Hi!! I am going into my senior year of high school and I want to know my chances for this school. I currently have a 4.72 weighted gpa and a 3.8 unweighted. my APWH score was a 4, and my APUSH was a 5. By the time im done with high school, i will have taken 10 AP classes. My SATs are quite low, theyre only 1190. However, i have many extracurriculars. I ran a voter registration event at my school and registered the most people to vote in my state and my states secretary of state presented me with a special award. I am also a fellow at the Democatic National Committee and i spend a lot of volunteer hours there. Prior to my DNC fellowship, i regularly volunteered at food banks. I have been student director (professional directors right hand man) at my schools musical for three years (it is a 200 person production). I have been stage manager for 3 productions, and i am the Senior Representative for my schools Thespian troupe. I am also a member of the national honors society. Thank you for reviewing this!!
Your EC’s, GPA and rigor are good, but 1190 is in the bottom of the 25%-75% average. You might consider applying test optional. I would ask your area admissions counselor for advice on this. If you are applying RD then the acceptance rate is 23%. If you were applying ED then the acceptance rate is 85%. Make sure to demonstrate interest as that is one AU’s top criteria for acceptance. There are regional advantages so it might make a difference if you were from an area that’s underrepresented.
What is your financial situation? Because while it is known that AU’s early decision program accepts more students than RD, it is also important to note that they give less financial aid to ED kids. Continuing with the financial theme, if you don’t submit your SAT scores then you can’t recieve a merit scholarship but @sahmkc was right, it might hinder your chances on getting accepted so it might be best to apply test optional. Your extracurriculars are perfect for AU, your interests and skills are definitely something that they will put more importance on if you apply test optional. The last thing to keep in mind however, is that AU has a record for rejecting kids with top grades (for RD) if they believe the student could be using the school as a safety. (That’s why they put so much emphasis on showing interest). So in conclusion, I think you can get it in, but I would recommend applying test optional and if it isn’t too much of a financial burden, and if you know AU is your top school, then apply ED.
@LiliVoss “it is also important to note that they give less financial aid to ED kids. Continuing with the financial theme, if you don’t submit your SAT scores then you can’t recieve a merit scholarship”
From the AU website:
Please note that applying to American University without submitting your standardized test scores will not affect your consideration for merit awards or admission to the AU Honors Program. https://american.edu/admissions/freshman/test-optional.cfm
Additionally AU told us that going ED versus RD does not affect your financial aid. My son was given Merit Aid even though he was ED. I can’t tell you that he would have got the same amount if he had been RD - there is no way to prove this either way. He may not have gotten in RD as he was in the high stats category that AU feels may be using the school as a back-up.
@sahmkc Thank you for making that clarification, I was unaware that American did offer merit aid despite not submitting SAT scores as most do. However, from talking to some of my friends who applied ED, compared to those who applied RD, there is a difference in the size of package despite coming from similar financial backgrounds. Plus I know from my own experience when applying RD, you have more time to negotiate compared to applying ED. In fact, I was advised by two different admissions counselors to not apply ED if financing was a point of concern, because they could not garuntee that the full need would be met.
Now it is different based on every individual and every situation and this is an overly-simplified statement. From everyone I’ve talked, most kids who apply to American apply RD because they have lower stats or perhaps becaus they are concerned about financials or because they are unsure about attending. People who apply ED know they want to go to American and are possibly less concernedabout the financial package.
Interest is key with American at the end.
@LiliVoss “Interest is key with American at the end.” - Yes - especially if you are going RD! I advise OP to get to know their area admissions rep. Make a registered visit to AU if possible. I know they also have webinars that students who are out of area can attend. If AU is at your HS or a college fair near you - go meet the rep - even if you have already met them before.
So I am actually going to American this fall and I went through this entire process last year. I’d say you have an extremely good shot about getting in. Your academic focus and extracurricular passions are strong. They don’t require you to send ACT/SAT scores, I didn’t send mine although they might’ve changed the rule for this year. One of the biggest things I came to realize when trying to get into American is demonstrated interest. It’s such a bigger component than I ever realized. Join the online seminars, reach out to the admissions director for your region, and go to the college fairs near you when they are in attendance.