A brief synopsis of me:
-Asian male (specifically Indian), both parents have gone to college, middle-class income, US-born
-36 ACT (1530 SAT but didn’t report)
-800 Math II and 750 Physics
-4.46 Weighted, 3.96 unweighted
-Completed 7 AP’s, currently taking 3 (Taken: APCSA, APCSP, APUSH, AP Statistics, AP Physics 1, AP Calc AB, APES. All 5’s except Stats is 3, APUSH and Physics 4). Currently in BC, Physics C and AP Lit.
-Team captain of an FRC Robotics Team, got Dean’s List Finalist. Done several community outreach activities and national level advocacy through my team.
-Internship in VCU Research Lab over the summer as a research assistant
-Several other miscellaneous clubs, honor societies and advanced classes but they are pretty small in comparison to these things
Would you say my chance is bigger or smaller than that 5% they advertise just wanted to see what you guys think, things are obviously in the air with these three colleges
While an ACT score of 36 is outstanding and your GPA is very impressive, I suspect that more is needed for the schools (Stanford, Yale & Columbia) on your list.
My first reaction was that Carnegie Mellon University should be on your list if planning to major in anything related to engineering or robotics.
Just checking… Did any of those colleges require all test scores? I hope not.
Your grades and test scores will ensure your app gets a thorough review. I suspect much will hinge on your essays and teacher recs. Your ECs seem a bit underwhelming, but I don’t have any context for them. Are your chances more than 5%? Maybe, but I wouldn’t buy the sweatshirt just yet. Good luck.
Stanford will be rough without SCEA and two ECs. You’re a great student, but for these schools they’re average ECs. If your essays are stellar you may have some chance, but don’t count on it.
You look to be a competitive applicant with academics that should get you a serious look at any college. The rest will depend on things we can’t see such as your essays, LORs, depth of your ECs etc.
Any elite college (with acceptance rates often in the single digits) should be considered a reach for any unhooked applicant. Be sure to take the time to search out a group of match and safety schools that appear affordable (run net price calculators) and that you would be excited to attend.
I agree with others that these are all reaches. At some level it does not matter whether your chances are 2% or 10%. Either way you need to focus on finding good safety schools, and also good matches unless your safeties are very good.
In some sense finding good reaches is easy because your reach schools are famous and there aren’t very many universities at this level to choose from. Finding good safeties might require some careful thought.
My guess is that your chances for Stanford are less than 5%. On the one hand Stanford accepts quite a few athletes and URM students. Stanford at least said in an article sent to alumni a few years back that diversity is the most important thing (once they eliminate academically unqualified applicants). Therefore being Asian will not help you. Also, Stanford accepts less than 5% of applicants.
Given what you have done up to now, I think that you are likely to do very well regardless of which university you attend. Congratulations on your success to this point and good luck with finding a great school to attend.
Apply! Do your best on the essays. Also make sure to apply to matches and safeties. Carnegie Mellon is a good idea. Also Case Western, WPI, Stevens, University of Michigan.
I’d guess OP is sorry he phrased this as bigger or smaller than 5%. And it seems he has already applied.
Just looking at your own superficials is not the way it works. And doing so here hints you really don’t have an idea of what does make a strong contender, the depth and breadth they look for. That can be an issue
Imo, many kids have no idea how fierce the competition is, either.
Congratulations on your accomplishments! You are obviously intelligent and work hard. I assume you are a hs junior, so you have time to delve deeper into one of your existing ECs or surprise with a new great one.
Sounds like you are from Richmond (noted VCU labs), so consider applying to UVA and VT to lock in a safety.
Apply to several more Reach and really think through the applications in their entirety. You meet the generic criteria at almost every college, but no one really knows if you are 5%, < 5%, or > 5%, at a particular university. Highly advise you choose an early admission (SCEA, ED1, ED2, etc) to increase the odds at one college.
If you are a senior, this means you’ve already applied, and that all of these are RD apps. RD acceptance rates for any of these are miniscule. But you never know. Your stats are excellent, so they will give you a serious look.
If you are a junior, then pick one of these and apply early. Of the 3, I think your best chance is to apply ED1 at Columbia SEAS.
Considerations for other schools: Rensselaer Polytechnic, Rose-Hulman, Pace, Lowell, With your info, I would imagine you could qualify for a fabulous scholarship, which will save you a lot of money. Especially if you are even contemplating a possible graduate degree.
just wanted to see what you guys think, things are obviously in the air with these three colleges