Chances at Vanderbilt Early Decision with low gpa, high(-ish) test scores??

Colleges and Universities A-Z Vanderbilt University
1

Vanderbilt has been a goal of mine for as long as I can remember (hence my intention to apply ED1). However, my grades are definitely below a lot of successful applicants on College Confidential.

I’m a rising junior at one of the top three schools in Tennessee
All of my classes are either Honors or AP
Projected GPA by the end of junior year: 3.4UW/4.01W (got an 84.47 in precal, which is 0.03 points off from a B at my school, and it’s really tripping me out, not sure how drastically it could impact admission)
APs I will have taken by the time I begin applying: AP Biology, AP European History, AP Human Geography, AP Physics 1, AP Calculus AB, APUSH, AP Comparative Politics (didn’t take the class, just the exam), AP Comp Sci Principles, AP Environmental Science (self study)

1450 SAT, 30 ACT (probably still too low for Vandy, will take again to try and get a higher score)

ECs:
Debate (numerous awards, consistently ranking 1st or 2nd, hoping to make it to nationals)
Model UN
Mock Trial
Internship at a Vandy lab
American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network Advocate (soon to be Ambassador)
Volunteer Work (500+ hours)
American Red Cross Volunteer
UNICEF Volunteer
Volunteer for gubernatorial campaign, 2016 presidential campaign, state senate campaign (mostly canvassing)
Class Vice President (9th and 10th grade)
National Beta Club
Yearbook Editing
Running a blog about politics
Planning on starting a political club at school junior year

Guidance counselor told me that applying with an undecided major will increase chances compared to applying with a really competitive major, so for now, I plan on applying Undecided. If not, likely in Medicine, Health and Society or Public Policy.

Please be honest with the chancing, and if you can give some advice on what I can do to further increase my chances, please let me know!

2

Your scores are still very low for Vandy. You will need to improve your SAT by 100 or ACT to around 34 to have a good shot, maybe even higher since your GPA is low. Vandy is very score and gpa oriented.

Also I am not so sure if your guidance counselor is right about applying undeclared as being advantageous. Many students switch their academic paths, so your intended major isn’t taken too seriously. There would be a difference if Vandy had multiple undergraduate colleges (CAS, Business program, nursing school, etc.)
In fact, I think many top schools want students who are passionate about something: medicine, business, politics, music, tech, etc. If you write about wanting to become a doctor and declare biology as your intended major, your chances won’t be any different than if you applied as an undeclared.

3

I think you will want to go ahead and specify and intended major if you can; your EC’s can be considered poignant in a sense for either of your potential interests, so I don’t think you stand to benefit as much as your counselor thinks you would. As per above, you will want to have an unreasonable high ACT/SAT if you would like to compensate for that GPA; they have quite a bit of holistic liberties, but they are, as @Dontskipthemoose points out, very score-based.

Personal experience: rejected RD with 31 ACT, 1450 SAT (although I might not have submitted that one due to fading interest), and 3.9 UW GPA/4.36 W GPA. Poignant (though not plentiful) EC’s. Showed very little interest (if you think that matters). Remember also that the increase in acceptance rates from RD to ED (this year 8.6% -> 23.6%) is cool, but it doesn’t increase your chance by ~200%; it’s not proportional like that with the applicant pools at such schools.

Not saying in any way that you won’t get in, but it will be hard.

4

Don’t be discouraged. Your chance for ED is still high if this link is correct (I found it from the other post about Vandy’s alumni accomplishment thread): https://www.act.org/content/dam/act/unsecured/documents/P_43_439999_S_S_N00_ACT-GCPR_Tennessee.pdf

The page 26 shows that your ACT score would be among the top 25% Vandy’s applicants in TN two years ago.
The allover all SAT and ACT range may not apply to your particular state due to Vandy is in TN and it normally takes about 1/6 of its income students from TN (more than other areas).

If your school uses Naviance for applying college, it will show you the past history on students from your school who have applied Vandy, their range of GPA, ACT, and SAT (applied by RD or ED). If your range is within the past acceptance range, you got a good chance, and better to compare that than from the chance me in CC. I think you can ask your school counselor for this info even if the Naviance is not yet available to you until later this year.

My D got in this year by ED, and her SAT was the same as yours at 1450 (she submitted ACT instead) and her first ACT was 31, but she improved to 33 by just practicing time-management in her math/science sections (she ran out of time in her both SATs and 1st ACT). She did have better GPA, but I do think your ECs will overcome that. Try to improve your ACT this summer, and it should help you greatly.

Good luck to your journey.

5

*Apply ED
*Get that GPA up, top U’s like you to be in the top 10% of your class (it helps their USWNR rank)
*EC’s seem scattered, almost like you are putting a check in as many boxes as possible. Top U’s “build” a well rounded class by accepted angulated students and putting them together. Run with your passion. They will take passion and depth over a shotgun of low commitment EC’s.
*study for SAT/ACT (I personally don’t believe VU weighs tests more than other top U’s, they just are attracting and enrolling more high stat students)
*Coming from a top TN school it is certain VU’s ADCOM has a record of what it takes to get in from your HS. HS’s without a history of VU admissions are somewhat in the blind over what it takes to get in. Your GC should be well aware of what it takes to get in. Meet with and get to know your GC. They could make or break a borderline applicant.
*Essay, and line up teachers who know you and will write a glowing LoR for you.

Note: VU is now a reach university for almost everyone.

6

I was accepted by Vandy this year; one thing I can say right off the bat is that you have decent ECs.

BUT

You, like others have said, really need to improve your gpa and test scores drastically. Although living in Tenessee gives you an edge over other out of state applicants, you nonetheless need to have competitive stats. Sorry to say, a 4.01 weighted will most likely result in a rejection unless you have a major hook. Additionally, your SAT/ACT scores are far below the mid 50% mark. With decent ECs and not so good objective stats, you can’t get into Vandy easily.

Btw, do you have subject tests? You absolutely need those.

7

you have time to really focus on standardized testing. Get the Ten Real ACTS and work them. Study the answers. The ACT is a test of endurance and thoroughness. Subject tests can also be ways to put down new cards as well as acing AP exams. Students at Vandy have already mastered memorization and rote learning so make sure you work on that while you have the time to prep. We came from a city where standardized exam prep was very sketchy and not much of an interest. Example…Duke son had taken 3 APs. One of his best friends in his freshman class at Duke had somehow aced 11 of them. This is a reflection of different standards in different high schools and communities. You are way more than test scores but the average student at Vandy has figured out how to prep. Once you hit your best effort, quit! and focus on your college application lists from reach to match. Good luck!