<p>Hi !!! I just finished up Sophomore year and I was wondering if you could chance me for UCLA, UCSD,USC, UC Berkeley, Rice, and Johns Hopkins. I know i still have to study and take the SAT, but i would like to see if I'm on the right track. I would like to major in something like Psychology, Neuroscience, Biochemistry, or something like that. </p>
<p>Thank you so much!</p>
<p>State: Texas
Gender: Male
Ethnicity: Hispanic
PSAT (sophomore year): 170 (CR:51 W: 55 M: 64)
I am going to study more for the Psat </p>
<p>Class Rank: 9/ 226 which is top 4% (i go to a really competitive high school :/ )
GPA: 4.0 ? (all A's UW)
In all Pre AP classes</p>
<p>AP Scores;
Spanish Language: 4
Computer Science : 4</p>
<p>EC's:
-Eagle Scout.
-Black Belt in Taekwondo.
-Volunteered at a camp for special needs children and obtained 250+ service hours... so far.
-Fluent in Spanish.
-Last summer I went on a mission trip to Peru and helped orphans in need.
-Lifeguarded this summer at my neighborhood pool.
-HOSA member
. - Spanish Honor Society Member.
-Mu Alpha Theta Member.
-On the Cross Country team at my school. I was JV freshman and sophomore year, but hopefully Varsity this year.</p>
<p>Are my EC's bad? Do i need to get better grades? How much do i need to improve on the SAT? </p>
<p>Am i on the right track? What do i need to improve?</p>
<p>Thank you for your time helping me. </p>
<p>I'll try to chance you if you want!</p>
<p>You would be an OOS student and would be paying full fees. California does not fund out of state students so, you would be paying full fees of $50k-60k per year. Do you have that kind of money? </p>
<p>Additionally, with no SAT scores, we can’t predict if you would get in. But as of now, that PSAT score is way too low. The UC’s look at sophomore and JR years. We don’t have your JR year information. Additionally, the UC’s don’t use affirmation action, so it doesn’t matter if you are Hispanic.</p>
<p>See my message to you for more information. I always mention money first because these high-achieving students apply to these schools, and don’t consider where the money is coming from, and then are disappointed because they don’t get any funding and are shocked by the costs when they do get a bill from the school. </p>
<p>You are on the right track with your grades and EC’s. You will really need to study for the SAT and aim for at least a 2100+ for UCLA/UCB/UCSD to be competitive. Also take note what @auntbea stated about costs. OOS students get little to no financial aid for the UC’s, so you would need to spend anywhere from $23K-55K/year to attend.
If you are in-state for Rice, that school would be your best option. Good Luck.</p>
<p>@gumbymom, why would Rice be the best option? You know that Rice is a private school, right? Its definitely more expensive and more difficult to get acceptance at Rice than some of the other schools on the list.
@captainz99, its difficult to chance you without test scores. Your sophomore PSAT seems low, so study hard for all of your tests. Be sure to take both the SAT with two subject tests, and the ACT. Some people do better on one or the other.</p>
<p>@ScienceGirlMom: Yes, I know Rice is private but Rice would have more financial aid/merit aid available than the UC’s which would offer little to none for OOS. The COA for Rice is comparable to the UC’s plus you would need to include the cost of transportation from Texas which would be much higher than staying in Texas. Privates are also have more available funds for FA.
There is nothing wrong in applying to the UC’s, just realize the costs involved since you will get no financial help from the UC’s and you personally can only take out $27K for 4 years. The rest is up to your parents.</p>
<p>@gumbymom, OK, I understand your reasoning. But @captainz99 hasn’t said anything about whether he is full pay or needs financial aid. That’s the biggest question right now.</p>
<p>Thank you so much for the help @ScienceGirlMom and @Gumbymom. I will do everything i can to get my scores up and keep my options open</p>