Chance me please :] Rising Senior.

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>I'm curious to know if others think my college list is a good fit for me. Anyways..</p>

<p>I'm a junior currently going to a small fairly competitive public school in rural new york. I think I want to major in biochemistry.</p>

<p>GPA: UW: 4.11/4.3 (this is just from freshman and senior year, our junior year isn't added in yet)
Class rank: 9/131 (I should jump a few spots after junior grades are added. I had a 4.2 UW GPA)</p>

<p>SAT: 1420/2140 (M-710, CR-710, W-720) (not planning on retaking, should I try the ACTs?)
SAT II's: Took Chemistry and USH in June. Expecting an 800 in chemistry and a 720 or so on USH
AP's: Chemistry (5), Literature (expecting a 5), USH (expecting a 4), Physics (expecting a 4)
Next Year's APS: AP Biology, AP Calculus and AP Language</p>

<p>I would have loved to take AP Global and AP Environment but these aren't given at
my school and self studying would be difficult with 3 APs (especially when I want to "slack" senior year).</p>

<p>Essay: I haven't written it yet, but I'm a good writer so I'm sure it'll be fine.</p>

<p>Recommendations: I have one teacher in mind and the other I am not sure of. The one who I'm sure I will get a recommendation from is a Harvard graduate, been my teacher for two years, and the advisor of the community service club that i've been in for three years. (aka= great recommendation)</p>

<p>ECS:
-Varsity swimming for two years.
-Yearbook for the past 2 years and continuing next year. I started out as a staff writer and I've moved up to section editor.
-Local Community service organization for three years and continuing next year: Started out as member, secretary last year, currently president.
-NHS member- inducted this past fall, community service chair.
-Jobs: Life-guarding this summer
-This summer I'm going to be doing an internship with a local biochemistry professor (synthesizing carbohydrates. should be really great!)
-I've tried out for the school play the past 3 years and I finally got in this year (Damn Yankees)! I did a NYSSMA solo this year and I've been in women's choir the past three years. My senior year I'll be in select chamber choir as well.
-Awards: 7 small school awards. At our school teachers are allowed to give out two achievement awards at the end of the year (usually for highest average). I was nominated for our school quarterly achievement award twice and I won once. I also won an essay contest in 9th grade, sponsored by local colleges, and the Dartmouth book award this year.
-I volunteer at our local library quite a bit (since I've been 10 or so) and I'm the student representative on the library board.</p>

<p>These are the colleges I'd like to apply to:</p>

<p>Cornell
Brown
Bucknell
Hamilton
Dartmouth
Geneseo </p>

<p>Chance me?</p>

2

<p>pretty well rounded</p>

<p>cornell - low reach
brown - reach
bucknell - match
hamilton - match
dartmouth - reach
geneseo - match</p>

<p>chance me if you can - <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/733636-mediocre-gpa-pretty-good-sat-score-please-chance.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/733636-mediocre-gpa-pretty-good-sat-score-please-chance.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

3

<p>Thanks. I can chance you as well.</p>

4

<p>bump</p>

<p>10 char</p>

5

<p>bump 10 char.</p>

6

<p>bump. Just visited Brown and Dartmouth and I’d have to say I’m in love with both of them.</p>

7

<p>Update: I got a 780 on my Chem SAT II and a 710 (not so happy…) on my US SAT II.</p>

<p>5 on APUSH
4 on AP Lit
4 on Physics</p>

8

<p>Cornell - Mid Reach
Brown - Reach
Bucknell - Low Match
Hamilton - Match
Dartmouth - Reach
Geneseo - Safety</p>

<p>For Brown and Dartmouth I think you need to really bump up the scores. I would take the ACT.</p>

9

<p>Cornell - Low Reach
Brown - Reach
Bucknell - Match
Hamilton - Match
Dartmouth - Reach
Geneseo - Safety</p>

10

<p>slipper- I don’t mean to seem naive and I do know that Brown and Dartmouth are both reach schools, but looking at the middle 50% of students and their SAT scores, I think that I am somewhere in the middle. At Dartmouth the middle 50% are CR: 660-770 Math: 670-780 And Writing 680-770. At Brown they are CR: 650-760, Math: 670-780. and Writing: 660-770. I understand that it would be better to be in the top percentage of these scores as opposed to 40%-50%, but I don’t think that a 2200 would look much better than a 2140. Is there something that I am missing here?</p>

11

<p>And thank you for chancing me!</p>

12

<p>Dartmouth and Brown would be unlikely with current scores and very unlikely if you don’t take the hardest course load your school offers senior year.</p>

<p>The others look good with Cornell being a reach if you’re not applying to the land grant schools. Why not raise the scores and tackle a tough senior years for a shot at a top college?</p>

13

<p>I guess I wasn’t clear. At my current high school I am taking the hardest course offerings possible. They offer 7 APs total (about 6 kids per class take all 7) and I am planning on taking all of them. However, I’ve never really been “challenged” by my school’s curriculum and my schedule next year has a lot of study halls because I’m not taking a full year elective and I’m doing a government internship in the place of a government class. I suppose that the consensus here is that I should retake my SATs or take ACTs, but if it takes a 750+ on all sections to have a chance at a top school I’m not entirely sure that that is where I belong. Thanks everyone.</p>

14

<p>You can’t look at middle scores, you should look at 60-75% scores. Why?</p>

<p>1) Each class at the Ivies is full of students who have easier access to admission: Legacies, athletes, URMs, students with major hooks (like a ballet dancer/ actress/artist/ whatever). These students make up almost 40% of the student body. </p>

<p>2) Your GPA, while good, isn’t going to hold up your SAT as much as if you were top 2 in your class. Dartmouth alone has over 40% of its class filled with Vals and Sals. </p>

<p>So you have a good GPA and a good SAT, but you need to be exceptional in one (and often both) of these areas for schools like Brown and Dartmouth. For this reason a 35 or 36 ACT would do wonders for your application.</p>

15

<p>Okay, thanks so much for explaining everything to me. I never realized how many students were legacies, athletes etc. My new class rank and gpa just came in the mail and I’ve moved up to 7th and 4.14, but I can see how it would give me an advantage to take the ACT. Thanks so much!</p>

16

<p>OP: Your SAT score is fine; don’t waste your time retaking. If all of your sections were at 25th percentile or lower, I’d suggest a retake, but you’re in the ballpark for all of them. They’re not that important at Ivies anyways…</p>

<p>Your ECs are well-rounded and down to earth, unlike most of the people on this site. I think you have a good shot at all of your schools.</p>