<p>I have a 26 (average is 26.2 for CLA) on the ACT
29 on English
22 on Math
27 on Reading
24 on Science
and a 3.45 GPA (unweighted).</p>
<p>I applied to all the U-MN colleges so I know I can at least get into a college like UMD, but the CLA at the Twin Cities campus is my goal.</p>
<p>A little shy of that top 25% of my class (top 30). Math is definitely not my strong suit, it crippled my composite in my opinion. I've taken every Honors class I could for my HS career, taken 4 AP classes so far (including now). I'm a MN resident and several of my family members and friends are alumni there or are attending. I applied through the online form, which doesn't have you write an essay, which I wish it did because it probably would have helped my chances a bit.</p>
<p>My friend got into the CEHD with a 25, but I hear that's the easiest school to get into (CLA being the second), so I'm not too confident. The only real consistent extra-curricular activity I've done is Tennis (all 4 years). I participated in various activities (mentoring for freshman, summer camps, regional honor band, etc.) here and there and am active in our school's band program, but I don't think it's much to brag about. Now I'm starting to wish I had filled out my National Honor Society form before due date, looking at the lack of volunteer work I have (some but not much). I also didn't think to get any teacher recommendations which probably would have been a good idea, but what's done is done. Maybe my 29 in English will be enough to push me through admissions...</p>
<p>I know it's kind of redundant but maybe a recently contacted applicant/attending student could shed some light on this (because it's only getting more and more competitive for admissions as the years go by). From what I can tell, I'm in the grey area and have a borderline chance of getting in, but words of encouragement (or discouragement) are welcome.</p>
<p>You are definitely are a borderline applicant. Your class rank and gpa are kinda on the low side but if you go to a competitive school than that would be less of an issue. I don’t think extracurriculars or recommendations really affect admissions so don’t worry overly about those. A slight quibble I think CLA is also more selective than Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences. Good luck!</p>
<p>@Flash: Oh, interesting, thanks for the info. I applied early December (not sure on exact date), a week before deadline I believe. Probably won’t hear till February. I did list my EC’s, probably embellished a bit actually. @UMTYMP: Yeah I forgot about the FANRS, that’s about equivalent to CEHD or even less selective from what I hear. I don’t go to a really competitive school (I think?): has a class of 295, but I guess it’s somewhat respected for a public.</p>
<p>Thanks for the thoughts and advice, I guess my prediction was pretty accurate. Well, I will cross fingers and I’ll ask my counselor what she thinks I should do.</p>
<p><em>EDIT</em> Yep, checked my email from sending my app; applied 12/7/11.</p>
<p>Congrats! My friend is still waiting for CLA with a 23 ACT, top 7%, 3.9 GPA, PSEO student at the U with 4.0 last semester, first gen/minority if that matter. Chances for him?</p>
<p>@kenny that’s a very interesting case. The ACT is very low in the bottom 10% of CLA admits but the high GPA and success in PSEO may make up for it. I would say more likely than not but not a certainty.</p>
<p>@kenny2012: Thanks! I would think your friend has a good chance besides the pretty low ACT, the U loves to get more minorities so I would say he definitely has a shot.</p>