Chances/what to do this year to help my chances

Colleges and Universities A-Z Cornell University
1

<p>Hi, I am a high school junior that is planning on applying to Cornell next fall. I am taking the ACT this month and shooting for a 34 (have been scoring 32-34 on all of my practice tests thus far) and have a 94 point something (not exactly sure) overall. I have taken one subject test (World History) and I got a 750 on it. My AP World History grade was a 5. This year, I am taking 3 AP classes. Of course, I still have time to bring up my grades, and my grades have been much better this year so far. My GPA has already increased. I'd still like to know what you think of my chances so far.</p>

<p>I know that my grades might be lower than the typical Cornell applicant, but I have tons of extracurriculars AND legacy (both of my parents went to Cornell, as well as my grandpa for grad school and also 7 aunts and uncles).
I'm not sure how much legacy helps... please let me know!</p>

<p>My extracurriculars:
SPORTS
-Varsity winter and spring track & field: 2 years (continuing this next year as well)
-4x400 Conference Champion
-JV Volleyball: one year
-Varsity volleyball: 2 years, selected as captain for next fall when I continue for my third year on the team
-Club/Travel Volleyball team: 2 years</p>

<p>I also played jv lacrosse freshman year, but not sure if I am going to mention that in my app since I stopped playing...</p>

<p>MUSIC
-Tri-M Music Honor Society
-Chamber Choir (the top chorus at my school, you have to audition to get in, few spots. we were selected to sing in a prestigious program at Carnegie Hall in NYC this year)
-Piano since second grade
-NYSSMA participant (basically a music program where you go to perform a piece and it gets graded by local musicians, very competitive)
-Applying to be on the executive board (similar to being a president of another club) of Tri-M Music Honor Society for senior year, so we'll have to see</p>

<p>SPANISH
-National Spanish Honor Society (branch of World Language Honor Society)
-active participant in Spanish Club since freshman year
-Spanish tutor for younger students at my school and at our town's middle school
-applying to be on the executive board of NSHS next year, again, we will have to see if that works out
-National Spanish Exam Medalist (since eighth grade, have earned a medal each year for 3 years now and i am planning on taking the exam again this year and next year as well)
-LILT Spanish competition Honorable Mention award in two categories: original poetry and original essay</p>

<p>PHOTOGRAPHY
-Best in Town photography contest finalist
-featured on a British photographer's blog and interviewed
-work has been featured on The Photographer's Directory website
(both websites seen by thousands)
-photography blog featuring all of my work, as well as a Flickr account
**I will probably attach my portfolio as a supplement to my app
-planning to intern in New York City this year for a photography studio</p>

<p>SERVICE
-track team raised lots of $ to buy new track gear for victims of Hurricane Sandy
-breast cancer walk participant for six years, have raised thousands of dollars for the cause
-Vacation Bible School participant at my church, where I am a counselor for kids that are at camp to learn about god</p>

<p>Also, I tutor sophomores in world history and babysit.</p>

<p>Anyway, please tell me what you think of my chances, and if you have any ideas about how I could further enhance my application. I really appreciate your time!</p>

2

<p>I think that you have a very very good chance, although I’d say that a lot of the individual colleges at Cornell are very fit based, so I’d say that you should apply to one of their colleges for a major that you’re really passionate about.</p>

3

<p>I agree – spend some time thinking about what you want to study and why and be sure that Cornell is a really good place for that. Legacy will give you an advantage over a candidate with the same qualifications and fit as you. But it won’t help if you aren’t a good fit or don’t have the same qualifications. Also, it seems that Legacy makes more of a difference in ED than in RD. Again, that means you’ll want to be sure it is the best fit before you apply because if you get in you are committed.</p>

4

<p>It seems like you’re making the classic mistake of believing that high GPA + high test scores + a laundry list of ECs = admission. The GPA and test scores will get your foot in the door, and next come the ECs. Cornell and other top colleges don’t care about you having “tons of extracurriculars”; they want to see you do the things you love and do them extraordinarily. You have done great things with photography, music, and Spanish. If those are your passions, then you’re on the right track. If not, then explore your real passions. Don’t worry so much about being on the executive board of every society and club and raising your GPA a point or two. You’ll be happier and seem more genuine on your application.</p>

<p>Since you said you plan on sending your portfolio are you planning on being a Fine Arts major?</p>

5

<p>What you can do to improve chances for admission: 1) Decide which of Cornell’s colleges you will apply to & then attend an information session. This will help you begin to formulate ideas for the “college specific” essay. 2) Take the SAT in addition to the ACT, don’t believe the “it will look bad if you take the tests more than once” theory, if Cornell likes the rest of your application they look for reasons to admit you and at the same time not hurt their “admit stats”, so they will take your highest score. 3) Apply Early Decision 4) Make sure that your guidance counselor can check the “took the most rigorous schedule” box on the common app.</p>

6

<p>Alexmer- photography, music, and Spanish are my passions. I am trying to either take photography classes or intern in New York City at a photography studio this summer. Also, I’m not exactly sure about my major yet. I’m interested in history, but I was planning on maybe minoring in photography or visual arts. I have to research that a bit more.</p>

<p>csdad- How can i make sure that my guidance counselor checks that? Where is that available?</p>

7

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</p>

<p>…part of the Common App is the counselor report, one of the questions is for them to rate the difficulty of the course load you took in high school. You want to be sure that the counselor can check “most rigorous offered at our school”. You can make sure they check this by actually taking the most challenging classes offered.</p>