Chances for Harvey Mudd, Carnegie Mellon, UC's, Cornell, and couple of state schools?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>I would like to apoligize in advanced if this post is too lengthy.</p>

<p>GPA UW (10-11): 4.00
GPA W (10-11): 4.35</p>

<p>COURSES:</p>

<p>10th Grade Courses:
English II
Algebra II Honors
Comp Sci AP (4 on exam)
Contemp. Media II (fine art)
PE (2 years required to graduate)
World History
Spanish I</p>

<p>11th Grade Courses:
US History
Chem AP Lab
Chem AP Lecture (5 on exam)
Math Analysis Honors (5 point A, equivalent of Trig+first trimester of Calc)
English III
Spanish II
Statistics AP (4 on exam)
Game Programming</p>

<p>12th Grade Courses (planned):
Spanish III (took during summer, A's)
Calc BC AP
Physics AP
English Honors (team taught with Gov, new course, 5 point A for this and Gov/Econ)
Gov. Honors/Econ
Math Tutoring
Period Release (because took Spanish in summer school, should i put in a course? does this look bad?)</p>

<p>Also, for languages, I have taken Spanish for 3 years, but I speak fluent Russian as well, it was my first language</p>

<p>TEST SCORES:</p>

<p>ACT Composite (single sitting): 32 (31 second time)
ACT Super-scored: 33
ACT Math (for both sittings, best single sitting): 36, 32
ACT English (for both sittings, best single sitting): 33, 33
Combined ACT English/Writing (for both sittings, best single sitting): 31, 31
ACT Science (for both sittings, best single sitting): 29, 29
ACT Reading (for both sittings, best single sitting): 33, 33</p>

<p>SAT II:
Math II: 790
Chemistry: 790</p>

<p>Class rank: top 3-5%
Class size: ~450</p>

<p>EC's and Awards: CSF (California Scholarship Federation, 4 years), Boys Tennis Team MVP (11th grade), Tradition of Excellence Award (for maintaining 4.0+ GPA grades 9-11), Boys Tennis Team Co-Captain (10th grade), Boys Varsity Tennis (4 years), 50+ Volunteer hours (assorted, but longest commitment was to City Hall last summer, about 20-30 hours total), Link Crew (helps new high-schoolers to adapt to my school, 12th grade), and my trump card, Chess: I am ranked in the top 100 in the United States for my age and have earned over $2500 competing in professional tournaments (a lot of which went towards College :), have dedicated around 1500-2000 hours total (my current rating is 1950, if you know what that means)</p>

<p>And that pretty much covers everything, so some of the schools I am planning to apply to include:
Cornell
University of Chicago
UCLA
UCSD
UC Berkeley
UCSB
Penn State (Honors College)
Texas University in Houston
Cal Tech
MIT
Georgia Tech
Harvey Mudd
Carnegie Mellon
Princeton</p>

<p>Thank you for taking the time to at least read my post!! :)</p>

2

<p>Also, I forgot to say, I believe that I am planning on majoring in Physics or Mathematics or Computer Science, but I am still not 100% sure.</p>

3

<p>Cornell: Low Reach
University of Chicago: Low Reach
UCLA: High match
UCSD: Match
UC Berkeley: High Match
UCSB: Match
Penn State (Honors College): No Clue
Texas University in Houston: Safety
Cal Tech: Reach
MIT: Reach
Georgia Tech: Low Match
Harvey Mudd: High match/Low Reach
Carnegie Mellon: High Match/Low Reach
Princeton: Reach</p>

<p>Edit: Your Chess skill is impressive but as I thought about its value, you are still only in the top 100 in a very niche category and thus it may not constitute as much value as I previously thought. Your chances are slightly worse than the above comments.</p>

4

<p>Wow, really? I thought that my chess would look quite good on applications because I had earned a good deal of money, I mean, even though I am in the top 100 for my age, I compete against adults in all of the tournaments that I play in, as well as other very talented youngsters :)</p>

5

<p>Also, in terms of chess, I am turning 17 in a month, and because of this, my ranking should actually shoot up to the top 50 or top 60 in the nation. Currently, while 16, to be more specific, I am in the top 70</p>

6

<p>Great numbers and scores, obviously. However, the ACT will be weak when compared to similar major applicants, especially at places like Cal Tech, MIT, Cal and Princeton.</p>

