---Chances!!!---Appreciated!

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Berkeley
1

<p>Thank you SO much for taking your time!!!Please give me honest opinions.
I REALLY want to get in, one of my top choices..
LOCATION: Out of State Resident.
GPA(low?)Hardest Course Load: 3.77UW, 4.04(UCw), 4.34(W)uncapped
Took 7 Community College Classes, 10-11th: 4.0, with Honors Distinction
(I screwed up real bad in one semester, which brought my grade down.. 4 Bs.. However, brought all(cept 1) up second sem) 7 College Classes make up for those B's? I have about 6 Bs..10-11th
SAT I(M,W,V): 770,730,710: 2210
SAT II: 770,710
Rank: No Rank System
A-Gs:54-55
Honors&AP courses senior year: 5
Ethn:Asian-American with U.S. citizenship
Major: Economics
Extra-Curricular Activities(hopefully will save me):</p>

<p>Freshmen Class President, 2003~2004(Class size: ~470)
Sophomore Class President, 2004~2005
Junior Class President, 2005~2006
ASB President, 2006~2007(School size:~2000)
2006 Boys State Delegate
District Representative of my School(Elected): 10th,11th,12th
Asian-American Club: 9thRep, 10thVP, 11th & 12th Pres
Founder of Cancer Club: My father was diagnosed with Cancer, which motivated me to start this club and start funds for others. Raised about $500
(11th&12th President)
Hurricane Relief and AIDs Fundraisings: $1700
School Safety Commissioners: 450 Community Service Hours: 11th and 12th(Squad Leader)
Church Worship Team: 9th~12th(Leader): Every Sunday, I didnt keep track of com. service hours..
ASB Class: 10-12th, captain of many spirit committees. Takes too many hours of my life...but i love it..
Internship at a Congressional Office: 11th,12th: 2-3 times a week. 5-6 Hours a week.
Work Experience(at night): 8-10 Hours a week at a local Coffee Shop.(9th~12th)
TaeKwonDo: 1st Degree Black Belt(2 times a week)
Water Crew: 11th,12th(Leader)</p>

2

<p>I won't get into my usual rant, which many on this forum know. Let me just say: no one here will be able to give you a halfway decent idea on your chances with cal. Just apply, and hope for the best.</p>

<p>Be different.</p>

3

<p>Your EC's are great. I am not very familiar with Cal's OOS admissions policies, but i think Cal will be a slight reach/reach, for the simple fact that you're not an in-stater.</p>

4

<p>oh, I see thank you. Out of State resident decreases or lowers your chance?? any more replies?!=)</p>

5

<p>yes admissions for OOS is much more rigorous. it is widely thought that getting into Berkeley OOS is perhaps more competetive than getting into Ivy League schools.</p>

6

<p>Berkeley OOS acceptance rate is 4% for OOS (in US), 3% for international students.</p>

7

<p>I'm tired with these "Berkeley is impossible from OOS" comments. From the Office of Student Research at Berkeley, Fall 2005 data:</p>

<p>Out-of-State Applicants
TOTAL: 1063/4776 accepted, 22.3%
Freshman: 984/4380 accepted, 22.5%
Transfer: 78/391 accepted, 20.0%</p>

<p>Being out-of-state statistically lowers your chances- though not by much- and, theoretically, your chances aren't lowered by virtue of your state residency. With those same extracurricular activities and test scores, your chances for admission is determined by the following: (1) Berkeley admissions policies, (2) competitiveness of applicant pool. It is wrong to say that one's chances are lowered if they come from out-of-state (if one has incredible extracurricular activities and perfect test scores across the board, would one care about which state that particular applicant claims residency?) but you'd be correct to say that out-of-state admissions is very competitive.</p>

<p>I believe the OSR used to allow an option to sort SAT statistics by region, but since has reformatted their data listings. On average, though, OOS admitted students have higher SAT averages than California residents. While students with high test scores from OOS are commonly rejected, it is not unheard of that students with 1100 (1600 scale) SAT scores to be accepted from out-of-state. Of course, this is all playing around with numbers, which is the antithesis of what Berkeley Admissions Officers are concerned with, anyhow. While there seems to be a fairly sizeable margin between average SAT scores of in-state versus out-of-state applicants, there is one important consitency: if Cal believes you have the potential to contribute to the Berkeley community, you will be admitted. It's not always about ability to contribute academically- Cal has more than enough scholars in each incoming class- but also to the campus environment (the most recognizable extension of this is athletes, who compete in the name of the university, but equally important is a student's ability to contribute to the local community here, and this is where your extracurricular activities have greater weight).</p>

