<p>GPA for freshman through junior years is a 2.56 (un-weighted). </p>
<p>Senior year I am taking 3 APs (Calc BC, Euro History, Physics), and Honors English, and have typically taken the toughest courses available.</p>
<p>Got a 3.86 the first two quarters of senior year, and plan on sending a midyear report to all schools I am applying to.</p>
<p>I took the SATs twice, got a 1250 the first time and a 1390 the second (690 Verbal, 700 Math)</p>
<p>Activities include:
Marching/Symphonic Band for 4 years
Jazz Ensemble for 1 year
J/V Soccer for 1 year
Indoor Track for 1 year
Guitar lessons for 2 years
Clarinet lessons for 2 years
Gymnastics for 1 year
Garage Band for 2 years</p>
<p>Oh, and I am a white male from Maryland who attends a public school.</p>
<p>My question is:
What are my chances at getting into the University of Washington? </p>
<p>Being that my GPA is not stellar and I am from out of state, I know they are not very good. The only things I have going for me is the uptrend in my grades at the end of junior and the beginning of my senior year, and the fact that I have an aunt, uncle, and two cousins all of whom are on the faculty there, along with a father who went there for his graduate degree. Is that enough to give me any shot at all, or should I prepare myself for the inevitable rejection letter?</p>
<p>Hopefully the admission officer who reviews your application knows your uncle/aunt =P. I'd say your chances are low but you got some heavy classes under u and a pretty good SAT score. You have a shot but not a strong one.</p>
<p>I think you have a strong shot. The upward trend in your grades and your SAT will be your saving grace. I think the faculty/legacy connection will help to but since this is such a massive school it may not be weighted as heavily at another school. It is interestig that you are interested in UW considering where you live. I'm guessing that it has something to do with the family stuff, but wow that's a long way to come. Anyway, I may be underestimating the school because I am in state and I never thought it was that great of a school, but I think you have a shot maybe not an excellent one, but definitely a shot.</p>
<p>collegeconfusion-"I think you have a strong shot"...no no no. He doesn't have a strong shot...he has a weak shot. I don't want to sound mean or anything but I want to be honest and tell you the truth. GPA is like the shiz to the UW. SAT is also important but not as much as the GPA. If you had the opposite stats like gpa. 3.7 and sat 990 then I would say you had a shot (not strong but not weak).</p>
<p>doubtful, UW's population is 90% in state, making it even harder for out of state kids. if you add in all the recruited athletes and musicians and what not thats about 93-94%. So your chances are very slim, but since you have relatives who are on the faculty, its what is basically keeping you on.</p>
<p>There is no place on the application to indicate family members on the faculty, is there? My d applied and her father is on the faculty. we hoped this would count for something but there was nowhere to specifically list that. n I read somewhere that it doesn't count.</p>
<p>In cases like this it seems to me basic human nature takes over. I find it hard to believe that admissions decision makers would not know that the s/d of a faculty member was applying to the university, unless the faculty member is part time in the evening or something like that. In fact, I would say it should count for something, unless the s/d was a complete dolt. Let's face it; the comprehensive review process has a ton of subjective elements, which makes decisions somewhat arbitrary in any case. In retrospect, according to posts on another thread, I should have told my d not to bother with any honors or AP courses just so she could pretty much guarantee automatic admit with a high GPA.</p>
<p>I mentioned the relatives I had on the faculty under the section for additional information on the UW app. I have absolutely no idea if UW takes that information into account when making a decision, although for my own sake I hope the do!</p>
<p>According to a small thing in the Seattle Times a few weeks/ couple months ago named "College Guide" or something like that, it was an extra thing. Somewhere in that extra thing was a piece on the difference between UW and Yale. One of which was:</p>
<p>Yale - ties to university through relatives/family is considered
UW - previous ties to university by relatives/family is a non-issue, but seeks out first generation students</p>
<p>Yes, Dopke, that's where i read that info. If they were interested in giving family member ties any weight, there would be a place on the app to indicate such information- just as there often is on other applications. I would have been reticent to have D put it anywhere else on the app as it might seem like pandering. Besides, UW has strong anti-nepotism rules in terms of hiring, so it just didn't feel right to indicate it.</p>
<p>"I find it hard to believe that admissions decision makers would not know that the s/d of a faculty member was applying to the university, unless the faculty member is part time in the evening or something like that."</p>
<p>mmboys07, why would you say this? There wasn't even a place on the application to indicate where the applicant's parents are employed. This is a very large university, with MANY full-time faculty members. The admissions staff is not remotely associated with these people, and i doubt they cross-check every last name to the faculty roster. In my D's case, her name is not identical to her father's, so that would make it even less likely that they would make the connection. Gee, maybe she should have written something in that extra box...</p>
<p>I don't think you need to worry too much about the gpa issue. My d, too, would have been an auto admit if she had taken easier courses. They do look at the level of difficulty in the comp. review, and it will be given significant weight. Your D's more rigorous hs preparation will make her a better student once she gets to college . :)</p>
<p>O.K. the fact that your d name is different from her fathers makes your point meaningful. I just thought a typical person, in this case her father, might call the admissions department and say; "By the way, my daughter is applying to the UW; if there is anything unclear about her application feel free to call me." Then again, maybe not. Good luck.</p>