Chances at US and UK schools

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Please chance me. I'm a junior and so theres still stuff to fill in.</p>

<p>Freshman: 4.0 UW (regular run of the mill classes)</p>

<p>Sophomore: 4.0 UW
AP French Language - 5
AP Calculus AB (self-study) - 5
AP Euro - 5</p>

<p>Junior (projected): 3.8-4.0 (hopefully)
AP Econ (Micro and Macro) - pretty sure of 5 on both
AP French Lit - 4/5
AP English Lit - 4 (hopefully)
AP Calculus BC -5
AP US History - 5</p>

<p>SATs: probably over 700 on each (around 2250 or 2300)
Subject Tests: around 750 on French, 700 on US History, 750 on Math</p>

<p>Senior Year schedule:
AP Physics
AP English Lang
AP Chinese
Higher Calculus
IR/Game Theory
Senior Thesis
Arts classes (I procrastinated on these)</p>

<p>EC: Tennis all 4 year, skiing quite often
Debate - second semester freshman and all of sophmore year
Math Club - Some local awards
Knowledge Bowl (varsity team starting junior year and we usually get 1st in state)
Robotics (I'm hoping for a serious business management position this year, we did fantastic in freshman year - sems in natl tournament)
Awards: 2007 French Contest Laureat, AP Scholar at end of soph year, and likely National Scholar at the end of junior, (awards mostly come at end of junior year, so we'll have to wait and see)
Middle School: 4th in state at geo bee and 4th in national at christian school spelling bee (but i dont think these matter at all)
CTY: Summer camps at LA and Carlisle</p>

<p>Could you chance me at Oxford in UK, LSE, Georgetown, UCHicago, UWashington, Stanford, UPenn (Wharton)
This is still tentative since junior year is still full of possibilities (hopefully my estimates are low and i do better)</p>

2

<p>EC:
Smoking blunts (7 hrs/week)</p>

3

<p>oh and i'm also doing like the required 8 hours of Community service per year, but i am planning on helping out at a camp in the summer (which is like 12 hrs/ day * 3 weeks = more hours than I could possibly need).
I am also going to a decently selective private school which is quite demanding (our regular classes are just as hard or harder than AP classes at public schools here).</p>

4

<p>Oxford is strictly numbers based. The higher GPA/rank/test scores/AP scores you get the better your chances are. Also be aware that Oxford basically gives no financial aid to US kids.</p>

5

<p>bump</p>

<p>anyone??</p>

6

<p>Hmmm, i wonder where cupcake and all the other oxford guys are??
Anyone here at georgetown or chicago??</p>

7

<p>bump (10 char)</p>

8

<p>If you get the 2200+ you expect, then you should get into Oxford.</p>

<p>And I wouldn't worry terribly about the financial aid thing, since everybody knows that the cost of college in England is less (and Oxford is not in London proper, where it is very expensive to live, but rather is about 35 miles away in a middle-sized city in the countryside).</p>

<p>P.S. I just visited Oxford back in August, and while the college is impressive, they need to work on their street routing system. With all the one-way streets and all the dead-ends, it's amazing anyone can park anywhere remotely close to the different colleges. You might want to do like a lot of people there and get a bike to get around town. Besides, it is as easy to get around England by train as by car anyway (except for the really small towns).</p>

<p>Also, since LSE is in the expensive part of London, if financial aid is a concern, then choose Oxford over LSE--otherwise consider LSE since London is a whole lot of fun (although it will be a major distraction from your studies).</p>

9

<p>I'd say your chances are decent for all these schools, though it is difficult to tell this early on. Good luck, and keep up the good work!</p>

<p>(Chance me back? <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/608723-i-d-adore-you-if-you-d-chance-me.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/608723-i-d-adore-you-if-you-d-chance-me.html&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p>

10

<p>thanks, calcruzer, your posts are always extremely helpful!
anyone else?? i'm really wondering about the US schools, to since it's hard at this stage to differentiate between myth and fact. Some people say its insanely hard to get into these schools and you could be denied even with a perfect app, others say chances are decent??</p>

11

<p>bump (10 char)</p>

12

<p>
[QUOTE]
Hmmm, i wonder where cupcake and all the other oxford guys are??

