Chances

Colleges and Universities A-Z Northwestern University
1

<p>Hi, I'm applying to Northwestern next fall for the Fall 2008 school year. I was wondering what my chances were of getting in with the following stats:</p>

<p>Standardized Tests:
ACT: 34 (36 M 33 S 33 R 33 W 10 for the essay)
SAT I: 2220 (770 M 690 CR 760 W 10 for the essay)
SAT II: Have not taken yet but taking Chem and Math IIC and hoping for a 700+ on both
PSAT: 201 didn't do my best but I got national merit and will probably get commended</p>

<p>School:
GPA: 3.999 unweighted
Class Rank: About 10 of 300-400...good chance of going up though
Taken all AP and honors classes offered at school along with a couple classes at a university including the following APs:</p>

<p>AP Biology: 5
AP Chemistry
AP Psychology
AP English Language (or whatever the writing one is called)
AP Literature
AP Calculus</p>

<p>Extracurricular Activities:
Tennis: 4 years with varsity letter 2 years - Played #2 seed junior year and will likely play #1 seed senior year
Speech Team: 4 years and advancing to state every year in every event
Amnesty International: 2 years
Harmony (Program that encourages diversity and acceptance at our school) Core Member 2 years
Robotics Club: 3 years
Sophomore Leadership
Junior Leadership
Senior Leadership
Karate: Brown Belt and one step away from black belt
Model United Nations: 3 years and top in group several times
Basketball: One year
Hotline (Television show run by students) 5 years and will be director next year as a senior
Future Problem Solving: 5 years and advancing to state 4 years
Autonomous Learners Program for the Highly Able (Gifted and Talented Program) 5 years
Spanish Club: 2 years Vice President as Junior and running for President as senior
Science Bowl Team: 3 years
Boy Scouts of America: 8 years
Member of High School Orchestra: 4 years</p>

<p>Summer Camps and Programs:
Summer before 9th grade: Attended 3 week summer program taking high school classes at a university
Summer before 10th grade: Attended same camp
Summer before 11th grade: Did research for 6 weeks at a university working with a professor of Neurobiology and wrote a research report Title of research: Analyzing the Effects of Age, Sex, and Neurological Mutations on Locomotion in Drosophila Melanogaster
Summer before 12th grade: Attending Harvard University Secondary School Program for 8 weeks and taking Harvard courses</p>

<p>Honors/Awards:
2nd highest score in school on AMC 12 test
Eagle Scout Boy Scout
Order of Arrow for Boy Scouts
Presented research at state science symposium JSHS
Brown Belt in Karate
Several regional awards, trophies, and medals in Karate
Some regional awards in tennis
Honor Roll 2004-2007
Awards for grade point average and being in top 5% at school
Awards for robotics team
Several speech team awards in events including lettering 2 years
Awards in Future Problem Solving
along with several others</p>

<p>Service Hours:
Many service for Boy Scouts including at least 18 hours needed to advance in rank
Put together, supervised, and participated in a service project to get volunteers for CPR program at a local university 25 hours
Volunteered at a Local Hospital 10 hours
Worked for Order of the Arrow Service 12 hours
Volunteered for leadership clubs 15 hours
Aided in weeding and fixing up local tennis courts 2 hours</p>

<p>if you need any other info just post</p>

2

<p>I think youre a good candidate for NU as well as other schools.
-my two cents</p>

3

<p>anybody know anything I can do to improve my chances?</p>

4

<p>what havent you done? seriously, you're a great candidate. i wouldnt expect acceptance but i would be optimistic about it. it seems like a high match/ slight reach (due to crazy increases in apps)</p>

5

<p>when's the best time to visit NU?</p>

6

<p>now or early fall to mid fall</p>

7

<p>alright and does anybody know if there's anything special northwestern looks for in their applications or essays? I know it's hard to tell but if anybody knows go ahead and post</p>

8

<p>future millionaires</p>

9

<p>You look very well qualified. You have a very impressive list of activities. I would cut out some of the less important ones - like the one year of basketball unless you plan to continue playing - and condense things like sophomore/junior/senior leadership to one line. This will help to focus attention on the things you are most passionate about. </p>

<p>Besides that, keeping your grades up and working hard on your essays is the best thing you can do at this point. </p>

<p>
[quote]
does anybody know if there's anything special northwestern looks for in their applications or essays?

[/quote]

There is a "Why Northwestern?" essay. I would make sure you include a qualities/opportunities specific to Northwestern and how they relate to your interests/personality. The best way to do this, I think, is to make a list of the activities you would like to continue in college and do some research on those opportunities at Northwestern. For example, if you want to continue Speech, read through the speech team website and maybe email the coach, then include some specific details in your Why Northwestern essay.</p>

10

<p>thanks a ton catfish that was really helpful...I'll make sure and get started on the activities early and start emailing some coaches and stuff...idk if i could get on the NU varsity tennis team cuz they're big 10 but i'll start emailing about intramurals and stuff too</p>