I am currently a high school sophomore hoping to attend St. Olaf college or an institution of the like (though Olaf is my first choice). At this point, I have a 4.0 GPA and fair testing scores (my most recent PSAT score is 1260 out of 1520), and all classes I take are Honors and AP. I take band each year and am currently standing as first chair in my section, and I’ve put forth more than 100 hours of community service in a couple different settings. I also am a member of the Quiz Bowl and math club, and I carry the torch to a student-operated club. In my free time at school, I also help proofread papers for our newspaper. After a great deal of consideration, I believe I would like to graduate early and attend school out of state. By this point, I will be a legal adult, so studying out of state and away from parents should be no issue. In order to fulfill graduation requirements, I plan on taking four or five additional courses from the local community college, including ones that are not quite necessary but are sure to beef up a resume. In addition, I intend on rigorously studying to improve my SAT and ACT scores, for I would quite like to have National Merit and an ACT in the 33-36 range. My questions are, are there any considerations I should make before applying, are there any disadvantages (aside from fewer college options) when applying a year early, will this look undesirable to a college, and are there restrictions I must know about before applying anywhere? Here is a list of colleges I’m definitely looking at (though I’m unsure if all accept early graduates):
- St. Olaf College
- Carleton College
- Grinnell College
- University of Notre Dame
- Wesleyan University (Connecticut)
- Georgetown Unitversity
- Sewanee: The University of the South
- Tufts University
- Dartmouth College
- UTK
Thanks for the time taken to read this and your replies.
Sincerely,
ccheriem
I may want to add that, assuming one does not fail any courses throughout his or her high school career, a regular person obtains about thirty credits by the end of four years. I will just be filling the requirement of twenty-eight credits, with maybe an additional credit if a credit prior to high school is accounted for. However, I figured I would be quite fine, given that I’ll be taking college courses as well as my remaining high school classes. Would this also be the case? Thanks again.
Sincerely,
ccheriem
Applying early typically is a problem for selective colleges since you don’t have enough in leadership and extra curricular achievement. In music especially, one year makes a big difference.
For St Olaf, you’d also have to audition for the music scholarship in December and thus prepare and be as good as the best seniors in the Midwest.
Are you taking the January SAT? If not, register, start prepping and see how well you do.
What’s your parents ’ opinion? Have you discussed budget - how much can they afford? Do you even know our EFC? Have you run the NPC on St Olaf?
Graduating early is impressive, but it will be a disadvantage to apply early if anything. If you’re going to graduate at the end of junior year, you’ll need to take the sat/act soon. Frankly, I don’t think you’ll get your score as high up as you’re hoping. It’s A LOT harder to raise your score than you think, even with studying. Right now, that sat score is equivalent to a 26 act. Getting that up is equivalent to 7-10 points, which I think will be nearly impossible to do so quickly. UTK would be a match I think, but the rest of those schools would definitely be reaches. Why do you want to graduate early?
Yes, I ran both the EFC and NPC on St. Olaf. Hopefully going to take the ACT soon, most likely February. I spent some time last semester strengthening my math skills, so I imagine this PSAT score is not entirely accurate. As for the score, I don’t believe I’ll be able to pull up my score quite to what I’m aiming for, but four points would work quite well. I also plan on taking the ACT again this June and October. My mother told me that moving my scores up and applying for student aid should be no problem for me, though I’ll consult guidance counselors for a more precise answer. The counselors at the high school I attend are known for being highly supportive, and my counselor has high hopes for me earning National Merit.
I also think I should probably provide some clarification as to what I would be attending school for. I plan on participating in some music-oriented program at the school, but I definitely do not intend on taking music classes or obtaining a Bachelor’s of Music. Rather, I would like to attend St. Olaf and major in the humanities and a foreign language.
I am certainly aware that my scores are not exceptionally high, but I’ve had people tell me I could probably obtain high enough scores and the scholarships necessary to be admitted and pay off a good deal of tuition.
The NPC will tell you if it’s affordable. You should run the NPC *and show the 'net cost ’ * to your parents : that’s what they’d have to pay after scholarships and before federal loans (currently capped at 5.5k).
(scholarships nor financial aid will decrease that amount. Only merit scholarships might lower efc. efc is the minimum your family has to pay if you’re lucky enough to get into a ‘meet need’ college. If your college doesn’t, like over 3,600/3,700 of them, your EFC means nothing to the college.)
Scholarships primarily come from the colleges themselves.
There are three kinds of scholarships at Saint Olaf, and you should apply to all if possible :
- financial aid : you receive roughly what the NPC said you’d receive, along with a 5.5k loan and work study. For this you’ll fill out two forms, fafsa and css profile.
- merit scholarships : you can be selected on the basis of your scores and accomplishments; you might be invited to campus for a selection weekend where knowing St Olaf well is important.
- music scholarships : there are two categories - one for future majors and one for students who wish to participate in the travelling (most prestigious) ensembles. You’d audition for the second one, which is open to all future majors.
It’s great your mother has confidence in you but until you bring up your scores, don’t believe anyone telling you it’ll be easy. Very few students move their scores by two points, let alone four, on the act. The fact you are a sophomore and obviously bright makes me more optimistic but reaching a 31-32 (target score for St Olaf - 32+ if you want merit scholarships) is extremely difficult. Start prepping.
Thank you for the help. I got a 33 on my ACT and I intend on taking it once more in hopes of obtaining a 34. My NPC is excellent, as the remaining costs amount to about 1200 dollars per year.