<p>It is very difficult to gauge what your chances are. From what I see, your extracurricular activities and test scores are very strong, which will make you competitive. Your chances will be dependent on a number of factors. Though you appear to be an intriguing applicant, if 1/2 the students created a Cancer Club at their high school, your chances will be lowered. This is why the essay is always important: it's not that you did such and such, any college wants to know WHY you did it and under what conditions. Believe it or not, which state you are from will actually make a difference. If you are from Kansas, and there are 20 Kansans applying your year, and they all have 2300 on SAT I, it will make you less competitive. Also, if you apply to an impacted major or college, your chances will also be lowered due to competition against both out-of-staters and in-staters; applying to the College of Engineering is not equal to applying to the College of Natural Resources. In terms of something more tangible, GPA seems to be your biggest hindrance. Reading statements from Admissions Officers, the most common reason why students with 1400+ (old SAT) from Out-of-State don't get into Berkeley is because their GPA is not up to par. At Berkeley, "par" is much higher than most colleges.</p>

<p>Hope that helps guide your reasoning as you complete the UC application,
TTG</p>

8

<p>generally speaking, is it easier to get into the college of natural resources than the college fo letters and science?</p>

9

<p>Not sure, actually. Comparing CNR to L&S is more of a running joke at Berkeley, "Oh, you're CNR?"</p>

10

<p>Thank you so much for the comments! I appreciate em! Is my GPA on the low side for Berkeley?</p>

11

<p>It is less than average.</p>

12

<p>the average UW is 3.82 and W is 4.25.</p>

13

<p>kk. any more replies?</p>

14

<p>to stryker: it's 4% of students are OOS and 3% are international; those are not the acceptance rates.</p>

<p>However, I do believe that it is more competitive. The fact that a lot fewer applicants apply from OOS and the amount accepted is much smaller, only the top OOS applicants are accepted. I posted this in another thread:</p>

<p>here are some stats of me and my friends (we're all from NJ). our high school was ranked 3rd in the state for SAT scores (average is around 1400 i think)</p>

<p>the two of us accepted:
me (international):
SAT I: Math-800 Verbal-700 Writing-740
SAT II: Math IIC-800 Chinese-800 Physics-780
APs: Calculus BC-5, Physics C Mech-5, Physics C E&M-5, US History-4
GPA: 98.1%
Extra curriculars: varsity tennis, varsity fencing captain, math honor society president, fbla secretary, a bunch of musical stuff
volunteer activities: chinese orphanage, local library, chinese school</p>

<p>friend A:
gpa: 99.1
SAT: 2140
SATII: 800 chem, 800 us history, 780 Math IIC
ECs: average</p>

<p>here are the other two kids in my class who applied and were rejected:
friend B:
gpa: around 95
SAT: 2340
SATII: 740 in all 3 of his SAT IIs
ECs: all-national/all-eastern/all-state chorus, nationally ranked in tae-kwon do, captain of golf team, varsity fencing, and a bunch of other national/state activities</p>

<p>friend C:
gpa:around 95
SAT: 2170
not sure of his SAT IIs
ECs: varsity fencing, not sure of his others</p>

<p>Hope this helps</p>

15

<p>Whenever reading chances threads and trying to play "Be the Admissions Counselor," the best methodology across the internet is to ask questions. In essence, this is what admissions officers do since they are pretty much in the position as I am: they are trying to get to know you, trying to understand you through paper and text. In helping you, I think the best I can do is to ask you a series of questions that you can answer on your own. This is what I typically advise for strong applicants, who on the surface appear to be competitive, but need to "close the gap" (a term I commonly use in helping others) through their essays; that is, DON'T GIVE ADMISSIONS REASON NOT TO ACCEPT YOU, DON'T LET ADMISSIONS REJECT YOU. The following are some things you can chew on until November:</p>

<p>What classes did you take at community colleges? Were these courses necessary to your development, as they seem to have had a negative impact on your high school schedule?
How is this Asian-American in such-and-such state any different that an Asian-American in-state? What perspectives can he offer than we cannot find in California?
** How was this person able to successfully get voted as class president through high school? What skills (leadership, social) does this applicant demonstrate?
What was the goal of the Cancer Club? What role did his own personal experiences play into the process of its creation? Why is this applicant only interested in dedicating his efforts to a health-related club in high school, but does not wish to carry it through college as a career choice? Why economics?
How did the Congressional Internship changed the applicant's life? What skills did the applicant developed? Under which Senator/Representative did the applicant serve?
Why did the applicant work at nights? Was it necessary? What was money earned used for, saved towards?</p>

<p>The answer will be your opportunity to show that you are a unique applicant, deserving to be admitted (note that I have not used the term "deserving" until now, as SAT scores are not a reflection as a legitimate representation of said term).</p>

<p>Best of luck,
TTG</p>

16

<p>ok, thanks a lot TTG..</p>

17

<p>"the average UW is 3.82 and W is 4.25."</p>

<p>are those UC gpa's (only 10th, 11th, and the weighted being capped)?</p>

18

<p>4.04 is capped, and 4.35 is my schools gpa..</p>

19

<p>aren't we forgetting THE most important part of any application? </p>

<p>the freakin essay.</p>

20

<p>yes the two GPA's above are UC GPA's for 10th-11th and the weighted GPA is capped at 8 semesters.</p>