Chance Me PLEASE

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Hello,
I am curious about my chances to get accepted into the following:</p>

<ul>
<li>Purdue</li>
<li>USC (SoCal)</li>
<li>Case Western Reserve</li>
<li>Knox</li>
<li>OSU</li>
</ul>

<p>Now, here's the funny thing...
My highest ACT comp is a 34. I have taken the test twice, and with superscoring my scores are 34 composite, 34 math, 36 science, 35 english, 33 reading / writing combined.</p>

<p>My highest SAT was a 2120 (770 math 700 reading)</p>

<p>You might ask, why aren't you applying to any Ivies?</p>

<p>The answer to that question is my 1.74 GPA (as of the end of my Junior year)
And complete absence of ECs aside from working since 15 and community service.</p>

<p>I spent 8th grade until my senior year going through the ringer via a horrible drug addiction, though now I am sober and ready to live up to my potential academically. Would this be safe to mention in my College Essay?</p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

2

<p>P.S. Planning on majoring in EECS or a similar depending on what the school offers.</p>

3

<p>I think your only option is to actually write about your drug addiction, and the triumph of defeating it. That explains a lot and clearly you have potential. If you spin your essay the right way, those schools will accept you. & why not try for some ivies? they like variety.</p>

4

<p>Shark,</p>

<p>This is interesting because my english teacher told my class specifically not to include any instances where we have used illicit substances. But I suppose I am a special case.</p>

<p>You really think I should apply to some Ivies??? Finances are also a factor for me being that quite frankly my ‘college fund’ is nil.</p>

<p>I guess I will apply to some. Thanks a lot for the confidence, by the way.</p>

<p>Any idea which ones would be more willing to accept a unique student? I don’t really think I’d fit in at New Haven to be honest ;)</p>

5

<p>Brown is your best bet. And no problem! I really hate people who discourage ambition. Don’t be resigned with failure until you have that rejection letter in your hand. Honestly, though, I think Brown would love you.</p>

6

<p>But the counterargument to the ‘you should apply to ivies’ is that with a <2 GPA, odds are they won’t even look at your application. However, if you’re heartset on it, try contacting the Admissions offices before you send in an application, or touring the higher-level scores and asking questions about how they’d be willing to treat an applicant like yourself.</p>

7

<p>Brown will not “love” someone with a 1.74 because of a drug addiction. Mmfood can apply to Brown but keeping expectations low: anything below a 3.0, even with exceptional circumstances, is dubious at best.
Unfortunately, there are no schools with no GPA requirements - except for Bard if you take the Bard exam (it’s a very thorough 4-essay exam. If you get a B+ on each exam, you’re in).
If you’ve turned your life around, take 3 subject tests in December, and show schools that you can score a 700-750 on them. That will show schools that you have some content mastery beyond what your GPA would suggest. Hurry because late registration ends this week, I think.
Rather than the “chance” forum, this is a question for the Parents Forum.</p>

8

<p>You MUST have your essay about your previous drug addiction. If you do that, I would say your schools are low reaches.</p>

<p>Chance me?
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1580333-your-opinions-needed.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/1580333-your-opinions-needed.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

9

<p>I would be up front about it for sure as it explains your GPA especially I context with your junior year and excellent SAT & ACT Scores! Explain how u overcame the addiction and what you learned about the experience and yourself! I agree about Ivies - probably won’t accept with the GPA, Umass won’t even consider anything less than a 3.0. With that said, you are obviously smart and give you credit to overcrowd what you went through. Any major state university - esp the large one’s as they are more apt to look at standardized testing for their review. Seriously, best of luck dude!</p>

10

<p>Drug addiction is a topic you want to stay away from in your college essays, most of my teachers agree that it’s not a good topic to go on. Even if it was a struggle that you overcame, to colleges that’s still a liability.</p>

11

<p>you for sure won’t get into USC, Purdue, or OSU. idk about the others
even with an essay about your drug addiction, your gpa is way too low. especially for usc</p>

12

<p>Your essay should NOT be about your drug addiction. The essay is what “you’re about”. describe a passion, take the reader into a defining moment for you, make them understand your year, who you are now, how you’ve changed, etc. Your essay will be that by which you’ll be remembered. You don’t want to be remembered as “the druggie applicant”. You want to be remembered as “the rock climber”, “the mushroom picker”, “the reader”, or whatever. </p>

