chances?? and how much do recs matter?

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of Michigan
1

<p>i'm currently a junior in MI, and i would LOVE to get into LSA at umich
however, i have to admit that i've just recently realized that i'm VERY behind college-wise, i've moved quite a few times and had to take all the foundation classes required for graduation (which change from school to school), which have put me behind the rest of most other juniors.. so far:</p>

<p>tests
-SAT: 1990 first time, 1950 second time (do colleges take your highest subscores and add them together or take the cumulative?)
-ACT: 29, dunno if i should retake
-APs: none yet, but will be taking gov and world history in these coming weeks; next year i'll be taking bio, physics, english, calc, maybe german
*hoping to take SAT II math, chem, and chinese soon
-not too much comm service.. about 50 hours, hopefully going to do much more this summer
-have a job
-clubs: key club, math olympiad, SADD (not an officer of any)</p>

<p>so basically what i have left are my letters of recommendation, but i'm not too sure how those will work out.. thus leading to my question: how much do those matter? im not too worried about the letter by my counselor, but my teachers'?</p>

<p>any suggestions would be GREATLY appreciated!!</p>

2

<p>how do you omit your GPA when asking for your chances?</p>

3

<p>No offense, but with the seemingly increasing difficulty of admissions, you're a little bit behind. </p>

<p>You're academic rigor sounds like it is on the low end, mostly due to your constant traversing of various areas. In your essays, you might want to mention that as the hardship overcome, explaining how you've manage to maintain friendships, good grades, etc. while having to move around so often.</p>

<p>Also, because of your low academic rigor, admissions counselors will most likely expect a higher GPA (near 4.0). </p>

<p>From that, I would consider retaking at least one of your standardized tests either in June or this upcoming fall. Colleges will take the highest score in one sitting (i.e. your 1990 at this point and your 29). From that, the tests are in the median. To help you gain admissions, you want to be a little higher the the top of the median (i.e. above 29 on the ACT). </p>

<p>Furthermore, in terms of extracurriculars, you're OK. A little bit trite and generic; consider running for an officer position at this end of this year and/or at the beginning of next year.</p>

<p>Furthermore, in terms of your recommendations, they can be your saving point. Again, no offense, but you're a little bit of a lacking applicant, and stellar recommendations can more than offset those inadequacies. Hope for very personal recommendations, rather than formulaic, prosaic recommendations.</p>

<p>Don't mean to detract or discourage, just trying to help. Good luck :).</p>

4

<p>sorry, gpa is 4.0 weighted, i'm not sure about unweighted</p>

<p>jxu613 - thanks so much!</p>

5

<p>Michigan doesn't weight...only 10th-12th grades are counted, + and - are dropped. Your ACT score is good enough and I suspect your GPA will be too, so you should work to improve what you can.</p>

<p>I don't think your SAT score is that strong, Michigan doesn't look at SAT II, so you might want to just omit sending them your SAT scores. 29 on the ACT is about the median, so work on improving that. Since you are from Michigan, you'll probably find it easier to improve your ACT than SAT. So if you bring the ACT up you should have a pretty good chance. But as of right now things look better than decent.</p>

6

<p>thanks!
so umich doesnt care that you take sat 2's? they dont even serve as a buffer on your resume?</p>

7

<p>Ask your counselor to find out what your uw GPA is. UM looks at that and the avg is usually around a 3.7-3.75 uw. Your ACT seems fine but this year was a new record for UM and as getting into college is going to be even more competitive till at least 2010-2011, getting around a 30-31 or around a 2100 on your SAT should really establish you as a very very competitive candidate. </p>

<p>Alot of schools who accept ACT dont require SAT 2's because the ACT covers alot of the basic knowledge covered in the SAT subject tests. If they dont accept the SAT 2's, they probably dont consider them becuase if they did, they would theoretically just say they used them.</p>

<p>If it makes you feel better I got into Michigan Out of State with a 3.45ish UW GPA (4.0 W) and a 2140.</p>

8

<p>I believe they say that they technically don't look at your SAT IIs; however, I, along with others, am a little dubious about that.</p>

<p>It's somewhat inevitable that admissions counselors will see your SAT II scores, considering it's on the same sheet/sheets as your SAT (when you send your SAT score, you send all SAT scores and SAT II scores; UMich takes the highest of one sitting).</p>

<p>As such, if you can score 700+ on whatever subjects you decide to take, I would highly recommend you take the SAT IIs. Having high scores on the subject tests shows specialty, which sets you apart from other applicants (in a good way).</p>

<p>Depending on which schools/programs you apply to, make sure to check the minimum requirements. SAT IIs are gaining popularity among universities and colleges, as many of them are now requiring at least two subject tests.</p>

9

<p>If they say they don't look at SAT IIs, they probably don't. (Hoedown can probably verify this...) So if your ACT score is looking a lot better than your SAT, don't send your SAT!</p>

10

<p>=/ i already sent my SAT scores when i signed up to take them..
i also signed up for the june SAT a few weeks ago..</p>

<p>also would you suggest early admissions for michigan in my situation, and maybe at least get a deferral? if i take the first ACT offered for 07-08, do you think i'd get my score in time, before the deadline for early admission?</p>