Chances at CMU?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Carnegie Mellon University
1

I am a rising junior so some of this may change as I finish the last two years.

My unweighted GPA is a 3.93 and weighted is a 4.18. I am in the gifted program and I participate in the Science Olympiad, Math League, Executive Council, and I am in NHS. I was the FBLA regional president, and I am in FBLA. I have attended several leadership conferences and summer camps. I have two years of a STEM camp under my belt, which focused on robotics. I skipped regular biology and went straight to AP Bio my freshman year, and I am a math ahead of my grade. I’ve taken the maximum amount of AP classes available, and so far my lowest score is a 4 (on the bio). Additionally, (and I know these may not help at all, but I figured that they count as extracurriculars still). I volunteer at my church to operate the light board and I participate in youth group as well. My PSAT10 score is 1360, which I know isn’t great, but I’m looking to improve. Through the gifted program, I have opted out of most required electives (health, gym, etc) to take extra AP classes, such as APCS (my final grade in this class was 100%). I am Class rank 1 out of about 330. I also run my own sole proprietorship as a front end developer. I have multiple certificates in a variety of coding languages, and I have built a good number of projects. I have had 4 clients so far (as of 2 months of operation). I’m not sure that all of this was helpful, but I figured it might be, so it is included just in case.

Ideally, I would like to apply for the school of computer science, which I know is extremely selective. Do I have a chance at getting in?

2

It will be hard to say without an SAT score. Your GPA and transcript look great. Your ECs are okay but you should definitely add more CS related activities and you lack ‘wow’ factor. As long as you get a 1500+ you should have a chance.

3

Unfortunately, and you know this obviously, there is no such thing as a guaranteed chance, but your chances seem great so far.

You need a nice personal essay which is important at a top university like Carnegie.

You definitely have a decent chance at Carnegie as your GPA, rigor of classes, and extracurricular activities call for it.

I don’t know if you’ve taken some SAT subject tests, but if you want to enter computer science, you should take Math Level II and your choice of Physics, Chem, or Bio.

SAT: I would aim for 1500 as your SAT and to take the essay.

ACT: Aim for at least a 34 and please please take the essay.

Also, it’s okay if your PSAT10 score isn’t so great the first time. Just take it again and apply for the National Merit Scholarship in which will increase your chances by a ton.

Honor societies: Congrats on National Honor Society! That’s definitely a great start. If I were you though, I would try to apply to the Math Honor Society (if they have it at school) and Science Honor Society (again if available).

Clubs: Look for a robotics club. just for the extra edge.

Work: Look for some internship opportunities in a computer company to show off your computer experience (Microsoft, finances)

Final: A 4.1 GPA and lots of APs are not going to get you in, look for something that makes you stand out.

Good luck with your endeavors and keep up the great work!

4

Aim for a 1500+ on your SAT.
Do a LOT of computer science activities.
Show in your EC’s that you love CS.
Build some apps.
Build some games.
Be really ACTIVE on github.
Take an EDX course in CS or Data Science.
Found a computer science club or join.

5

@collegeboundprogrammer does EDX courses actually help? I would spent time investing in either searching for internships in companies or research opportunities. However, if you can’t find either, doing those is better than nothing.

Also, I would start participating in competitions like Robotics/Coding/CTFs. Winning these competitions will give you an edge against other applicants, because while making apps/games are great, how would you differentiate 2 applicants if they both made apps and games?

6

@idkName EDX courses are a way to gain knowledge that you might not have access to elsewhere. Knowledge that may be useful when looking for internships and research opportunities. If you have the chance to do either research or a course, do the internships. I agree with you about the competitions.

7

SCS has a lower acceptance rate than Stanford. Its ultra ultra selective.

Actually you dont need ANY Comp Sc “experience”. My son was admitted to Class of 2021 with just ONE AP Comp Sc class in his portfolio.

He is not a gamer, or coder nor did he have any monetized apps, or robotics championships nor did he invent/create Facebook or Google etc. None of his essays were about his love for Comp Sc. Neither the Common App nor the “Why CMU” essay

Zilch

He is exceptional in Math. Yes…
He took AP Calc AB & BC when he was in 9th grade and scored a 5
Took Def Eq in 10th
Multivar in 11th

He had 15 APs almost all with 5s
Ranked 7th in a 428 class

ACT 34

SAT II Math & Physics: 800

Demonstrated Interest is HUGE for Carnegie Mellon.
If you can visit, DO IT and You have to be super gifted in Math is my observation

8

@BoiDel You don’t have to be super gifted in Math but it is a huge plus. CMU CS Curriculum is very theoretical. They probably place more importance on Math than programming.