<p>You just seem a bit generic (sorry!) and there’s nothing in your application that would make you stand out from other “smart” male students also applying to math/science related majors. I mean, let’s be real – I know of a lot of chess playing, tennis playing math/science kids. Not saying it’s bad, and I do commend you for your success, but there will be thousands of applicants just like you. </p>

<p>Nearly every kid from CA who is applying to top 50 schools will also be in CSF. That doesn’t help you.</p>

<p>Also, 50 hours of community service isn’t impressive; I had to have at least 250 hrs at my high school, to put it in perspective. Many college applicants will have 500+ hours of service!</p>

<p>Just being honest here. You need to find an angle that makes you stand out from applicants similar to you.</p>

<p>Cornell - probable acceptance
University of Chicago - probable acceptance
UCLA - probable acceptance (they’re all numbers based, so your generic ECs won’t matter)
UCSD - acceptance
UC Berkeley - probable rejection
UCSB - acceptance
Penn State (Honors College) - acceptance
Texas University in Houston - acceptance
Cal Tech - rejection
MIT - rejection
Georgia Tech - probable rejection
Harvey Mudd - rejection
Carnegie Mellon - probable acceptance
Princeton - rejection</p>

7

<p>Georgia Tech rejection surprised me a bit, why? I did research and, at least in terms of grades/scores, wouldn’t I be one of the “better” applicants?</p>

8

<p>^ I said “probable” not “definite.” Would you prefer I said “Maybe yes, maybe no?” I like using probable acceptance/rejection because it gives a better chance indication than just plain “maybe.” I still think you should apply.</p>

<p>The fact is, according to GT, your scores and GPA sit in the middle 50%. If you were outside that middle 50%, I would say definite yes – however, being male is a disadvantage for you to apply to GT as they’re over 50% male and you’re competing against those stronger male applicants AND your ECs aren’t super math/science focused. I’m going to venture there will be a ton of robotics team kids, engineering club kids, etc etc etc.</p>

<p>I said “probable” because I think it’s an on the fence decision that could swing either way. Unless you write a kick ass essay or improve on one of the weaker spots of your app, I will think you’re more likely to get a waitlist/no from GT. No need to get offended; I’m just one person.</p>

9

<p>That’s a lot of schools that are difficult for even top students to get into.
Cornell, UChi, Cal Tech, MIT, Harvey Mudd, CMellon and Princeton are reaches for just about everyone. They are also very different sorts of schools. Look past the numbers and see what schools fit you.
As a note CMellon’s school of CS is very hard to get into - and at CMellon you must apply to a specific school within the college.
Your trump card (and as a current bridge player who knows a tiny bit about chess, I’m smiling at the word trump…) is a good one, but it is hard to say how it will play at any given school.<br>
Make sure you have a safety you can live with and afford.
Try to reach out to the schools on your list at college fairs or by visiting so you can see what schools really work for you.
For example - UChic really is good for kids who not only can write, but who like to write. And, you’d better be ready for a long, cold , urban winter.<br>
Think about whether you want to go into engineering or not.</p>

10

<p>@ Zelda Fitzgerald, I was not getting offended, it just surprised me a little bit, but thanks a bunch for your opinion and advice!
@ Nemon, I am still having difficulty deciding on my major, but I think that at this point, I have ruled out comp sci and am going to have to choose between Physics and Mathematics. I do have my doubts about UChicago because of te weather, but that school is one of my favorite picks, because of the weather. Thank you for your opinion and advice as well!</p>

11

<p>TennisMenace - Keep in mind that no one here can really predict, and although people try their best, most really aren’t experts, so take their opinions with a grain of salt. We found the whole process somewhat arbitrary. My son got into some schools he didn’t think he would and got rejected from others. I’m certainly no expert, but I do disagree with Zelda about GT. I doubt a 4.0 unweighted is middle 50%. At minimum, it would be at the top of the range (can’t do better than that unweigted), and your ACT score is at the top of their middle 50%. While it’s no shoe in, I think you certainly have a decent chance. </p>

<p>Overall, I think to be more competitive, you got to get your test scores up. Try the SAT. Some kids do better on one vs. the other.</p>

12

<p>@ WAMOM2, thank you for your opinion! It is very true that college admissions these days are very unpredictable, and I definitely consider the fact that many people that reply are not experts, but I guess that their replies give me some kind of stress relief from the entire process :slight_smile: And I am planning to take the ACT for the last, third, time in October. I was thinking about the SAT, but I have already taken it once, studied a lot, and didn’t do well enough. So now I am just hoping that my studying for the ACT will pay off with at least a 34!</p>