Chance me for UNC Chapel Hill OOS

I am an out-of-state student applying to UNC EA, here are my stats:

Male, White, Out-of-State
Intended Major: Mathematics
GPA: 3.93 UW, 4.35 W (low GPA due to pre-HS standard classes)

ACT (1 sitting)

Composite: 34
English 32, Math 34, Reading 35, Science 34

APs:

AP Statistics (4), AP Calculus BC (4 with 4 on AB Subscore), AP Computer Science A (4), AP Macroeconomics (5)
Taking AP ES and AP Psych this year

Extracurriculars:

President of school Student Council (VP for 2 previous years)
President of NEHS branch (VP last year)
Vice President of Mu Alpha Theta
Member of Science National Honor Society (3 years)
Teaching programming and math to kids at library (5 years)

Volunteer hours (~150)

Awards (weak section):

AP Scholar with Honor
Distinguished Honor Roll

LORs: should be strong, I selected teachers that have known me since sophomore year

Essay: average, I am not a great writer

Generally, the chances for any OOS applicant to UNC-CH are somewhat problematic due to the highly competitive nature of OOS applications there: UNC-CH admits OOS applicants in numbers that are calculated not to exceed 18% of an entering freshman class. See “Undergraduate Admissions” on Page 2, here: http://www.admissions.unc.edu/files/2013/09/Admissions__Policy.pdf. As a further example of the difficulty for OOS students to be admitted to UNC-CH, the entering Class of 2022 had a 13% acceptance rate for OOS applicants: https://uncnews.unc.edu/2018/08/17/carolina-welcomes-5095-new-undergraduate-students-to-campus/ (29,563 OOS applicants; 3,829 admits).

If you look at the UNC-CH Common Data Set, here, https://oira.unc.edu/files/2018/06/CDS_2017-2018_20180605.pdf , under Part C7 it states that standardized test scores, application essay(s), letter(s) of recommendation, and the rigor of your high school record are “very important” academic factors considered for freshman admission, whereas GPA and class rank are “important” academic factors considered for freshman admission. Extracurricular activities, talent, and character/personal qualities are considered as “very important” non-academic factors.

Further, Part C9 of the Common Data Set for UNC-CH gives the median 50% for both SAT and ACT scores, as well as the percentage of the entering first-year class falling within certain ranges of SAT and ACT scores; Part C11 gives the percentage of entering first-year students falling within a range of unweighted GPA on a 4.0 scale, and Part C12 gives the average high school GPA of first-year applicants.

By way of comparison, our OOS high school usually has 8-10 students who apply, and 1-2 students who are admitted, each year to UNC-CH; and, with the exception of legacy students, our admitted students have SAT scores of 1500+, ACT scores of 33+, and weighted GPAs of 4.4+. These successful applicants also were involved in extracurricular activities that showed commitment over time (no “drive-by” ECs), and demonstrated leadership in the school as well as their ECs. Other kids in our city who I know were admitted to UNC-CH recently also had similar academic statistics and non-academic characteristics; and all of these kids were “unhooked” in admissions parlance (i.e., not a recruited D-1 athlete, or a URM – “under-represented minority” – or a first-generation college student, etc.).

I don’t know whether your high school has Naviance or any similar program that gives information about how students at your high school have done in applying to colleges and universities; if so, you might peruse that data. I would also try to meet with a guidance counselor at your school, if you haven’t already, to discuss application strategies for UNC-CH; if any former students from your school have been admitted to UNC-CH recently, the guidance counselor may be able to give some insight into how and why such student(s) were successful.

Having stated all of the above, your ACT score and GPA should make you competitive for admission as an OOS applicant, although the quality of your LORs and application essay(s) – as “very important” admissions factors – will have a definite impact as well. Your ECs show leadership and commitment, which is good; I would definitely spend some extra time working on your essay.