Chance me for Harvard, Grinnell, Brown, Georgetown

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Chance for Harvard, Grinnell, Brown, Georgetown</p>

<p>Male, Black(Kenyan), Second generation to go to College
Major: Engineering or Biology (I still haven't decided what I'll do to be honest) </p>

<p>GPA(unweighted) - 3.67 (Not stellar at all)
GPA(weighted) - 4.11
Rank- Top 5%, I'll be 2nd or 3rd in school</p>

<p>ACT - 34
SAT - Didn't take, probably should have but I ran out of time.
SAT II - Biology(800), US History(800), World History(800) - Biology and History(They're my baby)</p>

<p>AP/Honor Classes
Sophomore Year - Bio, Chem, APUSH
Junior Year - Psychology(self-study), Calc AB, World, Stat, Hu.Geo, Lang, Physics B, Principles of Engineering, Micro-Econ(self-study)
Senior Year - Calc BC, Lin Alg. & Differential Equations, Lit, APES, Euro, Comp Gov., Comp Sci(self-study), US Gov, Art History(self-study), Physic C's (self study), Macro-Econ</p>

<p>AP Scores
Bio - 5
APUSH -5
Calc AB -5
World - 5
Euro - 5
Psychology - 5
Hu. Geo - 5
Lang - 5
Stat - 4
Physics B - 4
Chemistry -3 (Retake this year, should get a 5)
Micro- 3 (Retaking this year)</p>

<p>Achievements/Activities
AP Scholar (Sophomore Year)
AP National Scholar (Junior Year)
2012 High School History Bee Champion (Iowa)
2012 National High School History Bowl & Bee Participant
3rd highest scoring scholastic at 2012 Iowa Academic Decathlon State (7 individual awards)
2012 E-National qualifier in Academic Decathlon
Academic Letter (3 years)
District All-Academic team (Track & Cross Country)
President of School Academic Decathlon Team (Senior Year)
Cross Country (2 years)
Track (1 Year)</p>

<p>I know my grades aren't that great(I had no ambition as a freshman, and I got 3 C's and a B), but my grades have been great since freshman year except for second semester C I got in Physics B. I also don't have much volunteering hours under my belt, but I have 3 younger siblings I help take care of(I currently don't live with my mother or my father).</p>

<p>I already applied to some safety schools , but I would greatly appreciate it if someone chanced me.</p>

2

<p>Your scores and stuff are fine (especially considering your rank - otherwise, your GPA might get in your way).</p>

<p>But, I don’t really see what you’re passionate about. Where are your extracurriculars? It is <em>possible</em> to get into the colleges you’ve mentioned with only scores, but, you’d need near-perfect scores, which, you do not have.</p>

<p>Harvard - Mid-high reach
Grinnel - Low reach
Brown - Low reach
Georgetown - low reach to match</p>

3

<p>I think you look like a great applicant (weak freshman grades isn’t that unusual, esp. for slower maturing guys) but if you are counting on receiving a lot of financial aid, you will need to apply to more schools that meet full need. As you know well, most of these schools are highly selective for internationals who need financial aid.</p>

<p>I also wanted to mention that Grinnell doesn’t offer engineering (although there is a 2/3 program) and they have a very strong bio dept. </p>

<p>And take a look at Stanford while you are at it. Top engineering and bio, of course, but also a top ranked school for history, which you seem to love. Great weather year round and beautiful campus which makes running a pleasure.</p>

4

<p>Ranked 2nd with an A- average? I think not.</p>

5

<p>Male, black, 2d in his class, 34 ACT, from Iowa, with many APs and interested in science? I think so. And Stanford doesn’t include freshman grades. In fact, many schools heavily discount them when they calculate GPAs so the A- isn’t going to be a problem.</p>

<p>Go for it, Julius. And let us know what happened!</p>

6

<p>I think you have an amazing shot at Grinnell! I don’t see it being a reach, more of a match. Good luck!</p>