Chance Me

[coh2272]

<p>What are my chances of getting into UC Berkeley or UCLA?</p>

<p>Freshman: 3.79 </p>

<p>U.S. History Honors
Algebra II GT
Biology GT
English 9 Honors
String Ensemble
P.E.
Health
Spanish 1 </p>

<p>Sophomore: 3.57</p>

<p>AP U.S. Government and Politics
Pre-Calculus GT
Chemistry GT
English 10 Honors
String Orchestra
Computer-Science 1 Hon
Spanish II Honors</p>

<p>Junior: 3.00</p>

<p>Modern World History Honors
AP Calculus AB
AP Chemsistry
AP English 11
String Orchestra
AP Psychology
Spanish III Hon</p>

<p>Senior: (unknown)</p>

<p>AP Calculus BC
AP Biology
AP English 12
AP Environmental Science
Physics GT
String Orchestra
Spanish IV </p>

<p>SAT: So far a 1790 but going to try and improve it in the fall...
ACT: planning on taking this as well in the fall
SAT II: Planning on taking Math Level II and Chemistry</p>

<p>Extracurricular:</p>

<p>Indoor Track: 9th and 10th m(12th?)
Outdoor Track: 10th (12th?)
Cross Country: 10th (12th?)
NHS: 11th and 12th
Math Team: 11th and 12th
It's Academic: 11th and 12th
Math NHS: 11th and 12th
English NHS: 12th
Tetris Club: 11th and 12th (Vice-President)
UNICEF Club (Founder/President for my school): 12th</p>

<p>Volunteer:</p>

<p>Library: 9th-12th
Johns Hopkins General Hospital: 10th(summer)
Korean Festival: 10th-12th
Internship with Governor: 10th(summer)
Teacher Assistant at Church: 10th and 12th(?)</p>

<p>Work Experience: Kumon Math and Reading Learning Center 11th(summer)-12th</p>

[Jweinst1]

<p>First, please calculate your UC GPA. Berkeley and UCLA will only be looking at single number for your GPA, not one for each year of high school.</p>

<p>But overall from what you have posted here already, Berkeley and UCLA would be a reach school for you. Your strongest points by far are your EC’s and volunteering positions. You really need an SAT of at least 2000 to be considered a competitive applicant, perhaps even more than that.</p>

<p>Do you have any compelling story for your essays?</p>

[coh2272]

<p>My UC GPA is about a 3.78. For my essay, I’m thinking about how I became a completely different person after volunteering at the library and how it made me the person I am today…</p>

[QuirkyGirl]

<p>^So, I feel that what you can do to try to get accepted into Cal is express yourself and your true voice Getting accepted into Cal is not only about GPA and test scores,but also YOUR passion and interests. I believe that admissions really want to know you and see how you will fit into Cal and be able to use the education you receive at Cal to fulfill your passions </p>

<p>*Brainstorm the events or any simple thing that you really LIKE or LOVE to talk about
~>If it’s about volunteering at the library then what really did you like? The amazing stories that capture imagination, the social interactions or an eye-opening experience with an individual you met at the library…P.S. I also volunteered at the library for a long time too
~>Any simple moment in which you really took the step to help a person or a child in time of need and just how their thanks made you happy?
~>Did you help anybody while interning for the Governor ? Any small life changes during that internship? (P.S. the internship you got with the Governor is pretty impressive
~> Talk about the reading and learning center! I actually talked about helping students and tutoring younger kids because I actually like this job
~>Possibly, did you meet any patients in need or any small help you gave them or the visitors while volunteering at John Hopkins General Hospital? :)</p>

<p>Just be yourself and give your voice to the essay. You can get your essays edited,but not too much to the formal voice because that makes your essay less relatable to ppl :)</p>

[coh2272]

<p>O so would it be alright then if I write about volunteering in general using all of the volunteer I listed or should I just pick one that had the most impact on my life and write about that? In my essay, I either want to incorporate all of it together or just write about the library volunteer since I have done that the most. I like your suggestions! :)</p>

[QuirkyGirl]

