reach. Test scores look good and so do extracurriculars. GPA a tad low, but for an understandable reason. With that being said, you have a good chance for all schools and Michigan and ND and Georgetown you have a chance it is just competitive all around. I think you will get into at least one of those though. Best of luck to you and keep strong!
SCU, Fordham, and Vermont look like matches. NF and Georgetown look like high reaches but I think you have a solid shot at NYU. At the end of the day you’re competitive for every school you’re applying to. That’s the best we can all do. Good luck! Chance me back plz
I can only comment on two of the schools; NYU and Notre Dame.
Your SAT seems to be right around the average SAT for NYU, maybe a little higher. Your GPA is higher than their average. Your course load is strong, though your grades in them aren’t exceptional. If you could get your college counselor to mention your health problems in his rec, or if you mentioned them in your essays in some way, that would be very helpful to colleges’ understanding. Your ECs are mostly average, vice president stuff, but I see some awards in there too. It would help if you attached some meaning to a couple of them in your essays. You are probably a high match for NYU.
Your SAT is close to average for ND, though your GPA is lower. You aren’t a legacy or minority, so no obvious pulls there. It’s interesting that you graduated high school in such a short time, so they might care about that. Again, I think that intelligently mentioning your problems without getting in their faces is key. Notre Dame is a compassionate place, albeit with an admissions process that seems slightly less holistic than most. In my opinion, you’re a low-mid reach for there.
I would definitely find a way to talk about your sophomore year experience in one of your essays. The purpose of the essays is for admissions to get to know the real you, beyond the numbers. That is a perfect example of something that is relevant to your unique life experience. I would run what you write by a trusted person (relative, counselor, teacher, friend’s parent) to make sure you are hitting the correct tone. Because the above posters are right, it’s important how you say it. Your test scores are about average for the top schools like Notre Dame and Gtown. Your ECs are good. Colleges tend to like debate, and VP/ treasurer do count as leadership positions. The only thing that is questionable for the top schools is your GPA, but I think that can be easily explained by your sophomore year experience. And make sure to highlight that you did manage to graduate in 3 years, which is impressive given all you’ve been through. It speaks well for your ability to handle the tougher college workload. Good luck!!
New York University CAS or Stern- High match/low reach
Georgetown University- Reach
Santa Clara University- Low match
Fordham University- Match
University of Washington [In-State]- Low match
University of Michigan- Low reach
University of Notre Dame- Reach
University of Vermont- Safety
Hi. There are posters in this thread that have much more confidence than I do that your personal crises will make your low GPA admission easier. My son refused to mention his suffering, which was substantial, long-lived, and inflicted externally. (No suicide attempt.)
–If you haven’t been homeless, hungry or hospitalized ICU, I think you’re good. Hunt around online. I remember reading that admissions folks hate divorce stories. As to suicide stories, I’d imagine they like that less.
Based on 3.4 GPA and high SAT
NYU Stern- high reach
Georgetown- super high reach
Fordham- low match
Santa Clara–no idea
U of Wash–low reach
U of Mich–high reach
Notre Dame -mid Reach
U of Vermont- low match/safety
For what it’s worth, maybe add a few more matches and a couple more safeties. Seems to me you could try Holy Cross, BC, or, at least, expand your Christian/Jesuit options.
