<p>Son a junior in excellent public high school in MA. Has a 4.7 weighted GPA (out of 6.0) -- have no idea how this translates on the 4.0 scale but he is a B student, having taken 3/4 of his classes at the Advanced level. Will take 3 APs next year (Bio, Stats, Latin); President of Latin Club; varsity golf and crew; few other clubs at school throughout high school and has done a bit of volunteering.</p>
<p>School doesn't rank but he's in top 30% (75/260).</p>
<p>SATs: 700M, 620CR, 520W -- will take again in June. How much does the Writing section actually count?</p>
<p>Also, not applying for financial aid -- does this even matter?</p>
<p>Anyone out there with honest opinion would be most appreciated! Thanks.</p>
<p>I think a lot will depend on the reputation of the high school. The SATs look good enough and Holy Cross has a big need for athletes since over 25% of the students are on Division 1 teams. Sounds like a slight reach.</p>
<p>Thanks collegbounder. He's no athletic superstar so I don't think the recruiters will be banging down the door! Lots of kids from our town apply to and are accepted at HC so they definitely know our high school very well. I know HC doesn't require SATs any more -- would you suggest sending them? Thanks.</p>
<p>I think it is reasonable to assume his scores will up after taking them again and I would definitely have him take a test prep class. Either way I would recommend sending them in.</p>
<p>Thanks for your info. Did you or do you go to HC? Do you think the fact that we're not applying for FA will hold any weight?</p>
<p>When I went to HC for my interview, they recommended sending in SAT scores only if the first two sections totaled at least a 1300, which your son's do. So yes, I would send them when he applies, especially because he is a junior and the scores are likely to go up.</p>
<p>I am quite certain that not applying for financial aid can be a tie breaker as they have many candidates on the borderline.</p>
<p>Because HC is an SAT optional school, they look deeply into GPA and EC's, especially community service</p>