<p>Hoping to get into McCormick and major in engineering. </p>
<p>-Will be a Senior this fall, graduating spring 2014
-Middle class family
-White, male</p>
<p>UW GPA: 3.98
Class Rank: Top 3%</p>
<p>AP Classes:
Taken: Biology (4), APUSH (5), Chemistry (Pending), Comp (Pending), World History (Pending) [Assuming all 4 or higher].
Will Take: Physics, Calc I, II, and II, Economics, Government, Literature. </p>
<p>Grades: Straight A's, two A-'s.
ACT: 33</p>
<p>Extra Circulars:
Theatre (4 years, 10 shows)
Speech (2 years)
Choir (4 years, in both top choirs Junior/Senior years)
NHS (2 years, Officer)
French Honor Society (2 years)
Volunteer at Humane Society
Part-time job year-round</p>
<hr>
<p>I fear I'm too cookie cutter... And my EC's aren't off the charts amazing, but I think they show a bit more dedication and depth than if I were to join 20 clubs just to write them on an application.. But I don't know. I'm guessing my chances aren't too hot, but any input would be great!</p>
<p>I would say that you have an ok chance, granted that you write a really good essay. Even if it is mediocre, then your chances will go down dramatically.Try improving your ECs. Can you tell us if you made it when the letters come?</p>
<p>Will NWU look at the breakdown of scores? Because if they do I feel like my math score makes me hopeless. </p>
<p>But my safeties are University of Minnesota, Twin Cities and University of Wisconsin, Madison (I’m from MN). A definite reach, 2nd choice from Northwestern, would be Caly Poly, but in the end they wouldn’t give me enough aid to make it a reasonable choice so that’s pretty much out of the picture. </p>
<p>I’m planning on dedicating a lot of time and effort to the essay, so perhaps that will be my saving grace after all? I just don’t see what else I can do at this point to make me stand out. Sucks to be an average white male!</p>
<p>Most schools would look at the break down of scores. Particularly when you are applying to engineering, they will look at your Math score. Having just one 30 is not too bad for Northwestern (at 25%) as long as the other sections are above average. Your reading score at 31 is also close to 25% though. So the chance for McCormick is not high. Did you take SAT2 Math2? That may help if you score high. On the other hand, did you take ACT with writing? I did not see your essay score above.
UWI and UMN would be great low match schools for you. I think you will get in state tuition for both schools with their neighboring state policy. You should check it out. Otherwise, you may also consider the mid-west exchange program to help your tuition. You should add UIUC to the list also.</p>
<p>I’m not as negative on your chances as some of the other posters.</p>
<p>Right now – your profile seems to match the profile of students that NU (by the way, most in the Northwestern forum refer to the school as NU, not NW or NWU). That being said, obviously NU receives many more applicants highly candidates such as yourself than it can accept. It’s a numbers game.</p>
<p>Honestly, I kind of like your ECs. Your theater – Ten shows in 4 years shows dedication and persistence. Likewise, your participation in Chorus. Sure, they don’t blow me away (like a major national award would), but they’re solid.</p>
<p>The biggest negative I see is that 30 on the ACT Math. That’s rather low for students applying to top engineering schools. But you have a strong-well-rounded application.</p>
<p>My assessment – with your resume/numbers, you should certainly apply to NU. You have as good a shot as anyone and a better shot than many. If NU is your first choice and you’re also a financial match, consider Early Decision, it may help.</p>
<p>Got an 8 on ACT Writing. Which I hope is sufficient? Especially since I got 36 on English. </p>
<p>And I didn’t have a chance to take the SAT II’s… are they available in the fall before application deadlines? </p>
<p>And thank you for the feedback zephyr! I’ve been thinking about ED, but I’m afraid to potentially lock myself in when I’m unsure of the aid I would receive. I’d have to get at least 30,000 off to make it manageable considering I’ll be getting no money from my parents. I read that 30,000 is the average aid received, so I’d hope to get at least that if not potentially more… Going over 100,000 in debt makes me nervous.</p>
<p>One should think thoroughly before applying ED. Check out the school for their financial aid information first. What percentage of needy students got aid and how many got their need met? Remember there is only one chance for ED, so you should pick the one that you are most likely to attend if you got admitted including financial consideration. ED is binding while lack of sufficient financial aid allows you to forfeit.</p>
<p>Northwestern, and other schools have posted financial aid calculators. These enable you to estimate the Expected Family Contribution.</p>
<p>While they are not perfect by any means, they do give a pretty picture. More so for a school like NU that really doesn’t offer any significant Merit Money. Further, if the aid you received was significantly less than what the calculator indicated you’d get, it would be a pretty good reason to either double check with the school, or to withdraw an ED acceptance.</p>
<p>However, if based on the estimates, it looks like you will be unable to afford the school, ED probably isn’t the best route to go.</p>
<p>Also, Northwestern has a pretty high rate of getting financial aid with high percentage of need met. Most, if not all, aids are need based though.</p>