Chances for selective universities and others?

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Please chance me for the following colleges. I know it's a bit of a lengthy list, but I've sorted them into groups based on selectivity. </p>

<p>Princeton
Caltech
University of Pennsylvania<br>
Rice University</p>

<p>University of Rochester
University of Notre Dame
Carnegie Mellon University
University of Michigan </p>

<p>University of Texas
Texas A&M<br>
University of Houston</p>

<p>Student Information: </p>

<p>Female
Caucasian, Native American (Apache*)
Texas
Low-income
First-generation college student
Parents did not graduate high school</p>

<p>2120 SAT</p>

<p>UW GPA: ~3.5 </p>

<p>High school courses taken during junior high: 3</p>

<p>Freshman:
GT/Pre-AP English I
Pre-AP Algebra II
Pre-AP World Geography
Biology
Spanish II
Athletics
Theatre I</p>

<p>Sophomore:
GT/Pre-AP English II
Precalculus
AP World History (Score: 5)
Pre-AP Chemistry
Pre-AP Computer Science
Spanish III
Engineering</p>

<p>Junior:
GT/AP English III
AP Calculus AB
AP United States History
AP Environmental Science
Pre-AP Physics
AP Computer Science
Pre-AP Spanish IV</p>

<p>Senior:
GT/AP English IV
AP Calculus BC
AP Statistics
AP Government
AP Economics
AP Physics
AP Chemistry
Academic Decathlon</p>

<p>Self-Taught:
AP European History (school does not offer)<br>
AP Spanish V
AP Psychology (school does not offer)<br>
AP Physics C (school does not offer) </p>

<p>Total Pre-AP Classes: 8
Total AP Classes: 13
Total AP Tests by end of high school: 18 </p>

<p>Extracurricular:
Gay-Straight Alliance (Founder, President)
Academic Decathlon
Young Republicans Club
Anime Club (Secretary)
Varsity Wrestling (1 year, sustained injury)
Christians Club
Two academic teams (one in computers, the other in literary criticism)
Provided tutoring services
Founder of small organization (focused on combating misinformation, hope to continue to grow this in the years to come) </p>

<p>Notes: Parents separated just before Freshman year. Lived only with father throughout high school. Very rare, limited contact with mother. Little to no family income through most of high school; father lost job, further exacerbating financial situation. Frequent concerns about having food to eat, making rent, having basic utilities and internet. Live in an area where such financial situations are uncommon. </p>

<p>*Not yet enrolled despite desire to become such</p>

<p>Thank you for any insight you can provide. </p>

<p>If you require additional information, please ask.</p>

2

<p>I apologize for this bump, but I would like input. </p>

<p>Thank you.</p>

3

<p>My apologies once more, but thank you for any input.</p>

4

<p>Princeton: reach
Caltech: reach
University of Pennsylvania: low reach
Rice University: low reach
University of Rochester: match
University of Notre Dame: match
Carnegie Mellon University: high match
University of Michigan: high match
University of Texas: safety
Texas A&M: safety
University of Houston: safety</p>

<p>Overall, I think your information seems very competitive at all these schools including Princeton which is the hardest school to get into on your list. The only weakness I’d say you have is your gpa. Although it’s not that high, I think admissions officers will understand why it’s lower than other applicants’ considering you are taking very challenging courses as well as participating in lots of EC’s which both take up lots of time.</p>

<p>Also, I want to say I’m really sorry for your situation. You should know that because you seem to be smart and will probably go to a very good college, you will succeed in your life. Don’t be stuck in the past; look to the present and future for what it holds for you. I know you will do well in the world. Best of luck!</p>

5

<p>What’s your rank? It’s very important for admission to UT.</p>

6

<p>Your GPA is rather low while your SAT score is at or above average for the top 2 groups of schools. That makes you high reach to reach for the first group of schools and high match to low reach for the second group of schools. You would be match to low match for the third group of schools.
FYI, some schools like UMich really weigh heavily on GPA and the average for admission is near 3.7. Perhaps you should look up the schools that put less emphasize on GPA.</p>

7

<p>Thank you very much for your input and taking the time to chance through my little laundry list of schools. I truly appreciate it. </p>

<p>And thanks for your kind words; it’s been a difficult time for me. I had just been recovering from depression when my mom left and our financial situation got dark. I’ ve tried to make the best of the situation, though. </p>

<p>As for my rank, that’s a piece of my information that I don’t currently have. I’ll have to make a note of it to visit my counselor to find out what it is. I’m sorry about that; we only see our rank yearly and I’ve taken a lot of AP classes since then. If you could chance me for the other schools for now, that would be great.</p>

8

<p>Thanks for your input, billcsho. </p>

<p>You’re right that my GPA isn’t optimum. In state, my school is known for grade deflation, but an out-of-state university wouldn’t know that. </p>

