<p>I'm a rising eighth-grader (12 years old) from NYC and will be applying to Hotchkiss for the fall of 2015. Both of my sisters went to Hotchkiss and did extremely well, so there's a bit of pressure on me to get in. My final grades for the sixth grade:</p>
<p>English: A+
Writer's Workshop: A+
Math: A
Comp. Sci: A
Science: A
History: A
Spanish: A
Art: A
Music: A
PE: A</p>
<p>My final grades for the seventh grade are in number form:</p>
<p>For extracurriculars:
- I was the seventh grade Student Council representative, but I didn't like it so I didn't run for eighth.
- I fence foil on Saturdays @ PWF in Manhattan.
- I am in:
- programming club
- newspaper club
- poetry club
- book club
- I volunteer at Senior Citizen's Home for two hours every thursday during the school year
- This year I will be one of the layout managers for our school newspaper.
Awards & Recognition:
- Scored 98th percentile in SCAT for John Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth (4th Grade)
- Best In English 6
- 2nd Place in a local Essay Contest
- 1st Place in Brooklyn Hackathon</p>
<p>Extra information:
I am a lover of languages and have been teaching myself Japanese, Esperanto and French. I am also very passionate about computer programming and have taken multiple college courses. I went to Hotchkiss Summer Portals last summer. </p>
<p>I haven't taken my SSAT/ISEE's yet (still haven't decided which one I'm taking, though I've taken the ISEE before for my current school). I am preparing for those as well as the SAT's, which I'll be taking in December most likely. My practice scores for the SAT are:</p>
<p>CR: 720
Writing: 800
Math: 700</p>
<p>Composite: 2200</p>
<p>I've taken two, those are my best scores.</p>
<p>SIDE NOTE: I need (and qualify) for financial aid.</p>
<p>Okay. I hate chancing people, because I will either give you false hope or crush your dreams, but are you applying anywhere besides Hotchkiss? Or is it a Hotchkiss or nothing else type situation?</p>
<p>Okay. Then it seems like you are applying to a good mix of schools. Have you looked at Blair? That may be a good school for you and you should definitely consider it.</p>
<p>Blair does look like a good school, but what do you think my chances are for getting into Hotchkiss? (My dreams are very difficult to crush. Only a rejection letter can do that.B-) ) </p>
<p>@mrnephew Doesn’t Hotchkiss have a huge endowment for financial aid? Over a third of the students are on some amount of financial aid. I didn’t think it would be that much of a problem. </p>
<p>Hotchkiss has a large endowment, yes. The endowment is used for financial aid, among other things. Hotchkiss also has a budgeted line item for financial aid, so the amount is finite in any given year.</p>
<p>However, you have to keep in mind that she has two direct family members in the alumni circle. That’s a huge advantage. I remember seeing a recent number like 48% of legacies were accepted. It might balance the financial aid out, particularly since it’s probable that her sisters were on aid as well.</p>
<p>I will say that at my school(Choate) having siblings here almost guarantees you acceptance, especially if your siblings did well. However, I’m not sure how much financial aid would affect your chances, as I do not have very much experience regarding it. Looking through your extra-curriculars, grades, standardized testing scores and whatnot, I would say that you have an excellent chance at being accepted to Hotchkiss, though perhaps a smaller chance at the other schools.</p>