[/QUOTE]
</p>

<p>Submitting my thesis, moving my stuff to my new house for my new job (start 2nd Jan) and going to Australia for Christmas.....</p>

<p>I don't think there is anything more to say about Oxford in terms of entrance requirements. All that's important are your grades, personal statement and then the interview (assuming you get one). ECs are disregarded at all UK schools. The deadline for Oxbridge application is 15th October for an interview in the UK, 20th Sept for an overseas interview. </p>

<p>I WOULD worry about finances. A LOT! You will get ZERO financial aid (the actual term doesn't mean anything here) and living in the UK is VERY expensive. People often post the UK schools are cheaper than the US because they're only 3 years. In my opinion you are very unlikely to make any saving due to the higher cost of living.</p>

<p>Everywhere in England is cheaper than London ..... apart from Oxford and Cambridge! It's rent that's the killer. Very expensive. It's 60 miles from Oxford to London, and due to intensive 8 weeks terms, if you have time to go on lots of trips to the capital, you're not working hard enough!</p>

<p>You CANNOT park anywhere near any Oxford college, sinee students are bascially banned from having cars. It's not even an option. But the must-have-a-car-to-survive attitude is very much an American thing and you do not need one here. Funnily enough buldozing the centuries old streets of Oxford to accommodate a parking lot would probably not be popular here.</p>

13

<p>bump
anyone for the US schools?</p>

14

<p>I applied to similar schools last year, and I'm in my first year at oxford now. For the US schools, keep up the extracurriculars (great list), and get the projected SAT scores. With that done, and a good essay, you would have pretty decent chances at the schools you've listed, with U Washington and Georgetown being on the easier side and Stanford and Wharton being on the other side, and U Chicago really being somewhere in the middle depending on how unique your essay/ application is. I think that this is not a bad starting list, dependent on your junior year grades, because they're not ALL the tippy-top reaches, but for someone with very high scores/grades/ECs like you, getting in would not be impossible. oxford and lse, of course, are looking for slightly different things, but I think other people have already covered that topic (if you have any questions, message me now or later in the year, whatever).</p>

15

<p>I've heard UK schools require intense concentration, meaning 200-level work in your chosen discipline. Otherwise, I think your ECs are slightly weak, but you're looking good for Georgetown and UWashington, but the others are up in the air, basically.</p>

16

<p>Just picking up one of Calcruzer's points. 2200+ SAT won't guarantee you a place at Oxford. What it should do is guarantee you an interview when you will then be competing with all the other candidates who have got sufficiently high stats to be called to interview.</p>

17

<p>Oxford, while being a campus, isn't great logistically. And the lifestyle in Britain is a lot different than here.</p>

<p>Plus, you will get no financial aid. Unless you have rich parents or have been working a high-paying job to save for college (like I have been doing as a corporate web designer, and it still ain't helping much), going to Oxford for undergrad just ain't worth it (although it only costs around $28000 for fees, Oxbridge recommends around $20000 for living expenses).</p>

<p>I remember my junior year last year, I wanted to study at Oxbridge or the University of Manchester (so I could watch my beloved United and Leicester Foxes every week and meet family), but for the money and the education, it just ain't worth it.</p>

<p>I don't know if you even have the greatest stats for Oxford, and your ECs are decent (I usually don't like to rate your ECs, but you really don't seem passionate about any particular thing (besides Tennis, in which the field is so saturated that that doesn't count unless you're a blue-chipper) and don't seem too compassionate. Now remember, I judging based on a CC post, and you probably are a good person, but you need to delve into something that shows that to the colleges you want to go to.</p>

<p>I really think it's too early for you to come up with a definitive list, and I can tell you really don't know what you want to pursue yet.</p>

<p>Oxford in UK: If I were you, I'd just stay in the US and work hard enough to earn a Rhodes Scholarship. If you're that good, you can delay your Oxford education four years and not burn as big of a hole in your pocket. Plus the culture there is really different.
LSE: Same as Oxford.
Georgetown: I'd say as of now, you're a shoo-in. But why do you go here? If you want to pursue Med or Poly Sci, then this is a fit.
UChicago: It seems like you're a shoo-in, I don't know enough about UChi to give you an accessment.
UWashington: You'd only go here for med right?
Stanford: This would be a reach as of now, since so many qualified people like you apply here every year. And Stanford really looks for smart and well-rounded individuals.
UPenn (Wharton): Why? It doesn't seem like you wanna go into business from the other schools you are applying to... Do you really want the prestige? Are you looking to go into Wall Street, or are you an entrepreneur, etc.? And from your resume, Wharton is a reach (as it is for pretty much any other applicant, including myself this year). For Penn CAS, you seem like a good fit.</p>

