Chances at Washington & Lee?

Colleges and Universities A-Z Washington & Lee University
1

<p>My GPA is about a 3.43 UW, but it was because of only one year that brought it down due to family issues which will be the heart of my essay. Following that one semester, my grades shot back up. By the time i apply, my GPA will be about a 3.61 UW.</p>

<p>I know my SAT will be >2100 I dont know what though, and if it's lower I will take it a second time, as well as the ACT in the 30's
I will do well on the SAT II's as well - especially French</p>

<p>I went to a large public school in 9th and 10th grade.</p>

<p>I go to a private school (11th and 12th) which i think helps because of the competitive curriculum</p>

<p>Sports :
Freshman Basketball Team (9th)
JV Basketball Team (10th)
JV Soccer (9th,10th)
Snowboarding through a school program (11th,12th)
Varsity Baseball (11th,12th)
Varsity Soccer (11th, 12th)</p>

<p>Other Extracurriculars :
Math Team (9th,10th)
Quiz Team (9th, 10th)
Speech and Debate (9th)
HMMT Harvard-MIT Math Competition (11th,12th)
High Scorer from the Darrow School team
Core Leader (12th)
Math Prefect (12th)
Science Prefect (12th)
Computer Prefect (12th)
Possibly an RA for the dorm and a peer counselor but maybe not (12th)</p>

<p>Volunteer Work :
200 + Hours of Volunteer Work
Habitat For Humanity - 30-50 hours
An additional 200 hours will be done this summer at a local animal shelter (SPCA) and a local hospital.</p>

<p>AP Tests :
Calculus AB - 5
AP European History 3</p>

<p>Any classes that offered honors i took.
My current private school does not offer any honors or AP classes, but is a "college preparatory" school.</p>

<p>Getting a job this summer as well...40 hours a week.</p>

<p>My essay will be phenomenal.</p>

<p>On my regents finals for NewYork
Biology - 94
French I - 97
French III - 99
Math II - 98</p>

<p>Ive taken 5 years of French and will have taken 2 years of calculus by the time i graduate.</p>

<p>There might be other stuff that I missed.</p>

<p>8th Grade
French I - A+
Math I - A+</p>

<p>9th
Money Management - A+
Biology - A+
English 9H - A+
French II - A+
Global Studies 9H - A+
Math II - A+
Studio in Art - A+</p>

<p>Summer 9th grade - Field Biology - A</p>

<p>10th
Chemisty - WF (Withdrawn Fail)
Physics - D
AP European History - C
French III - A-
Math III - B
English 10H - B+
Health - A+</p>

<p>11th
Philosophy - A-
American Literature -B+/A-
Calculus I - A-
Chemistry - A/A+
US History - B+/A-
French IV - A</p>

<p>12th (My planned classes) (With projected grades)
Calculus II or Statistics - A
Russian Literature A/B - A-
Evolution -A+
Physics -A
Geology - A+
French V - A
Painting - A+
Economics - A- </p>

<p>Oh and I'm a lower class white male.</p>

<p>My sister graduated from Cornell
My brother currently goes to Cornell
My mom was a high school drop out
My father is a Russian Orthodox Priest</p>

<p>What do my chances look like?</p>

2

<p>anyone..please?
Im thinking about doing the Summer Scholar program at Washington and Lee this summer..assuming i get accepted.</p>

<p>this is probably my #1 school.
anyone tell me general chances?</p>

3

<p>REJECTED, i'm afraid.</p>

4

<p>um can you tell me why.</p>

5

<p>um, I think your guidance couselor could give you a much better assesment. WOuld you really not apply because some ppl on CC tell you you won't get in? And if you're going to apply anyway, well then, only the actual letter really matters, right?</p>

6

<p>It's pretty hard to predict your chances if we don't know your GPA (you gave us a projection of what it will probably be by the time you apply) and SAT scores. Predictions don't mean jack; ask for chances when you have solid, set-in-stone facts.</p>

7

<p>my GPA will be either a 3.5 or 3.6 uw
My SAT IS greater than a 2200.
Math and Science Prefect Next Year.
Chance that. Please.</p>

