<p>Ok so here’s my deal. I have fallen IN LOVE with Boston College, but i am worried that my SAT scores are going to prevent me from getting in. I was wondering if I still have a good chance getting in because of my class rank, gpa, and extra curriculars, or if it is out of reach. Oh and I am Catholic if that makes a difference.</p>
<p>I am a white female from Maryland</p>
<p>Class rank: top 10% (4 out of 52)
GPA: (weighted 4.38)<br>
Course of study: all Honors and AP with exception of electives
SAT scores: 680 Writing, 580 math, 620 critical reading</p>
<p>Academic Honors:
St. Michaels College award
Honors Chemistry Award 10 11 gr
Principals Honor Roll 2nd & 3rd semester 10gr
1st Honors 9-11
Top 5% of Graduating Class
Mens Sana in Corpore Sano 9-12
People to people nominee
National Youth Leader Nominee
</p>
<p>Extra-Curricular:
National Honor Society 11-12
Vice president NHS 12
Key Club 9-12, President 12 gr
30 + hours community service for Key Club each year 9-12
SSPP Varsity Field Hockey 9-12
Field Hockey Captain 12
ESIAC all-star 2nd team 10 -11 gr
Sabres Ecology Club 9- 12
SSPP Varsity Lacrosse 9-11 gr
Sabre Ambassador 9 12gr
Equestrian 7 years
Piano 3 years</p>
<p>Community and Church Activities
Magic Wand Project Organizer and local founder for gathering and delivering used prom dresses to the youth of Baltimore 10-12 gr. Over 50 hours
Toys for Tots volunteer organizer 10 hours
Volunteer coach/referee for youth lacrosse league 10gr
House of Prayer volunteer organizer and participant in yard maintenance over 20 hours
Humane Society supply drive organizer 10gr 12 hrs
Festival of Trees hostess 4 hrs
Hospice fundraiser hostess 4 hrs
Polar Bear Plunge raised $100.00
Habitat for Humanity 15 hrs</p>
<p>Work Experience:
Bistro St. Michaels restaurant 8 hrs. week 10gr
Mirta Bradner drive children to and from school every day. 11-12
Emilys Produce (summer) 11gr 10-20 hrs week</p>
<p>This is not my completed resume but it is a basic rough draft.</p>
<p>I am going to be writing some really good essays and I am getting three letters of recommendations - two teachers and my guidence councelor/field hockey coach.</p>
<p>thanks for the input! It is greatly appreciated</p>
<p>I’m not good at chances, but if the SAT is not to our liking, try the ACT. Some students do much better on one test or the other. BC will accept the ACT in lieu of SAT+Subject Tests.</p>
<p>Dear krklakewood : Your small high school class (52 students) somewhat undermines the “Top 10%” analysis that we will typically do in a chance-me thread. Your board scores in math (bottom quartile or below) and critical reading (threshold of bottom quartile) are really tough to conquer, particularly with the small school experience. Without a legacy record at Boston College, the assumption of a reader could well be that your academic experience is below the Boston College expectations and your board scores COULD be seen as underscoring that assumption.</p>
<p>Our colleague, bluebayou, has nailed this point in suggesting that you immediately consider the ACT examination. The ACT is a very different experience as it explores more elements of your academic background and might result in a better score.</p>
<p>There is no doubting that you are deeply engaged with your high school experience. Our questioning your profile drills down on your overall academic preparation and readiness for a Top 30 national institution. Undoubtedly, you have the attributes in place - does your AP coursework lead you to believe that you are ready for that next step? Achieving improved board scores (ACT) will be your first step; your second step will involve some introspection as to whether your academics can handle the challenge. We suspect that you can - if you can share more details on that front, please do.</p>
<p>dear scottj: Thank you for your honesty and insight! When thinking about my my APs and other courses, I do believe that I am academically capable to be at the next level. I have been scoring the best in my class on all of my AP English essays and assignments. I also never finish an assignment late or hand in a half-hearted paper or assignment. I know that I am academically capable to be at a Top 30 national institution, this is something that I do not doubt at all. I am hoping to get my test scores up so I have proof to back up my opinion though, haha. Time is running out so I hope I can do this! It would be my dream to be accepted into Boston College. Thanks again :)</p>
<p>I think you might be misinterpreting some of the comments here. The question isn’t whether you doubt your capabilities to succeed at a Top 30 institution, it’s whether Boston College has doubts looking at your profile. Top 30 schools have huge pools of students to choose from; many can fill there classes multiple times from their applicant pools. There will be students who are obvious admits and others who are obvious rejections. The problem comes for the applicants in the middle. With so much qualified competition it can get easy to look for reasons to reject as opposed to accept.</p>
<p>You have a great GPA, a rigorous course-load, a strong rank and are clearly involved and engaged with your school. The regional BC rep will have a good understanding of the academic quality of your school. But the “hole” in your profile is clearly your standardized test scores. You need to make BC or any other top institution feel comfortable that you are your grades not one day’s test score. The suggestion to take the ACT is a good one; some students do have markedly stronger performance on one test versus another. </p>
<p>At the end of the day you need to put together an entire application package that makes it impossible for any of your schools to say “No”. In your case I think your counselor recommendation and your teacher recommendations are going to be especially important. You might want to “guide” them into mentioning how you perform well in class and that academically you’re a shining star. In short, your SATs are lemons, you need to turn them into lemonade.</p>