<p>Good luck, you're pretty much set for going to a good school, but you really need to hold off on your college searching for now and look at that next summer. Find out what you wanna do first, and be logical with your college ambitions. Going across the pond for now doesn't make much sense.</p>

<p><a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/613297-hi-there-could-you-guys-chance-me-wharton-few-other-schools.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/what-my-chances/613297-hi-there-could-you-guys-chance-me-wharton-few-other-schools.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

18

<p>Thanks guys!
As for springbok's points, I'm Romanian and have grown up in a family with deep European roots so I'm quite familiar with the European lifestyle (I actually prefer it a little bit). As for the school system, I like the idea of the tutorial system and studying at such a historic college. The PPE program is what I'm interested in, and thinking about it, I think that is my "passion." I really enjoy philosophy (during my AP English class), politics, and economics and I'm deeply concerned with the news.
As for EC's, I hear Oxford and LSE don't care about them, which is another reason I like them. I consider myself a relatively compassionate person, but I feel as though I could do more for the world studying now and giving back in a leadership position later. I don't know, but I feel as though many kids just do community service to get stuff on their apps, which kind of defeats the purpose. Also, although I like PPE most and I'm almost positive I won't change my mind (it's pretty broad anyways), I have a pretty broad range of academic interests (math, science, foreign languages, too) and I've heard that US colleges like people with broad interests as much as those with close passions.
I'm hoping my predicted stats are below actual and I'm definitely going to push to get good AP scores and SAT's (which are the most important things for English schools). But I'm really interested in England since I like Europe and I'd like to work there and around the world later. Plus, I've heard the costs are actually much lower especially with the weaker british pound now.
I've started my college search now since England applications are in September next year so I have to get ready and gather some information about those schools.
As for UChicago, I like it since I want to do economics and it's one of the best in the world. UW is close by (4 hour drive) and it's decent (at least as a safety, if not more).
Anyways, please correct me if I'm wrong on any of this info. Any comments, opinions?</p>

19

<p>OK, your choices make a lot more sense now.</p>

<p>I think you're a good fit for now for most of the schools you have. Perhaps pursuing some extra course work in business and economics will help your cause. Are you interested in going to a business school, or doing classic economics (I think a lot of us are interested in PPE, or at lease Poly Sci and Econ)?</p>

<p>Wharton is still a reach (as it is for anyone), I dunno if UW has a good econ program. Chicago I think you're in (although I don't know much about the school), Stanford is a reach (I know they have a superb econ program).</p>

<p>I would also recommend you take a look at Michigan (Ross), Virginia (McIntire), MIT (Sloan), and Emory (Goizueta), if you're interested in doing business or econ.</p>

<p>I wholeheartedly agree with your point about community service, and it really peeves me that people "help" others for their own benefit. It's not right.</p>

<p>Nevertheless, while the international schools don't really care about ECs, the domestic schools want to gauge the type of person you are, and if you're really genuine and sincere, you need to "show" that (it's baloney, I know, but is there a better way?). Personally, I'm quixotic with my idealistic hopes of the future and my believe that everyone is good-hearted, and I share the same tenet as you on community service, that I do it because I care. But that doesn't deter me from finding causes I truly care about and doing my bit to help better the world.</p>

<p>From what I read, you're a good-natured person, but if you want to stay domestic, you need to "show" it more, as fake as that sounds.</p>

<p>If you're interested in Oxbridge, I'd try to pad the stats. I think you've got the potential to get through though, and good luck!</p>

20

<p>Thanks springbok,
I was browsing over the Stanford EA thread and was shocked at how important URMs, legacies, and ECs are. That's part of the reason England's so appealing (ECs dont matter at all, and you shouldnt even mention a legacy). Being first gen, i think legacies are quite unfair.
I think I'll try and do some hospital work over the summer and hopefully I'll play an important role on the robotics team (both economic and community-oriented).</p>