Chance me?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Hello, I am a junior wondering about my chances for some colleges. My credentials:</p>

<p>4.0 GPA (unweighed), unsure of weighed GPA (school does not weigh)</p>

<p>I attend a large HS in upstate NY. It is fairly competitive.</p>

<p>Expected class rank: 10/359</p>

<p>APs by end of HS, followed by received or expected grade on exam (8 total):</p>

<p>World History (5)
US History (5)
English Language (5)
Chemistry (4 or 5)
Environmental Science (5)
BC Calculus (5)
Physics C (4 or 5)
Economics (5)</p>

<p>My school does not have honors, but instead has accelerated or enriched. I took many of these classes where AP was not available. </p>

<p>Finalist of the Cornell Essay Contest</p>

<p>Commended PSAT score</p>

<p>German National Honor Society (2 years)</p>

<p>SAT chemistry: 750
SAT Math L2: 740
Expected SAT: 2150-2250 (assume I get a 2200 or so for chancing)</p>

<p>I've also received many school awards. At the end of the year, some teachers choose 2-3 students for an excellence award in their class.</p>

<p>ECs:
Varsity Tennis (3 years)
Varsity Nordic Skiing (1 year)
Varsity XC running (2 years) --> made it to States --> All-county --> captain
Chess Club
Ping-pong club (top player)
Jazzerfiddle (select orchestra group)
Rotary volunteering club
Piano outside of school (7 years)</p>

<p>Over the summer, I am working on getting a job in the chemistry department of University of Rochester. </p>

<p>I am a white male. My father and mother immigrated from Russia, with my father earning his Ph.D in the US. I have traveled to many countries all over the world. I am a fluent speaker of Russian. (Does being bilingual or being well-traveled help?)</p>

<p>SO: what are my chances for Carnegie Mellon, UC Berkeley, Duke, or Northwestern??
I plan on majoring in engineering or biochemistry.
Would I have a chance in hell at Stanford??
Please help! Suggestions/comments are very welcome.</p>

2

<p>I would say that Duke, Northwestern, and Stanford are all “reach” schools. Academically, you are obviously very well qualified, but it seems you’re EC’s are largely based around athletics. Unless you are recruited, sports can only help you so much. If you do get the U of Rochester job, it could definitely help you, and definitely stress that Cornell award. Unfortunately, being well-traveled does not impact admissions at all. Mentioning that you might want to study Russian could help, though. Best of luck!</p>

3

<p>Stanford: high reach, pretty unlikely IMO.
Duke: reach, possible but pretty unlikely
Northwestern: reach, definitely possible can go either way there.
Carnegie Mellon: match, depends also which school in cmu you are applying to.</p>

<p>Chances are much higher if you can get recruited.</p>

4

<p>Great academic scores! However, I can’t tell from your ECs that you’re interested in engineering or biochemistry and there is not much leadership. (I understand that sports can take up the majority of someone’s free time, but colleges will wonder about the leadership positions.) The job at U of Rochester would be a big boost. </p>

<p>In general, essays and amazing teacher recs could make or break you. Chances at Stanford, UC Berkley and Duke are slim… but they’re slim for most applicants. Best of luck! :)</p>

5

<p>Thanks for the responses, I understand that it’s a crap-shoot out there for most tier one schools. Now to address a few questions:</p>

<p>For the science aspect, I completely forgot to mention that I do Science Olympiad, and our team made it to States. That seems pretty big.</p>

<p>Also, what if I write in my essays about being a world-traveler? Don’t they like to see generally “interesting people?” Wouldn’t they enjoy seeing someone with such a unique world-view and interesting story? I plan on focusing on how the conflicting Western (American) and Eastern (Russian) cultures have shaped me. </p>

<p>Concerning sports, I might attempt to woo the admissions people with my XC performance. Perhaps I could get recruited. I was under the impression that sports show commitment and dedication, and that you have a balanced life. </p>

<p>Could you all be so kind as to chance me for Cornell as well? I recently visited Cornell and liked it a lot. Finally, can anyone offer some suggestions for respectable safeties?
Thanks in advance! :)</p>

6

<p>Cornell only looks at CR/M scores. Can’t say without seeing your actual scores.</p>