Chance me, please?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Cornell University
1

<p>SAT (superscored): 2340
Breakdown: Math = 800, Critical Reading = 800, Writing = 740
APs: Biology = 5, Chemistry = 4, U.S. History =5</p>

<p>APs taken:</p>

<p>AP Biology
AP Chemistry
AP US History
AP Physics
AP English
AP Statistics
AP Calculus BC
AP European History</p>

<p>Interest in major: I want to go into research biology, probably get a Ph.D and go be some lab's PI (fingers crossed :) )</p>

<p>Legacy: My dad went to JHU for graduate school in microbiology, not sure if that counts.</p>

<p>Internships: a stipend based one at MIT for marine biology, and a personally set-up internship at Harvard Medical training under a virologist.</p>

<p>Great teacher recommendations from a Bio teacher and a History teacher. My school also sends them "assessments" from my Oceanography and Chem teachers, both of which talk about my diligence and my leadership... I know how narcissistic this whole thing sounds, and I'm really sorry. These are just details for you guys to judge.</p>

<p>Unweighted GPA = 3.42
Class rank = 80th percentile, very competitive school</p>

<p>Extracurriculars = Hip-hop dance club (3 years), track (3 years, possibly varsity
for senior year, but not a stand-out one), and Science Club (4 years)</p>

<p>I have been an officer on the science club for three years, and have been the
club's captain this year. Last year, I really turned around a bad situation for my
science bowl's team and showed great "leadership." Several placements in science bowl and science olympiad are also on the app.</p>

<p>Common App essay: Great. Not amazing but pretty well put together according to
those who have read it.</p>

<p>Grades + Difficulty = 10 Bs and a C+, but the difficulty of my courses have
increased dramatically with each year while I have maintained my performance in
class.</p>

<p>Quota stuff:
Ethnicity = Hispanic
Gender= Male</p>

<p>Resume was really well put together, just to add. Guidance Counselor said it set me apart from the resumes of most people he's seen applying to top colleges. Might just be fluff, though.</p>

<p>So is this a major reach, a low one, or even a (probably not at all) match? Thanks in advance!</p>

2

<p>Wow, I’m a damned idiot… forget about the legacy part, that’s copied from my other thread.</p>

3

<p>I Need your SAT Subject tests to answer your chance thread…</p>

4

<p>SAT Bio M: 760
SAT Math Level 1: 760</p>

5

<p>With your relatively low GPA, much will depend on just how well regarded your school is. Typically a 3.4 would classify your chances as slim.</p>

6

<p>Your school must be ridiculously competitive o.O</p>

7

<p>You have an excellent chance, in my opinion, having a 1600 SAT and being hispanic. Even with a low GPA, you still have a very good chance.</p>

8

<p>The only concern is that 89% of the class of 2015 were in the top 10% of their class</p>

9

<p>How are you doing in your statistics, calculus, and physics classes? If you are getting A’s in them, that can help if you want to go into science, but maybe not if you are getting B’s or below. How is the pace of these classes? Calculus BC is usually a pretty tough one - how is it? And at my school, AP Physics is one of the toughest courses, the teacher is known for not being able to teach anything. I’m having a hard time myself keeping up - I’m trying to teach myself through the Barron’s book.
Also, have you participated in any math contests? That could help too.</p>

<p>Lastly, this is a somewhat random question, but I might be interested in taking AP Euro - could you tell me anything about it?</p>

<p>Edit: Just to clarify, by math contests, I was thinking AIME or maybe USAMO? Or even just AMC.</p>

10

<p>Your SAT score is amazing for a Hispanic applicant. Of the others I’ve seen on Collegeboard applying to cornell, almost none come close to 2340. Furthermore, Cornell places almost no emphasis on the writing section , so your 1600/1600 is perfect. Can you tell me how you managed to pull that off with your low income background?</p>

<p>Furthermore, as others have pointed out, your GPA is weak. And that C+ is not helping you. What class was it in?</p>

<p>Overall, I’d say you have the same chance as anyone else, so applying early would probably get you a 33% ish chance.</p>

11

<p>Why is it assumed that he comes from a low-income background? His dad went to graduate school at Hopkins, I just think it’s kind of weird you automatically reached that conclusion…</p>

<p>OP - Congrats on the SAT! I’m so jealous :stuck_out_tongue: I think that’ll definitely boost your chances, especially since you have the URM hook.
Is your school private/public? If it’s really one of the top few then I don’t think your percentile would hurt overly much - I know a kid who was like bottom 20% of Exeter and ended up going to MIT. Didn’t have great ECs, either. I know anecdotal evidence isn’t particularly helpful, but I imagine it’s nice to keep in mind.
You have some good extra curriculars, but I would definitely try to work on improving your GPA for the next few semesters in case you do get deferred/waitlisted.</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

12

<p>Thanks for the morale boost sintalin! What was Exeter-man’s hook, by the way?</p>

<p>The C+ was in Spanish (oh, the irony! The irony!). Right now it looks like I’ll be getting B+s and As in my 5 AP senior classes.</p>

<p>I haven’t taken any math tests (AMC, AIME, etc.)</p>

<p>I’m quite surprised by some of the responses; just how big of an advantage is my URM hook in top colleges like JHU, MIT, etc.? Thanks again</p>

13

<p>Turns out the guy from Exeter wasn’t quite as bad as I had made him out to be, he was actually top 50% of his school. I guess I just had some lasting bad impression from a conversation a few years ago. He didn’t have any hooks though, asian guy although he did barely make AIME. I probably don’t know much of what I’m talking about though, lol. Just pointing out that going to a good school will improve your chances even if you’re in a lower percentile.</p>

14

<p>Well… this first term my Physics appears to be a B, and my Statistics is a B+. Calculus is an A-, as is European History, but then my English is probably a B as well. Right now my W GPA is within the range of the people accepted at my school, but I’m curious: does Cornell look at your W or UW GPA more? The only “excuse” I have for this lower than average GPA is that I’ve devoted more of my time to the science club and my swimming. I don’t view myself as lazy, and I believe myself to be more than capable of excelling at Cornell’s institution. I don’t say this because I think I’m abnormally smart (I’m not), but because I’ve shown to myself that I can work insanely hard, and not just in short bursts either. SAT? Buttloads of studying: I started out with a 1700 in freshman year when I took an SAT Prep class. How can I get this across to Cornell as a student with a high SAT/low GPA: otherwise known as the stereotypical “slacker?”</p>

15

<p>Your scores and EC’s are very good. I’d give you about +20% edge for those. Your GPA is well below standard, and your class rank hurts you a lot. If your school has a history of sending students with your GPA to Cornell, maybe you have a shot, but assuming your high school isn’t significantly more competitive than the high schools of most applicants, it really hurts you. The general trend I see is that GPA>scores and yours is barely passable to be considered for Cornell. The class rank more-or-less confirms that at your school, getting a significantly higher GPA is quite attainable. Even if rankings aren’t based on a weighted GPA, most Cornell students were getting mostly A’s in their AP courses. Your AP scores do help you though and confirm that perhaps the classes truly are challenging at your school. </p>

<p>Based on your GPA, I have a hard time giving you anything other than average odds. So ~20% if you apply RD, 35% ED.</p>