Chances at Top Schools (Unique Background)

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Hey guys,
I just wanted to know what my chances are for these schools. Feel free to post any advice and stuff like that, I could really use the help. If you could chance with things like "match" "reach" etc, I'd also appreciate that. (By the way, you may have seen that I have already made one of these a while ago, but <strong>this has been updated</strong>) Thanks! I'll try to chance back</p>

<p>Here are the schools:
Cornell University (will visit and most like apply ED)
University of Virginia
University of Miami
Penn State UP
Uconn
UMaryland CP (visited)
University of Notre Dame
University of Texas at Austin
Emory University (visited)
University of Southern California</p>

<p>Maybe: Georgetown, Lehigh, Columbia (dad went to graduate school here), Dartmouth (will most like apply early action to whichever schools apply)</p>

<p>I would say my top choices are Cornell (in-state Early Decision), UVa (oos), and USoCal; and Im interested in Business. I will be needing some financial aid.</p>

<p>Stats/Info:
-junior, Black/African-American male
-GPA: 3.85 UW (no weighted at my school)
-PSAT:191
-SAT: 1940 (CR: 670, Math: 620, Writing 650---Essay:8) </p>

<p>-Honors Geometry, Honors English 9, Honors Global History, Honors Biology</p>

<p>EC's:
-Chess Club
-Varsity Soccer--Captain (3 years)and also on a Nationally ranked and globally recognized soccer team
-Future Business Leaders--(Treasurer 2 years)
-Model UN
-National Achievement Scholar Award
-National Junior Honor Society (does this count?)
-Volunteered at an African village of Azope in Ivory Coast to help reconstruct homes and other community services (around 30-50 volunteer hours)
-Made a Tutoring business and made an organization out of it
-Honor Roll for all years
-Emory precollege program
-I work on my father's rubber tree plantation and will soon take complete ownership of it
-Won First Place award and a second place award in the schoolwide science fairs
-Schoolwide History Fair
-I taught myself to speak fluent French in about a year
-Taught myself to play cello, clarinet, xylophone and african djembe, member of the Advanced Orchestra</p>

<p>Background: Well I'm a US citizen from NY, but when I was 15 (10th grade) we moved to the Ivory Coast in West Africa and that's where I live now; it's one of the poorest countries in the world, but it's our families home. (I'm planning on writing my essay on this experience.) At my old school I did honors classes and stuff but here at my new school they don't offer such courses. There's also a lack of clubs and activities here. I also coached myself to take the AP English exam, since there are no AP classes here. It is also my goal to be the first student my school has sent to an Ivy League Institution (no one has been accepted from here or has even applied in about 10 years, I want to make my school proud!)
Thanks for reading this, and any of your messages/advice will be appreciated!</p>

2

<p>Your story is really cool but you definitely need to raise your sat to get into some of those schools especially cornell </p>

3

<p>Okay so here’s the deal. You have a good story, Good EC’s, and your ethnicity will benefit you, but your SAT is low. If you retake the SAT and make a considerable improvement, you will have a shot at these top schools. </p>

<p>Based on your current SAT score:
Cornell: Reach
UVA: Reach (as it as for most OOS)
UMiami: High Match
PSU: Match
UConn: Match
UMD College Park: Match
Notre Dame: Low Reach
UT Austin: Reach
Emory: Reach
USC: Reach</p>

<p>Hope this helps! But seriously…retake that SAT and you’ll have a good shot at any of these schools!</p>

4

<p>OK, thanks guys. I will be retaking the SAT in June. Anyone else please???</p>

5

<p>Is your family able and willing to pay for aany of those schools…some up to 60k per year?</p>

6

<p>Well, I know I will be applying for aid wherever I go…</p>

7

<p>Well depending on your income, you may or may not get good aid. You are definitely going to want to bring up your SAT for merit scholarships. At least try to break the 2000 threshold.</p>

8

<p>I’m not good nor experienced with chancing so…but advice would be: DON"T APPLY/GO TO USoCal! Spare yourself,please.Your a great student and I know you’ll get into great schools, but my sis’s experience @ USC makes me wary of that trash hole D:(no offense to thoses @ USC,of cousre)</p>

9

<p>Ivy Leagues are far out of reach unless you’re around 2200 or so.</p>

10

<p>Ok, thanks guysInteresting statement, @KimberlyLaila‌ ‌, what about the school makes you say that? Its one of my top choices… :confused:
Any more chances and comments will be appreciated!!</p>

11

<p>You do need to bring up your SAT a lot and also your GPA for most of the schools on the list as they are very high reaches for you. In other words, you should probably work on your school list again and put in less reaches, more matches, and add a couple safeties.</p>

12

<p>Ok. I’ll do more research, thanks. Anyone else?? I’ll chance back…</p>

13

<p>You should probably repost once you have your June SAT scores, if there is considerable improvement. In the meantime, you should run the Net Price Calculators on these schools to determine which you an afford. Good luck!!</p>

14

<p>Ok, anymore chances in the meantime…?</p>

15

<p>Assuming no dramatic increase in your SATs (hopefully there will be though),</p>

<p>Emory, Cornell, UT Austin and Notre Dame are reaches. UVA and USC are high matches/low reaches, rest are low matches.</p>

<p>You’re applying to quite a few state schools though… I doubt you’ll get much aid from them as an OOS applicant, so I don’t know if you’ll be able to afford them.</p>

16

<p>Ok, thanks, I’ll see what I can do with the SAT score I guess…</p>

17

<p>Bump</p>

18

<p>Just one more chance guys…?</p>

19

<p>…</p>