Chance/Reverse chance a 3.5 gpa URM for Harvard CS

Chance Me / Match Me!
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Demographics

Living in Mississippi, immigrant from St Kitts
Public school
Edited: Female, ethnically mixed African, native American

  • Other special factors (first generation to college, legacy, athlete, etc.): URM
  • Income:
    Not sure, I think around ~350k or something but not sure
    Intended Major(s): CS

GPA, Rank, and Test Scores

  • Unweighted HS GPA: 3.52/4
  • Weighted HS GPA (incl. weighting system): 3.8/5
  • College GPA (for transfers): N/a
  • Class Rank: N/a
  • ACT/SAT Scores: 27

Coursework

2 APs (all school had offered, 5 in seminar, 4 in stats)

Senior year course load: myth, art, ap music theory, ap psych, apes, precalc honors

(AP/IB/Dual Enrollment classes, AP/IB scores for high school; also include level of math and foreign language reached and any unusual academic electives; for transfers, describe your college courses and preparation for your intended major(s))

Took free python classes on Coursera

Awards
Presidential service Gold (founded coding non profit for Algerian children)
Got school award from Alg 2 teacher
College board National African American Recognition award
Extracurriculars
(Include leadership, summer activities, competitions, volunteering, and work experience)

conducted wastewater treatment research under professor at ole miss, took free online python classes, internship at local family eatery, president of BSU, events director of Girls Who Code (GWC), team manager for girl’s pickleball team, hobby photography
Paid internship at local pizza shop, 3 weeks

Essays/LORs/Other

Got awesome rec from prof, 11/10
Alg 2 rec, 8/10

Wrote about my formative experiences as a child growing up near Basseterre (capital of St Kitts) and how they shaped me as an individual. 9/10

Schools
(List of colleges by your initial chance estimate; designate if applying ED/EA/RD; if a scholarship is necessary for affordability, indicate that you are aiming for a scholarship and use the scholarship chance to estimate it into the appropriate group below)

  • Safety (certain admission and affordability)

Ole Miss
Miss state
Jackson state
Tougaloo college
Bama
UNC chapel hill

  • Likely (would be possible, but very unlikely or surprising, for it not to admit or be affordable)

Duke
Howard
UCLA
USC
Irvine

  • Match

Brown
Harvard (REA)
Vanderbilt

  • Reach

Stanford
MIT

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Wow, it’s really clear that you care about your community helping Algerian kids. Considering your BIG hook, I would add Brown to the “likely”. Colleges will see your hook and admit compared to those without the hook but with similar incomes. With a 27 on your ACT (a solid score), I’d say you have around a 50% chance at Harvard. Flip a coin, and figure out if you’ll make it :slight_smile:

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You’ve got a great background. Why so many safeties? Of the three publics in MS, is there a favorite? They’ll be quick admits as will Bama. Bama won’t be cheap based on your grades although they have diversity scholarship.

UNC - is a no - not a safety.

Duke, UCLA, USC and Irivne are a no.

Brown, Harvard and Vandy are no - as are your reaches.

I think your safeties minus UNC are reasonable.

Best of luck to you - and keep doing what you’re doing.

PS - get with your folks - $350K is a lot of money that few earn - because the UCs will be very expensive and you need to ensure you can afford.

I think you need to step back - and revisit the list unless you are happy with the safeties - and MSU would be solid.

Good luck.

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Alright, but are you saying that MSU is the best school I can get into? Got it, tsbna44.

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Op said is a male in first message. No one said only MS State. I rated the list provided.

Ms State is a good school btw.

If you put up a chance me, don’t criticize those who answer. This is our opinion, in this case mine.

As you apply you’ll get the actual answer.

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Hey, I am not a guy (I headed girls who code, for god’s sake), I just copy-pasted a post template and I forgot to edit that out.

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this list seems very polarized with high reaches and safeties and not much if anything in the middle.
UNC CH is not a safety OOS for anyone.
Brown, Harvard, Vanderbilt are not matches for anyone, they are always reaches.
Duke, UCLA, USC are reaches for anyone, too.

did someone guide you in putting this list together?
does your school rank? it doesn’t seem like you would be near the top of your class.

If CS is your goal, why Harvard, anyway?

as far as the original question, that’s a low GPA for Harvard and I wouldn’t expect to get in. So go for it, but be sure you like your safeties. and maybe add some mid-tier schools.

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Are you an American citizen?

Are you a HS senior now?

My opinion


I think your list of safety schools are all safety schools except UNC-CH. NC caps OOS enrollment, and it’s competitive anyway.

I think the rest of your list
well
I’m not sure the matches are matches. I think many if not most are reaches. Except Howard
which is likely a match.

However, it sounds like you have a compelling background story. So schools with holistic admissions will likely take that into consideration.

So
apply and see. And very good luck to you!

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You can correct your opening post by using the Edit feature (pencil icon).

Congratulations on your accomplishments to date. You seem like a great student and you will end up at a great school. I do agree with @tsbna44 that your classification of your chances is overly optimistic. Many 4.0 36/1600 students will be rejected at the Ivies and other selective schools
 there simply are not enough spaces for all who apply.

All you can do is present an application that highlights your strengths and makes you standout. URM status and from Mississippi may help a bit. I would not submit the 27 ACT to selective schools
 check the mid-range ACT at all schools applying to and don’t submit your score if below 25%. Can you estimate your class rank? Top decile? Top quartile? If your UW 3.52 places you near the top of your class that will be a big positive as, respectfully, on its own it is not competitive at many of the schools you’ve listed.

It appears you will be full pay based on the income you mentioned. Please confirm with your parents that they are willing to pay up to $85k per year, as that is what some of these schools will cost.