<p>The drug addiction should be included in the “additional information box” ONLY, starting with “A medical certificate from Dr.A, Pr.E and Institution C will be produced on demande to certify that my low grades were due to a drug addiction that has now been thoroughly overcome and left behind. My counselor/ My doctor will gladly discuss this with your college’s admission staff.”</p>

<p>AND your counselor MUST be ready to explain how you overcame addiction and especially how you’re doing, because they WILL call.</p>

<p>I must say that if your addiction was pot, it may fly, but if it was heroin, they probably won’t take the risk.</p>

<p>As for now, you need to get straight A’s. Working (especially if it was more than 5-6hrs/week) and community service ARE EC’s.</p>

<p>Knox MIGHT take a chance on you but the other schools wouldn’t. Purdue is numerical and you don’t have the numbers. Same thing for OSU - your SAT would be enough if you had a 3.0, perhaps a 2.9. USC receives dozens of thousands (literally) applications, you won’t make the first cut.</p>

<p>By the way, SAT scores aren’t the guiding factor for Ivies. As long as you have 2100 (or even 2000) you’ve passed a hurdle, they look for other things like tenacity, creativity, generosity, ability to handle high-level work on your own, etc. </p>

<p>If you really want to attend school in California, a solution would be for you to go there and work, to establish residency, while taking part time classes at the closest community college from your work. Find a community college that has transfer agreements with USC and UCLA. Get straight A’s. After 2-3 years, you high school record doesn’t matter (except for SAT scores if you want to submit them), and only your college GPA counts. Both UCLA and USC admit lots of transfers. This is a risky move, to be contemplated only if 1° you have a support system in place BEFORE you apply to community college (ie., support group, doctors, etc) 2° you are currently getting A’s only.</p>

<p>Depending on what’s in-state for you, the community college route may be your best option. In addition, lots of students transfer into their flagship through “lateral” transfers, ie, from another 4 year college, so if you get admitted to a college nearby, you can use that as your stepping stone to your state flagship.</p>

<p>I would recommend “sober” and “dry” colleges, and/or requesting living in substance-free housing all 4 years. When you’ve beaten an addiction, you DO NOT want to be around drugged out/drunk students.</p>

<p>Once again, this isn’t really a chance thread, you should post in the Parents’ thread.</p>

13

<p>MYOS,</p>

<p>I appreciate the detailed response. That being said, there were many external causes for the low GPA (that also, at the time, progressed my drug use).</p>

<p>Still, I am applying to OSU, Purdue, Brown, Case, NYU, UChicago, and USC.</p>

<p>On top of this is a local 4 year university that will remain unnamed for security purposes. I know I can get accepted to it, and after communications with a prof. I will also most likely not have to pay a dime.</p>

<p>All this being said, there seems to be a slight misunderstanding about addiction and the role of an addict as victim here. You do not simply choose to become an alcoholic/addict, or overdrink/overuse so many times to get to the point. From the moment I tried either for the first time it was too late. I was just born with an allergy towards mind altering substances.</p>

<p>Still, thanks for the advice. Although my essay is going to be about addiction. At this point, I don’t see anything else that could possibly save me. And to be honest, a story of triumph over a deadly illness is not what I consider “druggie applicant” material.</p>

<p>Everyone else, thanks for the confidence. Wish me luck, I’ve spent far too long surrounded by less intelligent souls and it’s starting to kill me emotionally.</p>

14

<p>Wish me luck, I’ve spent far too long surrounded by less intelligent souls and it’s starting to kill me emotionally.</p>

<hr>

<p>What’s that supposed to mean?</p>

<p>And good luck dude.</p>

15

<p>Brief update…</p>

<p>Ended up applying to OSU, Purdue, Brown, Case Western, UChicago, Drexel, NYU, and MIT. Interview with MIT went exceptionally well, interview with Brown coming up in a few days. Still sober and life is getting better every day!</p>

16

<p>Oh, got the next SAT back and superscore is now 2200. Killed the app essay and wrote about the alcoholism in the additional information prompt.</p>

17

<p>OP, I hope to god you did not write about your drug addiction. If you did you might as well throw your chances down the drain. And you need to apply to more safety schools, I’m sorry but I don’t understand why everyone is encouraging you to apply to these big schools. 99% of admissions counselors will see your GPA and throw it away. I’m sorry that’s mean but I’m trying to help you. You need to apply to more safety schools before its too late. But hey, if you have to, go to those safety schools, kick butt, and try to transfer the next year</p>