<p>I posted a thread here once long ago, but now that the year is over and I have my AP scores, I thought it was time to ask again. I'm a rising senior with:</p>
<p>-4 years of Band, including Marching Band. Will be editor of Band newsletter during senior year.
-A year of forensics (impromptu speech) over junior year, won numerous tournaments and came 5th in the state
-National Honor Society, including tutoring my former 8th grade English teacher's students (since 10th grade)
-3.84 UW gpa, idk weighted
-Honors English since 9th grade, All A's there
-A.P. World History in 10th grade, Government in 11th: 5's on both their exams. A's in both classes.
-Self-studied European and US history junior year, got a 4 and a 5 (classes not offered at my school, few APs are)
-Took Spanish for 2 years, will have taken German for 2 years. Will have Spanish for 3 years if they can fix my senior schedule.
-30 ACT score
-Taking AP Lit, both AP Econs, and AP CPS next year. Econ might not run since a few people are dropping it, but I'll still take the exams.
-Top 10 percent of class
-I have kythosis (spinal issues) due to almost dying at birth, so I've had weekly physical therapies since the beginning of my life, sometimes up to 3 a week at certain points. This takes up more time than any extracurricular or anything, but I'm not sure if I should mention it. </p>
<p>Everything would be higher if not for freshman year...I had lots of emotional troubles and got 2 C minuses in Geometry, and somehow, an A minus in band! (gasp!)</p>
<p>After a 3.65 freshman gpa, sophomore year was 3.96, junior year 3.9. So, do you guys think I have a shot at UM? If I can get in, I have another question: because my parents work at MSU, I get automatic half off tuition. Is UM worth the giant price difference? I doubt I'll get any aid there. </p>
<p>Additionally, I am in state. Are there any other schools I should apply to?</p>
<p>If I were you, I would apply to U of M, MSU, and probably GVSU. There are no sure things with U of M so you need a safety, and MSU would be common safety. I also said GVSU since I am an alumnus and biased of course, and you would get quite a bit of scholarship money from them if money is an issue. GVSU could even be less than MSU even with it being half off. Regardless, I think you have a decent shot of getting into U of M. It depends on your major and financial situation for U of M vs. MSU but I would say U of M in most situations.</p>
<p>you WILL get in. great gpa. act 30’s isn’t that bad.</p>
<p>Make sure that Michigan knows about some of your issues. If you want to go to some up-and-coming schools that are pretty good with providing financial aid and are pretty liberal in handing out scholarships i would definitely suggest applying to Northeastern, or University of Miami (FL).</p>
<p>op – definitely mention any adversity you have had to overcome. It will make you stand out.</p>
<p>Is UM (full price) worth it over MSU (half-price). No one here can answer that question for you. There are certainly many in-state students who choose to go to private schools (Harvard, Yale, etc.) over UM or other schools that offer full scholarships, because they decide it’s worth it.</p>
<p>Others don’t think that the extra cost will ever be recouped. No one really knows the answer. I suggest a talk with your parents. While UM has a much better reputation than MSU, the impact on your family is something that should be considered.</p>
<p>30 is like low middle ACT. But you are instate, top 10 percent, and have a pretty good GPA. So, if you apply EA, you have some high chance</p>
<p>I like your chance and wholly believe you should discuss your upward trend and physical/time challenges. I also think you should apply to all of the schools and then determine with your family which offer fits with both your family means and what you want to study.
You didn’t mention what instrument you play or what you want to study. The latter would help us evaluate the significance of the cost differential.</p>
<p>By way of example, if umich were to decide that your performance in the face of adversity warranted the Michigan tradition scholarship of 10,000 then umich would actually be the same price or cheaper than msu.</p>
<p>In terms of rigor and reputation, umich is world class and in state students are fortunate to have such an opportunity to attend at in state prices considering that more than a third who attend are paying about 48k to be there.</p>
<p>At the same time, msu is an excellent regional research university with a great honors program. So I don’t think you can loose.</p>
<p>If your approach to study is more interdisciplinary and you like small lac style colleges, you might also wish to look at Kalamazoo. Best wishes!</p>
<p>Ps – due to your clear commitment to band, I would think you’d be delighted at umich due to the incredible number of ensembles available to top players even if you’re not at the school of music. Msu has elements of strong music programs too, but if you love music and want to play, minor, or access a studio for top instruction, remember that the umich school of music is roughly among the top ten u.s. Music programs!</p>