I was rejected from UW Seattle. I just sent in my appeal today. I had initially applied as a Freshman for Autumn 2016 but I did not realize that if you are an out-of-state student who is dual-enrolled as a full-time college student, you have to apply as a Transfer. I made this error clear in my appeal but I am wondering if I have any chance of getting in at this point. My stats and appeal letter are included below. Thank you!
Objective Stats
SAT I: 2040 (CR: 680, M: 630, W: 730)
ACT: 33 (R: 35, E: 35, S: 33, M: 27, New Test Essay: 31 with 11 on all subscores)
SAT II: Did not take
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): 3.940
Rank: 13/226 (School weights Dual Credit as a 4.5 and AP as a 5; I did DC primarily)
AP: Biology (4), Stats (4), taking 6 exams senior year
IB: None
Senior Year Course Load: AP Studio Art, Honors Journalism III (School Newspaper Editor), DC English 175, DC Art History, DC Hist of Civilization, DC Psych, DC Environmental Ethics, DC Anthropology, DC Chemistry, DC World Religions, DC Race and Ethnic Relations, French IIB
Major Awards LISTED ON APP: National Merit Commended, USAD National Medalist, JEA National Medalist
EARNED POST-APP: Scholastic Art Gold Key, BPA Regional/State Winner, JEA Idaho Journalist of the Year
Letter:
When I applied to University of Washington, Seattle approximately five months ago, it was shortly after I had visited the campus, fallen in love with the large-university feel, and decided that Seattle was to become my future home. However, it was also before I truly had the chance to demonstrate the full potential of my senior year. To fully understand the marked change I have made in these five months, I want to explain new honors I have recieved, my current successes in college-level environments, and a misunderstanding in the type of application I was directed to submit.
With that in mind, I will briefly summarize several honors I have earned now, which I did not have five months ago. In addition to being a National Merit Commended Scholar, a JEA National Write-Off Award Winner, and a USAD National Medalist, I have added the following achievements to my résumé:
- 2016 JEA Idaho Journalist of the Year (JOY); slated to compete against other state JOY winners at nationals for National Journalist of the Year in Los Angeles in April in addition to competing in Photography Portfolio. I was also invited to meet with the President of JEA at the national competition, which is only extended to a handful of students [Earned in March 2016].
- Scholastic Art and Writing Awards (SAWA) Gold Key Laureate in Photography and Double Honorable Mention Laureate in Printmaking and Drawing; SAWA honors name Sylvia Plath, Richard Avedon, and Andy Warhol amongst their past winners [Earned in February 2016].
- Business Professionals of America (BPA) State Finalist; slated to compete against other state finalists at nationals in Boston in May for Graphic Design Promotion and Desktop Publishing [Earned in March 2016].
All of the above further prove my devotion and talent in the fields of journalism, design, and visual art. University of Washington’s The Daily would provide a challenging arena for me to demonstrate my abilities and represent the University with pride. I am well-versed in the egalitarian compromise and careful diplomacy that walks hand-in-hand with successful publications and journalists. Journalist of the Year in Idaho is a strong indicator of this knowledge as it ranks me in an elite group of young innovators in news media and design.
It has also come to my attention that my application may have been better suited for the Transfer Applicant category due to being a dual-enrolled college and high school student. Having explored the “Guide Me” page on University of Washington’s website, it initially seemed to me that I would be considered a Freshman Applicant because I could not answer “yes” to “I am no longer in high school” under Transfer Applicants. I did pose this question when I visited University of Washington on the Campus Tour and was directed to apply as a Freshman Applicant; I did make every effort to find the correct application, but was ultimately misguided as a fault of my own or information I received.
Even so, as a Transfer Applicant I would make an outstanding addition to University of Washington. I earned a Dean’s List honor in my first semester as a full-time student at North Idaho College (fall 2015 semester) in addition to taking AP and Dual Credit courses at my high school, courses through University of Idaho, and self-studying for five AP exams. I have thus far found college-level work to be vibrant, eye-opening, and exciting, and I have no doubt the same would be true (if not more so) in a rigorous and inspiring environment like UDub. From learning how forensic anthropologists provide closure to victims of war crimes in Guatemala, to understanding Freud’s obsession with Oedipus Complexes, to exploring supermarket density in African American neighborhoods, there is no shortage of intrigue in a liberal arts education as I have seen and felt.
As it stands, I have completed all of the CADRs per the University of Washington’s standards. I have taken English all four years of high school in addition to three journalistic writing or English writing college courses; I have a full-year of Geometry, Algebra II, Analytic Geometry/Trigonometry as math courses (which may have been unclear as I doubled up with Geometry and Algebra II as a freshman through the summer); more than three years of social sciences and studies as high school and college courses; two years of French (I am currently enrolled in the second semester of French II, which was added to my application, I believe); I have several years of art credits and academic electives; and as I was told when I visited campus, Statistics would count as a math-based quantitative course even though I completed it as a junior. Regardless, I have consistently proven my ability to adapt and excel in a broad range of academic and extracurricular disciplines as exemplified by GPA, test scores, and rigorous course load.
University of Washington encapsulates everything I hope to gain from my true “post-secondary” experience. The rich diversity of a large city and university, strong academic community, and global impact all prepare students to enter a future that is constantly in flux with the rapid spread of ideas that has followed the explosion of technology and travel. I would be honored and humbled to be amongst the brilliance of the Class of 2020 at University of Washington, all the more excited and invigorated for this experience.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
I additionally sent three letters of rec which were outstandingly written. One was from my AP Biology teacher, one from my AP Studio Art teacher, and one from my journalism adviser. I am just hoping I am one of the 5% they choose to reconsider, but either way I have back up schools. UW was one of my strongest candidates, though.