<p>chriscollege: As has been pointed out above here and there, these scores are good enough for any school, but even perfect scores aren’t enough to get you into the most selective ones; many students at ND have scores like these, and better, but very many applicants with similar ones, and better, don’t get in. A schoolmate of my daughter’s didn’t get in with an SAT score that was 200 points higher than hers; you just can’t predict admissions decisions.
rnmontgomery: You have a lot going for you. Most of the “negative” comments were (I’m sure) intended to be helpful; I know mine were. Having been through this process several times with my own family, I feel confident in advising you to downplay your peripheral activities and give a lot of calm thought to your essay, avoiding Big Ideas and simply expressing yourself well. One of my children wrote about an outwardly minor thing that happened at work; I remember reading this essay and being moved by the way a subtle observation can be an epiphany. Write carefully and be yourself and you’ll do fine. Again, best of luck.</p>
<p>Thank you very much for all of your help, I truly appreciate it.</p>
<p>The average ACT score the past two years for admitted students has been 32.6 while the average SAT score was 1434 and 1435. Thus, 1440 and 32 put you in the middle of the pack for admitted students.</p>
<p>perhaps i should clarify. my meaning on the scores was that rn-mont has no reason to worry about them. the door is wide open as far as test scores go. i assume his blingy high school will provide him with good support letters. the rest of my input was intended to help him then fine tune the final things that come down to him - to help stand out from the pack in a favourable way. right now, as critiqued, i think the young man could improve a bit on how he is representing himself, as i have said repeatedly. based on my experience, he is working against himself a little bit. it can be easily solved, as i believe he is probablyexactly the sort of student ND is indeed looking for - he just needs to get that across a little better than he did here. revise revise revise. i think he will get there. </p>
<p>one last thing, for schools where a person is really really dead set on that place as a no 1. choice, we always advise a visitation weekend close to application time. in addition to soaking in the atmosphere and vibe of the place - where better to ask about what approach people used, than at the place you wish to be ?? ND is trully a unique school - it is wise to immerse yourelf in that mileau and let it come across in the voice of your final essay.</p>