8

<p>They pick people for the Summer Scholars program basically from all walks of life and all different levels of academic excellence. You will get into Summer Scholars and have a great time, but work hard. Getting into W & L from the Summer Scholars program is more problematic. It is NOT a feeder program as one might think. They pick a few, but not many.</p>

<p>W & L is an excellent school. But they are very quirky in admissions and consider a lot of factors including family money, legacy etc. People with modest stats get in if they have connections or loads of dough. Its not called White and Loaded for no reason.</p>

<p>Being from New York may help. SAT is HUGE at W & L, as is class rank. They are a very small school in a very rural location. Its a special school for special people with special interests and social connections. But you can do just as well at lots of other schools which might have better and more equitable admissions policies. </p>

<p>If you are an intended History major, W & L is largely focused on American History. Their faculty are superb. But you can do just as well at UVa or many other schools.</p>

<p>Good luck.</p>

9

<p>thanks so much</p>

10

<p>colsen:</p>

<p>do some due diligence to determine if your profile is consistent with past admission practices. try searching for schools providing their common data set (W&L provides). then google the naviance high schools which provide their data online without a password or provide a guest password. i think you'll find that admissions aren't quirky despite what's been said. they have a definite profile of the student they want (perhaps that's what is quirky?), but gpa and sat/act are high(doesn't seem like you'd have a problem). and name me one school in america that doesn't make exceptions for very, very,very wealthy kids/celebrities. Never forget that it's a business. Plan to market yourself.</p>

11

<p>thats something no ones ever told me.
ill keep it in mind</p>

12

<p>Admissions is very selective and they look at an applicant as a whole, not just SATs and grades. You have to remember they only accept about 1 in 4 applicants so they have to look at other factors. I was rejected ED2 last year and was just accepted as a transfer to enter in September. So obviously my grades in college, extracurriculars, and my desire to attend W&L all played in my favor.</p>

13

<p>Congrats on your transfer acceptance! When did you hear about your app, if you don't mind me asking (also know another applicant, but haven't heard whether he's gotten a decision yet).</p>

<p>Demonstrated interest seems to be another factor given considerable weight in W&L admissions. Otherwise qualified applicants who spend time getting to know the school from campus/classroom/alumni visits, and thereafter express sincere interest in attending, are those who, quite logically, are more likely to come, to thrive while there, and to be devoted alums. That's good business because it makes for a great educational experience (and helps to explain W&L's perennially high student satisfaction measures, incl. no. of legacies). W&L is a case study for this principle, as are other highly selective LACs.</p>

14

<p>friedokra - </p>

<p>Just wondering what your information source is for your sweeping characterization of W&L's admissions policies as inequitable? Personal experience, research, or rumor? Did you apply? Have you visited the school? Examined the admissions/application data? To me, it seems a bit "inequitable" to post such generalized attributes without offering any factual basis for your opinion.</p>

<p>Here is another perspective, based on recent personal experience. My S, who has no "special interest" (not sure what that means really), no "social connection," no legacy status, and no big bank account, had hands-down the best admissions process experience with W&L from among his applicant schools, incl. my beloved alma mater and UVa. W&L so distinguished itself from its cross-admit schools in that very personalized process that the school became his surprise (to him at least) first choice. </p>

<p>What could possibly be "inequitable" about every applicant being considered as a "whole person" by the adcom? W&L told my S to send anything he wished them to consider in support of his application, because the adcom would really look at it. And they obviously did, because when he interviewed with professors, every single one had obviously read every line of his essays and was prepared to talk with him about what he said -- and did not say -- on those pages. That really blew my S away. Is it really "better and more equitable" to decide about applicants based on a tabulated numerical score derived from assigned values for certain GPA, SAT, ECs? I think these are two different admissions approaches, each one with some merit in different circumstances -- but neither one necessarily deserving of the unexplained label "better and more equitable." </p>

<p>As for reliance on SAT scores, what is "inequitable" about selecting a student body in which nearly 50% of current students scored above 700 on math and verbal SATs, given that demonstration of such high performance on SAT I and SAT IIs is an indicator that the student will be able to handle W&L's rigorous academics? And why would the use of these same test score benchmarks be widely considered equitable in admissions at other selective schools, incl. most famously, the Ivys? </p>

