<p>Hi! I know UMD can be a little confusing with admissions so, it's not for sure.
I live in MD so it would be in-state. I have a 3.4 GPA and hoping to get that up to a 3.6 by the end of senior year. Freshman year was a little rough for me and I only pulled a 2.6 and lost all the Honors classes I had that year. Since then:</p>
<p>Sophomore: Mostly 'Regular' classes. All of us call them that but I think they're officially called Academic or College Prep. Not sure. Took Honors French 2 and Honors US Government and Politics though. 3.6 GPA.</p>
<p>Junior: Took mostly Honors except for Chemistry and Math and took 2 of the AP tests for my classes not sure what I scored. I thought I did pretty well on both so hopefully anywhere from a 3-5. I believe I have a 3.8 this year but not sure yet.</p>
<p>Senior: Haven't done it yet! But I'm taking 4 APs and the rest are Honors except for one semester of Religion. Can't really take Honors in that.</p>
<p>I don't have a million ECs but I have a few. I was nominated for the MD Princeton Book Award and was 29th in the Nation for a National French test. I have a couple hooks going my way, I think I'm going to get good recommendation letters, and a ton of alumni from my school go there now.</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Take the ACT or SAT yet?</p>
<p>I always forget something when I have to say my stats!</p>
<p>My highest SAT score in one sitting was 1700. 1710 super-scored. Didn’t really change. I was really weak in math for each. If my math matched CR and W I’d have 2000. >_<.
I’m planning to take the ACT soon and if I do well on that, (predicting at least a 30) I’ll just send those instead of bothering with the SAT again.</p>
<p>If it helps you feel better, my freshman GPA was a 2.85, then sophomore 3.6, junior 3.85, and senior 4.0. When I applied in November, my overall GPA was 3.5, but has since gone up 3.6. I got into the Honors College with a Presidential scholarship. Granted, my SAT/ACT extremely high, but if you can get the 30 you expect on the ACT or retake the SAT and break 1900, you should have absolutely no trouble getting in. Your achievements (book award, French test) really make you stand out because they are very specific and aren’t awarded to many people.</p>
<p>It’s a good idea to take the ACT. It might fit you better. I would focus on that instead of taking the SAT a 3rd time.</p>
<p>Thanks! I never see people with similar grades as me so I don’t know what I should aim for. Hopefully I can get my test scores up! I know I’ll need those to kind of overshadow my overall GPA a little more. Thanks again!</p>
<p>What is the breakdown of your score? Maryland only looks at Critical Reading and Math scores on the SAT.</p>
<p>You said, “I was really weak in math for each.” </p>
<p>The ACT is a very different animal than the SAT. The SAT has only one math score, but the ACT not only has a math but also has a science score as well that counts toward the single composite score. If math is your weakness, the ACT may not give you the score boost you are expecting. </p>
<p>“I’m planning to take the ACT soon and if I do well on that, (predicting at least a 30)”</p>
<p>Did you take practice tests and base your prediction on practice scores or are you predicting a 30 because you have heard some students do better on ACT’s than the SAT’s? If the latter, understand that the kids that do better on the ACT’s are the ones who are stronger in math and science.</p>
<p>If you’ve taken practice tests and really think you have that shot at a 30 on the ACT, go for it. However, knowing that everyone has good intentions over the summer that get pushed aside in favor of relaxing…</p>
<p>My personal opinion is that since you already feel good about your CR score on the SAT, just try practicing problems for the math section and give the SAT one last shot. I think it will be less work practicing for one section for a familiar test format than it will be practicing for four sections of an unfamiliar test format. </p>
<p>If this was the spring of your junior year, I’d say try the ACT, but going into your senior year, well one last test is enough because you will already be really stressed in the Fall - you will have lots of college applications and essays to do while simultaneously keeping up that really terrific upward trend in your grades. Keep that going!</p>
<p>The break down of my highest score in one sitting was CR:630 M:470 W:600.</p>
<p>I took an ACT practice test before and I got a 24 or 26 without any math prep before hand. In my next math class we have some work over the summer that I have to do so I know I’ll at least get some math in! Both my Math and Science scores were somewhere in the mid 20s which I think is around average.</p>
<p>It certainly can’t hurt to try the ACT!</p>
<p>I would recommend that you ask one of the most accessible math nerds (who has just recently aced the Math SAT questions) you know for help getting ready for the Math section. Take a couple of the math retests before getting together with them (I agree that you prob shouldn’t spend much time on the CR or W preparation), and mark each question that you don’t know how to do and/or have guessed at the answer. Then go through each problem that you are not sure of with them, and have them explain how to do the problem, smart ways to eliminate answers, etc. </p>
<p>D1 helped out D2 and there was a significant increase in her math scores. D1 then went through more practice tests and identified all the questions that were the same kind of problem that her sister didn’t know how to do before and they repeated this process a couple of times before the test. I think her math score increased by something close to 100 points.</p>
<p>The more practice tests you can take before getting together with someone, the more useful it will be for you (and the less of their time you’ll take). D1 was one of those uber-math nerds and was always flattered to be asked for help from someone, provided that the other person clearly was trying to understand. If asking one of your classmates for help doesn’t work, turn to a math teacher for additional help. I recommend someone who has recently taken the SAT (over a formal math “tutor” who may be years beyond the experience), because they will be able to relate to you better and may be able to pass along test-taking tips. Good luck.</p>