Chance me? WUSTL, Carleton, U of C

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Chances? (Washington University, Carleton College, University of Chicago)</p>

<p>ACT: 34
SAT: 2160 (I'm thinking that I should send the ACT score rather than the SAT, but I would like some advice with this as well)
GPA: 4.35 weighted, 3.4 unweighted
**high school does not rank</p>

<p>Awards:
-NCTE Achievement Awards Writing Contest nominee (Junior)
-National Spanish Exam: Premio de Oro (highest award for the exam, scored in 97th percentile) (Junior)
-Foreign Language Honors (Freshman)
-Student of the Month in the Performing Arts Department (Sophomore)
-Student of the Month in the English Department (Junior)
-PSAT: 214 >> NMSQT Commended Scholar (Junior)</p>

<p>Freshman Year:
-World History After 1500 Acc. >> B | A
-English I Acc. >> A | A
-Algebra II Acc. >> B | B
-Biology I Acc. >> B | A
-Spanish II Acc. >> A | A</p>

<p>Sophomore Year:
-English II Acc. >> A | A
-AP European History >> B | B
-Geometry/Trig Acc. >> C | B
-Chemistry Acc. >> B | B
-Spanish III Acc. >> B | A
-Health (quarter-long, mandatory) >> A</p>

<p>Junior Year:
-AP English Language and Composition >> A | A
-AP United States History >> B | B
-Acc. Math Analysis >> B | B
-Physics Acc. >> B | B
-Spanish IV Acc. >> A | B</p>

<p>Senior Year:
-AP English Literature
-AP Physics
-AP Macro/Micro Economics
-AP Calculus BC
-AP Spanish V
-Oral Communications (quarter-long, mandatory) </p>

<p>Noteworthy Extracurriculars:
-NHS (Senior)
-School newspaper staff writer for Features (Sophomore)
-School newspaper Commentary editor (Junior)
-School newspaper Editor-in-Chief (Senior)
-Model UN (Sophomore, Junior, Senior)
-Pit Orchestra for Spring Musical (Freshman, Sophomore)
-Thespian Society member (Senior)
-Piano (11 years)</p>

<p>Employment:
-Private tutor (mostly math, some Spanish) (Sophomore, Junior, Senior)
-Summer School Teacher's Assistant (Junior)</p>

<p>Community Service:
-Sunday School teacher for 1st/2nd grade (Junior)
-Volunteer social worker at an organization that helps Autistic children (since 6th grade, continuous)
-Vacation Bible School teacher (Freshman, Junior)</p>

<p>Intended Major: English</p>

<p>State: IL
Race: White
Gender: F</p>

<p>Thank you! Any extra advice would be appreciated as well!</p>

2

<p>Well, no one else has decided to bite, so I will. I went to Carleton, and my brother went to Wash U.</p>

<p>Your 34 ACT will garner you a second look no matter where you apply - that is clearly going to be a strength.</p>

<p>The 3.4 GPA though, will be a red flag. Sure, your weighted average looks good, but given the stack of B’s that somehow add up to well above a 4.0, it is virtually meaningless (as such, most colleges ignore it). Are there any other circumstances about your school that would be relevant here? High-powered magnet school, for instance? I know you said your school doesn’t rank, but do you have a sense of where you fall in your class? (Top 10%? Top quartile?) As it stands, your grades will be a hit against you at the schools on your list.</p>

<p>You should also think a bit about how your extracurriculars tie in to what you want to do with yourself. Are there any that you have been especially passionate about? Maybe the student newspaper has persuaded you to study English? Or maybe talk more about what has drawn you to social work with autistic children over the past few years? Being able to write clearly and persuasively about your passions can give you a big leg up, particularly at Carleton, but at the others as well.</p>

<p>Hope that helps, and I’m happy to answer any more specific questions that you have.</p>