I was just wondering what my chances were of getting into the following universities:
Columbia University
Princeton University
Johns Hopkins University
Stanford University
UCLA
About to go into Junior year
Unweighted GPA: 3.88
Weighted GPA: 4.33
SAT score range probably between 1450 to 1550 (took diagnostic exams)
Vice President of Debate Club since freshman year
Class Representative for National Honor Society
Vice President for ASB sophomore class
Been a Girl Scout for almost a decade (working on gold award currently)
With extremely competitive schools on my dream-university list I am becoming pretty anxious about this whole matter. Please let me know the realistic chances I have of getting in, and if you have any suggestions for what I should do for my last two years in high school in order to improve those chances, I’d greatly appreciate it!
Hey Susie.
Colleges that are top tier like these (Ivies, MIT, others) generally have an overwhelming amount of applicants with stellar academics and testing. In fact, 25% of students at these top colleges have a 1590 or 1600 on their SAT’s, and almost all of them have a GPA above 3.9 unweighted.
To get it, you need more than pure academics. What types of extra-curriculars do you do? Have you won any prestigious awards?
your list consists of 3 of the 4 most selective universities in the country. you reeeaaally need to do well on your standardized tests (1480+ sat score plus bomb sat subject tests). furthermore, do you have any safeties and matches? the schools on your list all have acceptance rates of 14% or lower… you need something specific and special to you that sets you apart from everyone else in the applicant pool.
I’m a rising senior so take my advice with a grain of salt…
Assuming that you get a 1500+, you’ll at least have a shot at these schools. However, your ECs could use some work. One thing that I wish I knew earlier was how much colleges value leadership roles and community service, the latter of which you seem to need to work on. Additionally, (this is just what it looks like from my view) you don’t really have a standout EC or something that takes up a lot of time. For instance, varsity cross-country & track take up most of my time, and even though they don’t pop out on an app, most admissions officers know that a varsity sport or something of that nature occupies a lot of free time. Essentially what I’m trying to say here is that it looks like you have some time on your hands to get involved with more stuff. Colleges LOVE when students take an initiative to further their interests by starting a club or charity. I would advise you next summer to apply for an internship in a career that you are interested in or find a “regular” job.
Also, I would advise you to set up some safety schools bc grades and scores alone only get you past automatic rejection and do not guarantee acceptance to the schools on your list. Good luck on your Gold Award, I’m trying to finish my eagle scout project at the moment.