How did you come up with your application list? Some of the most respected CS schools are missing. Why not “reach” for a Purdue or WPI, as examples? Have you researched the schools on your current list? What do you like about them? I do think you need more schools that better fit with your stats. On the surface, it seems you chose safeties and then a random list of prestigious schools. Which is okay as long as you won’t be disappointed if you’re only accepted at your safeties.

Safety - You can reduce the number of safeties to 2 favorites (that are affordable and you’d like to attend).

Ole Miss
Miss state
Jackson state
Tougaloo college
Bama

Match - Your list is lacking in this category IMO

Howard - I think this is the only match on your list.
Take a look at:
RPI - high match based on your GPA
Univ Missouri - St Louis
Truman State

Reach - Any school with an acceptance rate under 20% and/or gives preference to in-state students.

Irvine - being full pay may help however UCs will give preference to in state students. High Match/Low Reach? You need to calculate your GPA per the Rogerhub site (see link provided by @Mwfan1921 below) and confirm you meet the a-g requirements for the UCs. If you don’t, no need to apply.
Duke
UCLA - see note on Irvine
USC
UNC chapel hill
Brown
Harvard (REA)
Vanderbilt
Stanford
MIT

(Edits for typos and clarity)

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You mentioned “GWC” in your post. For those not in the tech industry it’s not clear what GWC is.

That’s not @tsbna44’s fault. He’s going by what you posted - and if you’re posting to ask advice please be respectful to those who answer. Same goes for your friend @puzzyleek.

Back to your list: UNC is a match not a safety. UCLA is a reach because you’re OOS.

Your profile and background story might help you at Harvard and Stanford.

But I also agree that Harvard (and Brown) aren’t the best fit for CS. There are plenty of leading CS schools that aren’t on your list. Unfortunately some of them admit almost their whole class EA.

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What exactly is this hook?

I do think the accomplishments of this student will be viewed well by schools that admit holistically.

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Congrats on your achievements.

Need to know if you are a US citizen/permanent resident, or are applying as an international student.

What are your UC GPAs? GPA Calculator for the University of California – RogerHub

The professor LoR is not going to satisfy the requirements for a core course teacher at the schools that require two recs. Can you get another rec letter from a junior or senior year teacher? MIT prefers a rec from a non-stem core teacher in addition to your algebra 2 rec.

Only having math through pre-calc may give some of the schools pause for a desired CS major. What was your math ACT score?

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@julia_md12 I agree. If you edit your opening post to correct your gender, I suggest spelling out rather than using acronyms. I’m actually familiar with Girls Who Code and still completely missed that on first read.

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I was distracted by OP’s rudeness and missed reading her course list properly. My bad.

Agreed, OP is missing essential coursework the top colleges expect to see in CS applicants.
@julia_md12 - are there additional math and science classes you’ve taken but not listed?

Your research and internship don’t demonstrate an interest in CS, so unfortunately they may not help much at the highly rejective colleges.
Being from Mississippi will help though.

How strong are your supplemental essays?

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I also agree, like the very experienced people who have responded, that you have miscategorised your list. Several of your safeties have very simple applications with no essays and I don’t see the harm in applying if you can do so without paying the application fee. However, if you have to pay it that is several hundred dollars so you may want to narrow it down

UNC Chapel Hill is a reach. This is true for almost everyone applying out of state. The legislature in North Carolina caps the number of out of state students and they generally only have 12% out of state enrolled.

I think you’re missing a lot of schools that are strong for CS. I too am curious who helped you put this list together? Computer science is arguably the most competitive major in the country with the lowest acceptance rate even at schools that accept a lot of people. At schools like the ones on your list where the acceptance rate is super low, computer science is generally even lower.

It doesn’t appear that much research has gone into this list? Applying to all of the schools will likely be over $1000, and attending some of them will be $80,000+. Unless your parents have another income stream or live well below their means that amount (after taxes) may be higher than they are willing or able to pay. Are they willing to pay for this if you get in? Can they?

I understand you are URM with a compelling story. Being from Mississippi may help. Where you are in your class will be very important. These schools will know based on your school profile where you fit. Being at the top of your class will be important even as URM for these schools. Also, many don’t make any sense for CS.

Are you a junior? Best chance at a lot of these schools is ED, REA, EA which has already passed for most places.

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Well
have a conversation with your parents to be sure they are on board with the costs of some of these colleges. If their income is $350,000 a year, it’s highly unlikely you will get need based aid anywhere in your list. And I’m not sure about merit aid either given your stats (@ucbalumnus what aid would this student get at MSU).

Find out what your parents are willing to contribute annually for four years. That is your budget.

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Might I remind members of the forum rules: “Our forum is expected to be a friendly and welcoming place, and one in which members can post without their motives, intelligence, or other personal characteristics being questioned by others,"

http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/guidelines

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Congratulations on your accomplishments. UCLA had a 5.4% admit rate for CS and UC Irvine had a 7.1% admit rate so both schools would be Reaches.

The UC ‘s consider 3 UC GPA’s in their application review and under a 4.0 UC capped weighted GPA makes these schools unlikely.

The UC’s do not consider race/ethnicity in their admission decisions, have capped OOS enrollment and are test blind.

Since affordability doesn’t seem to be a factor, there is no reason not to apply but you will be full pay at around $67K+/year.

Best of luck and find some Match schools for a more balanced list. UC Santa Cruz and UC Riverside could be in the Match category and possibly UC Davis if you want to attend a UC.

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The gpa and score are low for an upper class applicant regardless of URM hook. No class rank from a Mississippi public school? If applicant is not at the very top of that cohort, elite admissions are unlikely.

Btw young men do coach women’s clubs and sports as well as the reverse.

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