<p>Hi! I am a junior girl in public, Georgia high school. Please give me your thoughts about my chances at the William & Mary- St. Andrews joint degree programme! I'm interested in becoming an English major and was really intrigued by this opportunity. If any of you have any insight about the programme and its selectivity, I would be so appreciative to hear it! Apparently, only 20 students are admitted to the programme and I was wondering how selective it is and if I have the credentials to be competitive... I'm aware that I might not...I just don't know... so be kind:)</p>
<p>Additional Information:
1. I am President of Habitat for Humanity at my school and used to be treasurer (involved for three years)
2. I am the Vice President of FBLA at my school (Future Business Leaders of America) and used to be Community Service Chair
3. I am in Spanish Honors Society
4. I am in English Honors Society
5. I have taught Sunday school at my church for four years (Catholic)
6. I am in National Honors Society
7. I play competitive soccer and tennis
8. I had the supporting role in my Freshman Drama Showcase production
9. I have been in yearbook class for four years and am now an Editor of two sections
10. I am Puerto Rican:)
11. I will have taken eight AP courses by the time I graduate
12. I will have completed five years of spanish (concluding with AP Spanish Language)
13. I will have taken at least ten honors courses by the time I graduate</p>
<p>I also am extremely confident that I can write stellar essays and receive positive recommendations!</p>
<p>Thank you all so much for your thoughts!!!!</p>
<p>Hi! Well I do know a little bit about the program as I applied for it last year and was accepted. Do talk to current students though (look for the group on facebook if you want contacts) and check out the blog of joint degree programme students via the William and Mary website. In the end, I was admitted to the international Relations major, which was apparently the most competitive of the four, but could not attend for financial reasons.</p>
<p>Things I learned from applying to the programme: The 20 amount is approximate. This year, if I remember correctly, 24 students are enrolled in the programme. Although selective, there were definitely more than 20 students at the special reception for admitted students of the joint degree program. This means the 20 number is more of a number of students that attend rather than students that are enrolled overall. That said, it’s not a cakewalk and there were a few students I know that got waitlisted from the program so definitely do your best on your application.</p>
<p>Another thing I got the sense of was that the students were often self-selected. Meaning the students who were there were there because they really wanted to be in there and thought the joint degree programme was something they wanted to do. After all, not all students would decide to write the 1500-2000 word essay. The people that I met at the reception had all done some pretty incredible things and were definitely pretty bright.</p>
<p>However, when I applied, I wasn’t sure if I could get into William and Mary, nevertheless the joint degree program for IR. I do think that writing the extra essay allowed me to show a portion of myself that I would not have been able to show with the regular common app essay and supplement, so in that sense I am very appreciative of that opportunity. In my acceptance letter, I got a special handwritten note from the director of the program who enjoyed reading my essay, so they definitely do take a look at those, which I believe is the factor they weight the most heavily when deciding admittance to the program.</p>
<p>The main thing I think you need to work on are those standardized test scores, which may be your Achilles Heel. Coming from OOS myself, it is definitely competitive in terms of admissions and one of my best friends (who I actually had thought would get in rather than myself) did not make the cut. If you are even somewhat interested in the program though, definitely write those essays and good luck with your application!</p>
<p>Have you considered applying to St Andrews? I have heard that many of the W &M students hate having to return to the states after experiencing St A and developing friendships, etc. They are only interested in GPA and test scores (not extracurriculars). If you have "5"s in both of your English AP’s you can count on a spot. </p>
<p>Hello! I am actually a senior in the program right now and would love to help answer your questions anyway I can.
For your acceptance chances, knowing your SAT and AP scores would be more useful. If you know you certainly want to do the program and are indifferent to the starting location, I’d encourage you to consider applying through St Andrews. They tell you a bit more “matter of fact” what the requirements are than W&M admissions, though both are still competitive. Anyway, if you have other questions feel free to ask. </p>