Asking on behalf of my twin brother
GPA:
Weighted (UF recalculated) - 3.80
Rank: 101/165
Race: Asian
Gender: Male
ACT: 29
ECs:
Indian classical music (Participated with top world artists)
Robotics (3 years as a programmer)
FBLA (2 time state qualifier)
History Bowl (Restarted my school’s team after several years of hiatus)
Volunteered over 120 hours with my local Hindu temple, ran a class with my dad to teach Hinduism to teenagers
In state/out of state:
In state
Both of my parents used to work at UF. My dad was an adjunct professor and my mom was a library assistant at the College of Law.
I have a clear upward trend in my grades from my freshman and sophomore years, where I had to deal with the loss of my grandmother, as well as my older brother’s diagnosis of epilepsy, which required me to spend several hours every day taking care of him.
Sorry to hear about the challenges you faced earlier in your high school career. I’m sorry to report that your chances are hurt by your GPA. It’s very low for UF. The middle 50% for Fall is between 4.2 - 4.6, for example. Your ACT score is in the lane and your ECs look quite good, showing leadership and ongoing commitment. That being said, UF looks at GPA and course rigor as very important factors, and many kids with much higher grades have similar ECs, leadership, etc. The connection to the school is considered but not a major factor. There are many deserving children of alumni who don’t get in.
If you haven’t already submitted, I would suggest looking at the Innovation Academy, which is believed to have lower averages for admission. It is a Spring/Summer program, so you don’t take classes on campus in the Fall. If you really want UF, you may have a shot this way.
I would have a few safeties in place, for sure. Good luck.
I forgot to include this, but my twin brother’s course load was well above average and he took on average 3 AP classes per year. Last year, he took 5.
My son is from OOS, just wondering what will be his chances.
ACT 35, gpa 4.0 unweighted. Varsity athlete, he runs cross country and track, one of the top state finisher in cross country and track, awarded numerous awards as an MVP in cross country and track. Also participated in Literally Rally and won first in District and State level. Only he doesn’t have much hours in community service, he volunteered for special Olympic volunteered as an ACT tutor to fellow students and helps train young athletes to run cross country. He also work these past 2 summers at school. Unfortunately no AP classes. He came from a small school.
@Topazjenh It looks like your son hits many of the points that UF looks for. The long-term extra curriculars like varsity sports show commitment, and a 35 on the ACT puts him in the top 25th percentile (at least) for ACT scores and shows he is a bright kid. The big question is the rigor of his schedule. Did he take the most challenging courses offered? Did he take any honors courses? Does he have a higher “weighted” average? One way that UF and other top schools differentiate is by looking at the rigor of the high school course load. The average recalculated GPA for UF admits last year was 4.4. The only way you can have an average that high is by taking honors and AP classes and doing well enough in them to earn an average well above 4.0. Admissions folks at UF routinely say that they will take a kid with a lesser GPA with a tougher schedule than a high GPA with an easier schedule. In my opinion, that’s what it will come down to for your son.
Now, if your son goes to a school that doesn’t offer AP classes, then that changes the equation.
Finally, because UF practices “holistic” admissions, they look at the whole student and your son has strong scores and solid ECs, so he has a good chance but may be offered a bridge program or the like.
For more info on this you can search “UF common data set,” and it shows what they deem most important in admissions. GPA and Rigor are at the top. Good luck to him!
thank you very much @GatorDad305 for the info, he came from a small school from a small town with about 100 senior students, the school doesn’t provide much, not sure if they even offer AP classes. I need to talk to my son about it. Thaanks!