My daughter has fallen in love with Syracuse! She is a junior and just returned from a campus visit. I knew it had everything she would want! Her GPA is between 3.4 and 3.5, she will retake the SAT’s in June (first score was 1420, 3 part, but her recent practice tests are around 1550). She does not have any honors courses or AP classes but has a solid transcript. She also has consistent extracurriculars in sports and tons of volunteer experience. She is not yet clear on a major and we are wondering if she should apply undecided and what her chances are? Is Syracuse out of the question for her or a possibility? Any insight is much appreciated!
my advice to your daughter to visit the school a few more times, do an interview, keep in touch with the admissions officer who interviewed her, do anything she can to make it known that she’s in love with the school.
i was in the same boat as her. i visited for the first time at the end of my junior year and knew it was the school for me. i went back two more times, had two interviews, and went to the information sessions when they were in my city. i always went up to the one giving the talk, introduced myself, and sent an email to them a few hours after to say thank you and how much i enjoyed the session.
when applying, i would highly consider ED. it shows that you really love the school. also, in essays, make it clear that you like the school using specific examples which stood out to your daughter. do the necessary research, even if she is going to apply undecided.
good luck to you and your daughter. let me know if you have any more questions.
Thank you so much cuseyou! That is such great advice! I will definitely share your input with her!
Besides letting them know that Cuse is her dream school, your daughter also needs to show them that she is a good fit for the school. To do that, she would need to raise her SAT scores to at least 1700. In my opinion, I think applying undecided is much easier to get in than applying to a certain college. Does her high-school not offer any AP classes? Is that why she hasn’t taken any? If her school does offer AP classes, please take a couple that she is interested in, her senior year. It is important that the admissions see applicants challenge themselves.
As for the SAT scores, I used princetonreview.com to do practice tests. It has opportunities for students to take practice SATs in a mock testing site. Create an account and see if they offer this opportunity in your city. It is a huge help. Please ask if you have anymore questions. I am glad to help.
Best of luck to your daughter!
i have a unweighted 3.3 gpa and a 2100sat (trying to bring it up to 2300). president of leos club, volunteer at the lubrary 300+hours, member of three clubs for three years so far (im a junior). Also voluntered 5years so far at a senior center every weekend. took 6ap tests so far and will take three more senior year. Chances of getting in with a biology major???
p.s. when are their applications available?