Chance me for top Universities

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Okay so we all know application season is coming quick and I would like all of your opinions on which colleges I can get accepted into. I havent set in stone where I am applynig yet but I have made a rough list of possibilities.</p>

<p>Northwestern
Stanford
UC Berkeley
All of the ivies (I know, I just want to see)
U Chicago
Purdue
Oregon State
Willamette University
Portland State
Possibly others?</p>

<p>So I will ist my stats below and I would greatly appreciate if you could rank these schools (reach, match, safety) and narrow my choices down a bit ( and also save my hands from all of these essays ;) ).</p>

<p>Basic STATS:</p>

<p>Unweighted GPA: 4.0
Weighted GPA: My school does not do this?</p>

<p>SAT: 1930 (650 W, 680 M, 600 R :/ ) --> should be able to get well past 2000 next time, I have been studying LOTS.</p>

<p>Class Rank: 1 ( there are 13 other students with 4.0's, so we are all ranked "1")</p>

<p>AP Classes: AP US History (4), AP Calculus BC, AP Chemistry, AP Literature, AP European History.</p>

<p>Of which im taking this (Senior) year:
AP Chemistry
AP Calc BC
AP Literature
AP European History
Also taking College Writing which is rigorous and satisfies some college credit :)</p>

<p>EC's:</p>

<ul>
<li>National Honors Society</li>
</ul>

<p>-Freshman Baseball Grade 9, JV Baseball Grades 10-11, Varsity Baseball Spring 2012
-Swimming Grade 10
-German Club Grades 9-11
-Engineering Club Grades 9-11</p>

<p>-Clare Bridge Memory Care Senior Living 2009-Present (over 120 hours)
-Dayspring Fellowship Youth Program Grades 7-11
-St. Edwards Youth Grades 9-10</p>

<p>-VEX Robotics Competition Grade 11, 12 </p>

<p>-GAPP, I spent a month in germany immersed in the culture, schools, etc.</p>

<p>Work Experience:</p>

<p>-Wine Bottling for Brooks Wines Grades 10-12 (over 60 hours)
-K.Y.S.A Baseball Umpire Grades 10-12 (over 70 hours)</p>

<p>My recs should be amazing, I am really close with my German teacher, and he has been known to write great recs... My english teacher will write my other one, and we share common insights, and he is the teacher I have the most respect for</p>

<p>My essays are going to be PHENOMINAL... I am literally going to sit down and write for a weekend about anything and revise until I have the " Great American Draft "</p>

<p>So please give me your thoughts and I will love you forever! Just kidding, that would be weird...</p>

2

<p>I really hope I can get some well explained responses!</p>

3

<p>Bump please! I will provide a thank you .gif in return :)</p>

4

<p>You definitely have some interesting ECs, and that could set you apart, but forgive me for saying that they appear a bit sporadic. Top schools like to see focus in ECs. Your GPA is right where it needs to be. If you can get your SAT above 2150, then your chances greatly approve. Assuming you can get it up to a 2100, the Ivies, UChicago, Northwestern, and Stanford would be reaches, and Berkeley a low reach (maybe a match if you’re in-state). I honestly don’t know enough about the other schools to chance you, but it appears to me that you’d have a pretty solid shot at them. </p>

<p>chance me back?
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1396407-chance-junior-top-20-will-chance-back.html#post14881427[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1396407-chance-junior-top-20-will-chance-back.html#post14881427&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>I’m sorry to break it to you, but that SAT score makes all those top schools reaches. Even with a 2100, I would still say that it’s a stretch. However, I believe Oregon State, Willamette University, and Portland State are excellent matches. Try applying to all in-state universities. </p>

<p>What are your scores for Calculus BC, Chemistry, Literature, and European History? If they are of passing merit for course credit, do send them. Colleges are more interested in SAT II scores as an aide to regular SAT scores. Students interested in top schools often have scores of 700+ in Math II, Physics, Chemistry, and/or US History.</p>

<p>Although it’s superb that you’re valedictorian, I’m curious as to the total number of students in your grade. How competitive is your school? How many students typically go to top universities? These indicators are often vital in determining overall fit for a college. </p>

<p>Nevertheless, your ECs are excellent. They show commitment and a deep level of responsibility and participation beyond the typical student. It’s the experiences and ideals you gain from these activities that top colleges want to see. Passion is certainly more important than number. </p>

<p>Also, PHENOMINAL is incorrectly spelled. It’s PHENOMENAL. Make sure your essays are free of misspellings!</p>

<p>Good luck! We’re all in this together!</p>

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<p>Wow thanks for the responses. As I said, I am hoping my SAT will raise because I have put a lot of effort into studying. As for my sporadic EC’s, I like to try different things, but my main focus is engineering and I REALLY enjoyed vex last year. </p>

