Chances of a transfer to Brandeis

<p>Hello! I’m an American to-be college freshman in a reputable French university. Up until this point I attended school in the United States. I knew that I didn’t work hard enough to get into Brandeis in high school, and I’m going to try really hard this coming year (i.e. better SAT score, better ECs, etc.) to transfer to Brandeis as a sophomore. Here are my current stats:</p>

<p>White, Jewish
Public high school in midwest
Current student at public international university studying modern language and literature
GPA 3.942 (weighted)
Class Rank 17 out of 202 (top 10 percent)
SAT 680 writing 670 critical reading 530 math (I’ve only taken it once!)
SAT II 700 French (taken once like 2 years ago…I’m pretty sure I can get a perfect score now since I am completely bilingual), will take English literature this fall
AP English (4), AP French (5)… (my school only offered a few APs)
Mostly all honors/college prep classes
ECs (from high school)
-Young Democrats
-Drama Club
-Newspaper staff
-Chess club
-FBLA
-nursing home volunteer
-national honor society
-French club
ECs (that I will have in the coming year)
-Democrats abroad
-The American Club of Lyon
-Jewish youth group
-Ballet
-probably some volunteer work as well…</p>

<p>What I would like to know is:

  1. If none of the above changed, what is the likelihood of getting into Brandeis?
  2. How much does my SAT have to improve to give me a good shot at getting into Brandeis?
  3. What is the transfer acceptance rate at Brandeis?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

<p>Honestly.. it looks like you had a good shot at getting into Brandeis right out of high school. Your scores were better than mine!</p>

<p>Spending a year abroad probably will boost your chances, especially attending a school full time in another language.</p>

<p>An improved math score will definitely boost your chances. Otherwise, you have a stellar academic record.</p>

<p>In 2005, 307 people applied and 118 were accepted, for a rate of 38.4%.
Source: <a href="http://www.brandeis.edu/offices/IR/cds/IR-WhosHere2006.pdf%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.brandeis.edu/offices/IR/cds/IR-WhosHere2006.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Thank you both for your helpful advice! I just have one more question.. do you think that an interview or visit would help boost my chances? If so, how much? </p>

<p>Normally I would be the first to jump at the opportunity to have an interview, but given that I'm in France, and that Brandeis' school calendar is quite different than that of my home institution, arranging a visit will be both complicated and expensive; however, if it will boost my chances substantially, I will do it.</p>

<p>See if you can do a phone interview. Even just asking will definitely look good on your part. It would be a ridiculous waste of money just to fly out there for an interview. I know with my interview, an alumni did it and due to some computer screw up, she didn't get my name until the last day. Luckily, we could work out something but if not, we were just going to have a phone interview.</p>

<p>Honestly, I would just inquire about if a phone interview would be available and if not, don't worry about it. Brandeis certainly doesn't want you to waste hundreds of dollars to fly across the Atlantic for a weekend! Granted, that's the intense fear of flying in me talking, but I'm sure it wouldn't be expected, especially since the school year is almost starting.</p>

<p>Probably what kept you out was that Math SAT. Brandeis is all about keeping up the published stats. If you apply for a transfer for Fall 07, they won't care about that because transfers don't count in the SAT stats. At that point, they will consider your college transcript above all else. Keep it all As and Bs and you'll be golden. Also: interviews are not available to transfers, but since they think alot of transfer applicants are weird kids, it might help if you can get the transfer coordinator on the phone for a quick conversation.</p>