<p>^ I tried to write about all my volunteer experiences,but at the end I decided to write my essays in a story like form with dialogue and small sentences about my life philosophy or what I realized from the event,but I wrote my perceptions towards different events through the story and dialogue. This idea worked really well for me and I got accepted to Cal with a supplement .So, try that technique,but most of all write what YOU like and don’t be afraid if somebody tells you that your topic isn’t good or anything because that’s what I was told by multiple people,but I went ahead with my technique and ideas and here I am . My SAT scores were in the 1800’s and super scored to 1900’s along with my grades dipping a bit during junior year,so do NOT lose faith and write amazing essays. You will get accepted into college no matter what because you have great EC’s. Any personal experiences you feel are good topics, do write about them and you can message me if you have any ideas,but what’s an opinion if your idea about the essay is good or not :)</p>

[coh2272]

<p>Wow! Thank you for your time to respond to my question! I really do appreciate them! Berkeley is probably like on everyone’s list at my school right now but I have like a somewhat special connection. You see, when I was in 8th-9th grade, I went to this camp where UC Berkeley teachers taught us English and other subjects for the summer and I absolutely fell in love with their teachings. How is life at UC Berkley? I always go on Youtube and look at the videos of UC Berkeley, but I wanto to know more… I am also an out-of-state student so… I am just really scared… </p>

[coh2272]

<p>And also, I don’t know if you read one of my comment but I had a 3.78 UC GPA… Will writing a stellar essay still get me in? And if I may ask, what ethnicity are you?</p>

[QuirkyGirl]

<p>I’m actually Asian Indian (major disadvantage in college admissions ) and I was scared I wouldn’t get into colleges because higher test scores will be expected from me,but I actually got accepted to all the UC’s I applied to and privates also . Definitely write a stellar essay and if there were any troubles or any problems in your personal life that effected your grades, then do write about it . </p>

<p>One of my friends was low-income and she had good test scores,but she decided to not write about her personal problems which did put her on a disadvantage as her essays were not really relatable either,so now she’s going to Cal Poly (great school btw),but she really wanted to get into UCLA or Cal. So, believe in yourself and write about anything and everything that you feel will make you stand out from other applicants because at the end, Cal really wants that spirit in their students. I believe that the spirit that one has to show is independence, an excitement to come to Cal to make changes in other people’s futures and the need to gain knowledge not for a job,but also to help others . You definitely do show that passion as I could tell you do really want to go to Cal,so show that spirit by showing what you like to do .Admissions people at Cal are really nice and understanding .Most people at Cal I’ve had contact with are pretty friendly. </p>

<p>Right now I’m about to start my first year at Cal,but it’s exciting .During orientation it is nerve racking to be around so many great and talented ppl,but then you feel proud and happy that the admission officers chose you for something special that you have I met different students who also said that they don’t how they got accepted and had low G.P.A’s too or test scores,but they had something special that Cal wanted :)</p>

<p>It’s now getting pretty holistic considering 90,000 applicants applied this year,so bring your A game and bring the spirit and passion you have towards any subject matter :)</p>

[totalcaprice]

<p>Your gpa and SAT score are lacking…so it’s a bit of a reach. If you want a good chance to get in, you should work hard on your personal statement…write your personal statement so that it stands out against everyone elses…simply writing about volunteering will not do because everyone else has hundreds of hours of volunteering on their application…you would have to figure out how to write about volunteering in a way that it makes you stick out. QuirkyGirl has a good idea behind how to write a good essay. Make sure you have other people read and edit your personal statement. </p>

[coh2272]

<p>@QuirkyGirl: Thankk you once again! I’m trying to work really hard on my personal statement, but as totalcaprice mentioned, I have to make it stand out from the others because probabaly other applicants has a lot of volunteering as well. And do you think that having one C on my transcipt will ruin my chances of gettiing in? It was in my AP Chemistry class, but I was thinking they will appreciate the fact that I tried taking a challenge? May I also ask what UC GPA u had?</p>

<p>@totalcaprice: Thank you for your honesty…I know it may seem a bit reach from me, but I just hope Berkeley will look beyond my GPA and test scores. How do you think I should write my personal statement so that I can stand out from the other applicants?</p>

[QuirkyGirl]