<p>My senior class has 492 students in it, the school has around 2250 total. It is a public school in Oregon, and we rarely send kids to top universities, students just don’t apply to them I guess. A few have gone to Stanford and Santa Clara, and other UC’s. It’s funny because all of my peers think my SAT score is phenomenal (correct spelling) and I keep telling them it’s mediocre for top colleges. Ha!</p>

<p>Keep them coming please :)</p>

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<p>I really don’t see you getting into a ‘top’ college like HYPS, and even some of the lower ivies and schools like UChicago, Berkeley, etc will also prove to be high reaches.</p>

<p>As you said, your school doesn’t often send students to the top universities, and in part I can see why. The very fact that ranking is based on UW GPA makes it very difficult to take the ‘valedictorian’ title seriously or anyone with a high rank for that matter. This can also seen by the fact that 13 other people in your school are vals like you said, and it doesn’t make it a very impressive accomplishment. TONS of students applying to top schools have 4.0 GPAs, which is basically what you also have. You being val won’t make as significant an impact as it would in most other schools.</p>

<p>It doesn’t seem like you took a very challenging courseload, unless you weren’t offered many APs or difficult classes? Taking only 1 AP class prior to senior year is not good. Most people applying to the top schools have taken around 5 to 8 APs, with the rest being honors classes.</p>

<p>Also, you’re correct to ignore what your peers are telling you. Your SAT score is very low for the top universities. You should aim for a minimum of 2100, but a 2250+ would definitely make you competitive, so just try your best. If you haven’t tried the ACT, you should give it a shot. Some people do tremendously better on it, and the SAT may just not be your thing. You would need atleast a 32, but a 34+ would really boost your chances. Also, taking a couple subject tests may also help if you can get a 700+ (750+ would be preferable). Some schools require 2 subject tests, so you should check to make sure.</p>

<p>Then there’s your ECs. While I’m sure you can raise your SAT score, it’s pretty much too late to do anything about your ECs. I honestly feel like this is where you lack the most. Your JV and Varsity baseball is fine, and you have a couple of other ‘decent’ ECs like vex since your main focus is engineering. However you honestly have nothing that stands out or seems all that impressive. There is a lack of consistency or focus/passion and really nothing to indicate your interest in engineering. A few random clubs/activities and some volunteering/work doesn’t really matter all that much.</p>

<p>I’m sorry to be so harsh, but I wanted to be completely honest. You can still apply to the top universities, but don’t be surprised at getting quite a few rejections. However, what I said doesn’t really apply to your other colleges such as Oregon State, Willamette, etc. Those are definitely matches like CErnie said. Write those phenomenal essays and I’m sure you’ll be fine. Good luck!</p>

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<p>Bump. I really would like more opinions, as I am visiting Northwestern, Purdue, and UChicago in the coming week…</p>

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<p>Wow,SAT! Harsh but true.
Luke, maybe if you have the time on your trip, you could visit some more moderate schools.The midwest is mostly a lovely place, with very pleasant people and many good schools (even if you haven’t heard of them).</p>

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<p>I want to address a few things on this post, and hardly any of them have to do with your chances. I do believe your chances at getting into the ‘top’ schools are slim, which is quite unfortunate, because I really can tell that you have made the most of your opportunities, and I DEFINITELY know where you are coming from. Let me explain:</p>

<p>I also am from Oregon. I don’t know if the public schooling system in our state is just intrinsically weak (in terms of helping students interested in applying to competitive universities), but I can verify nearly every single claim you have said. I go to a public school, like you, and despite being considered one of the strongest schools in the area, my school has sent only two people to Stanford and two to MIT in the last decade. Meanwhile, nearly everybody else in my school either doesn’t go to college, goes to our local community college, or applies to OSU or U of O (of course I am not meaning to downgrade these excellent institutions in the slightest, but I think you get my point that my school is not competitive when it comes to competitive university admissions). </p>

<p>Also, I don’t know if it is just an “Oregon” thing, but my school also does not weight GPA and has multiple valedictorians every year, which I believe unfairly harms student like you who want to rise above the rest in the admissions process. Furthermore, correct me if I’m wrong, but it seems to appear that you have taken the AP classes available to you. I can tell from experience that, in several Oregon public schools, there are a limited number of AP courses available – and those that are often have scheduling conflicts with one another.</p>

<p>All this goes to say that it crushes me when I write that I think your chances of getting into Stanford or an Ivy League school are low, because I can tell that you have done everything possible in the environment you’re in to succeed. Unfortunately, I think you just haven’t been given the same academic opportunities as several others who are on College Confidential.</p>

<p>Best of luck, and know that you will still get into some excellent schools.</p>