<p>COlsen -- do your own homework and your own thinking about W&L. Gather information and personal experiences, not generalizations. That's the best way to develop an informed opinion.</p>

15

<p>I agree, Esquette.</p>

<p>I had a wonderful admissions experience at W&L this year. I had no connections, no money, no URM or recruited athlete status. I was the apotheosis of middle-class and white. The admissions committe encouraged me to send in some of my poetry to be considered as supplemental materials and I think my passion and competence in composing poetry were instrumental in convincing the scholarship committee to award me a full-ride. </p>

<p>Friedokra's generalizations are, at least from my experience this past year, totally untrue.</p>

16

<p>Esquette-</p>

<p>I got my acceptance letter last Monday so they should definitely have it by now. I still do not know if I will attend though. There are many things I have to check out when I visit next weekend like what classes will transfer and what my fraternity is like. Sent in the $500 deposit though so we'll see.</p>

17

<p>Thanks for the info, ben. Best wishes in making your decision!</p>

18

<p>any more?.</p>

19

<p>gchris:</p>

<p>Good for you and congratulations. I speak not from the hip from from fact. W and L is an excellent school. They are very small and they have a set number of people and profile they are looking for. If you are middle class and got in with no connections, then good for you. But I can tell you that they are not a needs blind admissions process and they look to see if you have money or not and that is factored into the process. They also have a profile for women which is a tad different than for men.</p>

<p>A school is not its admissions office. An admissions office is not a school. One can admire the school and have a different view of the admissions process. </p>

<p>I can tell you that people with lower stats...MUCH LOWER, who came from money and went to elite feeder private schools and didnt perform all that well in Summer Scholars got in this year...two on the wait list...while others with excellent stats, performed MARVELOUSLY at Summer Scholars, but who applied for financial aid, did not get in. You decide.</p>

<p>And dont go into the extracurriculars and poetry thing. Every kid who applies has some extracurricular and has shined in that area.</p>

<p>Like some people said, they can visit Davidson and hate it and visit W and L and love it, or vice versa. But the schools are almost identical.</p>

<p>Admissions is quirky at a lot of schools. Not to pour cold water on your acceptance. I wish you well and applaud your acceptance. But dont get too comfortable with that....the admissions process is definitely quirky. Ditto at Vanderbilt.</p>

<p>And its also important to know that there are hundreds of excellent schools and getting into one or being rejected or waitlisted at another is really of no import, other than one's ego and pride, because you can obtain an excellent education at many schools.</p>

<p>I just wish that schools were more consistent. And I am not suggesting that they only take kids with a 4.5 gpa (weighted) or higher, or an SAT of 1500 or higher either....diversity in backgrounds is important. But it bugs me when they preach one thing and do another. </p>

<p>I know five kids who got into UVa out of state. All five of them come from wealthy families and "privileged" backgrounds. This despite all that blather on UVa's website about being needs blind and looking at the whole person, blah blah blah.....</p>

<p>It happens at a lot of schools.</p>

<p>Again, congrats to you and I wish you well at W and L. Its a great school with some great faculty.</p>

<p>But it all worked out in our family as well with my kid. While we got stung by W and L, where we are headed is superb and the faculty there, frankly, is a lot stronger (based on their credentials), with much deeper course offerings.
And the honor code is not unique to W and L. Its very strong at a LOT of schools.</p>

<p>Despite what the admissions office at W and L did, we have fond memories of the W and L and will always cherish our experience there.</p>

20

<p>fried--
your last sentence is intriguing. what did the admit staff do other than send a rejection letter? it sounds as tho you've had a bitter experience and there seems to be a chip on your shoulder about financial aid being a factor in admissions at Vandy or W&L (and like it isnt a factor at other schools????). </p>

<p>Maybe the admit committee simply didn't feel it was a fit. A very simple, non conspiratorial explanation without some of that Jesuit educated baggage of social injustice (triple jesuit educated btw so i feel i can recognize some of their vestiges).</p>