<p>^ No problem coh2272 . Honestly, my UC GPA was pretty ok from a 4.3-4.5 range during high school,but point to be noted I still had tons of B’s on my transcript, it’s just that my entire high school worked within the UC scheduled classes as it’s a California high school. Do NOT be discourage about the C as you can definitely explain to the admission officers about the C.If you had an personal difficulties in other areas of your life while taking the class then do note them as such well help the admission officer understand why your grades might’ve dipped . Don’t worry about the volunteering hours. I thought a lot of ppl had a lot of hours,but later I found out that they actually didn’t. Lol :D</p>

[coh2272]

<p>But that UC GPA is still way~ higher than mine lol… I envy you a lot… If I do get accepted to Berkeley, I want to personally thank you for every tips and suggestions you have made! Does UC Berkeley give a lot of scholarships to students? Does UC Berkeley look at your senior year in terms of rigor and grades? Is it ok if you go as undecided major? Sorry that I have a LOT of questions :P</p>

[QuirkyGirl]

<p>Lol no problemo.Honestly each high school has different grading standards and I completely understand that your gpa might be on tye low side because some high schools are just too rigorous ; ( .Don’t be sad and just go for it . You will definitely get into colleges since your EC’s are really nice and unique I would suggest try to also include experience with the governor internship if you feel like you helped to even improve even a small part of society :)</p>

<p>Cal dped look at senior year courses and maybe grades if you get called for a supplement ( supplements are awesome and have no word limit .So write A LOT.It worked fpr me and some of my friends wrote little and were eventually wait listed or rejected, so write from the heart .Undecided always works since everybody is counted at undecided for the first two years at Cal Go Bears!:)</p>

[totalcaprice]

<p>I forgot how to quote people…but QuirkyGirl said " I tried to write about all my volunteer experiences,but at the end I decided to write my essays in a story like form with dialogue and small sentences about my life philosophy or what I realized from the event,but I wrote my perceptions towards different events through the story and dialogue. This idea worked really well for me and I got accepted to Cal with a supplement "</p>

<p>Something like what QuirkyGirl talked about is a good idea. It doesn’t have to have dialogue with people talking, but it has to be a interesting essay with a strong theme. As an admissions officer, what would you prefer reading? Someone who talks about a bunch of volunteering that she/he did without getting into much details? Or someone who focuses on maybe one or two volunteering events such as your internship with the governor and how the experience affected how you thought of politics, grassroot, etc or how the experience changed you as a person and what you will do in future with that experience. You could also use your Johns Hopkins volunteering. I wouldn’t bring up the library volunteering since everyone volunteers at the library. You should only talk about the library experience if you have a strong story like the city wanted to close the library, and you rallied to save it, or you took the initiative to run a charity event for the library, etc. </p>

[coh2272]

<p>@Totalcalprice: I think though that my library volunteer has contributed the most and the most meaningful experience for me to write about. I mean I was thinking about somehow combining al of the internships and volunteer experience together like a story like QuirkyGirl suggested, but she also said to write about one thing you are very passionate about… What do you think? </p>

<p>@QuirkyGirl: So you think it will be alright for me to write just about my volunteer experience at just the library or should I include all of the volunteers I have dne and create like a story in my essay? Which one do you prefer? Also, will UC Berkeley look at my application if I barely have any AP scores reported? I have absolutely bad on AP exams so I have nothing to report… Except maybe English Language with a 3)… WIll I get rejected right away? </p>

[QuirkyGirl]

<p>^Honestly I only reported 3 ap scores and Cal didn’t look bad upon it.AP scores are just for college credit and don’t really hurt the application .</p>

<p>I would say that you should focus on one experience. Just for curiosity I was wondering what part would you like to write about for your library volunteering experience? Also you can write about the governor internship Any interesting experiences while interning? You can PM me if you do not want to publicly share your ideas :)</p>

<p>Remember aim for the acceptance and a supplement? ! If you get called for a supplementary questionarrie in January that means you’re in the ball park for acceptance! They’re considering to accept you Definitely take advantage of the additional comments section and add any problems or reasons your grades dipped Do include any personal troubles you had in school when young like difficulty in reading or writing and any personal problems at home .It’s not like giving a sad story like people say, but any troubles noted allows the admission officer to know YOU and your life </p>

[coh2272]

<p>Um…How do you PM? (Sorry, not used to this network…:p)… But I will be very happy to share with you about my library volunteer experiences! </p>

[QuirkyGirl]

<p>I think you just click on my username and just message me when you click my username :)</p>