SAT: 1440 (ik, this is my main point of anxiety) Reading and Writing: 760, Math: 680
GPA: 4.56 (weighted), 3.89 (unweighted)
SAT II: Math II: 740, Molecular Biology: 740, World History: 800
APs: Sophomore year: AP World History (5); Junior year: AP Biology (4), AP Physics 1 (lol), AP Calculus AB (4), AP English Language (5); Senior year: AP Chemistry, AP Physics 2, AP English Literature and AP Calculus BC
State of Residency: Massachusetts (public high school)
Race and Gender: White Male
ECs: pretty strong, including formal scientific research and two working jobs.
Essays: 8-9/10, I think they were pretty good but I am not fully sure.
I applied into Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering.
Thanks!
I’d say chances are slim. Although GT places a higher premium on GPA than standardized test scores, they do come into play, and a 1440 is on the low side for this school. Also, many high-caliber applicants have more than 8 APs. The “1” in physics and the 680 in math are also problems for a STEM school, likely. You say your ECs are pretty strong but you don’t identify them. If they consist only of sci res and two jobs, I’d say you’re done (sorry). Any leadership positions? Sports? Arts? You also don’t appear to be solidly confident in the strength of your essays.
Good News: GT places GPA, Rigor, and ECs above test scores for admissions evaluations. My S19 was accepted last year for Chem Engineering from OOS with a SAT score a little lower than yours.
Bad News: Your SAT is very low on the math side, which GT seems to put more emphasis on. S19’s math SAT was 780. Your math score is below the 25th percentile.
Your rigor looks pretty good but was it the most rigorous possible? You will be going up against kids that have completed math above BC Calc and completed Physics C. The research will be helpful but do you have any community service, leadership, music, or sports activities?
Here are S19s stats for an example of OOS acceptance with a low SAT score:
GPA: 4.64w/3.98 uw (1 B one semester in AP English 11)
Rank: 1/344
SAT: 1410 (780M, 630 V)
SAT II Math 2: 760
9 AP Credits including BC Calculus (5) in 10th grade, 9 HS Dual Enrollment Credits, 10 honors credits
Selected to attend the regional Governor’s School for Science and Technology for his 11th and 12th grade science and math classes where all classes are dual enrolled and weighted the same as AP.
Will graduate with +40 college credits including; Advanced Chemical analysis, Calculus based Physics 1/2, Multivariable Calculus, Linear Algebra, and Differential Equations.
Research Mentorship at NASA Langley
EC: Show Choir 4 years (Captain and lead soloist 11th and 12th), Cast in every school theater production since 9th grade including many Lead roles, Community Theater, NHS, Tri-M Music Honor Society, International Thespian Society (VP 12th), +200 hrs community service (working on Aids benefit show, Animal shelter, and various others)
Honors/Awards: District Choir, All State Choir alternate, Multiple Show Choir Grand Championships, Best Soloists award at national competition, AP Honors w/ Distinction, multiple academic awards for class rank and such
I don’t think I wrote my post clearly enough.
For AP Physics, I got a 3 but did not report it.
The AP cap was due to a school policy on how many can be taken.
I have many more ECs, the most important being the job and research internship. I was on the varsity swim team all four years, cofounded the philosophy club and founded a bioethics blog, and was a part of other clubs and was an officer for national honor society. My essays were good, but polarizing, as they were about moral and ethical reasons I transferred high schools, which was where the hesitancy came in.
Also, I just remebered that GT superscores, so my score would be a 1470, with a 760 in English and a 710 in Math (I know its still unideal)
First, Racereer, you are gracious to highlight your S19’s comparatively lower SAT score as a gesture of support, but the rest of S19’s package is impeccable, so much so that it overrides any standardized test score. A #1 ranking in a class of 344 is huge, as are the NASA research, the choir & theater involvement, the 200+ service hours, the class awards, etc. etc. It is good that the OP fleshed out the profile a little, but I think more might be required to get into GT, unless you’re not reporting everything here. It’s a shame that your school caps the number of APs. Strange move. GT has become so selective (for out-of-staters especially) that it’s not a clear shot for anybody, even for a kid as qualified as the aforementioned S19. When you look at it from an odds perspective, the deck is stacked against all OOS applicants. We were told that GT admissions routinely rejects even applicants with 36 ACT scores and 4.0 GPAs. It’s no small feat to get in! But so sweet when you do!
@zdd0803 thanks for the update as it does paint a little better picture. If you are taking the most rigorous classes available to you then that should be helpful. I am not sure at what point admissions does comparison, if any , between candidates that have different rigor available to them. I do know they will take notice of kids that go above and beyond.
Does your HS have any history of getting students admitted to GT? That could give you an idea where you stand. I think GT likes a known commodity and wants students that they know can succeed. While my son’s home HS only had limited history with GT, the regional Governor School Stem program he attended was very well known to GT. There were 85 seniors in that program and 8 of them (all OOS) were accepted and 3 enrolled at GT last year. This program also has acceptances to almost every Ivy, MIT, Caltech, and Stanford. These students perform well at GT. I am sure this helped with my son’s acceptance.
Good luck tomorrow (if you applied EA). Don’t worry to much if you get deferred as my son was deferred EA and then accepted RD.