Chance Me! Michigan State University

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

Applying to the College of Engineering (female, in-state) for Mechanical Engineering
-3.886 GPA (not sure if W or UW)
-1250 new SAT (680 cr/w, 570 math); will be retaking October 1st
-25 ACT (24 math, 27 reading, 22 science, 26 english); retook Sept. 7th, feel a LOT better about my performance. Aiming for a 27/28/29+.
-3 AP’s total, all this year (AP lit, AP calc and AP physics)

-County fastpitch association travel softball, 9th-12th grades; starting pitcher and second-baseman; team captain 2014, 2015, 2016 (10th, 11th, 12th).

-Organized a softball camp 2014 and 2015 (10th and 11th grade); head organizer and camp leader. All proceeds were donated to my community softball organization.
(I organized a softball camp for girls around ages 8-12 for two years at a local training center. The camp ran about a week long and went on during the summer.)

-County equine studies and hippology club, 2013-2014 (9th and 10th grade); member; first place Individual Public Speaking/Communications Contest and third place Horse Judging Junior Novice Individual Reasons at 2013 at 4-H Equine Educational Expo at Michigan State University.
(I gave a speech on Equine Advocacy (about equine neglect/mistreatment, how to spot it/what to do when you see it) and won first place in front of a panel of judges. Horse judging is where you watch horses, place them, and give reasons in front of a panel of judges)

-Honor roll 9, 10, 11 grade, all semesters (12th pending :)) )

-Member of DECA (this year)

-Link crew leader this year

I’ve owned, ridden, and shown a horse throughout all of high school (until next year, unfortunately I will sell her before college) and this is what my essay is about. I connected my riding to all of the things I’ve learned and how I will apply those at MSU

I studied very hard for the recent ACT I took, I think (hope) I did much much better on it.

Please let me know what you think :slight_smile: I’m not even sure about everything with Engineering yet. I liked the engineering class I took freshman year, but obviously college and the real world is a lot different. I would ideally like to go into something math-based, I love designing and coming up with ideas to improve life. I like the concept of engineering, but I guess we will have to see how I fare during college. I suppose I can always transfer out if I hate it that much in the end.

EDIT: misspelling

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I don’t have any specific advice except to ask, why engineering or something “math based”? Your test scores indicate that you’re much stronger in english and writing than math or science, and engineering majors aren’t exactly forgiving for people with mediocre math skills. Do you genuinely enjoy doing math for hours on end? Or did you just hear that engineers make a lot of money?

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@danfer91 I honestly don’t mind doing math for hours on end. I love physics and math and could do them all day. I think the reason that my language arts skills were much higher on the tests (I mean, I’m pretty good at language arts as it is but I don’t really enjoy it much) is because that’s what my school focused on while doing literacy days. We had specific days for studying for the SAT and all we really did was English, so I knew all of the tips and tricks for that subject on the test, while we barely focused on math. That’s why I retook my ACT and am retaking my SAT in October. I honestly could not see myself going into anything English-related. It’s not something I would enjoy. I’ve been leaning towards a mechanical engineering degree with some design experience-- that really appeals to me.

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I am by no means an expert, but my school sends a plethora of students to Michigan State every year, some with considerably lower statistics than yourself. While engineering programs are a bit harder to get into, I would say you have a pretty good chance. You seem dedicated and likely put a lot of effort into your essay (the most important part of the application for many colleges), and if your ACT goes up even one point I would not be worried at all. The best thing to do is apply early to maximize your chances of admission. Best of luck; I think you will likely get in.

-A fellow stressed out senior