I’m new to College Confidential but Chance Me threads are like infamous so I guess I’ll make one myself… Any advice is also appreciated… the more detailed the better!!
UW GPA: 97.6 (our school only has unweighted and doesn’t convert to 4.0)
Rank: 8/293 (ugh there were too many people who stacked APs more than I did!!)
SAT: 1590
ACT: 36
PSAT: 1510 (hopefully can be a semifinalist!)
APs: 15 by graduation; two 5’s two 4’s, other 5 not released yet; taking 6 senior year (hopefully can get a National AP Scholar Award!)
SAT Subject Tests: Biology- M (800), Math 2 (800), Literature (790)
In-school EC’s:
FBLA 9-12 (VP 11, Pres 12; District Secretary 11; State VP 12; State Council Member 11-[planning on]12; National Council Member 11-[planning on]12)
*several regional and state awards, one national top 10 award
Science Olympiad 8-12 (Team Captain 10-12)
*several regional awards, one state top 6 award
Yearbook 10-12 (Page Designer 10, Editor 11, Editor-in-Chief 12)
*1/2 credit specialized yearbook class (considered an independent study) both junior and senior year
Gene Research Project 10-12 (Name is first on poster presentation)
*annual team poster presentation about a gene annotation in conjunction with a state university and a national program
Math Club 11-12 (Secretary 11, VP 12)
Dance Club 9-12 (Coordinator 11-12)
NHS 11-12 (VP 12)
Out-of-school EC’s:
Teen Journalist for Regional Newspaper 8-12 (paid stipend on per article basis)
2016 and 2017 summer internship at a state university’s stats department
Local Community Volunteer Organization 8-12 (Advisory Board 11-12)
**over 200 hours; President’s Volunteer Bronze Award; several awards from the organization
Piano from 2nd grade-now (purely a hobby; have won local awards but nothing major)
Teacher Recs: FBLA adviser/business teacher 11/10 she loves me and I spend every other day in the business office for FBLA, AP Stats teacher 10/10 she loves me and thinks I’m (unintentionally) funny, biology teacher 9/10- did badly in AP bio but I participate and hold leadership positions in 2/3 of his biology-related clubs lol)
Counselor Rec: 9/10- she thinks I’m too obsessed with class rank (because mine isn’t super high!) but has gone out of her way to fit triple science into my schedule for freshman year and the yearbook independent study in both junior and hopefully senior year too… naturally I give her gifts too
Demographics:
Gender: Female
Race: Asian (sucks for me)
Geography- NY but not NYC
Hooks: None
Intended major: Statistics with a minor in something…
Intended career: either a computational biologist or quant analyst or investment banker… dependent on minor
***I really want to apply to Harvard REA because of the Statistics major there (there’s a computational biology track and quantitative finance track!)
Schools:
Cornell (low reach/my mom thinks it’s a target lol)
You seem to have some great stats. You have a great shot of getting into these colleges. The only thing that might hold you back is your ethnicity and that your EC’s don’t display your passion of Stats. Try writing a research paper or another Stats related activity.
If you are interested in Statistics, check out Data Science. It’s a possible career path in really high demand, plus it’s applicable almost everywhere.
I think you’re underrating yourself. Your GPA is fine, and I sincerely doubt your “low” rank will have a significant impact on your college admissions. Your ECs are also great; however, your ECs seem sort of scattered to me. You play music, do FBLA, and have participated in a research project. These are all fantastic, but you want a craft a narrative that shows depth in a certain field (think statistics-related ECs). Regardless, you’ve put yourself a great spot for college admissions. Just remember to work on your essays this summer.
Your academic stats, contrary to what you said, are actually really impressive so academically, you are competitive for all the schools you have listed above. Your ECs are not too common but they are pretty varied so you may want to delve into more ECs related to your specific intended major. The research presentation sounds pretty extraordinary though, so that will definitely help you. I think what you rated each college on your list is accurate, and I agree that Cornell will be a low reach for you, not a target. Good luck! I would appreciate it if you could chance me back here: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1995754-chance-me-low-gpa-rank-cornell-rice-wash-u-ucla-etc-p1.html Thanks!
highkey everyone else’s response to your post is pretty professional, but I’m just gonna go out on a limb here and tel you that a 36 on the ACT is literal savage and your GPA…savage as well. TBH didn’t even read the rest (jk i actually did) but your post is the most impressive. good luck with your search, you’re going to end up somewhere awesome!
You’re a contender for practically all these schools. Like you said, your race is really your only drawback. Also, I’d suggest getting a little more involved with your major, as that’s what will set you apart in schools like Harvard, Cornell, etc as there are a thousand other kids with your stats.
In my opinion, you are a potentially competitive candidate to be admitted to any one of the schools listed. But you are right when you say many of them are reaches to high reaches. Harvard is a high reach for anyone, but don’t get discouraged. Apply and the worst thing they can say is no. Be sure to really make yourself standout from the pack. Use the essays to talk about who you are, not what you think they want to hear.
Also, your ACT makes you extremely competitive for schools such as Vanderbilt and Rice who put extreme importance on getting in the mid 30’s. Both schools are comparable to the Ivies.
@ClarinetDad16 I’d like to apply to Harvard REA. This may change over the summer as I try to sneak in some second campus visits, but right now Harvard is my dream school.
This year, 4-5 people from my school applied to a different school for EA and Cornell RD (since Cornell is ED so it’s binding anyway) and they were accepted into Cornell RD.
You should have no problem getting into all of the schools you marked as safeties, and I think NYU is a very likely admit for you as well. Your statistics are incredible, and your rank should be fine (though it depends on your school’s record with Ivies). Your ECs are fairly standard for Ivies; I’d say Cornell is definitely your most likely admit (though not a match), and the other Ivies entirely depend on how well your essays present your interests as an applicant. Good luck & thanks for chancing!
With that SAT and ACT, you can take comfort in the fact that you will end up at a really good school, no matter what happens. Also you should be proud of who you are. Forget about college affirmative action; that’s just one tiny thing in the grand scheme of your life
It looks like you have done everything you can to make yourself a strong candidate. Make sure to do honors program applications at your safety schools in case the elite schools don’t happen.