<p>Can you recommend a school that places less emphasis on GPA?</p>

9

<p>If the low GPA is due to the school’s grading system, don’t worry about that. They will find out from your class rank and GPAs of other students from the same school. That why there is usually a wide range in GPA (in an asymmetric distribution). Schools like yours are likely to have GPA in the 25-50% admission stat. When you do a school search/match on this website or other ones, you enter your GPA and choose how critical is the requirement, and it will sort out the schools that match better for you.</p>

10

<p>Oh, okay, that makes sense. Thanks for your help! =)</p>

<p>Being a first-generation college student, the only person I can ask about things like this is my guidance counselor, and well, she’s busy and I have trouble taking time out of class or extracurriculars to see her. So I appreciate any help I can get.</p>

11

<p>It sounds as if you wish to go into engineering, correct?</p>

<p>Your GPA is rather low; these days under a 3.8 is considered low for engineering at the top schools.</p>

<p>You did not provide your SAT or ACT, or SAT subject tests. Near perfect ACT and SAT, as well as SAT math and science SAT subject tests are expected for top notch schools in engineering</p>

<p>Assuming your ACT >32, and SAT subject tests in science and math >750, and you wish to major in engineering, not LSA</p>

<p>Princeton - stretch
Caltech - no
University of Pennsylvania - stretch
Rice University - stretch</p>

<p>University of Rochester
University of Notre Dame
Carnegie Mellon University - stretch
University of Michigan - no</p>

<p>University of Texas
Texas A&M - maybe
University of Houston</p>

<p>You may wish to look into Purdue, and provide your specific area of study as well as your scores.</p>

<p>This year (2013 H.S. applications) for engineering were very high. Some schools had more than >30,000 applications and at the top schools there are few slots.</p>

<p>Good Luck</p>

12

<p>Actually, I have no interest in engineering, though I understand why you gathered that. I looked into engineering only to realize it isn’t where my heart is. I plan to major in physics. </p>

<p>The reason I did not disclose my SAT IIs is because I shall be taking them in the summer; we hadn’t had the money previously. </p>

<p>I did, however disclose my SAT: 2120. Naturally, I shall be taking it again after considerable practice.</p>

13

<p>The only thing that could hurt your app is your GPA. Otherwise, you have very good credentials. Good SAT score as well, though it would be best to improve it. </p>

<p>Princeton - Reach
Caltech - Reach
University of Pennsylvania - Reach
Rice University - Low Reach</p>

<p>University of Rochester - Match
University of Notre Dame - High Match
Carnegie Mellon University - Match
University of Michigan - Low Match </p>

<p>University of Texas - Safety
Texas A&M - Safety
University of Houston - Safety </p>

<p>I’m so sorry about your situation. Your hard work through these onerous situations will definitely pay off. You definitely going to get into a few of the colleges in the first two lists. Perseverance will enable you to succeed in the future. Good luck!</p>

14

<p>Thank you so much for your input and kind words. =) I appreciate it a lot.</p>

15

<p>Princeton - Reach
Caltech - Reach
University of Pennsylvania - Reach
Rice University - High Match/Low Reach
University of Rochester - Match
University of Notre Dame - High Match/Low Reach
Carnegie Mellon University - High Match/Low Reach
University of Michigan - Match
University of Texas - Low Match
Texas A&M - Safety
University of Houston - Safety </p>

<p>Good luck!!! Be sure you talk about the hardships you have gone through in your essay, it thoroughly impressed me how through all of that you managed to have so much success and I’m sure it would impress admissions officers as well!</p>

16

<p>You’re going to need to get that SAT up a lot higher for a stats driven school like Caltech.</p>

17

<p>Thanks for your input, Novagirl! I really appreciate it. And trust me, I shall. These past few years have been very difficult, but they have taught me a lot that I don’t think I would have leaned otherwise, and I hope I’m a stronger person for it. </p>

<p>Peter - What do you think shall be necessary? </p>

<p>I’ve looked at the 25-75th percentile stats, but those only tell a person so much. </p>

<p>A 2300? I’m very good at studying (which is why I self-study for AP exams), and I’m going to study intensively in the weeks beforehand. </p>

<p>I know it’s a large score increase, but I am willing to commit a large amount of effort to this. Most of the reason my score is a bit low is because I can be a bit of a slow test taker due to being so meticulous and my long struggle with obsessive-compulsive disorder. (I’m working on getting that under control so simple tasks won’t be so difficult.)</p>

18

<p>I apologize for this “bump,” but input is something I have little of and would truly appreciate. =)</p>

19

<p>Yes, 2300 would be a good score to shoot for.</p>

20

<p>Okay, thank you. </p>

<p>I’ll definitely be taking some practice tests beforehand to facilitate that score increase. </p>

<p>. . . it cannot be normal to look forward to that type if studying.,</p>